can i post in this topic or will be a way of self-promoting myself?


?:????

soak in water for many hours, bend, let dry... then glue.

works for most sticks and sheets... can get funky warps if quality of wood sucks.

wood glue/elmers is much less toxic and less visible.

build a jig, wet the surfaces (amount/time depends upon thickness of material and radius of curvature), place in jig - let dry.
hot water works better than cold.

I generally use Sobo glue for all my model-building. Similar properties as Elmer's White Glue when wet, but has a much stronger hold, and stays flexible when dry (as opposed to Elmer's, which becomes brittle when dry).

microwaving soaked pieces works to dry faster - just don't start a fire.

I have to second SOBO. I've been using it for years and have no complaints, except that my model from last semester was so huge I went through a whole bottle, and now I'm out!

Not to steal the thread or anything, but what kind of a glue works best with plexi? I'm thinking an epoxy, but I'm not sure. I'll be gluing the pieces face-to-face (sandwich style) so I don't need to worry too much about strength, I just need to prevent lateral movement.

Back to the issue at hand, if I were using a very thin sheet of basswood, roughly how long would I need to soak it to bend it to a slight curve?

also 'tacky' glue, same exact qualities as sobo, but is a little thicker and stronger out of the bottle, meaning you can hold piece in place for only a few brief seconds before moving onto the next.

With tacky glue though, i recommend storing the bottle upside down when not in use, especially towards when approaching empty - it become a real pain to get out.

Use Sobo, unless you're in a rush, then use zap-a-gap with zip kicker. Also, to bend bass wood, the best way (not necessarily fastest) is to build a form, then thoroughly soak two sheets of bass wood (if you're needing 1/16", use two 1/32") then put them both in the form until they dry. Once they're dry, take them out, put a thin layer of sobo between the two, then put them back in the form until the sobo is very thouroughly dry. The sobo between them helps to keep the form - it'll be solid.

gluing plexi is an art-
plexi to plexi is easy, use solvent (toxic!)...
plexi to wood, try sobo or zap (but depends on if glue is visible)
plexi to metal, epoxy or zap (toxic alert)

it's been a while, so I may be wrong about these...

If in doubt, use mechanical fasteners.

for glue- extra tacky (or maybe super tacky? something like that), and quick-dry tacky were always my favorites.

for bending- take it in the shower with you, bend it into the appropriate shape, tape it or otherwise secure it into place, remove tape when wood is thoroughly dried out.

I generally use Sobo for plexi, but I'm uber-cautious to keep the amount of glue used to an absolute minimum, and to thoroughly clean up any spillage/seepage before it dries. I apply the glue with a toothpick or paper clip to maintain precise control of where the glue goes.

Thanks for the posts

weld-on 3 or 4 for acrylics
elmers for wood


no super glue on acrylics... the fumes cause a fog


solvents make chemical reactions btw the parts
glues are just a bonding agent btw the parts



did i go over the line here?

not with self-promotion, but this is getting on towards being twice as annoying. Somebody burned you, they had a problem with you using archinect to promote your business. It was another person, it wasn't the owner of the site, so that's their opinion. Either go on as you were before, or suck it up that someone had a problem and try to fix it. This 'see-look-at-poor-me-I'm-not-self-promoting-because-of-you-bastards' attitude is worse.

haha... who burned me....... if anything it just brought my name to everyone even more........



two thirty seven ay emm

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I'll throw my two cents towards the wetting and bending. I am also a HUGE fan tacky glue. The super tacky was good, but I found the regular to actually be better for working time and tensile strength.

Keeping the cap or putting a scrap of wood in the cap of the tacky glue bottle are imperative.

Glue on a tooth pick and reverse grip tweezers are life savers.

I use elmers. Let it sit for a little while before use so it is tacky.

I love the way elmers dries...is pretty much clear...some of the tacky glues look like superglue, where you can see the glue on the material.

I have never used glue to bend basswood, only to glue it. I would suggest using your hands

you can also steam the wood using steam from an electric (or stovetop) teakettle. at any rate, the wood will bend more easily if it's heated. then you clamp it to your jig and wait for it to dry and follow everyone else's instructions.

I had to do this for a model last year, some pretty intense curves, and using water wasn't getting me there. I did some research and found that a good method for this. Soak your basswood in VINEGAR - it actually breaks down some of the cellular structure, meaning when it's soaked it's much more flexible than if you soak in water, and when it dries it's still somewhat pliable.

model making front you have to check this site out and get their catalogue, unbelievable stuff to help you make models; probably other places too, but i wish i knew about this when i was in school, not that i had the money but....cool none-the-less.


http://www.micromark.com/

If all else fails, just stare directly at it and focus your thoughts to alter the molecular structure of the fibers.
Sometimes works for me.

Oh, no, that was a TV show I saw once. Sorry.



But, really, a microwave really can do cool things to moist wood. Just be careful.

To bend basswood, you need to steam it first to soften the fibers of the wood making it easier to bend. There are generally 2 ways you can soften basswood. The first is to steam the wood and the second is to place the wood in hot water for a certain period of time.

To steam basswood, you first need to prepare the steamer where you will need to steam the basswood. Fill a steamer with extremely hot water. Make sure that the steamer you will use can be sealed properly to prevent steam from coming out.

To soften the basswood by placing it in hot water, fill a large pot with water. Allow the water to reach a rolling boil. It is important that the water is extremely hot, boiling temperature is ideal, and that it remains hot for at least 6 hours.

Whoever recommended Sobo thank you for your input. I've been using Weldbond all these days and I find myself frustrating that it either dries too slowly or when it dries it clogs my tube.

Does Sobo dry slowly like Weldbond? If you have used both which do you find better?