Anybody here into plastics?

What kind of plastic is the console made from?

Landon

hunts Wrote:

lbcnut Wrote:

Seriously.

ABS? PVC glue does not seem to melt into it as I would expect the PVC pipes to behave.

Testor's model cement maybe might? That would make it...polystyrene...

Anybody know what kind of plastic it is? I'm trying a wee custom application and need the appropriate adhesive.
Landon

Landon, I believe it's some sort of styrene, similar to the plastic used in model kits. Most plastic cements rely on a small amount of acetone in the formula, this works well on styrene as a solvent and glueing agent.
If the glued area is not going to be visible I'd recommend trying Devcon Plastic Welder. I use it at work for a variety of plastic repairs and have had excellent results. It's a two part epoxy product that comes in a dual strynge package so mixing is easy. I buy it at the local True Value hardware store.

My guess is ABS, with modifiers for UV resistance, etc. Possibly alloyed with stronger resins such as PC, PE for extra strength and temp tolerance.
It will not be PVC (destroys injection machines) or HIPS (hi-impact polystyrene) due to temp variation.
If you are adhering to it, one of the brand name (Loctite, 3M, etc) Cyanoacrylate (Crazy Glue) specifically formulated for plastics sticks well. You can also use Gorilla Glue if the cosmetics aren't important.

BTW: See your thread on vinyl matching. I suggested a solution to your problems.

Do the flame test. Go here for the procedure http://www.ippnet.com/assets/PDF/IdentifyingPlastics.pdf

If flame retardants were used, and/or if it's an alloy, the flame test won't tell you much.

I didn't suggest it because burning your console doesn't do much for your cosmetics (!). If you have spares then by all means try it.

There's alway Old Faithful. JB Weld.

late late MGB Wrote:

I think it may be ABS. Alot of small aircraft use the same material.

14 years as a (former) injection molding tech.
It's ABS.

losmorob Wrote:

Landon,

Can't tell you what sort of plastic it is. However, I did a repair to mine using a product called Plas-T-Pair which I purchased here: http://www.radiodaze.com/spec-plas-t-pair.htm

I was in a bind a couple years back with a crack in a headlight of my 2003 Blue Turd (Dodge Neon). A bug hit it and cracked the lens. I know it was a bug as there were bug guts in the crack!!! I came across a reference to the stuff and the solvent part alone fused the lens. Minimum shipping was $10 but the total bill of $20 was a little less than the $300 the Dodge stealership wanted for a replacement headlight. As to the Blue... It started throwing ODB codes. The stealership wanted $89 - $149 just to read the code. Advance Auto read it for free and their machine translated it to "buy a Toyota" So I did. The 07 Corolla is the wife's car, her 95 Neon - which gave excellent service for 12 years - was trickled down to her son for a "drive to work" vehicle. This leaves me with the MGB, a Chevy truck and no daily driver. See the method to my madness?

As to the Plas-T-Pair... I repaired a couple of cracks in the console where the shift boot ring bolts down. It has held up for a couple of years now. I also repaired the base of the windscreen wiper/washer stalk. In this case I fabricated a mold from paraffin wax, mixed the solvent and filler and replaced a chip which had broken off the plastic at the base of the stalk and disappeared. Again the repair is a couple of years old. The only deterioration is that the color changed from white to brown. Need to paint it black anyhow.

I have come across a place which offered the solvent and filler separately and in larger quantities. However, I have misplaced the link. Perhaps someone else will come across some other suppliers. Still, Radio Daze are great folks to work with. Warning: They will send you a copy of their catalog with a lot of neat old radios etc.

Regards,

Ken

p.s. Found the place with industrial quantities: http://www.aedwis.com/rawn.html

LOL, Derek! I wonder if they would fall for the ABS thing? It's "technically" not a lie!



peace, Kyle

The wonderful world of acronyms. I am not sure what test was used by a neighbor who identified the replacement dash pad material as ABS, but I have a bit of scrap I can try now that I have the PDF that Gerry gave us. Thanks, Gerry!