Kitebuilder.com

[stevef]

I often get questions from potential customers in need of "kite supplies" for other unrelated projects. Sometimes I dont exactly know how to reply. Do any of you have suggestions for this request?

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Hello,

Please accept my apologies for troubling you with this question, but I have not found anyone more likely to be able to answer it than you. It is surely outside your province in kites and concerns my "reading glasses".

I wear colorful reading glasses with plastic frames. These are real "cheapos" selling at flea markets for under $10/pr. I choose them based only on 1) degree of magnification and 2) color. When the ear piece snaps and breaks, I prefer to try to fix it rather than replace the glasses, because the pair had been selected for a color I liked or wanted, said color being no longer available.

Most "5 second glues" do not make any kind of bond at all and are useless for the repair. I recently bought a glue that is for the "repair of ABS plastic". My problem is, I do not know if the glasses are made of ABS plastic. Your opinion on whether the ABS glue might reasonably be used on plastic reading glasses is important to me.

Should the glue be suitable for use, can you also advise on how I might hold the pieces together securely until the glue sets (up to 24 hrs). These breaks usually occur right at the narrowest part of the ear stem, where the metal hinge is located. Each part to be bonded is 1/16" square. How can I hold them together securely so the bond takes? Does you long experience in working with ABS plastic suggest any hints for this kind of repair?

Your help and indulgence with these questions is surely appreciated. Thank you very much.
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_________________
Steve Ferrel
Measure once, buy twice!

[mhartzel]

the only thing i can think of to try to hold them together is:
apply the glue, stick them together and try slipping a drinking straw over the arm to hold them straight and possibly a few clothes pins to clamp

just the first idea that popped into my head due to size of pieces.

hope this helps
_________________
Mark
Sand, Street or Sky... I love to fly.
- Take back the web.

[Dorsal]

I have had excellent results lately using PVC pipe cement, for many plastic items like this. The most recent was the earpiece that holds my "hands-free" cell phone speaker and microphone to my ear while I'm driving.
It is not a fast repair - I've found I need to set the pieces then leave them alone overnight, before using the item.
The ABS glue might work just as well, but the PVC glue was already handy.

[Spence602]

$10/pr for reading glasses?

Get them at the 'dollar' store and toss them when they break.
_________________
Spence
www.kiteshark.org

Air: Refreshing when stirred up and served cool on a hot day.

[smarties]

Make sure that the two surfaces are throughly clean: no soap, grease, dust, old glue residues....

Even the best glue can have a hard time if the surface is not clean.

Once, I glued my visor on my bike helmet with some glue for plastic made by Locktight. I can't remember the part number but it fused the pieces together. The visor is under tension all the time and it never broke again for the last 3 years.
_________________
Smarties
http://smarties42.webpal.info/index-en.html

To boldly go where no imagination as gone before!

[KiteSquid]

Plastic adhesives are usualy solvant based and actualy "melt" the plastic to be bonded.

I would usually recomed 5 minute epoxy for most plastics tho...

I would point people with adhesive qusetions to This To That as it is an unbiased and kinda fun web site talking about ahdesives...
_________________
VR/
KiteSquid
AKA TakoIka
AKA Harold
King George VA


P.S. Yet another post by the Squid..... Doesent he ever shut up???

P.P.S. The wind is like the air, only pushier.

[marty]

The folks that make Zap-A-Gap make a version specially for plastics. No experience with it though.[/code]
_________________
Gentle breezes...

Marty Sasaki
Arlington, MA USA

[kelvin]

Try http://www.thistothat.com/ some people like kites others like glue !

[Progcraft]

[Dorsal]

Wow! Normal CA takes about 2 microseconds to bond skin, so one that took 20 seconds would be a real blessing. A person would need to intentionally hold their fingers to the glued area for that long, and normally that wouldn't happen.