Question Has anyone seen this adhesive?
- Thread starter Andy
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I have definitely heard of it but I haven't tried that one yet!
For bed adhesion I’m a big hair spray fan. All my printers came with a regular glue sticks but they were hard to get thin even coatings and the surface of the print was both sticky and lumpy. I read some people use a little water to smooth it out but i figured I would skip the middle man and used unscented hair spray since they are both PVA glue. I spray an even but thin flood coat where the print is going to be and then heat up the plate until it all dries and evaporates the liquid. This is pretty fast usually and then the printer is ready to go with the print. Clean the bed with warm water and a towel.
Another similar option is mixing your own from wood glue or elmers and some water. This washes up well just don't get it on your clothes and allow it to dry.
For gluing prints together I am forever a fan of using what the acrylic workers use, Weld-on 3. This super-fluid-like high VOC solvent must be applied with a needle applicator. You weep it into the crack between two parts and they will dissolve and literally weld together as the solvent evaporates. This stuff has a working time of like 30 seconds and cure time of 2 minutes. You must wear nitrile gloves and use it in a ventilated space though so its not one to use in your living room.
Closer to 3d goop is weld-on 16 which is the same deal but in a thick gel that can fill cracks and small gaps. Its basically acrylic melted into the solvent so it has a longer working time and some solids to leave behind.
Super glue gel also works really well but is better if the parts can be clamped together and let to cure for half an hour or so. Superglue and the gel will leave white marks near where it applied from the solvent evaporating and some landing back on the print so it can have unexpected aesthetic damage sometimes. These white marks do not dissappear with flame polishing but can be removed with a quick gentle wipe of acetone. The acetone will damage abs, PLA and PETG to some extent though so you have to be careful.
For bed adhesion I’m a big hair spray fan. All my printers came with a regular glue sticks but they were hard to get thin even coatings and the surface of the print was both sticky and lumpy. I read some people use a little water to smooth it out but i figured I would skip the middle man and used unscented hair spray since they are both PVA glue. I spray an even but thin flood coat where the print is going to be and then heat up the plate until it all dries and evaporates the liquid. This is pretty fast usually and then the printer is ready to go with the print. Clean the bed with warm water and a towel.
Another similar option is mixing your own from wood glue or elmers and some water. This washes up well just don't get it on your clothes and allow it to dry.
For gluing prints together I am forever a fan of using what the acrylic workers use, Weld-on 3. This super-fluid-like high VOC solvent must be applied with a needle applicator. You weep it into the crack between two parts and they will dissolve and literally weld together as the solvent evaporates. This stuff has a working time of like 30 seconds and cure time of 2 minutes. You must wear nitrile gloves and use it in a ventilated space though so its not one to use in your living room.
Closer to 3d goop is weld-on 16 which is the same deal but in a thick gel that can fill cracks and small gaps. Its basically acrylic melted into the solvent so it has a longer working time and some solids to leave behind.
Super glue gel also works really well but is better if the parts can be clamped together and let to cure for half an hour or so. Superglue and the gel will leave white marks near where it applied from the solvent evaporating and some landing back on the print so it can have unexpected aesthetic damage sometimes. These white marks do not dissappear with flame polishing but can be removed with a quick gentle wipe of acetone. The acetone will damage abs, PLA and PETG to some extent though so you have to be careful.
Ooooh, that's a lot of new stuff to try. I'm into it 
One of the things that that 3D Gloop was promoting was that you can print ABS without an enclosure on an unheated build plate. I expect you'd want to have it on glass because you have a lot of scraping ahead of you if you do that, but it can apparently be done.
I've had some success getting the white super glue residue off with just water on a paper towel, but that's good to know that acetone will take care of the leftovers. I also have some models to repair, so that's good to know about the Weld-On options.
One of the things that that 3D Gloop was promoting was that you can print ABS without an enclosure on an unheated build plate. I expect you'd want to have it on glass because you have a lot of scraping ahead of you if you do that, but it can apparently be done.
I've had some success getting the white super glue residue off with just water on a paper towel, but that's good to know that acetone will take care of the leftovers. I also have some models to repair, so that's good to know about the Weld-On options.
Even the glass bed needs some careful scraping too. I have pulled up a print before and taken big chunks of glass with it on a couple occasions (flip the glass over and don't tell anyone). To be fair though I haven't met a print bed I can't ruin somehow, lol.
While being able to print ABS without an enclosure is definitely impressive I would probably not do it because of the toxic fumes ABS produces. I don't think they are carcinogenic, but they are supposed to be irritating to the skin and eyes. It definitely smells like burning plastic though so not great to use where you're working. You know right away if someone is printing ABS when you walk into the room.
When 3d printing first came onto the scene it was the only plastic you could get filament made from so it was a sort of necessary evil. The recent ubiquity of PETG has made that an obsolete plastic in my eyes. I'm sure it has value in injection molding still but probably is mostly still used for it's low cost of the raw pellets. Now that you can get PETG colors of filament around the same price as PLA I just use that, they are very similar mechanically and thermally with their higher glass transition temperatures. PETG is still slightly worse smell than PLA which has an almost pleasant smell sometimes, but the ABS is terrible.
**old man voice** I remember when PETG was exotic and $40 a spool! Kids these days can get it for $20 and don't know how good they got it.
While being able to print ABS without an enclosure is definitely impressive I would probably not do it because of the toxic fumes ABS produces. I don't think they are carcinogenic, but they are supposed to be irritating to the skin and eyes. It definitely smells like burning plastic though so not great to use where you're working. You know right away if someone is printing ABS when you walk into the room.
When 3d printing first came onto the scene it was the only plastic you could get filament made from so it was a sort of necessary evil. The recent ubiquity of PETG has made that an obsolete plastic in my eyes. I'm sure it has value in injection molding still but probably is mostly still used for it's low cost of the raw pellets. Now that you can get PETG colors of filament around the same price as PLA I just use that, they are very similar mechanically and thermally with their higher glass transition temperatures. PETG is still slightly worse smell than PLA which has an almost pleasant smell sometimes, but the ABS is terrible.
**old man voice** I remember when PETG was exotic and $40 a spool! Kids these days can get it for $20 and don't know how good they got it.