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Plastruct Tubing & Elbows - Is there a trick to this?
Posted: Fri Jul 07, 2023 3:10 pm
by G3750
I don't know about you, but I'm having massive problems making Plastruct tubing and elbows fit together to show a nice appearance. Components of the same size (supposedly) have badly sized plugs and connection points. They don't take CA very well and I'm fairly unhappy with the way they end up looking.
Am I missing something? Any suggestions as to how to get them to fit together better? I'm looking for some help here.
Thanks,
George
Re: Plastruct Tubing & Elbows - Is there a trick to this?
Posted: Fri Jul 07, 2023 3:35 pm
by Chris Rock
I wouldn't think Plastruct would work with CA. I'd think you'd want to use Plastic Weld.
Re: Plastruct Tubing & Elbows - Is there a trick to this?
Posted: Fri Jul 07, 2023 3:54 pm
by G3750
Chris Rock wrote:I wouldn't think Plastruct would work with CA. I'd think you'd want to use Plastic Weld.
Hmm. Well, there is a lot of my structures built with medium CA. But I could try the Plastic Weld on the tubing and see if it performs better.
Thank you.
George
Re: Plastruct Tubing & Elbows - Is there a trick to this?
Posted: Fri Jul 07, 2023 4:35 pm
by Chris Rock
Me too, until I started building stuff out of Plastruct and Evergreen. Good luck.
Re: Plastruct Tubing & Elbows - Is there a trick to this?
Posted: Fri Jul 07, 2023 4:42 pm
by gregj410
Are your cuts clean and tight? I don’t have much experience with plastruct however like bonding any mediums the more surface coverage you get with adhesives the better. Maybe priming the cuts with alcohol or lacquer thinner.
Re: Plastruct Tubing & Elbows - Is there a trick to this?
Posted: Fri Jul 07, 2023 5:59 pm
by jlong
NWSL Chopper and True Sander work well for me when cutting and end prepping shapes.
Re: Plastruct Tubing & Elbows - Is there a trick to this?
Posted: Fri Jul 07, 2023 7:21 pm
by G3750
OK, I think I solved my problem.
Here's what I've discovered:
- These elbows and other fittings are appropriate for the Butyrate tubing, not Fineline styrene tubing. It's a subtle difference and explains my difficulty. And the styrene tubing doesn't have fittings for it (at least not that I've discovered in my older print catalog).
- To fix my problem, I can use a piece of 3/16" styrene tubing inside the 1/4" styrene tubing. The nipple for the elbow will fit inside it and make for a more snug connection.
- Plastic Weld helps
George