How do I remove this glue off models???

[majorsmith]

Who ever invented this glue should  be shot! It’s awful! I’ve got some old genestealers glued with this, any ideas how to break the bond?

[Major_Gilbear]

I... I, er, quite like that glue!    Sure, it's not for every use, but its polystyrene content and lower solvent level makes it really good if you have gappy models to assemble.

Aaaanyway. Like all solvent-based glues, it melts the parts together to form a bond, so there's no real way to "remove" it as such. However, some methods of stripping do soften or weaken poly cement joints without damaging the rest of the model - especially those old navy blue Genestealers made of that incredibly hard plastic!

I found that a long soak in Halfords Dot4 clutch and brake fluid would frequently do the job. Not always, but quite often. And by a long soak, I mean over a month. By all means do a test figure first, to check (in fact I recommend that you do!), but after that you should be able to wiggle the arms free with a bit of firm and careful force.


Another option is to just cut the arms off at the joints, and the feet off at the base. Smooth the joints with a file and some putty, and then pin and superglue them back in place. If the glue is that solid, and knowing personally how bad the arms fit frequently was, this might in fact be the best and easiest path for you.

[majorsmith]

I think the 2nd option is going to be the best one for me! I assume the glued okay if used properly, but I’ve never seen it used that way! 

[Major_Gilbear]

Well, it's biggest downsides are that it's stringy, and that it's hard to control out of a tube. But the stuff is okay otherwise, and just requires some care!

And yeah, slicing joints is often the best/fastest method I find. In fact, after cutting the joints apart, I usually rake them out a bit with a metal dental tool just to make sure that there's nothing left in the joint socket that will cause me problems later. 

[has.been]

I too would go with the hacksaw method.
As I don't think such glue would work on the new join,
I would drill & pin any such join, as well as glue.

[Robosmith]

Is no one going to point out that's not glue..? It's a bonder that melts plastic so it can mix together and solidify into a single piece. The only way to debond it is to cut it unless you applied so little it's only connected at a single small point.

[Major_Gilbear]

Is no one going to point out that's not glue..? It's a bonder that melts plastic so it can mix together and solidify into a single piece. The only way to debond it is to cut it unless you applied so little it's only connected at a single small point.

Like all solvent-based glues, it melts the parts together to form a bond, so there's no real way to "remove" it as such. However, some methods of stripping do soften or weaken poly cement joints without damaging the rest of the model - especially those old navy blue Genestealers made of that incredibly hard plastic!

[...]

Another option is to just cut the arms off at the joints, and the feet off at the base. Smooth the joints with a file and some putty, and then pin and superglue them back in place.

Reading comprehension skills are a lost art these days it seems!

It's also worth noting (again - as in my first post) that those cheap squeezy-tube poly cement glues are more than just solvent; they do often have some polystyrene in them too, which acts as both a thickener and a joint filler, and is why these glues are often "stringy".

[Tactalvanic]

I... I, er, quite like that glue!    Sure, it's not for every use, but its polystyrene content and lower solvent level makes it really good if you have gappy models to assemble.

Another option is to just cut the arms off at the joints, and the feet off at the base. Smooth the joints with a file and some putty, and then pin and superglue them back in place. If the glue is that solid, and knowing personally how bad the arms fit frequently was, this might in fact be the best and easiest path for you.

+1 its useful stuff on some occasions, so handy in the tool box, but if your on a rescue job and someone's been over enthusiastic with it - cut, clean and stick back together with something more suitable.