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Google ‘squadron precision glue applicator’ It is specifically designed for applying CA glue. I use it when attaching copper plates. Works very well. 

Hornet

 

Current Build: - OcCre Shackleton’s Endurance. 

 

Completed Ship Builds:

                                     Caldercraft - HM Bark Endeavour. (in Gallery)

                                    Caldercraft  - HMAV Bounty (in Gallery)

                                     Caldercraft - HM Brig Supply (In Gallery)

                                     Aeropiccola - Golden Hind

                                                        - Constitution

                                     Clipper Seawitch (maker unknown - too long ago to remember!)

                                     Corel - Victory

                                     Modeller's Shipyard - A Schooner of Port Jackson - In Gallery

                                                                      - Brig `Perseverance' - In Gallery

                                                                      - Cutter `Mermaid'- In Gallery

                                                                      - Sirius Longboat (bashed) - In Gallery

                                                                      - Sloop Norfolk - In Gallery

                                      Completed Cannon:   - French 18th Century Naval Cannon

                                                                      - Napoleonic 12 pound field piece

                                                                      - English 18th Century Carronade

                                       Non Ship Builds - Sopwith Camel - Artesania Latina

                                                                   - Fokker DR1 - Artesania Latina

                                               

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I always buy the large bottles of Loctite and my preferred is Loctite's Prism 406. I do similar to others here and dispense some onto a tile and apply with a cocktail stick. A sharp tap on the bottle to make sure none is left in the nozzle and replace the top.

 

in between use I put in the fridge.

 

It is very rare that I do not get to use the whole bottle as keeping in the fridge stops it going thick.

Current Build(s):

  • H.M.S Diana 1794 - Caldercraft 1:64 Scale

 

Completed Builds:

 

 

 

 

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You might also consider using a non acidic PVA (white glue).  Products like Weldbond  are quite acidic.  The downside is that the non acidic variety takes longer to dry and I dilute only by about 30 %

 

John

Current Build:

Medway Longboat

Completed Builds:

Concord Stagecoach

HM Cutter Cheerful

Royal Caroline

Schooner for Port Jackson

 

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I will reaffirm comments made by John Allen and Mark.  I have been building model ships for over 40 years and used CA glue exclusively on rigging for the first 25 years or so.  The I began to see articles written by some of the professional model makers warning about the long term affects of using CA.  Brittleness, shiny look and breaking.  Over the years, I have many of these knots on previously built models that need repair.  

 

The only time I use CA on rigging is to straighten the ends when having problems getting the line through holes and when mounting difficult to reach eyebolts in various locations.  I use diluted Hide Glue or diluted white glue as mentioned above on all rigging. 

Bill

 

Current Build:

Kate Cory Scratch Built

 

Previous Builds:

Benjamin W. Latham Scratch Built

H A Parks Skipjack Scratch Built

Charles W. Morgan Model Shipways Kit

Rattlesnake Model Shipways Kit

Diligence Model Shipways Kit

 

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  • 1 month later...

CA does a fine job of "pointing" thread so that it can be poked through holes, but in my book, that's about the extent of its value in rigging. (It is also worthwhile for "tack welding" wood parts, but I don't trust it for long term fastening at all.) It's nasty stuff with which to work and is irreversible.

 

While nobody's mentioned it, I use white (clear, not "orange") shellac for cementing thread knots, as well as for "forming" lines which must depict a catenary or for coils. The utility of shellac, which is readily soluble in denatured alcohol, is that it hardens as the alcohol evaporates, which it does rather quickly. It is thus possible to have a "thin cut" (heavily diluted) shellac mixture penetrate readily into the fibers and then stiffen the whole knot as the alcohol evaporates and leave no evidence of its presence. A thread soaked in shellac, accomplished by simply touching the thread with a small brush, will "harden" as the shellac dries and become stiff enough to be formed into whatever shape one desires, taking a "set" when it is finally entirely dry. In the unfortunate event that a knot is shellacked and later must be untied, application of denatured alcohol will soften the shellac and permit untying, although the process may be somewhat tedious.

 

Waxing rigging can form something of a barrier to shellac, but if one doesn't overdo the waxing, the shellac seemingly has no difficulty finding its way past the wax and permeating the entire thread.

 

Repeated coats, relative to the "weight of cut," will build up on the surface, and will leave a shiny surface which is fine if desired and easily avoided by use of a lighter cut and/or fewer coats. Shellac, readily available at any decent paint store, usually in a "medium cut," can be thickened by allowing the alcohol to evaporate some, or thinned by adding a bit more alcohol. (Shellac is also sold in "flake" form, to which the end user adds their own alcohol. Fine furniture finishers often purchase shellac flakes because it is cheaper to buy in quantity flake form and add mix in their own alcohol and avoids "shelf life expiration" issues sometimes seen with pre-mixed shellac.) The dilution of shellac is described by the number of pounds of shellac flakes which have been diluted in a gallon of denatured alcohol. Commercially mixed shellac sold in paint stores is usually two or three pound cut. Regardless of dried shellac's "cut" or age, it can always be again dissolved with alcohol and so is very forgiving for modeling purposes.

 

I also use thin shellac for sealing all wooden parts on a model. It is inexpensive and penetrates well. It is relatively impervious to moisture and stabilizes the wood against the movement resulting in ambient humidity fluctuation. It doesn't raise the grain and sands easily, producing a very smooth surface. It takes paint and varnish well. Shellac is a versatile material that doesn't seem to be widely understood or used in this day and age, or so it seems. Shellac's longevity is excellent. Shellacked archaeological artifacts go back at least 3,000 years. I've studied the Admiralty models at Greenwich and I can't imagine any of them were built without shellac used as described above. It's also non-toxic, save for the denatured alcohol. Shellac is sprayed on apples and citrus fruit to make them shine. It's use to cement knotted and wound thread, as described here for models, is standard practice among fly-tyers.

 

Shellacked belayed halyards and faked mainsheet coil on scratch-built 3/4" scale 16' catboat below. All "bright" wood unstained and sealed with shellac alone.

 

1394.jpg

Edited by Bob Cleek
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Bob,

 

For the shaping of lines, many of us a 50/50 mix of white glue (not the yellow) and water.  Brush it on, let it soak in.  Invisible and it holds.  Need to separate, a wee bit of water and patience and the knots come apart.

 

Like you, CA is only for tacking parts.  Epoxy for metal to wood or metal to metal if soldering isn't possible.

Edited by mtaylor

Mark
"The shipwright is slow, but the wood is patient." - me

Current Build:                                                                                             
Past Builds:
 La Belle Poule 1765 - French Frigate from ANCRE plans - ON HOLD           Triton Cross-Section   

 NRG Hallf Hull Planking Kit                                                                            HMS Sphinx 1775 - Vanguard Models - 1:64               

 

Non-Ship Model:                                                                                         On hold, maybe forever:           

CH-53 Sikorsky - 1:48 - Revell - Completed                                                   Licorne - 1755 from Hahn Plans (Scratch) Version 2.0 (Abandoned)         

         

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

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  • 5 weeks later...

I use many different ca glues but my "go to" ca is Loctite gel (in the gray bottle not the black container). One thing I learned over time is to use a "very small" amount. I also learned (on a airplane forum) that when you can no longer squeeze out any glue you can "carefully" cut apart the plastic outside and use the glue remaining in the tube.

Completed Builds:

Virginia Armed Sloop...Model Shipways

Ranger...Corel

Louise Steam Launch...Constructo

Hansa Kogge...Dusek

Yankee Hero...BlueJacket

Spray...BlueJacket

26’ Long Boat...Model Shipways

Under Construction:

Emma C. Berry...Model Shipways

 

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  • 1 month later...

How I manage CA glue tips is acetone which you can pickup at walmart, home depot etc. They have it where the have mineral spirits, lacquer thinner, etc.

 

First I use BSI (Bob Smith Industries) CA Glue. This is what is typically sold by Micro-Mark, Model Shipways etc with their name on it. I then ordered extra tips. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001NI8MS0/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1 

 

I have uncut tips which is what I use on the bottles while not using the glues. When I need to use them, I put on a cut tip and use it. When I'm done, I drop the tip in a jar with acetone and put the uncut tip back on the bottle. If I'm using thin CA, I also add a fine tip. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002N4S8S2/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1. Again when I'm done, this fine tip goes in the acetone too.

 

After the tips soak in acetone for a day or two, I remove them and let them air dry. They dry pretty quick. Now they are ready to go. 

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