I don't know what you're doing with all of your "experience" but yes, when you go around going:

"HURRR NEVER USE THIS GLUE EVER OR ELSE YOUR MOLECULES ARE GOING BUST" is pretty fucking fearmongering to me.

Yes. Over a decade of model building using both kinds of glue. Building PU kits, gluing stuff to ABS, the works. In 10 years I haven't had anything go bust, I haven't had anything break because of suspected interactions with glue. I don't need a goddamn electron microscope to tell me none of my toys are broken down at a molecular level because nothing has broken. If anything, I had more toys break out of the blue WITHOUT glue interaction. Notable examples includes two ROTF Voyager Mindwipes breaking at the exact same place. A T30 Skids who's waist peg fused itself in the joint it's in. Both figures never saw glue for any purpose.

You've been doing kits since the 70s? Good for you gramps. I honestly don't give a damn. That was never the point. My point is that it's fearmongering when you post shit like:

Also, no. YOUR experience does not invalidate mine. There is no seniority here. Experience isn't a labor union kind of scheme where you throw your time around. I don't appreciate the "lol gramps gonna teach this kid" kind of attitude. There's nothing you know that I couldn't learn or know, given that I care, with time.

I mean damn. As I said over two other posts. Done this exact thing for Transformers going all the way back to 2009. For toys going all the way back to the 90s. Ever since as a kid I heard some guys at a collectors store back in the day talking about it. Helped out some of my G2 toys at the time! I would absolutely advocate that you use superglue if its available, with the caveat that yes, you **HAVE** to attend to the joint in question until the glue is dried and set. I would recommend superglue because unlike a paint on model gloss varnish where you might need multiple layers to start seeing effect, or Future which might not be available to anyone, superglue works with small amounts and more often than not one application is going to work for a long, long time.

If superglue isn't going to tighten your joint with a single application, then neither is a paint on varnish, neither is Future. Sometimes applying a varnish or glue isn't even going to fix it and you need to get into the weeds and get comfortable with knocking pins or doing toy surgery to fix it. I've got two GI Joe Classified figures that simply aren't going to get fixed with varnish nor glue and I need to learn how to take them apart in order to fix.

I mean if ANYONE is unsure...read a tutorial, watch a video, use due diligence! As with any adhesive or chemical, you **NEED** to understand how something works and what it's going to do. Hell, most people don't even understand what Future Floor Polish is. It's more or less a thick gloss varnish designed to have stuff moved over it's surface, but it's joint tightening feature can be replicated really with any gloss varnish given you apply many layers. Important as some places might not have Future or whatever it's called now.

 

Yes, you mentioned using a knife, but that wasn't what I suggested at all.

What I suggested is what you see at around 2 minutes in.

 

That's pretty much what I'm actually saying.. to "pop" the bonded area enough to have enough leeway to work the parts free if possible. Not seeing the difference.

 

Except I'm not talking about popping, I'm literally saying keep passing the knife through to remove any plastic slowly that may be fused together. No twisting, not popping, simply slicing and continuing to do so to see if the joint can be freed.

 

ok, just semantics with the wording in a way, I think that we're on the same page.. the goal is to try to get the bonded area to give enough so that you can continue to get the rest to release.

The reason behind my approach suggested is that if you saw the picture from the OP, there doesn't seem to be an actual way to get to where it's "stuck" as it's a mushroom peg that's stuck inside the closed part, so the area that's workable is really limited. I've had similar situations with mushroom pegs (but not due to me adding glue, just the parts were stuck/seized), and to prevent breaking it (as I've ended up with some that did break), it's to try to get some leverage to get the darn thing to release.

 

On a basic level, ECA glue is a solution containing cyanoacrylate monomers that polymerize into polycyanoacrylate in the presence of water (including moisture in the air or your skin). But some forms of ECA glue have additives, such as rubberizing agents, silica, and other mineral oxides to change their viscosity or assist with bonding to certain surfaces. While the ECA polymerization itself puts out a fair amount of heat, the glue itself doesn't contain a solvent that will do much harm to plastic. But once the glue hardens, the PCA chains can be extremely abrasive, even if your glue does NOT contain mineral oxides. If it does contain mineral oxides, the resulting dried glue gains a masonry-like texture that will scratch and wear things down.

And who knows if the brand of glue you bought contains an unusual formulation with xylene or toluene as a solvent to help sticking to a particular material or something?

It seems to me that based on the facts and the anecdotes, WHICH glue you choose is really important, and that some of them can give you disastrously bad results. Having used dozens of different glues in my model hobbies, I can tell you that shockingly destructive stuff can happen if you use the wrong products, including the affected parts of your model melting like honey. However, I have never seen anyone complain about bad results from the clear acrylic floor polish sold as Pledge\Future Polish.

Keeki Pure and Simple Base Coat Nail Polish

Actually, the keeki clear coat is exactly that. It has 2 ingredients: corn alcohol and acrylate emulsion. When the alcohol evaporates, you're left with "acrylic" polymerized into a homogeneous layer. The alcohol will potentially damage figure paint, though, so be careful to wipe away any smear.

 

Actually, I believe that this member meant a product called "Kiki Fix Loose Joints" (and yes, that is the actual name on the bottle), which some people believe it to be a simple water-based polyurethane, which is a wood sealer, aka pretty much floor polish.

But your point about the nail polish stands if the clear nail polish does have such a formulation.

My experience with nail polish (when tested) didn't give me good results which I attribute to additive to the brands I tried most probably. It was too thick to cover well, didn't dry very well, and didn't hold and simply pealed off the plastic.

Part of why wood polish (water-based polyurethane) works so well is how liquid it is and penetrates into the joints/parts. Again, one has to have the patience for multiple coats if needed and that can take a fair amount of time (days, even weeks) for it to be completely dry if you aren't taking the pieces apart to expose to air directly (tinyl fan recommended).

 

I have a few figures with a really loose leg or arm but I've been too chicken to squirt various volatile organics into the joints yet. :\

 

I'm gonna go full on ballistic and stuff an exacto knife into this stuck sonuva bitch

If it breaks then that's on me

 

Floor polish is used for a bunch of reasons.

1) it will NOT affect the plastic, acrylic is one of the most stable things you can use.
2) hot water and it will come off as it's water soluble
3) it's a super thin coating that will stick to the surface just enough to hold properly (it feels "gummy" when it's drying but still wet), and you can keep adding layers (making sure the ones already done are dry first)
4) it's so watery that you can drop a few drops in a joint, move it a bit around and the liquid will get in the smallest parts.
5) it simply wipes off cleanly for the excess/overflow/accidents.
6) when you get it right, the figure will fell like new, some even better than new (as some figures are loose from the start/out of the box), and the mouvement may be firm but still will be smooth, no feelings of anything "grinding".

7) until it's 100% dry the parts can stick in place a bit, but just gentle pressure it will give... it's why I always recommend that you move the parts while it's drying, so to even it out as it dries and prevent a bunch-up that might dry as a bubble/lip that would cause this sticking. (but again, I've never damaged anything due to any of this)

It's basically one of the few things that is 100% fool-proof. Put a few drops, move the parts, wipe the extra, let dry, move it once in a while and give it 1-2 days to be mostly dry but enclosed joints can take a week. Repeat after a week or two if still loose.

I recommend using a small low power/speed fan setup to help it dry faster.

 

Good luck!

Just be careful, try to get as much as you can "reach" with the blade, but consider small flat screwdriver to work the joint to "snap" the glue, either by pressure, by using the screwdriver as a lever. You have to aim for just enough mouvement to work the parts until you can get the glue to give.

I'm mostly worried about you saying that you used acetone that could have melted the plastic.

 

Okay, the fact that it washes off with warm water is attractive. But yeah, that grinding is a bad feeling. A few of my figures do that new out of the box! It's preferable to loose joints, but yeah. My Cyberverse Deluxe Grimlock and my Sparkless Bot both have ultra, ultra tight hip balls. It sounds like scraping your fingernail over the tines of a comb when I move it!

I wonder if this method is of any use to thicken a loose 5mm post or to reduce the internal diameter of a 5mm port. Those ports and posts are expected to take a lot of punishment. I feel like the friction and pressure involved might just strip off the acrylic layer. How durable is it? Do you use it in this way? Weaponizer\Modulator\Fossilizer is one of the big things I do a lot of but man, I am very limited by these loose connections.

 

Actually Imma wait till we can get a screwdriver to open up the crotch (HAH) so damage can be reduced to the emplacement of the joint, essentially "localizing" the possible stress and destruction to the stuck joint itself. Once we do get it it's do or die

If it breaks then that's a skill issue not on me  

 

I'm actually trying to use my "100% knolej big brain lessun" from my school that taught us levers allow for stronger force to be applied on something, so I am indeed trying to lever that shit open like a lobster with a screwdriver

But like I said, this may cause light or even heavy unintended damage elsewhere so Imma wait till we get a smaller screwdriver that we can use to disassemble the crotch (HAHAHAHA) and isolate the emplacement within said crotch and the stuck joint separately

 

Yup.. ALL of my weaponizers (etc.) where loose out of the box, maybe ONE connection (arm or leg) was solid, the rest barely able to hold.

And yes, they've been "floor polished" to death and they hold fine. It will wear down with time, these are friction "articulation" and Hasbro was to stupid to create the connections (pegs and holes) with something like a small ridging/lips that could "snap" gently and have made these 1000x better. The layer won't easily strip off by just plugging the pegs in, but they will wear from the friction, but it can last a far amount of time, depending on play.

I cover the pegs and do what I can to coat the sides of the holes and let them dry for a couple of days... better than new for a decent while.

One scary solution that is very risky but a bit more permanent is some people with heat the pegs very fast (lighter flame) and cause the plastic to warp a bit. I've done it with mixed results and tend to only state it as a "last resort", as it's at your own risk as it is very risky.


I've been considering testing with epoxy for a "layer" that should be more solid, but I'll have to find the best way to ensure that it's thin enough, but that would be only for pegs/holes scenario.

 

I don't understand... why won't it just break with force? I've been applying more force here than when I try to finish schoolwork and it has not, in any metric, moved a single bit. It used to be a moving joint, why can't it just break with enough applied pressure, breakage or otherwise?

 

Er... I mean, that IS what Super Glue is meant to do...

Anyway, it's probably because, due to the cyanoacrylate, as well as whatever stuff you've put on aside from it, fusing both halves of the joints.

If i get your situation correct, you've used the stuff on a swivel joint, which has flat surfaces which are more conducive parts for glue to fuse both parts.

Applying pressure is one way to attempt to break the bond, but then, too much may result in breakage. Maybe try doing so, but also use a flat headed tool (your blade or a flat headed screw driver) to SLOWLY / CAREFULLY pry or flex the halves apart, in conjunction with you applying pressure to the joint...

Also, be mindful of WHERE you're putting pressure. maybe you're trying to twist or rock the joint, but your force isn't directly being applied to the right part of the limb.


Otherwise, it might be time to give up on that part entirely and look to alternatives for replacement. I hear the BPF Magnus might have joints the same size as what you need.

Good luck!

jya na!

 

yeah but like, before I could just crack it back up into two with other toys/items with sheer force. Only now is it not doing that

 

Again, I assume it's because aside from the cyanoacrylate (super glue), all the other substances you applied on it has already created a reaction that fused parts of the joint. Also, maybe the force you're applying isn't getting to the right part...

That's where the flat head screw driver or similar tool comes in. You can use it (carefully) to wedge it in between the halves and slowly lever the parts apart. This, as well as the force you're applying, should help.

Again, do it slowly and carefully... The fact that it doesn't easily un fuse means the parts are almost bonded together, so you have to take your time with it.

jya na!

 

Just like I've already stated,and Cybernaut is repeating... you might have melted the plastic with the acetone, so it's going to be a pain to "break" that.

If you can get some tool, small screwdrivers, a small hammer, and something that could be wide and flat


So, as I understand it from your image, this is what is stuck... correct? but still, if another, it's the same principle. Note that you can see that I've done the "tightening" with the floor polish, and it's very snug, better than new even, very solid but still moves well.




So, as already suggested, the smallest screwdriver in the sides. If you have a small hammer, do gentle taps, and get the tip in as far as you can without stressing or breaking the parts. Both sides.


Note that you should try and do both the "lip" of the mushroom, but also the "inside" (above... so the "thinner" part of the mushroom.. aka the "head and neck")



Then the bottom, you need to try and separate it. Don't focus at one simple place, move the screwdriver left and right to try and work it. Again, as much as you can but without forcing so much to break anything.

An alternative would be if you have a thin blade that you can try to pound gently. The reason with using a small hammer is that you are not aiming to force the screwdriver and blade it, but are trying to snap the parts to separate, and the "shock" o the strike could give you that "snap/pop" better than just prying hard at the pieces.


Another thing to try would be using something as flat and large into the hole on the other side, either larger screwdriver, or from my picture above, I have a small rectangular file that would fit in there.


You'll need to be patient and keep working is slowly.

What it comes down too, is what the bond is.... is it just the super glue that simply really grabbed on, or if the acetone melted the plastic.

Also... get your air dryer and heat that up as much as possible without melting it... that could/should help.


There would be the "last resort" where you could drop some acetone to try and "re-melt" the plastic or break the glue down, but you will need work as fast as possible to do all of this and hope that it releases... but have a bowl of water to rinse as fast as possible if you feel the parts moving, and keep moving the parts under the water.