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-   -   Glues for Mylar? (http://www.oldrocketforum.com/showthread.php?t=12541)

blackshire 05-23-2013 02:25 AM

Glues for Mylar?
 
Hello All,

What (if any) glue or glues is/are effective for gluing polyurethane resin parts to Mylar--in particular, gluing polyurethane resin parts into Mylar-lined paper launch lugs? G. Harry Stine's "Handbook of Model Rocketry" says that contact cements will bond anything to anything else, but it wouldn't be practical in this case for mechanical reasons. His book also says that Epoxy will bond anything (except Teflon and some kinds of PVC plastic), and that cyanoacrylate (CA) will bond anything. Mylar seems pretty "slick," though, like Delrin and polyethylene plastics.

Many thanks in advance to anyone who can help!

Mark II 05-23-2013 02:59 AM

If the parts can be easily placed in position and the mating surfaces fit closely together, then you could go with CA. It isn't always the best choice, though. Epoxy should work well, especially if the parts are difficult to position properly and could potentially require some fine adjustments before the adhesive fully sets. If shear strength was important, then you would need to go with epoxy.

Polyurethane glue (Gorilla glue or Elmer's ProBond) would also work if appearance was not an issue. PU glue makes impressively strong bonds. Household or construction contact cement will also work; this is traditionally the adhesive of choice for Mylar.

Mylar is stretched polyethylene terephthalate (PET), the same material that bottled water bottles are made from. It is different from polyacetal polymer (Delrin) and polyurethane. Delrin is particularly difficult to bond due to its low coefficient of friction and high resistance to abrasion. (The surface to be bonded must be prepared by acid etching.) Mylar can also be a bonding challenge, but any of the above suggestions should work, especially if you are able to abrade the surface slightly beforehand.

blackshire 05-23-2013 03:36 AM

Quote:
Originally Posted by Mark II
If the parts can be easily placed in position and the mating surfaces fit closely together, then you could go with CA. It isn't always the best choice, though. Epoxy should work well, especially if the parts are difficult to position properly and could potentially require some fine adjustments before the adhesive fully sets. If shear strength was important, then you would need to go with epoxy.

Polyurethane glue (Gorilla glue or Elmer's ProBond) would also work if appearance was not an issue. PU glue makes impressively strong bonds. Household or construction contact cement will also work; this is traditionally the adhesive of choice for Mylar.

Mylar is stretched polyethylene terephthalate (PET), the same material that bottled water bottles are made from. It is different from polyacetal polymer (Delrin) and polyurethane. Delrin is particularly difficult to bond due to its low coefficient of friction and high resistance to abrasion. (The surface to be bonded must be prepared by acid etching.) Mylar can also be a bonding challenge, but any of the above suggestions should work, especially if you are able to abrade the surface slightly beforehand.
Thank you for this information! Being particularly sensitive to CA, the epoxy and polyurethane glue options sound good. Since I'll squirt the glue inside the launch lugs to glue in the simulated booster nose cones & nozzles (polyurethane resin duplicates of the MPC Taurus-1 parts), the glue bonds' appearance doesn't matter as they will be hidden.


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