How do I get it to last? The last bottle I bought I never even opened. I thought I would be building a new plane, but didn't have the time. The glue turned rock-hard in the bottle. How can I keep my new bottle from doing the same?
Keep it in the fridge (not freezer). You need to keep it dry, away from moist air. Put the CA bottle in a zip bag or plastic container with air tight lid, together with some dessicant pouches. (The little sachets you get with new cameras etc which say "Do not eat" on them)
Several years ago I fought the battle of 'stale' CA and switched to TiteBond. However, here is what the guys at Satellite City told me.
CA is suseptible to UV light and moisture. It can be stored at low tempuratures (under 50 degrees) and in the dark for over a year. They told me 2 years was the practical limit, but I have some that is pushing 4 years old in the freezer.
There are a couple of tricks I use that apply here. When (about once a year) I need a new bottle, it gets brought to room temperature for a full day before being opened. All CA not in the fridge gets kept under a can to prevent light from hitting it. Generally I try diligently not to use CA as I don't enjoy the smell, but there are a few places where it is the best answer.
Wrong, Keep it in the Freezer in some sort of airtight container. Make sure it gets to room temp before opening. I have some that is more than two years old.
Tom Watson Sydney Australia
How do I get it to last? The last bottle I bought I never even opened. I thought I would be building a new plane, but didn't have the time. The glue turned rock-hard in the bottle. How can I keep my new bottle from doing the same?
Kevin,
buy the CA when you need it..... even when you store CA at a dry and cold place (for example in a refrigerator), after half a year it will become hard in the bottle.
bye, kabrusi
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The label on my bottle from PK Industries says 'Store in the refrigerator, do not freeze. Allow to adjust to room temperature before use.'
Other brands may vary.
Carrell
I store unopened bottled in my freezer. Once opened, they are kept in a drawer when not being used. One more thing -- if you are using accelerator, be sure to store it in a place far removed from the actual CA .
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Keep it in the freezer when not in use - the air is cold & dry in there and the cold slows down chemical reactions. Warm the bottle in your hand for a minute before use. Pre-squeeze a little air out of upright still-cool bottle before upending, else warming air in bottle will force out more CA than you want. Return to freezer if you don't expect to use it for next day or so.
I have several unopened 2oz. bottles in freezer for 7 or 8 years now, still good as new. Opened bottles last at least 2 yrs (never had one go bad). I transfer to 1/2oz bottles for use. When 1/2oz bottle empty, clean with acetone & refill from 2oz bottle.
As someone else said, when out of the freezer, keep well-separated from accelerator (and keep accelerator out of the freezer!)
-Dave
Keep it cool and dry. Heat and moisture will thicken it, and enough heat or moisture will cause it to kick off and split the bottle.
It's not going to last a long time though. I used to buy the biggest bottles available, but now that I'm not building a new plane every month I buy the smallest... it's cheaper in the long run because I waste less.
--- Rich
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So you have 3 options..
F.
Apart from all the advice to keep it dry and cool, be very, very careful how you use accelerators in the vicinity of the CA bottle. If you are going to spritz parts, make sure you keep the accelerator and the spritzing well away from the CA bottle. Both the overspray and the aromatic catalyst itself from the spritzed part play havoc with the CA in the bottle nearby. Helps quite a bit to do so depending on your particular habits.
Mike D.
Thanks for the tip. I've never used accelerators actually. Never really saw the need.
They're handing when joining pieces in awkward positions or places. It takes me years to use up a bottle of accelerator, but when I need it, I really appreciate having it handy.
I hardly ever CA lite ply without using some accelerator to help kick off the bond. I also don't rely on CA for main lite-ply joints--epoxy or white glue are better when strength is an issue. But for servo trays, switch mounts, control-rod guides or the like, the accelerator helps to get things stuck together quickly and strongly enough for my purposes.
Marty
Yup that works too. The main thing is awareness of the situation and some form of prevention. I've seen dramatic improvements in shelf life both at home and on the job by isolating the CA from catalysts.
But they want the customer to have to buy more. Dr.1 Driver "There's a Hun in the sun!"
I disagree. CA glue is stronger than either epoxy or white glue. Also, if fast-set epoxy is used, it will set before it soaks into the grain of the wood. This makes the joint weak.
I use thin CA on lite and aircraft ply all the time. Soak the joint with thin CA and let it set. Run a fillet along both sides with thick CA. Let it soak in for a couple of minutes, then hit it with a light spritz of kicker. Never seen one fail yet. The plywood firewall on my 1/4 scale Fokker Dr.1 is attached that way. Dr.1 Driver "There's a Hun in the sun!"
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