About the slightly brittle rigid black plastic usually used to house consumer electonics, e.g. a portable CD/MP3 radio player or a laptop computer. How to identify what kind of plastic it is? How to do simple but effective repairs to broken parts of this material, e.g. cracks or re-attaching broken mounting pillars? I've tried a few household adhesives, which claim to glue plastics, but none of them do a repair that stays in place.
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3\$\begingroup\$ This question is not so closely related to electronic design...maybe diy.stackexchange is more appropriate \$\endgroup\$– clabacchioCommented Apr 23, 2012 at 12:25
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\$\begingroup\$ @clabacchio I don't think this question would fit at diy.se, not sure if there is any good home for it. \$\endgroup\$– KellenjbCommented Apr 23, 2012 at 16:10
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4 Answers
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When the plastic is ABS (should be marked somewhere on the casing) then I have had great success using acetone to melt the ABS.
It can also be made into something nicknamed ABS-glue when you simply melt scrap ABS in acetone until the solution becomes saturated (won't melt more ABS) and then use this to glue together pieces of ABS.
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Although I assume this question will be closed, I still want to answer with one of the things I've discovered that has become invaluable for me: Epoxy Putty
This stuff rocks. There's two parts to it: blue and white. Mix them together and you have 30 minutes or so to shape it into whatever support structure you need to fix your device. When it solidifies it can be finished (ie, sanding and/or painting). Its consistency solidified is something like pumice or another light stone, but it's very durable.
I've used it to recreate a foot on a metal shelf that was entirely rusted away. Perfect. If you need to fix enclosures this is probably the stuff.
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There are machines that can weld and sold plastic. Probably you don't have these machines, so you need to go somewhere there are machines and people outsource their service for you.
It depends on your location and locality.Probably you could find a place where machines and people are ready to do your job under 100Km radius.
answered Apr 23, 2012 at 15:33
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Use sugru!
http://sugru.com/
The folks at Sugru say:
- The exciting new air-curing rubber for gadget lovers / outdoor types / designer-makers / car enthusiasts / photographers / home improvers and anyone who wants to improve or repair their stuff.
- It sticks to most materials, from steel to cotton
- Colours can be mixed to get a huge range of in-between shades
- It's flexible when cured so great for prototyping parts
Example use - super bouncy kid-proof camera.
Sugru is a silicone elastomer that is moldable, self-adhesive and self-curing. As such, it's useful for repairs like yours.
