How to repair broken plastic
Posted: Mon Aug 30, 2004 10:04 am
One of the hardest things I tried to do on my spree was repair cracked plastic. Without having a plastic repair kit, or even knowing what kind of plastic this is, I tried whatever I could find in my garage.
I found a trick where you put stitches around the crack just like the doctor does when you get cut. Using a very small drill bit and 25lb fishing line, the crack is holding together good as new now. I didn't want a buldge on the side panel so I tried using other methods.
Description and Images of stitches trick
Things that work sort of:
Model Glue, it melts the plastic if you use to much so you need to use very small amounts and take your time. The problem with this is lack of strength. It bonds but it's not strong enough to witdhstand any stresses of twisting the panel. (i picked it up and turned it over and it cracked).
JBWeld, works if you make something for it to hold on to. If you try to use it on a smooth surface it'll come right off. I sanded the edges on a 45degree angle on both edges of the crack and that gave it a gap to sink into which helps make it stick. (like a V on the crack, back side of panel, keep front looking better).
This is where I got this idea (Taillight repair)
Bondo Spot Filler works good for filling scratches and for covering the stitches on the bad cracks. It works best in very small amounts, and take your time! Be sure to sand after each use, and re-clean the area before the next application.
All this being said, there must be a better solution, I know one exists, I've been told to stop waisting my time but that's all the help I got!
Ebay has panels but all I found were already cracked.
This is the stitches technique with bondo to cover, if you look close you can see a few of the stitches coming through still.
This is the inside of the right panel. It was giving me a very hard time and I decided to put lots of JBWeld on it. If you wonder why I used this, it's all I had at the time!
This is the outside of the right panel. I decided to use spot filler for smoothing out the high parts on the damage. So far it's looking good, I just don't know if it'll hold up for long!
I found a trick where you put stitches around the crack just like the doctor does when you get cut. Using a very small drill bit and 25lb fishing line, the crack is holding together good as new now. I didn't want a buldge on the side panel so I tried using other methods.
Description and Images of stitches trick
Things that work sort of:
Model Glue, it melts the plastic if you use to much so you need to use very small amounts and take your time. The problem with this is lack of strength. It bonds but it's not strong enough to witdhstand any stresses of twisting the panel. (i picked it up and turned it over and it cracked).
JBWeld, works if you make something for it to hold on to. If you try to use it on a smooth surface it'll come right off. I sanded the edges on a 45degree angle on both edges of the crack and that gave it a gap to sink into which helps make it stick. (like a V on the crack, back side of panel, keep front looking better).
This is where I got this idea (Taillight repair)
Bondo Spot Filler works good for filling scratches and for covering the stitches on the bad cracks. It works best in very small amounts, and take your time! Be sure to sand after each use, and re-clean the area before the next application.
All this being said, there must be a better solution, I know one exists, I've been told to stop waisting my time but that's all the help I got!
Ebay has panels but all I found were already cracked.
This is the stitches technique with bondo to cover, if you look close you can see a few of the stitches coming through still.
This is the inside of the right panel. It was giving me a very hard time and I decided to put lots of JBWeld on it. If you wonder why I used this, it's all I had at the time!
This is the outside of the right panel. I decided to use spot filler for smoothing out the high parts on the damage. So far it's looking good, I just don't know if it'll hold up for long!