Adhesives for 'bodge wire' - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / projects

author: Pat Pending
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: December 19, 2014, 08:13:01 am
content: Can I ask for recommendations for securing 'bodge wires' (Kynar 30AWG) to a PCB.Preferably some form of tacky glue that's easy to dispense.Thanks

author: _Sin
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: December 19, 2014, 08:20:25 am
content: Hot glue / hot melt adhesive (or hot snot, as I think Dave calls it)Dispensed from a gun-like implement. Many bodge-oriented uses.

author: Dago
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: December 19, 2014, 08:28:21 am
content: Hot glue is good.

author: tautech
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 19, 2014, 08:31:45 am
content: Quote from: Dago on December 19, 2014, 08:28:21 am+1Because a bodge is permanent it must be secure.

author: AndyC_772
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 19, 2014, 08:45:16 am
content: Hot glue is fine until the board gets warm.I'd recommend Loctite Tak Pak 382 adhesive with 7455 activator.

author: babysitter
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: December 19, 2014, 09:50:48 am
content: If only it were obvious what that black flag country is, if it were germany I might be able to suggest something off-the-counter from local drugstores, and if its something else, somebody living next door might help...

author: jeremy
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 19, 2014, 10:01:22 am
content: I use hot glue, but I have been meaning to try this:http://www.edmundoptics.com.au/lab-production/adhesives/norland-optical-adhesives/1597You can get a 1W 350nm LED off eBay for pretty cheap too.

author: coppice
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 19, 2014, 10:04:49 am
content: Don't trust these new fangled adhesives. Drill holes in the PCB, and use traditional waxed lacing tape.

author: ajb
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 19, 2014, 04:08:35 pm
content: There's hot glue, and then there's hot glue. The common EVA sticks are only good up to about 50C, but you can get high temp sticks that maintain strength up to 70 or 80C. The latter should be more than adequate for most bodges. Even higher temp range is possible with polyurethane glues, but those don't generally work in your standard glue gun.For more precise applications, good cyanoacrylate works well. Not those awful little foil tubes sold as "super glue", mind, those are just full of disappointment and frustration. You can get higher quality stuff with nice precise nozzles in a range of viscosity at hobby stores, or of course there are the industrial products form Loctite and the like.

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 19, 2014, 05:18:58 pm
content: Use the larger bottles of gel type superglue, and preferably an activator, along with some Kynar or even regular scotch tape to protect the board during the cure period from the white bloom. Apply the tape to hold the wire ahead and behind the spot, and make a small well for the glue to fill and for the bloom to cover the tape. Apply glue, leave to react and bloom with moisture in the air till hard, then remove tape. Leaves the board clean of white bloom.

author: nctnico
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 19, 2014, 05:46:18 pm
content: I always use superglue (the cyanide acrylate stuff) to hold wires onto a board. It is less messy than hot glue.

author: wraper
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: December 19, 2014, 06:17:33 pm
content: Quote from: AndyC_772 on December 19, 2014, 08:45:16 amOr cold, actually hot ambient fixes it once it cools again, while in cold condition it will just fall off the board. Do not expect hot glue to last more than 6 months. IMO for permanent bodge neutral RTV silicone is best. It will take a few hours to harden but will be very reliable after many years, no odors because it hardens by air moisture. Moreover most RTV silicone withstands 200+ degrees Celsius temperature.

author: Zero999
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 19, 2014, 06:59:55 pm
content: Quote from: nctnico on December 19, 2014, 05:46:18 pmMe too. Epoxy resin also works quite well.The good thing about superglue is it can be removed, with the appropriate solvent.

author: Pat Pending
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: December 19, 2014, 07:37:58 pm
content: Thanks for the suggestions guys.Gel Superglue: I like the idea of gel superglue as the liquid variety might wick between the wire and PCB into all sorts of unintended places.The end result is nice and flat but might look white.Hot Glue: The end result needs to be no higher than an 0603 component, and I don't how to micro apply such a small quantity.PVC pipe glue: (The kind used for irrigation) Dries and shrinks to about a 1/4 of its volume in about a hour. Stinks though. A colleague recommended the black PVC kind as a waterproof coating and to obscure the components beneath. No instant holding ability and wires still need to be taped into place. Reasonably tacky and doesn't spread out too much.

author: ajb
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 19, 2014, 08:21:14 pm
content: I've found that keeping a fan blowing over the superglue while it dries reduces the amount of white haze that winds up on surrounding surfaces. Using the thicker, slower curing or 'low odor' varieties also helps.

author: Someone
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 19, 2014, 09:26:22 pm
content: If you dont need it to dry very quickly, nail polish.

author: wagon
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: December 19, 2014, 10:17:18 pm
content: You can get low bloom 'superglues' from hobby shops. They are used for gluing windows into models, etc.

author: Seekonk
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 19, 2014, 10:28:52 pm
content: Related topic. I still have a pair of Magnaplanar speakers. These were a mylar sheet with thin aluminum wire glued to them. Nice expensive speaker. Trouble was their glue ate through the aluminum. I fixed them a couple times with conductive paint. That would work, but another place would open up a couple weeks later. I would like to rebuild them from scratch. Any ideas of a semi flexible glue that wouldn't eat aluminum?

author: wagon
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: December 19, 2014, 11:17:59 pm
content: You can get a semi-flexible superglue from some model shops. Also, would neutral-cure silicone do the job?

author: Zero999
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 19, 2014, 11:31:46 pm
content: Quote from: Seekonk on December 19, 2014, 10:28:52 pmThat sounds strange to me.Was it the silver conductive paint which melted the aluminium? Have you tried carbon based paint? It's a higher resistance but might just do the trick.

author: rx8pilot
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 20, 2014, 08:10:08 pm
content: I prefer silicone adhesives because it will put up with anything and everything forever. I have a collection of high-end cyanoacrylates... Toughened, flexible, etc and they are generally too brittle to be trusted long term. I love the fast cure time when prototyping though - no need for endurance.I would like to try the high-temp hot glue, could be a good compromise if strength and quick setting.