What do you use to glue gadgets back together? - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / repair

author: e100
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 02, 2025, 03:37:39 am
content: My first thought was the stuff they use for mobile phone repairs which is something called "BU LAI EN B-7000", for which I couldn't find a safety data sheet or any composition data which is highly unusual and a bit concerning.Searching for other adhesives, there's E-6000 from Eclectic Products which lists the composition as Styrene Butadiene Copolymer (synthetic rubber) dissolved in Tetrachloroethylene. It cures by solvent evaporation to leave a flexible and waterproof seal.Are there any go-to products that you use for putting stuff back together?

author: artag
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 02, 2025, 11:23:56 am
content: It depends so much on the product. You should use an adhesive appropriate to the materials and the usage (eg do you want to take it apart again).It sounds as though you're mainly concerned with consumer electronics such as phones. They're typically made of ABS or possibly polystyrene. For both of these a solvent will work - acetone or MEK (methyl-ethyl-ketone) perhaps. A solvent called 'Plastic Weld' is available in the UK, this is mostly MEK and works well. It's also used by modellers assembling ABS parts. However, I once ruined a calculator by spilling it.If these aren't available due to safety restrictions you may find a builders material intended for welding plastic pipes together. It's ABS dissolved in one of those solvents. It's thick and grey so may be unsuitable for small devices.You can also use cyanoacrylate. This is convenient because it comes in various formats such as gels as well as liquid. If you need to fill a crack you can add microballs (glass) or sodium bicarbonate.If the material is soft and rubbery or slippery like nylon these may not work. I am far from finding the perfect adhesive for these but Loctite 406 will work on some. It's possible that's similar to the E-6000 you found. Loctite have a number od specialist adhesives and their application engineers may be able to help if you can identify the materials used.UV-setting adhesives can be good for their fast-setting properties (I have found that cyano accelerator spray can often mark other plastics) but you need the whole area to be exposed to UV light - the setting reaction doesn't seem to creep into resin-filled crevices. This can be a problem.

author: e100
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 02, 2025, 12:44:53 pm
content: Quote from: artag on March 02, 2025, 11:23:56 amTo add to the confusion there's also a US made 2 part epoxy sold under the name "JB Plastic Weld".MEK in Australia is mainly sold as a primer for PVC plumbing pipes.

author: 5U4GB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 03, 2025, 07:20:33 am
content: Quote from: e100 on March 02, 2025, 03:37:39 amB7000 is standard Chinese cellphone glue, good for gluing plastics and possibly even PE and PP that are normally ungluable, but specifically for PE and PP I use Japanese Konishi-bond plastic glue which is a single-component glue that will nevertheless glue PE and PP.In general though there isn't any universal glue, PVA for wood indoors, cross-linking PVA for wood that'll get moisture exposure, Uhu for most things, Konishi-bond for plastics, solvent (welding) adhesives for PVC pipes, ...

author: BradC
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 03, 2025, 11:11:56 am
content: Quote from: artag on March 02, 2025, 11:23:56 amChloroform works really well also. Turns out Apple Mac keyboards aren't resistant to Chloroform either.