Easy ABS Weld

I have done several repairs on abs Interstate fairings,,, and so have had a chance to try various materials. Of the solvent based repair materials,,, one was homemade,,, and worked very well. A paste was made,,, by mixing abs cement with black abs pipe shavings or sanding's. Do so in a jar,,, that is air tight,,, after mixing in the filings to form a paste. Over night,, the filings will dissolve,,, and you stir it up for uniformity. Add more abs filings to thicken the paste to a useable consistency. Do a little test work,,, to determine the setup time and cure time. As I recall,,, my small jar lasted a couple of days. I also used 2-part urethanes (more costly),,,, and reinforced with wire window screen for larger cracks and higher strength areas. Those repairs are probably the strongest points on those fairings now (still got 'em). Cheers,, CAt'

Bush said:
Just used a standard off the shelf ABS cement that plumbers use and it worked fine.
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Sadlsor said:
For those who may want to consider / try this, it's on Delboy's Garage and is titled Delboy's Garage, Simple skills # Plastic welding.
Find it HERE.
Neat tip he uses, for larger cracks or splits, is to heat regular staples, and press them into the plastic. They melt their way in, and add strength. He then covers the metal my melting the plastic over it / around it. You'll have to watch it to understand it. Reminded me a bit of looking at my own belly staples, after the doctor cut me open with a sharp knife, a few years ago.
Hey, it's just an alternative. I have no vested interest in him or his procedures.
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Nice - tks for sharing Delboy's Garage - nice channel and lots of great information there...guess I know what I'm watching more of after work today! :)
 
Grabcon said:
Why I am interested in this product. I have three pieces on my RV that are no longer manufactured and used parts all have the same issues with fractures and cracks. I have looked at most if not all the methods described in the responses and because of the size of the pieces and the size of the damaged areas most if not all would not be useful.

I have done plastic welding with limited success, but I am thinking that they plastic I was using may not have been ABS. I have not tried Uncle Phil's super glue and baking soda. Some of the damaged areas are impact point, thanks to previous owner, so filling holes will be required. There maybe areas where some sort of staple melted into the plastic maybe required to stabilize the pieces prior to repair.

I am thinking that I might just spend 50 bucks and see if this works. The rub is that no replacement parts are available so it is a crap shoot and if it fails what do I do at that point. FYI these three parts are cosmetic and provide no structural integrity. Mostly there to keep water out.
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As another option, it might be worth your while to take it to a professional plastic welder and ask about the cost of having them weld it. Such a trade does exist, and since the process isn't drastically different than metal welding, even though the materials are, I would think that the cost would be similar to having a piece of metal welded. Their extensive experience would probably result in a higher probability of long term success in exchange for the cost.
 
Andrew Shadow said:
As another option, it might be worth your while to take it to a professional plastic welder and ask about the cost of having them weld it. Such a trade does exist, and since the process isn't drastically different than metal welding, even though the materials are, I would think that the cost would be similar to having a piece of metal welded. Their extensive experience would probably result in a higher probability of long term success in exchange for the cost.
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Interesting I will look in to this. Thanks
 
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