Super glue

[Colonel Kilgore]

Does anyone actually get to use a full bottle of superglue before it dries up or the lid gets glued on?

I've just chucked out a bottle of slow-set Rocket glue, since the lid has glued itself on and got split. And then I found a bottle of fast-set (runny) Rocket glue that has also glued its lid on. I keep them upright, tap them before putting away (to release anything in the nozzle) and keep them airtight/leakproof in small zip lock bags. Am I doing anything wrong?

I turned instead to an open bottle of Gorilla glue that had been stored the same way. This features a little spike inside the lid to stop things from clogging up. And it worked fine.

I have also bought some £1 tubes of UHU superglue for emergency, and likely disposable, use.

Does anyone else have similar problems with this stuff, which isn't cheap and works out very expensive indeed if you only get a couple of uses from it before the darned thing dries up?!

Simon

[Smiley Miley 66]

I normally buy this one off Amazon, 2-3 bottles at a time. Still got 1 left so I will have to buy some more. I rearly put the yellow lid back on and last for ages.

3 X Everbuild HV50 50 g High Viscosity Industrial Superglue

They do a red bottle and a blue bottle. I usually have the blue as it's not so runny !

Miles

[John Watson]

I have in the past, until I discovered Gorilla Glue super glue. I find that it does not clog up until it is nearly empty. By that time it has become somewhat viscous so I keep it inverted, rather than wait for the glutenous substance to trickle from the bottom of the bottle to the nozzle. In its' inverted state it will eventually glue the blue cap to the screw off part of the lid, but the two are still removable from the bottle. So I unscrew the combined top/lid and use a wooden tooth pick to scoop out the thick glue, that has conveniently puddled in the lid, and smear it where I want it. You still lose some of the glue but not very much. I also try to buy a new bottle ahead of time when it is on special offer.
John

[simmo]

I share your pain Simon. The Which magazine once did a review and testing of glues. Wilkos super glue came out tops for various reason such as ease of application etc. It came in a nice small bottle and had a decent brush in the lid. Some lid bottle brushes are awful. I did note a deterioration of the quality of this glue towards the end of Wilkinsons store in my town. Wilko would seem to still be around but their little bottles with the brushes not so  So my search for the perfect super glue continues I will try folks recommendations. 

Martyn

[Colonel Kilgore]

Thanks Martyn.

I've used those that Miles recommends (rebranded by our local hardware store, sadly a victim of post-Covid shopping habits). I am not a heavy user, and suffered from bottles gumming up over time.

So far, I'm most impressed with the Gorilla Glue bottle. It seems expensive, but if you actually get to use the glue, rather less so! And our local Hobbycraft stocks it 😀

Simon

[martin goddard]

Super glue is tricky stuff in terms of life and ooze.
When just dibbing little bits of super glue I pour some onto a 2p piece.  This keeps the glue cool and allows the glue tube to be instantly re sealed.

Cheap super glue can be sacrificed because it is so cheap?

The GW super glue was very good. A bit expensive though. I now use another type.
It is very annoying when it gets on your fingers or soft furnishings.

martin

[John Watson]

If you get superglue where it shouldn't be then use nail varnish remover (aka acetone) on it. It seems to be effective on most things. I've used it on figures where I've superglued the figure to a base that I want to change at a later date. It works a treat. I've also used int to get superglue off brushes.
John

[martin goddard]

I shall raid my make up kit John.

martin

[JohnWyatt]

Being a bit hamfisted I liked the Loctite superglue that came in a bottle with a little trigger on the side. Allowed you to dispense a single drop of the stuff which was economical and neat, and it seemed to last reasonably well, presumably because there was no excess oozing out to gum up the works.

For big jobs I tended to use a two-part epoxy like Araldite. That seemed to last as long as you kept the two tubes well apart.

And I've still got my old soldering iron somewhere, possibly still with the residue of an Airfix tank track smeared across the tip.

[Panzer21]

I used to buy the expensive stuff but shelf life was poor; very susceptible to moisture.

I just have a stock of the very cheap tubes from pound shops and similar.

A trick I found is to use baking soda as an accelerator and hardener. If you can join the parts together with super glue, try and add a little baking soda and it will set rock hard.
Too much can give a "lump" but this can be cut and sanded down.

Neil

[Smoking gun]

A tip I got from the instrument technician at work is to keep it in the fridge to extend the shelf life.

Best wishes,
Martin, from a village near Grimsby.

[Leman (Andy)]

I just buy a small one from Action for about 2€. So far no problems and if it gunges up not a biggy to just cycle down town and buy another.

[sukhe_bator (Neil)]

I'm with Leman, I've just got a pack of 3x 1g tubes on the basis it'll probably conk out before I've used it all. That way I reduce wastage and extend usability...

Neil