Hi Guys. Would anyone have a recommendation for a good quality plastic welding kit for fixing/repairing fairings? I've seen ones with the soldering iron providing the heat and ones that use chemicals in a reaction to do the welding. I have no idea what is best? Thanks.
Have a look here- https://2fiftycc.com/index.php?thre...and-broken-abs-fairings-plastic-welding.8890/
I have repaired a few fairings and plastic parts on cars over the years. I just mix up some ABS glue. Easy to make up. Get a bottle of acetone. Get some old off cuts of ABS plastic. Cut up your ABS bits into small chunks about the size of grains of rice or pepper corns. Mix the ABS bits with Acetone in a glass container to form a paste. Scuff up the back of your ABS fairing that you need to repair. Clean up the edges also to get a nice butt joint. Coat the pieces at the joining faces with your glue. Sometimes a quick brush with neat Acetone along the join line helps bonding. Hold the pieces together (clamps, tape, whatever). Once the join has cured a little, use your glue as a filler to build up the rear of the join. You will need to hand finish and paint after the repair has fully cured. Done properly, you end up with a good strong result. Peter.
I have even cut up bits of other old fairings and glued in patches after track accidents on my little red CBR250RR. There is not one panel on that bike that has not been glued up at some stage.
Hopefully Murdo (The good doctor) will chim in as he has repaired a lot of fairings etc. He does nice / neat work also , so he must have the right gear for the job.
I prefer the soldering iron and worked into the plastic properly gives a good solid join. I use the plastic rods from Bunnings and also thin strips of old fairings for filler rods. I did buy a hot air type but found the air pushed the melted plastic around and was not able to make it work. Free to anybody who wants it. The melted pieces and acetone work ok too, but like most things it depends on where and what you are trying to repair.
I am with @Murdo on this... I have also used the fine SS mesh (from Bunnings) to melt into the area on the back to add extra strength to the more flexible areas.
I bought a plastic welder from Jaycar. Not sure if they still sell the kit or not. it is butane gas powered, but the difference compared to the soldering iron is that unlike the soldering iron, the plastic welder has a hole drilled through the tip. You then feed the plastic welding rod through the tip. The welding rod melts as you push it through. You then run the tip down the middle of the cracked piece you are working on (which, if you V-Grooved the crack - to make it easier to repair), The tip melts both sides of the crack and the melting welding rod then mixes in as well, forming a very very strong repair. I do both sides of the cracked piece and then sand back the side that is to be painted nice and smooth. Then just prep for painting.
It's no longer available from Jaycar, been a couple of year's There is a Kinchrome kit for around $45 that's pretty much the same, but doesn't come with the propane torch, not sure who sell's it either
