Playing with Glue

Since I still have a couple of the laser-cut parts left from prototype 3, I decided to make a simple experiment to see how bad they would look like if I simply glued them together with instant glue. Here are two attempts:

The first is using gelled glue, and applying only a little bit of it on the middle layer, then pressing the two layers together. The second is using liquid glue, covering the whole middle layer with it generously, and then pressing the layers together.

I think the first one is completely unacceptable. The second one looks better (the glue traces that are visible are actually not from the glue in between the layers, but my fingerprints from handling the part with dirty fingers). A huge problem with the second one, however, is the excess glue that accumulated in the corners.

Unless there is a special way of doing this on industrial scale, for example with some special machine, I don't think this is a viable direction.

Discussions

danjovic wrote 09/03/2019 at 15:41

Double face tape wouldn't do?

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deʃhipu wrote 09/03/2019 at 15:52

I would have to cut the holes for the buttons and display in it somehow.

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deʃhipu wrote 09/03/2019 at 16:14

https://cdn.hackaday.io/images/5141241567527227394.jpg

A bit cloudy.

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Frank Buss wrote 09/03/2019 at 15:25

I'm using this glue for my Kerberos cartridge:
http://cgi.ebay.de/282102926692
I'm gluing acrylic bars to the cases, which allows to plug in MIDI cables without worrying to bend the cartridge when it is plugged in the C64:
http://www.frank-buss.de/kerberos/glued.jpg
The glue is very strong, so far no complaint that a bar felt off. I guess it would be sufficient for your case if you glue it only at a few points or lines at the edges where it doesn't matter visually. Or maybe you can use tinted acrylic? They are available in many colors.

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deʃhipu wrote 09/03/2019 at 15:30

Thanks, that is an interesting option. The top layer has to be clear, but the middle layer doesn't even have to be acrylic — anything that can be laser-cut and is 2.5-2.6mm thick will work.

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Christian Walther wrote 09/02/2019 at 17:24

There is special glue for acrylic that somehow chemically welds it together. I imagine that would work better regarding the excess, it simply wouldn’t cure there. I have no first-hand experience with it though and don’t know how well it works for large surfaces, it’s usually used on edges. (https://makezine.com/2015/10/29/skill-builder-acrylic/)

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deʃhipu wrote 09/02/2019 at 17:56

Thanks, I will look into that. There is actually no reason why the middle layer should be a large surface — it only needs the supports on the edges and around the buttons, and some connections to keep it all together.

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