Re:We Fix: A DIY Manifesto (2014)
by thisisbrians on Wednesday November 25, 2020 @03:35PM
(#25214005)
If you do this, ideally do it outdoors and with a fan to blow the fumes away from your face. Burning plastic creates some pretty nasty gasses that you definitely don't want to be breathing in; I learned this the hard way, unfortunately.
You can also use a screwdriver or a nail heated up by a gas stove, blowtorch, even a lighter... yeah, I love MacGyvering shit out of nothing :D
The screwdriver on a stove (even electric) technique was needed for building plastic models (e.g. Revell) back in the day.
You can also reinforce plastic joints/parts with metal wire by heating and pushing it into the plastic.
(As a side note, I don't think there is any other DIY material that is as cheap and versatile as metal wire. All you need is some imagination and you can repair just about everything.)
Are there any particular reasons to use a soldering iron? Cyanoacrylate glue seems to work well for parts that mate cleanly.
Two issues. First is they have to mate cleanly, which is a matter of luck when some materials break. The other is that cyanoacrylate (aka Super Glue) does not stick to some things at all such as polyethylene.
In addition to attaching pieces together, you can sometimes also weld on additional plastic to buttress the repair.
Since a lot of household objects are made from plastic (or partially plastic) this is extremely useful. I had a couple bike lights where the plastic clip had broken at a stress point. Instead of having to throw them away and buy new ones, I just plastic-welded them back to functionality.
I did a rough and ready job without regard to esthetics - the results work just fine for me - but if you want to do it more thoughtfully here's a blog post on how: https://www.circuitspecialists.com/blog/welding-plastic-with...