Material used in kits

[Overspawn]

Hi guys!

I bought a Aptom 2 kit from ebay a few weeks back but i cant figure out what type of material it is made out of. The instruction mentioned that it is made out of “vinyl plastic”. Can i actually use PVC solvent to bond them together?

Thanks in advance.

P.s. Does anyone know where i can get the Aptom 3 kit?

[Tora Tan]

I believe the stuff was called poly cement.
It's been a while since I used it though. something like 20 years.

edit: okay that explains why my models tended to fall apart... poly cement will not work.
I found this in my search so I think this is good.
If your kits are anything like mine were, they are 'soft vinyl'.
https://www.therpf.com/forums/threads/need-advice-on-glue-and-paint-for-vinyl-model-kits.77901/

Edited October 4, 2019 by Tora Tan

[Gazham]

I just use small amounts if super glue. Thats what the guy in the model kit shop told me to use.

[Overspawn]

Thanks for the input guys!

I have yet to figure out the exact solvent to use so i will most likely settle with some strong super glue instead.

[Sully]

On 10/7/2019 at 3:52 AM, Overspawn said:

Thanks for the input guys!

I have yet to figure out the exact solvent to use so i will most likely settle with some strong super glue instead.

If you've some pictures of the parts I can give some advice.

From the description though it sounds like the old 3rd party version, are the parts an off white?

 

[Overspawn]

Yup. Its all off white and very solid but soften up easily when heat is applied on it.

[Sully]

1 hour ago, Overspawn said:

Yup. Its all off white and very solid but soften up easily when heat is applied on it.

It's resin. Key thing about it is you can't easily remove paint from it (it warps or is eaten by most solvents) but as you said, heat it up and you can easily use the heat to fix things like parts being in the wrong place.

When putting it together if you've not already cut it off, what looks like excess resin on the joints is meant to go into the holes of the opposite part so things like arms can be moved. Problem with doing it that way is it chips paint, so you'll need to varnish the model when you've painted it.