What glue

[andy_R]

Noob here, asking noob questions!

I've been looking at different ways of conecting a couple of 2l pop bottles together - tried using an 8mm compression fitting from B&Q and silicon sealant, but the results were never satisfactory. I've seen videos and posts about slip jointing 2 bottles but they always mention PL premium which isn't readily available here in the UK. What glues do you folks (specifically here in the UK) use instead for realiable results?

[Blenderite]

Do you have access to this?

http://www.aircommandrockets.com/labs/a ... ex11fc.htm

[lowerstoford]

Hi, we are in the uk and have been though many glue options.
we have now found a glue that works very well, but does involve careful application to create a even covering.
I know many have tried and failed to use this glue and i am not sure why???
I made some 2 x 2l splices on Saturday night and launched 3 set joined with tornado tubes on Monday evening. 6 foot rocket. Crash landing but flew 3 more times, splices survived without any problems.
We have used this glue to splice for many rocket and have had very little failure.

I will post a how to use, if people feel it would be useful.
I am going to make more 2 x2l splices this evening.
I am also going to attempt 3 x 2l and 4 x 2l

You will get some failures from this glue as its all down to the application

The glue is Gorilla Glue

[andy_R]

Hi, we are in the uk and have been though many glue options.
we have now found a glue that works very well, but does involve careful application to create a even covering.
I know many have tried and failed to use this glue and i am not sure why???
I made some 2 x 2l splices on Saturday night and launched 3 set joined with tornado tubes on Monday evening. 6 foot rocket. Crash landing but flew 3 more times, splices survived without any problems.
We have used this glue to splice for many rocket and have had very little failure.

I will post a how to use, if people feel it would be useful.
I am going to make more 2 x2l splices this evening.
I am also going to attempt 3 x 2l and 4 x 2l

You will get some failures from this glue as its all down to the application

The glue is Gorilla Glue

I'd be interested in a "how to" - is it a similar process to the one used for PL premium?

[lowerstoford]

I use US Water Rockets Splice technique http://www.uswaterrockets.com/construct ... torial.htm

With Gorilla Tape

I will put together something on how I do it as soon as I have time

The important thing is to not use too much as it foams 3-4 times. But this helps it seal the spice.
Sanding the bottles is very important but make sure its a very light and even sanding. Most of my failures (BANG!) have been caused by sanding too deep.

Apply the G Glue in a thin even coat on both surfaces, Very important to make the coat even.

Push Splice together and allow to dry.

A ring of foaming glue will appear on the inside of the bottle, I find this adds strength to the splice.

I find standing the pair on their end is best and turn over every 10 mins for the first hour, helps the glue seal better.

I also like to leave them outside at night for this hour as the dew help the cure process.

If you want to speed up the process, you can add steam from the kettle into the pair, but be careful not to hold them too close as the end will warp, do not over do this or the glue will foam with large bubbles.

Leave to cure for as long as you can, apply Gorilla Tape to the splice and launch.

I will add more later.........

To give you an idea of how strong these are, We deliberately crash landed a rocket made or 3 2x2L splices 7 times from around 100m with no problems, the top slice failed on the 8th attempt. It now will not hold more than 75PSI the other two are fine.

[Jamie5335]

Hello There,

We am from the UK and we don't have any pl premium for splicing or bottles that I know of. So we use the Titebond Polyurethane glue for the outer sleeve and for the join we use a sealer that will not hold to 40 psi- yet does seal the bottles as I before, used the titebond for both the join and the sleeve- and many of the spices were holding to 120 psi but leaking....

So now I use two glues, one for the seal and one for the strength. It works a treat, it is also important to remember that your splices will probably leak if you use just a foaming glue, it is better to be safe on the amount of glue(s) you use rather than wasting time, bottles and glue.

The other advantage of using the sealer glue is that when the rocket crashes, the bottles will not leak afterwards as the glue is flexible.

Gorilla Glue works well too, but it is expensive compared to the titebond glue.

DSC01252 c.jpg (81.07 KiB) Viewed 76 times

DSC09012 - Copy.JPG (75.48 KiB) Viewed 76 times

Hope that helps,
Cheers, Jamie B- JSB Rocketry.

[U.S. Water Rockets1]

Hello There,

We am from the UK and we don't have any pl premium for splicing or bottles that I know of. So we use the Titebond Polyurethane glue for the outer sleeve and for the join we use a sealer that will not hold to 40 psi- yet does seal the bottles as I before, used the titebond for both the join and the sleeve- and many of the spices were holding to 120 psi but leaking....

So now I use two glues, one for the seal and one for the strength. It works a treat, it is also important to remember that your splices will probably leak if you use just a foaming glue, it is better to be safe on the amount of glue(s) you use rather than wasting time, bottles and glue.

The other advantage of using the sealer glue is that when the rocket crashes, the bottles will not leak afterwards as the glue is flexible.

Gorilla Glue works well too, but it is expensive compared to the titebond glue.

DSC01252 c.jpg

DSC09012 - Copy.JPG

Hope that helps,
Cheers, Jamie B- JSB Rocketry.

Is there some law that prohibits someone in the UK from going onto a U.S. Website like Amazon.com and placing an order for a couple of tube of PL premium???

[lowerstoford]

Ha!

Its more about being able to go to a local hardware store and get something off the shelf.

or, as in my case, due to a building project, i have loads of Gorilla Glue, that i haven't had to pay for

Its also good to experiment.

[lowerstoford]

How are you getting on andy_R?

[U.S. Water Rockets1]

Ha!

Its more about being able to go to a local hardware store and get something off the shelf.

or, as in my case, due to a building project, i have loads of Gorilla Glue, that i haven't had to pay for

Its also good to experiment.

There are many people who say that PL Premium is the same material as gorilla glue with more fillers added. If that is the case, it should bond similarly to PL. We have not been able to do a complete comparison test of the two under controlled conditions, so we cannot say for sure this is true.

[lowerstoford]

Out of interest how much do you pay for PL?

did have a very quick look on amazon

£12.99 + £7.99 P&P!!!

[andy_R]

How are you getting on andy_R?

Been down in Dorset for a week, so I haven't had a chance to try it yet.....will let you know how I get on (doing a rocketry night with Scouts in September, so I need something that works!)