New use for Berryman's B-12 Chemtool and a warning

You're gonna love this; I discovered a new application for Berryman's B-12 Chemtool carb cleaner (aerosol) but it also brings up a cautionary point.

The stuff is a solvent for the plastic that sidecovers are made of.

Let me re-phrase that: You can use it to glue cracks in plastic sidecovers.

I discovered this completely by accident as I was preparing to attempt to repair a minor crack in one of my 550 Seca's "gold-plated" side covers. I used a shot of Berrymans' to clean the area, and discovered the plastic got "sticky." Applied a couple more drops to the crack and squeezed it together; a bit of "weld" oozed out, so I held it together for 5 minutes then left it to dry overnight.

Glued solid.

The cautionary note this brings up is obvious.

 

NIce tip.....

I should've figured this out a few years a go working on my old scooter...
The wind caught a rag I was using to wip up some carb cleaner and it landed on my side panel, eating a chunk of the paint away.....

Never thought of using it as a welding agent, kinda like pvc cement....

 

you can get real ABS glue at any hardware store and if you mix ABS shavings with it you get glue the consistency of tooth paste, handy stuff

 

I tried ABS glue (hobby shop, not HW store, but intended for ABS) and it bounced off. This is the only thing I've found so far that's actually a solvent for that plastic. I've tried a number of glues and adhesives, some "stuck" but they didn't really work.

It was a complete surprise.

 

Yup, found that one out "by accident" as well
Almost ruined the right-side cover on the 550.

(note to self: do not use chemtool as paint stripper, unless there's metal underneath the paint)

When I was a kid, we used Dichloroethane (a plastic/vinyl solvent) to glue model airplanes together. It worked much better than superglue or any other adhesive we could find.

 

Although I think 550 Seca side covers (and perhaps the 650 Seca, also, can't remember at present) are actually made of a different type of plastic than almost all other model side covers........

 

Anybody use one of the plastic welders from Harbor Freight? A friend of mine has one and loves it!

 

I use one for forming Kydex but have yet to master the art of actually welding plastic with it. It's tougher than you'd think!

 

I've used one for fixing kayaks. Mine didn't come from HF but it cost about the same.... I got it from a online kayak store with the color matched filler plastic for the hole I had punched in the bottom of my boat. Fixed it two years ago and it's still good. Buddy of mine put his fairings back together after a drop on a GSXR with it.