Adhesive for steel-to-plastic bond?

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KennyB

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Jan 19, 2010
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Well, I'm not actually doing anything to a knife.... I have a Kimber PepperBlaster II pepper spray gun. The frame is plastic, I think ABS but I'm not sure. I can't drill and tape holes into it because the components inside, but I want to attach a pocket clip from an old Benchmade that I have. Already tested it with some Loctite Epoxy Weld and it was a good principle, but that particular epoxy did not hold the clip on.

I haven't had really good luck with that particular type of epoxy in the past for other things anyway, so I think I'm going to try something else. Curious if any of you guys have used an adhesive to attach a pocket clip before. I think it's kind of a tall order for the adhesive since the way the clip imparts stress is a little bit like a lever... Small amount of force on the end of the clip, lots of stress at the bonding joint.

Thinking about this stuff...

http://www.loctiteproducts.com/p/epxy_plstc_s/overview/Loctite-Epoxy-Plastic-Bonder.htm
 
Theoretically, epoxy will be about your best bet, I think. Both surfaces will need to be SURGICALLY clean, and lightly abraded.

That's a LOT of force, but if an adhesive can do it, an epoxy would probably be your best bet. Have you considered a clip like a money clip, where all the spring force is within the steel, then just bond the back of THAT to the plastic? That would make the task for the adhesive MUCH more practical. At that point, good high-strength double-sided tape would work.
 
Komitadjie said:
Theoretically, epoxy will be about your best bet, I think. Both surfaces will need to be SURGICALLY clean, and lightly abraded.

That's a LOT of force, but if an adhesive can do it, an epoxy would probably be your best bet. Have you considered a clip like a money clip, where all the spring force is within the steel, then just bond the back of THAT to the plastic? That would make the task for the adhesive MUCH more practical. At that point, good high-strength double-sided tape would work.
Click to expand...

Yeah, thought of that too but didn't have something like that on hand. I think I might just throw down a few dollars for one of those NiteIze clips, but I would hate to spend $10 on one of those.
 
The trouble with plastics is that some of them just don't bond worth a hoot... For instance, I mix up my epoxy on old (but clean) tops from sour cream, margarine etc containers... when the leftover epoxy is hardened, it peels right off. Same with JB Weld.

Spend the $10 on the proper clip and be done with it.
 
why not make a clip from some plastic? i'm sure you can find a piece stiff enough to work and something that epoxy will stick to. i was looking on their website at the spray gun but they do not show the insides very well. can you post pictures showing the insides? maybe i can come up with something that will work.
 
What choices have you got with hot gun glues? I think it's probably the only way you'll get a robust enough adhesive.
ABS is very hard to glue anything else to.
 
It may depend on how flexible the plastic is. If the plastic is too flexible, a brittle adhesive wouldn't work very well.
 
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