Epoxy vs Superglue for adhesion to stag

t1mpani

t1mpani

Platinum Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2002
Messages
5,536
I did some searching but didn't come up with anything definitive: does superglue do well bonding to stag? I have a stag-handled pocketknife that's currently in the "a stitch in time" stage, with cracks over pins which were put too close the the edges of the scales. There is a tiny void above each pin and below the crack, and I want to save the material from breaking away. I have expoxies of varying viscosity (g/flex, acraglass, golf smith) and also some excellent superglue from Sinbad and Starbond. The ultra-thin superglue is like water, and so has very good capillary abilities, but I don't know how well it would actually bond to stag. It bonds extremely well to horn, as it climbs in between all those hairs, but wonder how it would do on a bony structure. I figure the epoxy will stick, but even the thinnest may not get all the way up into the crack to make a good repair.
Since I'm very inexperienced in working with stag, I figured I'd tap the experts. :)
 
Which is better for stainless to wood and for stainless to stainless?
 
Well, in general (and with proper surface preparation) a high quality epoxy bond would not only be stronger but also more chemical resistant than superglue; epoxy (once cured) is immune to most solvents, whereas contact with acetone, for example, will destroy cyanoacrylate. Of coarse, nothing beats a mechanical fastener if you're talking about assembly--epoxy is a great sealer between two pieces of metal or metal and wood but it's not a replacement for pins, bolts, etc. :)
 
Let me rephrase:
For the OP's purpose, super glue will work very well- better than epoxy.
For gluing large pieces, epoxy is superior.
 
I agree. For patch work, CA glue, especially the thin stuff that will work it's way into even hairline cracks, is ideal. For gluing stag to metal, etc, I'd use epoxy, or one of the anaerobic acrylic glues like, Speedbonder (whichever).

For this purpose though, superglue works great. I've even seen pieces that split out around a pin hole glued back in with superglue, and repinned, with fairly heavy peening right at the joint hold up just fine.
 
...and it has already worked great! I started with the very thin stuff, which sucks down into the repair like penetrating oil, and about five minutes later put some more with some ultra-fine flock, and a couple drops of the thicker CA on top to fill the void. This morning I sanded the dried glue beads down flat to the surface of the stag with some micro mesh; the cracks have turned invisible, and you'd have to have known about the voids being there to be able to spot the repair, since the clear glue tends to just look like the material surrounding it.
I just didn't want to get a glue down in there if it wasn't going to hold well and then be trying to clean it out without cracking the material even worse. My thanks again--the generosity of expertise on this forum has saved me innumerable headaches over the years.

WaltE99---one more option with incredible adhesion qualities is Loctite 330, which is an industrial-grade contact cement. It has downsides, high expense along with a very short shelf life once opened, but I'm not sure there's any chemical bond that's stronger. If you ever use it, though, be sure you have your surfaces lined up PERFECTLY before they touch, because you won't be able to move them again! Look up "glue wars" here on Bladeforums--couple of long but very fascinating threads with lots of good information.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top