TL-01 Wild Willy

[30YrsL8r]

I know it's been done before, but I thought I'd document this anyway! Thanks to mr crispy for some excellent photos on how he went about it and to others for posting their experiences.

I decided I wanted the resultant pieces on the flanks of the chassis to match up as well as possible, which meant that I had to be selective about the sections I cut out. In fact, it dictated that the cuts not be in the same place on both sides. I'm not unhappy about that, as I suspect it will add slightly to the strength of the finished article.

I also wanted to maintain the same slope on both sides on the top of the chassis at the front. That meant that I had to cut diagonally through the prop shaft recess.

I thought that using a mitre block would help me keep the cuts vertical, and therefore matching, but the hacksaw was much thinner than a normal timber saw so it meandered slightly. Luckily I was able to cut both pieces equally badly so that they still matched

Here's a look at the result. The rubber band isn't going to be a permanent feature; I'm just trying to decide whether to glue the sections together or use the polymorph I have to create an internal brace to bolt the sections onto.

[IBIFTKH]

'...cut both pieces equally badly' - you sound just like me! Watching with interest...

[Percymon]

Bloomin heck thats a nice clean cut n shut and the offset can only help.

Now you have me thinking - I have a used TL-01 chassis under the Bowler shell, spare unused TLT-1 wheelset and a new Willy2 bodyset - Hmmm, watchign with interest

[mr crispy]

Looking good to me 30yrsl8r. The offset cut is a nice idea, what are you intending to fix it with, plastech?

Percymon - Just say no mate! I started a cut n shut on a TL01 chassis and before I knew it I'd done 3 of them and I'm now thinking about "lengthening" one It gets very addictive so be warned people

[30YrsL8r]

what are you intending to fix it with, plastech?

I have polymorph and I'm cheap, so I might try that first

now thinking about "lengthening" one

I confess, I was looking at the section I cut out and thinking "now what can I do with that?"

[bromvw]

Neat work - very neat . Almost looks as though you used the cotton thread on that mate .

[shenlonco]

Now this is a cool project!!!

after you fuse the plastic together you should go around the inside seam of the cut with a nice bead of goop glue and that should hold it real good.

[30YrsL8r]

The more I think about it, the less I like the idea of creating an internal polymorph brace to screw the sections of the chassis to. However, the price tag of the Plastech and Plastex options is putting me off.

Someone commented on a motorcycling forum that Super Glue and a kicker powder (sodium bicarbonate - baking powder) is similar. I just gave it a try on some scrap bits and, whilst it does make the glue dry instantly and create very solid clumps (good for reinforcing internal corners) they seemed brittle and weren't bonded to the plastic fantastically well.

Has anyone else tried this method? It could be that I have very old/cheap Super Glue to hand that's causing this to happen.

[Percymon]

I'd imagine superglue is too brittle for chassis uses - its good mixed with bicarb or talc as a body filler / bonder (for example bonding the nosecone on a scorcher shell), but its not ideal for structural use.

can you brace it with aluminium L section on the inside ? Perhaps bonding these in place with epoxy or similar (no nails??) ?

Most adhesives will probably deteriorate over a long period (>5 years) of time too

[Percymon]

another thought - could you make a tight fitting box section which both chassis halves could slide over and be bonded with epoxy ?

[bromvw]

i hear a lot about JB weld ? maybe that would do the job or the stuff plumbers use to join poly pipe . looking at it though it would be fairly easy the make up a sheet metal bottom plate and bolt halfs to that .

[billg4]

a plastic cement will melt bond the parts, super glue, AKA CY or cyanite (SP?) glues do not meld the parts, just stick them. And kickers do in fact make it even more brittle.

Here in the ''colonies'' we use plasti-weld or plastruct for jobs like this as it melds the parts. An internal brace is even more support so depending on how you drive, or any non intended stresses you would be better off adding some.

[pastimesteve]

a plastic cement will melt bond the parts, super glue, AKA CY or cyanite (SP?) glues do not meld the parts, just stick them. And kickers do in fact make it even more brittle.

Here in the ''colonies'' we use plasti-weld or plastruct for jobs like this as it melds the parts. An internal brace is even more support so depending on how you drive, or any non intended stresses you would be better off adding some.

Bill certainly knows what he's talking about (Hi Bill, I remember you from my slot car days), however I've NEVER been able to get plasti-weld or plastruct glue to sufficiently bond thick Tamiya plastic. Admittedly, I could be doing something wrong! The only thing that seems to work for me is epoxy glue specifically formulated for plastic. I would think plumber's glue would also work well. I bring all of this up though because I recently bonded a cut TL01 chassis using JB Weld first, then epoxy plastic glue second. It seems to be strong. The best and strongest method, as noted already, would be some combination of epoxy and a bolted joint. Next time I'm going to try plumber's glue.

Oh, and 30yrsl8r, FANTASTIC job cutting that TL01 chassis. It's not easy and you made such clean cuts. Very impressed.

Steve

[shenlonco]

Hi you need to try some liquid solvint for mending plastics together.

This stuff for ABS this will be much stronger than that plastruct model type

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_odkw=ABS+welder&_osacat=0&_from=R40&_trksid=p2045573.m570.l1313&_nkw=ABS+cement&_sacat=0

and then do what i said with goop glue a thick bead inside or a plastic epoxy

[30YrsL8r]

Bill certainly knows what he's talking about

He was right about the Super Glue and soda, that's for sure! I just wasted 2 hours of my life fitting, sticking, scraping, washing, reinforcing and rewashing the two halves only for them to crack apart when I applied a little torsion. Not that I doubted Bill, just because I had the Super Glue to hand.

Thanks for all the input, folks. Do you have the brand of the glue you have had some luck with, pastimesteve? Did you mean that you left the JB Weld on AND used epoxy, or failed with the JB Weld and used epoxy instead?

How are your cut-and-shuts holding up, mr crispy? Have they had much of a beating?

[GregM]

For bonding polystyrene materials , I use UHU Plast Flüssig, as it has a habit of "welding" the parts together. I've successfully used it to repair cracks and holes in Tamiya's hard plastic polystyrene bodyshells. I'm not sure if this glue works equally well with the ABS that most chassis are made of.

[shenlonco]

He was right about the Super Glue and soda, that's for sure! I just wasted 2 hours of my life fitting, sticking, scraping, washing, reinforcing and rewashing the two halves only for them to crack apart when I applied a little torsion. Not that I doubted Bill, just because I had the Super Glue to hand.

Thanks for all the input, folks. Do you have the brand of the glue you have had some luck with, pastimesteve? Did you mean that you left the JB Weld on AND used epoxy, or failed with the JB Weld and used epoxy instead?

How are your cut-and-shuts holding up, mr crispy? Have they had much of a beating?

Well I am sorry to say this but you muffed up all your work as now the ABS solvents will not work anymore because the parts are now coated in CA glue ... these solvents melt and fuse the plastic together and it needs to be bare raw plastic to bond the CA will act as a shield not letting it melt the plastic anymore.

best bet now is probably another type of epoxy glue to first glue the chassis together...

and then your best bet will be to make little plates and bolt the chassis together this will be the strongest method... I would glue the chassis together and make small aluminium plates with 4 screws and nuts on each and then glue tham down and bolt them across the cut to section of chassis to hold the sections together this way.

[mr crispy]

The plastech is worth it IMO. It's not only great at bonding but can be used to make new parts and fills gaps and stripped screw threads. Not had any of my bonds fail yet and they've been thrown around quite a bit. My 20month old son knocked a chassis off a 3ft high table onto hard flooring, it cracked a shock mount but the plastech held firm. I know one chassis survived a trip to Canada as I sold it to a member there!

One thing I'd mention is whatever method you decide remember to keep the chassis halves seperate so you can still take it down for maintanence.

I have this crazy idea to get two TL01s, shorten them and then fix them together with a single prop shaft so I'd end up with an 8 wheel drive, 4 wheel steering, dual motor rig... something like a Scud Launcher Itd be totally impractical to drive around but the idea of building it intrigues me... cue the maniac laughter MUH WUH HUH HUH !!!

[pastimesteve]

Thanks for all the input, folks. Do you have the brand of the glue you have had some luck with, pastimesteve? Did you mean that you left the JB Weld on AND used epoxy, or failed with the JB Weld and used epoxy instead?

The brand I used was Loctite. If you can find that brand where you live, be sure to get the epoxy formulated for plastics. However, I'd strongly suggest you go in the direction mr crispy is pointing you. I'd say he has the most hands-on experience. I wish I could find that plastech stuff here in the States. It must be sold under a different name here, but I have no idea where to look.

Steve

[30YrsL8r]

Well I am sorry to say this but you muffed up all your work as now the ABS solvents will not work anymore because the parts are now coated in CA glue

That did cross my mind. However, I like a challenge so I'll see how much I can get off.

[mr crispy]

There was a lot of it available on eBay a few years ago but I just had a quick look and couldn't see anything? It's called Plastech and is sold as a motorcycle repair kit for plastic panels. It comes in 2 parts, a bottle of fine power and a smaller bottle of liquid that smells like solvent. You fill the joint or crack with the powder and then use the dropper to damp the powder with the liquid. Dont move it, leave it overnight and its rock hard in the morning. Was about £8 for the kit and I still haven't used half of it yet.

[30YrsL8r]

Yeah - I can find the "Plastech Super-Grip Adhesive" but not the "Plastech Motorcycle Repair Kit", although there are some old web pages for it out there. Maybe it's been replaced by the adhesive?

[30YrsL8r]

Looks like the Plastech stuff isn't available any more. So, I'm reading on the web (so it must be true) that the TL-01 chassis is made of polycarbonate.

wikipedia (again, always true) says polycarbonate (PC) is used in compact discs, eyeglasses, riot shields, security windows, traffic lights and lenses. All of these are clear. It says polycarbonate/acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (PC/ABS) is a blend of PC and ABS that creates a stronger plastic that's used in car interior and exterior parts, and mobile phone bodies.

The chassis sounds like the latter - is that why some people suggest plumber's glue? I've found "Everbuild 250ml Pipe Weld Cement PVC Guttering Conduit ABS Pipework UPVC Trim" on fleabay for a reasonable price, so that might be the way to go if I can mechanically remove the Super Glue.

[shenlonco]

Looks like the Plastech stuff isn't available any more. So, I'm reading on the web (so it must be true) that the TL-01 chassis is made of polycarbonate.

wikipedia (again, always true) says polycarbonate (PC) is used in compact discs, eyeglasses, riot shields, security windows, traffic lights and lenses. All of these are clear. It says polycarbonate/acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (PC/ABS) is a blend of PC and ABS that creates a stronger plastic that's used in car interior and exterior parts, and mobile phone bodies.

The chassis sounds like the latter - is that why some people suggest plumber's glue? I've found "Everbuild 250ml Pipe Weld Cement PVC Guttering Conduit ABS Pipework UPVC Trim" on fleabay for a reasonable price, so that might be the way to go if I can mechanically remove the Super Glue.

Yes i showed the link above to it on e-bay that stuff should melt it together... BUT now you need to get all the CA off and that's probably going to be near impossible..... what you can do is get a new exacto blade and scrape a thin layer off of the cuts edges with it by sliding it sidways across the cut.

[mr crispy]

Sanding disc in a dremel will make it easier to remove the CA, keep it slow speed though. That's a shame about the plastech... makes me wonder why its suddenly been pulled? Found to be highly toxic knowing my luck... that would explain the extra fingers I grew last year