How to make liquid ABS plastic?

**seanz0rz** · 06-30-2007, 08:59 PM

for me, when i tested, i glued 2 pieces of 1/8 inch thick sheet at a right angle. when i pulled it apart, the sheet bent and subsequently failed before the joint did. however the joint was probably a total of 1/4 inch thick.

i doubt strength is going to be a problem here. if you ar eputting that much force on any of these parts... you have larger concerns.

**monkeyracer** · 06-30-2007, 10:24 PM

That's true. I think it would be fairly hard to do a large piece though. A sheet of abs is already flat and has the hair cell or smooth sides, whereas the magic mix is going to need sanding, and there are usually bubbles to worry about etc. Tomorrow I'll actually get to play around a little more with it and see what I come up with.

**ln24578** · 01-18-2011, 03:10 PM

Do you guys know how to make a mold for pouring the liquid ABS into, like the type of materials need to make it ?

**Chester** · 01-18-2011, 08:18 PM

This kind of cement mix, as well as the ABS/MEK mix will create a bond that is stronger than the surrounding ABS sheeting. If you test it, you will find that the sheeing around the "weld" will break before the weld itself.

What this is doing is similar to arc welding with steel, it melts and mixes the filler and the surrounding plastic, but the joint is much stronger than the cast plastic on either side.

You shouldn't have any issues with it, but as said, avoid getting it on the visible side of existing bezels, as it can take a lot of work to make it completely invisible if it runs too much!

For a mould, you can knock up the mould in plaster, latex, anything that will hold shape, as it doesnt have to withstand high heat in this process. Just make sure you use a release agent, or you will end up with parts of the mould stuck to the part when you pull it out. Not sure which release agent to use with ABS, give google a shot, that should give some pointers.

**ln24578** · 01-18-2011, 08:38 PM

would a sand/clay mix work often used when casting alluminum parts, or do you think plaster would be better ?

**Ryven** · 01-20-2011, 03:25 PM

Originally Posted by ln24578

would a sand/clay mix work often used when casting alluminum parts, or do you think plaster would be better ?

I don't see why it wouldn't, but I'd be concerned with the finish & you need to make sure to have a good mold release agent.

Can you get your hands on enough wax to create a mold with that? Wax would work perfectly, although it may break if it's too thin when trying to separate the ABS from the mold.

**Chester** · 01-20-2011, 06:42 PM

Sand/clay mix will work, but as said, you want it to be pretty smooth before casting as with any other material, you want to spend less time sanding, the mould will take long enough to make up!

Plaster is pretty good for low temp stuff, because its cheap, easy to work with, and you can shave it into shape really easily, but its strong enough to keep defined edges, and its useable for multiple casts, if you want to do a batch run.