Why Use Hot Glue

Hi guys me again not sure if this is relevant to anyone but I thought I'd share my thoughts

Upon reading the countless posts in my effort to try to learn how to make my own armour using pepakura
I was trying to find what glue to use. I saw it posted that hot glue was best then in another post superglue.

So I decided to experiment with both the glues as I built up my models.
Super Glue Pro's : easy to apply / dries fast / good holding strength
Cons : Fairly expensive given the small amount you get for your money / only get 1 chance to glue
the pieces together accurately / becomes very brittle so even a little bending may cause your now
harden'd paper to crack or split.

Hot Glue Pro's : easy to apply/ dries relatively fast / good holding strength / has a few seconds of working time to allow
accurate placement of your pieces / If you make a mistake you can re-heat the glue with a cigarrete
lighter or by holding the end of your hot glue gun next to the glue for a few seconds then simply peel
apart the two pieces then re-glue and re-attach. / Can use it instead of Resin to harden your pep. /
Cheap as just 1 stick goes along way.
Cons : Have to wait for it to heat up before using / Is a pain to sand if you get any on the outside of your pep
Can singe your fingers a little if your glue gun gets really hot as mine does.

Over all Hotglue in my books wins the day due to the fact I can easily rectify any mistakes quickly and easily without having to start all over again. Plus its also handy to have to fasten in your visor to your helmet.

Hope this post is of some use you any new members out there that was wondering what glue to use.

carnage said:

Over all Hotglue in my books wins the day due to the fact I can easily rectify any mistakes quickly and easily without having to start all over again. Plus its also handy to have to fasten in your visor to your helmet.

Hope this post is of some use you any new members out there that was wondering what glue to use.

Click to expand...

What about Elmer's? Thats what I use. It holds good enough to work with after about a minute, and im using elmer's glue gel for that actual pieces and regular white elmers to slop it on some seams...

just my 2 cents

I've not used elmers glue to be honest I'v not come across it ....its either that I live in the Uk or that I'm igorant lol

And I was just comparing the hotglue vs Superglue so elmers may or may not be better was just saying that I think overall Hot glue is better than super glue

This will surely stop those glue question topics around here. But there's more glue that's pretty good, like wood,elmers,etc. And if I'm not mistaken,i think somebody already did somethinglike this. But it doesn't matter, this will catch the noobs eye. Lol

From what I have heard it would be a bad idea to use Elmers glue, a few people have said that the resin will eat through it and your model will fall apart right in front of you.

Never used Elmers glue personally.

I would recommend tacky glue, holds almost as good a super glue, dries fast enough, and water clean up.

I would not however recommend the use of hot glue to harden you armor, your armor will easily warp under it's own weight and will not be anywhere as strong or sturdy as resin.

Sorry guys didn't mean to start a flame war lol

I just thought this might be a good topic for any new members that where thinking the same as me.
As for not using hot-glue to strenghten your helmet for example ..thats argueable as I've seen other members use the hotglue method on their armour.
I personally went the resin and fibreglass route ....but the main reason hot glue wins super glue in my eyes is the fact I can easily correct any glueing errors. And for a person new to pepping lets face it your going to make a mistake or two, So being able to fix it quickly without having to start all over again has to be a good bonus.

All of models so far have been made with this http://www.dickblick.com/products/itoya-oglue-the-glue-pen/

and I have tested it with resign and it holds up fine, and when it dries it kinda makes a thin plastic. the only down side is that it is not a instant dry and if you put too much the paper will sag, but other than that it is very acceptable.

BTW I have seen 3rd parties brands and I have used them and they are almost the same but go for about 50cents

A lot of people use elmers glue, but it doesn't really matter. It just works for them. Hey maybe you should tell what kind of glues not to use?

I think people are missing the point to this post.

I simply chose 2 glues to test I then gave both pro's and con's to them both so that any new member could read the pro's and con's and make up their own minds as to what glue would be best for them or at least give them a little incite
If anyone wants to add to this topic that would be great. If you could give both pro's and con's to your findings as well even better. The more information the better. This is not a YOU MUST use this glue more of a this is what I use and it works for me topic.
I just started this topic to try and be helpfull and to give a little back to all the help the HOW-TO's helped me

M07Marauder said:

From what I have heard it would be a bad idea to use Elmers glue, a few people have said that the resin will eat through it and your model will fall apart right in front of you.

Click to expand...

Elmer's glue is actually the best option for pep that will be resined. white glue being water based will not be affected by any resin solvents. And it dries in a few seconds. Biggest mistake people make with it, is using too much. The less you use, the better it turns out. Thin coat both sides, press and hold. Easy.

Elmers is all that I use. I really like it their is little mess and you are able to do it anywhere with out risk of super gluing your couch or singeing it a small amount of water all better. The only problem is that if you accidentally use too much it can be a pain but as long as you use a small amount it dries fairly quickly. Resining wise I have resined 1 helm with it and my friend has done 4 with Elmers and have had no problem at all.

Hey it's cool, I wasn't meaning to sound like I was snapping back or anything .

When it comes to strengthening by use of hot glue I was just telling you from my personal experience (epic fail by the way).

I was just giving out an idea.

The one good/bad thing about tacky glue is that it tends to bond to the paper.

Good hold but does not allow for a retry (the cardstock will tear horribly).

Elmer is my choice.
Resin will NOT eat Elmer's Glue. Have been through two bottles...not problems! Use in small amounts, sets quick, time to adjust! strong paper hold!
School or Multi-Purpose is the same, works the same!
my 2 cents

White/elmer's/pva glue is Poly-vinyl acetate. Fiberglass resin is polyester and styrene with small amounts of other chemicals that vary based on the type of resin and brand. There is no reaction when combining the two. Resin does not affect the glue at all. In fact, the glue keeps resin from being absorbed into the cardstock.

To each his/her own. It all comes down to what works best for you. I have even used rubber cement (strong bond, but get it right the first time. I actually recommend using rubber cement for thick stock such as chipboard).

-my 2 cents

One of the other cons for hot glue is that it has a tendancy to melt back down in a high temperature enviroment. I would use it for my armor but since I'm taking it to LA in the middle of July I don't want to have to redo the whole thing half way through my trip.

Hope its fine if I ask this here, used the search function but I don't think I phrased it correctly. Anywho, my tutor told me that resin will dissolve/melt hot melt glue. Is this true? I want to be sure before I start my armor during the summer hols.

Dragonknight said:

One of the other cons for hot glue is that it has a tendancy to melt back down in a high temperature enviroment. I would use it for my armor but since I'm taking it to LA in the middle of July I don't want to have to redo the whole thing half way through my trip.

Click to expand...

That's probably true, but if you fiberglass a piece that should take care of it and it shouldn't break down.

CrackerJack121 said:

Hope its fine if I ask this here, used the search function but I don't think I phrased it correctly. Anywho, my tutor told me that resin will dissolve/melt hot melt glue. Is this true? I want to be sure before I start my armor during the summer hols.

Click to expand...

Resin won't dissolve hot glue. I've used hot glue on all of my projects, and they're all still together today after being resined and fiberglassed.

So far I've only fibreglassed and resin'd my helmet and a gauntlet the helmet was 50% Superglue and 50% hot glue ...the gauntlet was 100% hotglue I'm yet to have a problem.
I think when I get stuck into some other parts I'll try elmers

A little trick to using hot glue is have 1 or 2 bottles of compressed air nearby. If by chance you get any on your fingers and its too hot... take the compressed air turn it upside down and spray it on the hot glue... it WILL speed cool it and I have only ever got 1 blister after being singed several times.

Another advantage of hot glue... it can REMOVE warping. You have to hold the part into place while it cools though, but that's one more reason to have the compressed air nearby, you can speed cool the hot glue. I've used it countless times after I have applied the resin to the outside and have removed the support struts. Occasionally you have to fix minor warping and hot glue works wonders for this.

If you are worried about pressing a part out while it cools because the hot glue will get you... spray a little of the compressed air on the hot glue to start its cooling process, you just want the surface to become harder. Take a piece of cardstock set it on top of the hot glue, use whatever padding you want to as the hot glue won't stick to anything other than the piece of cardstock you set over it. Just press the part outwards until its in the desired spot and spray the liquid of the compressed air on the outside part to cool the rest of the hot glue.

Trick to using the compressed air for cooling is short bursts of the liquid. Be careful if you get very much of it on your skin as it can quickly cause frost bite.

Personally I've tried:
tacky glue
super glue
hot glue
elmers glue
contact cement

I like hot glue the best.

Best trick for applying it that I've found: apply only a small little dot, and then use the top of the hot glue gun to spread it around. This will minimize the thickness of the seam and will provide an even stronger hold.

Worried about hot weather melting your glue? make sure you have a coating of resin over the top of it... can't cause any problems that way. The other trick is to use high temperature hot glue in a SMALL high temperature hot glue gun. 100 degree weather won't do anything to it.