Other ways to do things

[Eric Smith]

Hi guys. 
 

I have a few things in mind which could be helpful to keep in your workshops, for many readers they may be old hat but for some they will be new - the old timers and old farts like me have used things we could get hold of to get us out of trouble - often cheaper, often better.

1: Olive Oil, vegetable oil and washing up liquid to help as a safe quick fix lubricant

2: Nail varnish remover (with or without acetone) for cleaning or as a mild solvent

3: Sprue Goo - you can buy this stuff from model shops, it’s plastic in a jar - the plastic is melted into a goo by a solvent (you can make it yourself) used for repairing small holes in plastic, once hard you can sand it and it bonds with the plastic around it.

4: Liquid Ammonia in a bottle - this stuff on a rag is the best thing ever for cleaning glass, an old coach driver told me about this - never fails.

5: Diesel - a great penetrating oil, great for freeing off rusty nuts, bolts and screws. Soaking rusty components in a bath of diesel often does the trick.

6: Paraffin - another penetrating oil, if you can find some, good for reviving lightly seized parts and components.

7: WD40 - just look on line for all the uses, there are hundreds, great for removing sticky labels and as a lubricant but in my experience not that good as a penetrating oil on nuts and bolts.

8: Silicone house cleaning spray - I have used this as a lubricant on weather seals and a few times inside a door lock mechanisms and light mechanical parts.

9: JB Weld - this is an American product, its great small hole filler and I think as an adhesive it’s much better than most of the Epoxy Resins.

10: Household “White Vinegar Spray” this is great for small clean up jobs.

11: Epoxy Putty - we had an epoxy putty called Double Bond, it was an industrial product, it was brilliant for minor repairs and hole filling - I don’t know if you can still get it but Modeller's use Milliput which seems very similar but buy it as you need it because it doesn’t seem to have a great shelf life.

12: Superglue - if you are planning to use up a lot and reasonably quickly buy a bottle, if you only want a drop, go to a £ shop and buy a tube because the stuff goes off and turns solid once the tube is opened. Look for industrial grade, they do seem to work better than the cheep shop versions.

12a: Superglue debonder - great stuff to have in reserve

12b: Superglue accelerator - once you use it you won’t be without it

12c: If you look on YouTube you will find loads of ways to use superglue, there are ways to use it to repair, fill not just stick. 

12d: Words of caution - superglue can start chemical fires dropped onto things like industrial carpet, it was designed originally to bond skin wounds which is why you get stuck so quickly and the very thin watery superglue can be great for some repairs but it can go everywhere.

Note: Household cleaning products can be great for car cleaning, maintenance and detailing so don’t walk past these products in the supermarket without giving them a look.

I hope to some these ideas are helpful?

Eric

 

[johny]

Thanks Eric. I know superglue is a good thing to keep in the car for repairs to skin, hoses, tyre punctures and maybe even fan belts but I need something to repair small holes in the headlining and not sure if its up to this. Maybe that Sprue Goo, which Ive never heard of, would be better?