What do you recommend?

[s.tyler58]

Opinions needed please. My 83 Venture is ROUGH body wise. Every piece is cracked, missing tabs, 20 new screws and bolts and things to replace missing or hodgepodge Hardware holding plastic together. Here's my dilemma, I have a heated shop where I can keep my bike and work on body and finding Parts and replacing/rebuilding things over the winter. I really want to get some miles on this bike this summer. Writing seems to be the only thing that satisfies my ADD so completely. Any recommendations on stripped-down versions or something that I could enjoy traveling on without having to worry about replacing a bunch of junk right now?

 

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[cimmer]

One thought is to get a bottle of ABS glue from a hardware store and use to to glue the parts that are cracked back together for now. Then I would start searching for better pieces over the summer and fall and then replace them over the winter when you cant ride.

Hope that helps..

Rick F.

[rbig1]

well I went to a plastic supplier and bought a small sheet. Then glued to back side to help hold together. If it was where I couldn't do that just put multiple layers of glue on. Never had problems. Just make shure to sand before glue. Never had trouble after fixing. By the way don't glue painted side. Unless there is a hole. I tried plastic welding to messy hurts paint.

[camos]

ABS glue will stick things together but, unless there are different versions, when it cures it turns yellowish and also can damage paint. There is also epoxy glue that will make a strong repair but it is expensive and usually sets up sort of whitish grey so refinishing will be needed.

 

My preferred materials are Methyl Ethyle Ketone Solvent (MEK) and some leftover black ABS scraps from plumbing repairs. Apart from being inexpensive, MEK does not affect the paint on our bikes so well fitting cracks can be repaired with little to no refinishing afterward. If perfection is required then of course following up with sanding and painting will be necessary.

 

If a little reinforcement is necessary a paste made of MEK and ABS can be applied to the back side or, as mentioned, purchase a flat piece of ABS to stick on. Another way to reinforce is with light fiberglass cloth. Wet out the back surface with MEK once or twice to soften the plastic then press in the glass. It's better to not apply too much as the plastic will get too soft and it may deform Once it has set apply a thin ABS/MEK paste over the glass to fill in the voids and stiffen up the repair.

 

Here is a thread I made on using this method. There are also a few comments in there about using other methods. There is also a thread on here that is worth looking at which explains how to use fiberglass and epoxy for repairs and re-creating missing sections.

[bongobobny]

Where there are cracks, take a Dremel tool and make a vee cut on the back side and fill with the 2 part ABS epoxy. The channel you make gives you more surface area to form a bond than if you just try to join with glue at the crack...

[s.tyler58]

Thanks all! It's going quicker than I thought it was going to. Having correct glue helps a lot! I was hoping one of you had a magic wand that would have it all good as new when I woke up today...

 

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[s.tyler58]

This area at the top corner is under a lot of stress and very hard to get into it's natural position to glue. Curves and angles make clamping almost impossible. Would you cut the piece off to attempt reattaching? My thinking is that this would relieve the stress that the shape creates and allow glue to cure I'm stressed. Crazy or maybe?

 

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[camos]

This area at the top corner is under a lot of stress and very hard to get into it's natural position to glue. Curves and angles make clamping almost impossible. Would you cut the piece off to attempt reattaching? My thinking is that this would relieve the stress that the shape creates and allow glue to cure I'm stressed. Crazy or maybe?

 

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If you are referring to the pic of you holding a broken piece of the lower fairing then put it together with glue and tape it in place.

 

I don't know how this will work with ABS glue but if you are using the MEK method I suggested, I would tape off the painted surface with cello tape then squirt some MEK onto the edges then put it together and hold by hand until it sets, two or three minutes. When it's set use longer pieces of tape to keep pressure on the break. Leave it until the next day to give the repair time to cure then smear a medium mix across the back side to build up a bit more strength. ABS glue has little to no strength on its own and relies on melting the ABS to make the connection so smearing glue on the back will probably not accomplish anything more than making a mess.

 

Outside corners can be reinforced by first squirting some MEK on the surface (back side) to soften then press a thicker mix, almost like putty into the corner. There is very little time to get the pieces together before the MEK will evaporate enough to prevent a good bond. Squirting a little MEK onto the putty before pressing it into the corner will help to ensure a good bond.

 

All of this can be done in place if you can reach the area with your finger.

[bongobobny]

Also, if you have a wood burning pencil, you could try melting the plastic together in a spot or two, kind of like tack welding the pieces together...

[camos]

Also, if you have a wood burning pencil, you could try melting the plastic together in a spot or two, kind of like tack welding the pieces together...

Yes, along those lines people have used a soldering iron to weld two sides together and then embed copper wires across the weld.