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Hi- I am able to buy plastic scraps at my local surplus store. But I have to take what I get I want to make some jigs and would like to laminate some pieces. What is the best glue for the white UHMW? Thanks

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Mistakes are mandatory-learning from them is optional. http://www.opensourceluthiersupply.com

Contact cement. Apply to both surfaces, allow to dry then press together.

I put UHMW strips (or maybe Delrin?) on the base of my router table & they haven't come off after almost 20 years. Actually, I think it's been 20 years as of this year but it make me nauseous to think about it.

Kevin Looker

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I'm not a luthier.
I'm just a guy who builds guitars in his basement.
It's better than playing golf.

Here's a good tip - When threading plastics like UHMWPE, it is best to use UNF threads instead of UNC. It holds the thread much better. In other words -use 4-48 instead of 4-40, 10-32 instead of 10-24 etc.

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"An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered. An inconvenience is an adventure wrongly considered." G. K. Chesterton.

I make my jigs out of scrap plywood because they're always around, and because I have no clue where to find UMHW plastic in Taiwan. I can find acrylics though.

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Cat-gut strings are made from kitten guts, stretched out to near breaking point and then hardened with grue saliva. As a result these give a feeling of Pain and anguish whenever played, and often end up playing themselves backwards as part of satanic rituals.

Typhoon Guitars
http://www.typhoon-guitars.com

Thanks for all the input. Apparently there is a company here that makes plastic cutting boards and my surplus guy gets it when he can. I have some scrap corian and I was wondering if it is any different than the kind used for nuts and saddles. This came from a cut off from a counter top. I met a woman at a woodworking show that makes fancy cutting boards out of scrap corian and she said she uses ca. What is corian anyway?

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Mistakes are mandatory-learning from them is optional. http://www.opensourceluthiersupply.com

You can also get acrylic transfer adhesive which will hold it well.

The bond increases with age with acrylic adhesive.

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I read Emerson on the can. A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds...true...but a consistent reading of Emerson has its uses nevertheless.

StuMusic

Gluing any sort of polyethylene (PE, HDPE, UHMW (which is really UHMWPE)) tends to be a bad idea.

Acrylic glues well with acetone, or with a mix of acrylic and acetone if you need to fill gaps.

Corian is essentially acrylic, just with dyes and some fillers added, the only other ingredients besides dyes and pigments are to make it fire/smoke resistant. It's a trade name, so it's definitely all the same stuff.

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Bob Garrish
Former Canonized Purveyor of Fine CNC Luthier Services

Heat fusion is the only way to glue olefin plastics like polyethylene and develop 100% of the strength of the parent material. Any adhesive used would rely on a toothed mechanical bond, which in lower stress situations, would likely be enough.

Need to machine miniature dovetails in the UHMW surface(s) to be bonded.

Polyethylene is used as a release paper for adhesives. Techniques such as corona treatment only make a bad situation better, and bond strength will rarely exceed 200 psi. Pressure sensitive adhesives (PSA) are among the only types capable of such a bond but are, again, weak.

Hugh--I'm glad to see that you're still here. I appreciate all the hands on experience that preceded your post ( I was going to chime in , and say that double stick tape works fairly well ), but I was left wondering if there was some magic trick that none of us knew about. Sounds like there isn't. 200 psi. would be plenty for most shop jigs, but shear creep is the limitation I can't get around. I'm guessing that Filippo has it right: bolt it down.