[Article] Article: Repairing ABS plastic

ABS plastic is quite common around the house. Interiors for your car (underneath all the squishy, attractive parts), your child's GI-Joe, the case for remotes or most entertainment or console systems, and pretty much all Lego bricks (this bit is important as I will explain later) are all made of ABS plastic.

It is a hard, very rigid plastic. Because it is so rigid it is easy to break, luckily repairing it is very easy to do.

A long while back, I decided to modify the appearance of my truck, because the grill is ABS plastic, it was very easy to start work on this (but me being lazy, I have yet to finish, go procrastination!)

Wanted to go from roughly:
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To:
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So, first I bought a new grill. You definitely want to research how much these might be before you buy one. Most junkyards around me wanted $30 for a used one, but I found new reproductions for about $35 + shipping

So, buy a grill
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Cut that MoFo up
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Get a little more precise about cutting that MoFo up
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Now, there are only two steps left, creating the new panels to install, and gluing everything together.
The fun thing about ABS plastic is that it is soluble in acetone. So, you need a couple of things, a pile of ABS with a lot of surface area (meaning, cut it up), acetone, and a container that is non-soluble and that will seal to be air-tight.

I recommend cutting it up into a bag or box or something as when you do cut through that shit jumps like a MoFo
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Food grade plastics are non-soluble in acetone (ketchup bottles can work nicely, gives you a squeeze top to allow you to apply a precise amount, if I did it over again I would use something like a Mason Jar)
I used a jar from some sort of salad dressing.
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Then cover the ABS bits with acetone, the more acetone you have the runnier the ABS Goop[SUP]TM[/SUP] you'll have and the better it will flow into cracks. It all depends on what sort of project you are working on
Hard to see, but the acetone is still liquid, and the chunks have yet to dissolve.
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Next you have to make your patch panels to fill in the areas you cut out.
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Find something to spread the Goop[SUP]TM[/SUP] with, popsicle sticks work nicely, and you can find 'em at the craft store for a couple bucks for a pack of a hundred or so
The acetone in the Goop[SUP]TM[/SUP] means that the stuff you're applying the Goop[SUP]TM[/SUP] to will melt and become one piece
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Depending on what you're workin on, you could apply some to both sides, but if you have a textured side I would not advice doing so as you'll have to sand it down so it looks good.
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Not completely finished, but getting there. One day I'll actually finish.
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You can buy ABS cement in most local hardware stores, but it is nothing more than a pile of ABS and a solvent, you also can't get it in more than one or two colors, this is where the Lego bricks come in. Lego comes in every color known on God's Green Earth, so you can get a color for whatever project you are working on.

April, know how your cowl looks like this?
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You can fix that with ABS cement.

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That's not her car, but when I visited I did inspect her car to see if it had that crack

It is common enough on those model Mustangs that I was almost sure that it had the crack.
 
Go back and read the original thread, goober, I said it wasn't.

Like I said, be gentle when you remove the panel (youtube probably has a how-to) and apply stuff to the back side of it.

If you still have a hairline crack on the front, you can take an eye dropper and put a little bit of acetone on the crack so that it will meld.
I would test that beforehand though to make sure it doesn't change the gloss of the panel. Also, don't touch it because it will be soft and the pressure of your fingertip can change the texture
 
Why would you buy a grill and chop it up for raw abs.... when you could just buy raw abs.
 
What the fucking hell are you talking about?
Seriously?

I did not buy the grill to supply ABS material, I bought the grill as a framework that no one had fucked with previously. Happily there was more than enough material left over to supply me with enough ABS that I did not have to go out and buy extra ABS material.

So, what in the nine circles of Hell are you talking about?
 
im just confused as to why he bought a brand new grill, then cut it into pieces for raw material. But instead of answering, asa is in full on ragemode.
 
By "virgin material" , I assume hes thinking raw stock that has not been used to make anything yet. Which, technically, is correct.
Asa is meaning, material that has not been dirtied by misuse. Which can also be seen as correct, I guess.
 
im just confused as to why he bought a brand new grill, then cut it into pieces for raw material. But instead of answering, asa is in full on ragemode.
No, you fucking idiot.

I bought a new grill so I would not have to spend additional time cleaning and filling gouges and scratches and shit in some old banged up grill
Did you see what I planned to do with my truck grill? Did you see how I planned to take the center sections out anyways?

Why the fuck are you being so fucking domon?
 
im just confused as to why he bought a brand new grill, then cut it into pieces for raw material. But instead of answering, asa is in full on ragemode.

probably because the old one is messed up enough he'd rather just replace it with a whole new one. plus, this way while he's working on it, the old grill can stay in the truck until the new one is ready so the truck won't look stupid.