Anyone know anything about resins and fixing plastic?

[gasket999]

Hi folks. Off topic but I’m just restoring a lovely old Elora Whitworth socket set (respray case, clean polish and service the moving parts). The liner to the metal tray is that cheap thin flimsy plastic and I’d like to keep it - for my sins.

there are a few cracks and stretched bits - what I’d like to do is to flip the blister tray liner over and fill the negative side with a resin to reinforce the whole thing.

...but I’ve never used any material like that. It’s seems cheap enough on eBay but wondered if anyone knew of a particular resin that would be suitable (pourable, in quantities of about 500ml and that will bond to the plastic without reacting).

I appreciate it might be tricky without knowing the type of plastic used - I’ll keep looking for a symbol, I think it dates from the early 70s.

I saw Geoffrey Crocker do a similar trick on YouTube with a Stahlwille socket set tray but he used expanding foam and it wasn’t ideal.

thank you.

 

[gasket999]

...if it doesn’t work then I might just ditch the plastic liner altogether and replace it with a piece of shadowfoam.

 

[tom2207]

try body filler ,,, theres a reall smooth one I got from an auto shop , way thinner than normal stuff , it would pour in well ,, put some sticky tape over the cracks on the front first , then fill the back , , may be a bit heavy , but it would look right ,, or how about builders spray foam same idea , it sticks to everything , damp the inside first then it sticks even better ,,, flatten the excess of with a hacksaw , or a bread knife.

 

[gasket999]

That’s a good shout! I have a giant tub of filler that I could do with using for a non-critical job as it’s been on the shelf for years.

didn’t realise you could get a filler so thin that it would pour, I’ll look into that.

 

[pedrobedro]

That’s a good shout! I have a giant tub of filler that I could do with using for a non-critical job as it’s been on the shelf for years.

didn’t realise you could get a filler so thin that it would pour, I’ll look into that.

Stir some fibreglass resin into your body filler to thin it then add your hardener and pour it in.

 

[Maker]

Be sure to post pictures, I've got an old Elora imperial set that could do with tarting up, may even be the same one.

 

[jenki]

I tried the builders foam idea on my SDS drill box liner not a great sucess but it is servicable. Not sure if the low expansion type would be better.

 

[MoreWellie]

If you do manage to do this then it will be well done

I bought an old socket set that had a lightly cracked plastic liner and when it arrived there were just sockets, tools and small shards of broken plastic. It had completely disintegrated in the post

 

[bigegg]

If you mix gorilla glue with vinegar, it turns into a low-expansion foam.
Alternatively, epoxy casting resin will not react, but is £££

Polyester resin *should" be ok - its cheap enough.
Just "test in an inconspicuous area" first.
I'm reasonably certain that the active ingredient in car body filler is polyester resin?
The resin can be thickened with talc if neccessary

 

[jsf55]

Couple of cheap tubes of silicon for my trays

 

[Hitch]

Some good ideas here... I've a battered and broken tray in a socket set. Was only contemplating how to do it yesterday.

 

[gasket999]

Thanks guys - the gorrilla glue is a good shout too. It expands a little anyway and I have some in the garage.

I’ll post pics. I have four boxes sets and a load of spares - so quite a few sets to restore.

 

[Screwdriver]

To restore 4 sets, it’s almost worth making a proper mould and vacuum forming some new replacements.

To make a functioning vacuum former would be a relaxing weekend. It’s not rocket science. Probably how they were made originally.