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Float Making : Glues & Adhesives :



Glues & Adhesives Used in Float making need to be able of bonding many different materials .Ideally it needs to be waterproof but non-weather/water proof will do if a top coat of varnish s to be applied .

Weatherproof (pva) Wood glue ;
This is the primary glue that i use , It has many advantages to ts use .

1. its not harmful to your skin or clothes ( if washed strait away ) as its water soluble until its fully cured / dried
2. it dries to form a plasticly skin which shrinks for a tight seal ,great as a primer prior to painting
3. its sand-able so can smoothed prior to painting
4. it starts to set fairly quickly ,but a 12-14 hours to fully cure
5. it can be painted on once dry And makes a great as a primer
6. It drys to a clear watertight skin ideal as a clear coat Finnish
7. if applied via your fingertip it can be easily removed
8. it can be thinned down with water
9. its also very cheap & cost effective

PVA glue used to be all the same wood & craft glues all contain PU (polyurethane plastic) but nowadays the craft & interior PVA glues ate completely water soluble and will wash out of your clothes and pretty useless for floats But the weatherproof types are not when dry so are perfect for floats.Just make sure its for interior & exterior use.(weatherproof) and no more need for dope or varnish ! Evo-stick's waterproof woodglue comes in a blue bottle and the standard comes in a Green bottle .I always use the blue bottled glue but the green is OK if you intend to use a varnish as your final top coat to seal the float against water ingress .



its great for gluing in the tip & peg plus you can dab some on your finger tip and smear it all over your float (leave the tip ,you hold this ,then stick it into a lump of polystyrene via the tip to dry) completely covering it (except the tip) In a thin coat to seal balsa wood ready for painting (once dry) & quite thickly as final waterproofing coat.leave too completely dry 24h then do the tip and leave that too dry.The wood clue will dry CLEAR and tough with a brilliant sheen .



To use as a sealer on porous materials like balsa-wood etc ,either add a little water to thin it down ,then using a paint brush or better still a fingertip to apply a thin coating by smearing it all over .Which will leave it ready for painting once it has set .It actually takes paint or varnish very well without the need of sanding between coats .



To remove the glue from fingertip simply rub it on a hard surface ,and it'll scrape clean off as a rubbery substance or could be painlessly pealed like a second plastically skin ! or quickly washed of under running water

It can be safely used on Styrofoam as well as polystyrene as a primer prior to painting or as a thick clear top coating .Which will dry quickly and seal the woods / foams pores and leave it ready with no need to be painted or varnished But still waterproof .

Super-Glue's :


These are quite useful for gluing non natural materials together as well as wood on wood fixing .It also makes a great balsa wood sealer & primer either paint on the liquid superglue in a bottle types or smear it on with your fingertip .But be careful keep your fingertip moving don't linger or It'll get stuck too the float ,do a couple of quick thin coats then leave too dry in about 10 min ,(same with your fingertip ,then peel / pick the solid substance off the skin) .once dry the wood will have a nice shiny waterproof skin on it . and doesn't need varnishing ( but its best to be safe ) and can be sanded and painted as-well .

Other Glues :



Araldite & contact glue's:
is good for gluing in metal parts or where you need to fill in gaps .As they're quite thick and not very runny . once dry they are a opaque or clear hard Finnish which can be sanded & painted once dry.