Dissolving Acraglas

[BigSkyRambler]

I had a bit of a cock-up trying to repair a percussion fowler stock with Acraglas. It was a clean break at wrist. Cleaned, prepped, applied glue, and bound with rubber tubing. Looked fine. But it seems that at some point conflicting stresses from tubing pulled pieces out of place. And that is how it set up. Not a good outcome. Is there any way other than total immersion in acetone to get where I can start over?

 

[waksupi]

Acetone won't dissolve Acraglas.

 

[ZUG]

Heat and high heat will soften it but it will most likely trash your stock . Try a heat gun or looking for / making another stock you got nothing to loose

 

[Billy Boy]

I had a bit of a cock-up trying to repair a percussion fowler stock with Acraglas. It was a clean break at wrist. Cleaned, prepped, applied glue, and bound with rubber tubing. Looked fine. But it seems that at some point conflicting stresses from tubing pulled pieces out of place. And that is how it set up. Not a good outcome. Is there any way other than total immersion in acetone to get where I can start over?

My experience is you can only ‘jog’ it briefly after it ‘turns over’ or gets hot. Vinegar works on cleanup while fresh. I don’t know of anything that will un-set it when it is cured.

 

[doubleset]

It may be better to concede defeat and toss the stock. In any event, I would not want to depend on a pure glue joint for the necessary strength. I don't know what kind of joint you attempted there, but if I were desperate to save such a stock, I would probably cut out the damaged/glassed section and carefully create some sort of spline joint there that would strengthen and stabilize the wrist section. Assuming that removal of the diseased area would result in a somewhat deformed/shortened area, I'd probably insert a "spacer" between the two halves (and with the spline going through it, of course) glue all that together, and reshape the splined wrist section as necessary to look attractive. Since you wouldn't be able to "match" any of the grain or wood, I'd probably embrace change and use a distinctive and obviously contrasting material for the spacer.

This would be a huge amount of work, not without some expense, and it might not be the sort of result you're looking for, even under the best of expectations. But trying to face-glue two stock pieces as you apparently tried to do just isn't something I'd expect to work very well in terms of either appearance or strength. Hence my original suggestion to toss the stock, lick your wounds, and restock it.

 

[Erwan]

MEK is used in plastics processing as a solvent (ABS plastics, gums and resins). With polystyrene, it forms a cement paste used to glue plastic parts together. Butanone is also widely used in the adhesives industry.

Something about

 

[BigSkyRambler]

The next step was going to be a steel rod across the crack. May be a moot point now.

 

[doubleset]

MEK is used in plastics processing as a solvent (ABS plastics, gums and resins). With polystyrene, it forms a cement paste used to glue plastic parts together. Butanone is also widely used in the adhesives industry.

Yikes!! You sure aren't from around here, Erwan!! In full disclosure, there is a gallon of MEK in my barn, but it's been there for about 25 years and my wife is very strongly against my using it. I'm not sure where I'd be able to buy it today. The places you used to be able to get it simply don't carry it any longer, and instead carry "MEK substitutes". Pas de MEK.

 

[doubleset]

The next step was going to be a steel rod across the crack. May be a moot point now.

A hardwood spline joint would, I think, be better and easier. Or if you have to use a "rod", just use a birch hardwood dowel. I don't see any advantage (and some disadvantage) to a steel rod in a case like this.

 

[Pukka Sahib]

I had a bit of a cock-up trying to repair a percussion fowler stock with Acraglas. It was a clean break at wrist. Cleaned, prepped, applied glue, and bound with rubber tubing. Looked fine. But it seems that at some point conflicting stresses from tubing pulled pieces out of place. And that is how it set up. Not a good outcome. Is there any way other than total immersion in acetone to get where I can start over?

Try IPA (isopropyl alcohol). One of my customers uses it to clean up metal used to mix two component Bis-A epoxies. I was skeptical, but he claims it works. If that doesn’t do it, try putting the nozzle of a propane torch ( Benzomatic type), down the barrel for just a few seconds. Doesn’t take a real lot of heat to soften most systems, though some can be a bit resistant.

 

[ZUG]

I used to be involved with epoxies in aerospace industries years back and MEK was used to clean up WET epoxies but once they were cured it did not remove it. You can still buy MEK from some leather companies. It is used as a solvent in contact cement. Wear gloves and use it out of doors for safety. The workers at the aerospace company would wash their hands with the stuff to remove any epoxy that got on their hands - some of them are still alive and healthy today . I don't recommend that you do this

 

[Hatman/2nd line]

Any chance you can make a cut along side the area that is messed up and then clean the area up by sanding and then regluing and putting a rod of hard wood or metal in it? You might loose an inch or so of wood but save the stock.

 

[BigSkyRambler]

Any chance you can make a cut along side the area that is messed up and then clean the area up by sanding and then regluing and putting a rod of hard wood or metal in it? You might loose an inch or so of wood but save the stock.

Looking at this option. Not a particularly collectable gun and I busted stock.

 

[newly605]

Permatex gasket remover will dissolve the RK epoxy finish on Remington stocks...it may dissolve Acraglas...I’ve never tried.

 

[jimhallam]

I had a bit of a cock-up trying to repair a percussion fowler stock with Acraglas. It was a clean break at wrist. Cleaned, prepped, applied glue, and bound with rubber tubing. Looked fine. But it seems that at some point conflicting stresses from tubing pulled pieces out of place. And that is how it set up. Not a good outcome. Is there any way other than total immersion in acetone to get where I can start over?

ACRAGLAS? Nasty modern stuff --- CERTAINLY not the sort of thing a 19thC gunsmith would have used. ALMOST as bad as something used on a cartridge rifle ;-)))

 

[BigSkyRambler]

ACRAGLAS? Nasty modern stuff --- CERTAINLY not the sort of thing a 19thC gunsmith would have used. ALMOST as bad as something used on a cartridge rifle ;-)))

Should have gone with square nails and rawhide.

 

[The Appalachian]

According to Brownell's cured acraglas will begin to soften at 300 degrees F.

I would mix up a little more acraglas, glue a couple pieces of similar wood scrap together, and take a heat gun to it, to see what it takes to soften it enough to do what you need done.

I would at least try that, then try the stock, before throwing it on the woodpile.

"Wood" will generically begin to slowly char on the surface at 450 to 500 degrees in an oven, so the judicious use of a heat gun probably won't start any fires.

 

[Nor Cal Mikie]

Hair dryer, held close.

 

[Hatman/2nd line]

Do you have any pic's?

 

[earlwb]

That is a big bummer. I wish you luck in whatever you do.

When I last looked, removing cured epoxy used chemicals that were quite dangerous. Corrosive, cancer causing, and it could attack aluminum or organic substances like wood too. You had to use a sealed filtered room like they use for painting and wear a personal protection suit too. Some of these chemicals they use are way off the scale hazardous and highly controlled or regulated. They use them to repair electronic devices that have been potted in epoxy. They sometimes do it a drop at a time to remove epoxy to avoid damaging the device as much as possible.

Physically removing cured epoxy is about the only way to do it safely without all of the safety measures. But a air filter mask is still needed. Using sandpaper, files, etc to remove epoxy is the safest way. But heating it up to around 500 to 600 degrees works fairly well. Like mentioned Acraglass may soften up at 300 to 400 degrees though. You could use a soldering iron to sort of burn your way through parts of it. Like doing wood burning art etc. Do avoid the fumes as those are still hazardous.

I forgot to add that some people were experimenting with spark erosion methods to remove epoxy. But that might we way out there from what your trying to do.