I had to post up about this because this trick is one of the most remarkable I've learned in the last few years.
I'm working on Italeri's WC-56 Dodge Staff Car. Unfotunately, the driveshafts that connect the axles to the transfer case did not quite fit--they were too short. In debating a fix for this, I began to wonder if the tendency of CA to 'wick', or use its capillary action and surface tension, would work to my advantage.
I held the driveshaft in place with tweezers, and applied a large drop of CA to the place where each end hovered near its connecting point. Sure enough, capillary action drew the CA into a sort of 'weld' in the space between the parts.
Here's where the magic happens. With my free hand, I took a pinch of baking soda from a cup I keep it stored in and I dribbled it over each of the CA drops. BAM! Instant hardened joint. The driveshaft froze in perfect position where it needed to be.
Since I will be placing the truck on a small diorama with a lot of mud, when I weather the chassis the joints will be covered in mud. This makes up for the loss of detail when it's covered by the CA/Baking soda joint. I ended up using this same trick to reinforce the locations where the leaf springs and the axles attached as well. I also will do this on aircraft undercarriage if I can get away with it without making it look ugly. Can't hide it with mud like you can on ground vehicles. But it makes for a very stout connection.
A lot of people know about the CA/ Baking soda thing, but I'm just amazed at how many ways it can be used to strengthen weak joints, fill seams, and improve construction. In my book it's as pivotal to construction as Future is to finishing. I was just excited about it this morning so I thought I'd post up.
Have a great day guys. Model on!
Chris