Aves epoxy peeling off plastic!

[strangemachines]

Alright, I got some of this Aves stuff I see everyone talking about a couple weeks back, mixed up what I thought was an exact amount of both parts, got it on my kit, and was impressed by the results. Hard as the plastic, seemed easy to work with - great! Until I got some free time about a week later and started sanding . . . when the Aves simply peeled right off of the plastic! What happened?! Anyone have a problem like this before?

So, some questions: first, what's the best way to measure out equal amounts of the two parts? How exact does it have to be? If I'm off a little bit, does it just require a little longer to harden, or is the epoxy never going to work right?

Is it possible that the Aves didn't adhere to this kit's plastic? I'm working on the Tamiya 1/100 shuttle kit - is this plastic different in some way than other plastic? I just can't imagine why the Aves - ALL of it - would simply peel away from the plastic leaving absolutely no sign that it had ever been there in the first place. I was using this in place of traditional putty, but I'm concerned there will be problems with the Aves down the road - after the kit's been painted - where it will delaminate from the plastic and ruin the finished model.

Tom

[Kylwell]

Doesn't have to be too exact. I eyeball the amounts.

If the plastic is smooth, as in newish, the Aves may not adhere well. But in most cases I've found it to be oils or residue on the plastic that keeps it from sticking.

[seeker]

If you're really concerned, rough up the puttied area with some coarse sandpaper to give the surface some tooth for the putty to hold onto.

[TER-OR]

Yeah, the adhesion won't work well if you have a very smooth glossy plastic surface which can flex in any way. Actually, that's a good thing, as it lets you make negative masters with epoxy putty. But ruff up the area with a sanding stick or cut some grooves with a knife to give it something to grab on to.

[strangemachines]

Well, that's good to know - I thought I'd committed some big error in mixing or something. I'll give the Aves another shot this weekend. I was really impressed with how it handled compared to putty, especially cleanup, so I'll look at the bright side: now I have a second shot at making a better application.

[Treadhead]

Sometimes washing the parts in warm soapy water will help. I know this probably won't help now. I had problems with paint adhesion and found out later that this was due to the mold release that is still on the plastic.

Don't know if this is the case with the 1/100th shuttle.

By the way, I have one of those. Very neat kit

[TER-OR]

There is a thread for epoxy putty chock full'o'tips.

[Mr. Badwrench]

It sounds like you mixed it well. If you hadn't there would have been soft bits and sticky gooey areas and voids in the putty. This would not have caused it to peel off like that. Don't ask how I know...