glue

superglue works good i prefer the gel type just depends on what you needs bonding , like this fawn skull most of the bones wasn't fully developed and didn't match up and fit together too good so i used some clear silicone glue to build a bridge between the bones and fill in the areas that was cartilage.

 

I agree. Super glue is rock hard when cured, plus it soaks into the bone. The bone around the joint will break before the joint will. Just a tip that I have not seen mentioned here before. You can get large amounts of super glue at local hobby stores. Hobby Town has their own brand that works just as good and is cheeper than brand names.

 

I've had bad luck with superglue. When I've tried the instant or gel, it hasn't stuck the bones together. I've had much better luck with the type of zap or instant glue you get from hobby stores with the spray that activates it.

 

I have had great luck with using it on bones. Are your boned throughly degreased? Superglues will not hold if there is any oil or grease.

Zap is a form of superglue. Zap is a brand name, and what people know as "superglue" is also a brand name. All of their ingredients are cyanoacrylate . I used to use Zap when I was younger to build R/C planes. Even what the hospitals use now instead of stitchs is cyanoacrylate. I have been using "superglue" to close up my cuts for about 20 years. I wish I could remember where I seen on tv and read (Discovery channel and Readers Digest I think) that the military invented superglue during Vietnam for sealing wounds in combat.

The activator you are probally talking about is more of a accelerator. It will work on any of the superglues. However, it is kind of like cooling a weld too fast, makes the bond weaker. I still build R/C planes once an a while, but I currently fly R/C helicopters and model rockets and still go through a lot of superglue.

 

superglue is the best!! Non-glossy/clear superglue works great!!make sure that you get the right kind of superglue you really cant go wrong

 

Never was a big fan of the super glues. Most are too thin to bond bones, soaking into the pores and leaving little at the surface. They also dry too quickly, are not very reversible, and are very noticeably shiny when dry against the white bone color. In my opinion, a cheap and effective glue for most jobs is Weldbond, a clear drying, slower setting, and more reversibly glue with the same thickness and consistency as elmers glue but with many times the strength. Now if you are doing serious glue work you will need serious glues.
Paleo Bond (http://www.paleobond.com/) makes a line of glues specifically for bone and fossil work for all types of situations. They are all I use when working with fragile specimens and constructing skeletons.
Their line of products include (* are products i most often use):

PENETRANT AND STABILIZER (PB002*): This is the workhorse of the Paleo-Bond family. It is a primer for other adhesives in the kit. It penetrates deep into the vascular system of a fossil bone; it fills micro cracks, strengthening the entire fossil structure. It captures punky, weak fossil material and hardens it in minutes. This will become your favorite adhesive tool!
PRE-PREP FIELD CONSOLIDENT(PB4417): In the field we often want to hold something together prior to the final laboratory preparation. We often have dirty, out of alignment fossil parts that need a light bond to preserve integrity from field to lab. PB4417 stabilizer can be air scribed or air abraded away as you are preparing the specimen for permanent restoration. Two years of field testing have given us the "go ahead" with this new product.
STRUCTURAL ADHESIVES (PB40, PB100*, PB750* & PB1500*): These are the high strength adhesives used when you bond your fossils back together. Each adhesive has a different thickness (viscosity/centipoises); the higher the number, the thicker the adhesive. You need a strong adhesive to make up the difference of error between the two opposing surfaces you intend to bond together.
JURASSIC GEL (PB4540*): This thick, gel adhesive was designed to bridge serious gaps where you need serious strength.
ACTIVATORS (PB304 AND PB303): These are used whenever you want an instant cure or hardening of your adhesives. It allows for instant handling of your specimens. The PB304 is in an aerosol can and the PB303 is in a non-aerosol pump spray bottle.
DEBONDER (PB400): This was designed to take adhesive off your fingers. No more picking the stuff off, this just dissolves it with ease. It is water-based so it won't dry your skin out.
PALEO SCULP (PB121): This is a unique two-part epoxy material that forms a clay-like substance once mixed together. You can make any size batch needed without worrying about wasting leftover material. It has a varied cure time, so YOU are in control of the work life time. It bonds to any substrate material, so you have one multi-purpose adhesive. It has great sculpture ability, it can be sculpted into any shape or be used as a casting medium. It can be easily sanded or ground, once it is cured, and painted or stained.
PALEO POXY (PB122): This is a fast curing, epoxy putty. In just one hour, it can be drilled, sawed, sanded, filed or painted. It comes in a handy form with the curing agent encapsulated in the contrasting color base material.
SPECIALTY ADHESIVE AND FILLER(PB4418):This product was designed to be used in the case of a fossil that is of good quality but encased in a very hard matrix and having an interior of soft punky vascular bone structure. The problem being that the fossil bone couldn't survive the removal from the rock hard surrounding matrix. The filler adhesive cures slowly without any exothermic reaction so as to prevent heat cracking. The 4418 is mechanically reversible so any leaking or over fill can easily be removed with knife or air blaster.

 

I'll tell you what works great to glue the bottom jaws onto skulls is hot wax. It holds great, is invisible if done right and can be removed with a microwave at a later date if necessary.

 

Wacbravo you are a wealth of information to me

I have used both superglue and elmers, and prefer the elmers. As mentioned above, if ya screw up you can reverse the process. Can't with superglue. I use just a drop in each tooth socket to glue the teeth back in and use it to mend lower jaws back together then let set with a rubberband AND I place the lower jaws ON the skull to make sure they line up right. If you EVER do a wolverine skull, make sure the jaws are on the skull before glueing or you'll have a heck of a time getting them back on.

 

Paleobond's debonder will help undo cyanoacrylates like Superglue (or the glue it sells). A drop of acetone will also work.

 

In responce to the former post about glues. I have found the most success with a fast bonding super glue. Only use this method if you have steady hands. I would use super glue on the teeth to glue them back into the maxilla or mandible, I would also recommend using it to repair small pieces of cracked or damaged bones. For simply attaching the mandible to the superior portion of the skull, I would use one small 'dab' of "hot melt". This is easily removable and keeps the skull together.
Also, if you use instant bonding glue, remember to have everything ready to go, and read to assemble. Also, remember to use in a well ventilated area.

Scott Larson

 

I use Elmer's white school glue. It takes a little while to dry, but it is non-toxic and economical. I use it to glue in teeth and for any other bone repair.