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Magic Fix-all - Baking Soda & Superglue

Discussion in 'Ducati General Discussion' started by Borgo Panigale, Sep 27, 2019.

  1. Baking Soda - NOT Baking Powder

    Quite simply, mixing a drop of superglue with a small quantity of baking soda (bicarbonate of soda) creates a virtually instant rock-hard material that can be drilled, shaped, filed, or sanded, to repair almost anything!

    At end of June, I was about to ride down to Madrid and spend a couple of days in the Picos on the way back. I'd been having a few problems with the bike and had spent a couple of weeks continually putting the tank on and then having to take it off. On one of those removals, I managed to shear off a fuel feed spigot at the base of the fuel pump. There was no time to find a replacement, so I thought about taking a different bike but that would then need to be prepped. However, before descending into a deep funk, dredging the dark recesses of long forgotten knowledge, the superglue/bicarb soda fix surfaced from some dark corner. I glued the spigot together and built up the repair with the magic material. I have to confess to being a bit nervous about a 2,000 mile trip trusting the repair with petrol acting as a solvent, especially with 10% ethanol (everywhere in Spain) and vibration, so I went belt and braces with some o/d 5mm brass tube to (interference fit) sleeve the spigot internally. I swaged the end and sliced the tube so as to ensure the flow couldn't be restricted. The repair held and is still in place, so I'm happy to leave well alone.
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    This morning, my glasses broke, the hinge mount disintegrated. Superglue and baking soda to the rescue!
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    Cheap, available virtually anywhere and totally effective! Like superglue, the repair is just about instant, so no need to wait for curing times etc. A good thing to have in the toolkit when touring and miles from home! Loads of YouTube clips to see for guidance - I would encourage anyone to try it, rather than find yourself stranded, or throwing otherwise 'irreparable' stuff away..! I've also found that the really cheap superglue works just as well Loctite or other pricey alternatives.
     
    #1 Borgo Panigale, Sep 27, 2019
    Last edited: Sep 28, 2019
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  2. Very similar to Q-bond
     
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  3. well done Mr Robinson :upyeah:
     
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  4. Excellent tip !
     
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  5. do you have time to mold it, or does it go hard instantly ??
     
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  6. Have used it to fill dents on microlight propellers for the past 20 years.
     
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  7. If it needs moulding, you may be better off trying to make the shape required to then fill it, because it does set virtually instantly
    Yes, I've recently heard of that, but haven't tried it.
     
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  8. Good fix. I've used this trick in the past but bear in mind that Baking Powder is different from Baking Soda.
    Baking Powder is a mixture that is used as a chemical leavening agent in baked goods. It can be composed of a number of materials, but usually contains baking soda (sodium bicarbonate, NaHCO3), cream of tartar (potassium bitartrate, C4H5KO6), and cornstarch. (A base, an acid, and a filler respectively.)
    Baking Soda is entirely bicarbonate of soda, which is what you need.
     
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  9. Thanks ..... good stuff !
    I love this type of thing ..... looking forward to trying it .

    Is it very brittle when cured ?
    If so , it might not be what I need for niggling little fairing cracks .

    I've done various repairs on them over the years , with a variety of different adhesives / fillers , and they all end up cracking off , sooner or later .

    I was thinking about starting a new thread ....
    " Post your best bodge " ... or something similar ...... :)
     
  10. Yes, my sloppy terms - thanks Derek - and apologies to anyone who rushed out yesterday for baking powder and is now faced with having to bake for the next week! It is only baking soda I have ever used and therefore I cannot vouch for the efficacy of traces of cornstarch and its friends in the mix - sorry!
     
  11. I was thinking just last night that it would probably be perfect for fairing repairs! Just how brittle it is, I couldn't really say, but it does have some give in it.
     
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  12. Can you edit the thread title so as to not confuse others who do not read the whole thing?
     
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  13. Good point! Can't edit the title, but have edited the original post so there's no mistake. Thanks for the suggestion

    Replied too soon - title now edited! Thanks
     
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  14. I've used it for fairing repairs in the past,works a treat. Sets rock hard pretty much instantly. I have filled the crack with soda then dripped the glue in. It's a great hack
     
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