# Gluing styrofoam to styrofoam for hill/mountains/terrain etc.



## Tigger (Dec 19, 2021)

I've searched this site and others and came up with tons of products to use. The most common problem is the availability of adhesives or styrofoam glues. Liquid nails LN 604 seems to be a decent one, cant find any locally. Same with the Loctite PL300. "out of stock" I'd like more options/ideas on what you have used. How did it work and is it available? Amazon has the Liquid Nails at $24 a tube ( 10 ounce). It's like they know its hard to find and they are gouging the public. For comparison, Home Depot sells the PL604 at $73 a case (24) 10 ounce tubes, when its available. about $6 a tube. So I could use some other ideas. thanks


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## JeffHurl (Apr 22, 2021)

I like Liquid Nails for Projects.


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## Spruslayer (Dec 13, 2020)

I have used the liquid nails with great results and its plentfull around my neck of the railroad at about 3 to 5 a tube.
I have read that silicone adheasive calk can be used but i have not tried that so cant comit how well that works


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## Lehigh74 (Sep 25, 2015)

First, I hope you are talking about rigid foam such as Foamular, not Styrofoam. The only thing I have made with Styrofoam is a mess.

I like Loctite Power Grab for joining rigid foam. It is supposed to have a near instant bond, but I use a few dabs of the power grab and a few dabs of hot melt glue. The hot melt glue does have a near instant bond and the Loctite makes the joint more permanent.

The Power Grab is in plentiful supply around here, but the price does seem to have gone up slightly ($6/tube). Silicone caulk also went way up in price ($12/tube).


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## Tigger (Dec 19, 2021)

The dense blue board style of foam. Yeah, house building in this area is nuts. Lots of items out of stock. I have 1 tube of liquid nails LN 704, heard mixed reviews on that stuff for foam use. I'll give it a try.


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## JeffHurl (Apr 22, 2021)

Tigger said:


> The dense blue board style of foam. Yeah, house building in this area is nuts. Lots of items out of stock. I have 1 tube of liquid nails LN 704, heard mixed reviews on that stuff for foam use. I'll give it a try.


Worked OK for me. It takes a while to cure, but it holds my foam together well. It's kind of thick, so if you use too much, the pieces float instead of stacking, but you will figure all that out as you start to use it.


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## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

As you said, tons of options. I get that local suppliers may be out, but you can order online for home delivery.

You can use adhesive latex caulk as well.

For any adhesive on impermeable materials, spread it in an S pattern, not circles. If you do concentric circles, the adhesive closer to the outside cures, essentially sealing off the adhesive in the middle and preventing it from curing.


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## Lemonhawk (Sep 24, 2013)

As I recall, Liquid Nails eats the foam, so you need to find "Liquid Nails for Projects", that "for Projects" is important as it does not turn the foam to mush. Also keep in mind that the product needs air to cure, so better to use an S pattern than concentric circles!


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## Mixed Freight (Aug 31, 2019)

JeffHurl said:


> I like Liquid Nails for Projects.





CTValleyRR said:


> As you said, tons of options. I get that local suppliers may be out, but you can order online for home delivery.
> 
> You can use adhesive latex caulk as well.
> 
> For any adhesive on impermeable materials, spread it in an S pattern, not circles. If you do concentric circles, the adhesive closer to the outside cures, essentially sealing off the adhesive in the middle and preventing it from curing.





Lemonhawk said:


> As I recall, Liquid Nails eats the foam, so you need to find "Liquid Nails for Projects", that "for Projects" is important as it does not turn the foam to mush. Also keep in mind that the product needs air to cure, so better to use an S pattern than concentric circles!


Agreed. "Yup" to all.


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## OilValleyRy (Oct 3, 2021)

Anything not solvent based. 
Even wood glue or elmers type white glue will do the job. 
I suspect most folks prefer a silicone for the same reason I do; it absorbs vibration. 
You can buy wood/white glue by the gallon at home depot etc.


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## Old_Hobo (Feb 20, 2014)

Tigger said:


> It's like they know its hard to find and they are gouging the public


Sounds like the oil companies…..


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## sjm9911 (Dec 20, 2012)

White glue, takes a few days to set up as it needs air( probably oxygen). Works better then all the rest. Pour it on, spread it with a paint brush add weight and wait a few days. Cheap easy and works.


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## Severn (May 13, 2016)

Gorilla glue works. Creates a tight but possibly breakable bond with some extra effort. Expands slightly, may have to trim excess. I'd say 24 hrs to dry but... It may be less. Glue seam is apparent if you have to cut thru it. Iced used on pink board foam and regular white foam.


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## 71596 (Feb 12, 2021)

Both items offered by Hot Wire Foam Factory.


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## Tigger (Dec 19, 2021)

Lots of suggestions, thanks. The "S" pattern really makes sense. The foam cutter has arrived. Planning on cutting the foam next to an open window with a fan pushing the fumes outside. Gluing them up and shaping them a few days later. I have a Dremel tool and a rasp files and a coping saw also. Any other helpful shaping tips would be appreciated as well.


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## Severn (May 13, 2016)

I found the nicron wire provided with the ws tool to be flimsy and prone to breaking. There's sources for nicron wire of different gauges and you might consider getting something from them and making your own using various DC power supplies you have on hand, and some kind of wire holder you make. I actually don't use any hot wire cutter at this pt and just go with a thin blade serrated knife. But ... There's certain kinds of cuts it seems to me that could or just about require a hot wire... So it's good to know how to do make one if the commercial offerings don't suit you. The hot wire cuts do produce noxious fumes... So consider good airflow when you cut. Blah blah blah...


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## JeffHurl (Apr 22, 2021)

I found that a long, sharp, utility knife worked great for major carving. Then the rasp for finer contouring. I ended up using plaster cloth on top of the foam to smooth things out. You can also drape plaster cloth over wadded up paper to add more variation to the topography.

I used the hot wire cutting tools, but found them tedious... 95% of the time it was utility knife and a rasp. And a shop vac, lol.


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## sjm9911 (Dec 20, 2012)

I use a mutitool, the oscillating cutting tool, and just a razor knife. But I am not striving to be the best, just not the worst!


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## OilValleyRy (Oct 3, 2021)

I stopped carving foam a decade ago. My current method is the opposite mentality; add upon, not remove from. I stack the inner portions, then build up the exterior slope one of two ways; wadded newspaper covered in plaster cloth, or a custom mix of durabond 90 joint compound with sand mixed in. The latter is water proof, but dries like cement although it is easier to shape while wet than plaster as it’s consistency holds shape… like mashed potatoes.

The only real cuts that I make are general shapes, like cutting a curved piece, or needing a 4” x 18” piece.
And the way that I cut them is with a saber saw and a fine tooth 3” blade. I run it at high speed, not low speed. It cuts through foam like it’s not even there. There is a fine powdery-like dust but it is minimal. There is minimal waste too. Combined with the ability to steer a saber saw, the result is like making jigsaw pieces. You can cut a piece off, and if you try to fit it back to the main piece it was cut from, the amount of lost material in in the 32nds. Virtually no waste, virtually no dust, virtually any shape. 

Removable scenery, like lift out mountains is a slightly modified method. Keeping it lightweight, I use foam for vertical supports, then use foam strips, like 2x2 size with angled ends, to connect the verticals, keeping them near the outer edge. Picture how the Inca terraced mountains for farming, I basically recreate a hollow version of that. Then with it on wax paper or a large tarp, add wadded newspaper (or similar), and plaster cloth. Because of the lightweight, you can build singular hills that are 9 feet long if you desire, with no seams.
EDIT; if the hill will have a road or homes etc, I create a base platform for those using sections of 2” foam integrated in. This way a road going up the hill is pretty easy to keep “flat” across the lanes, and houses are all level going up the hill. One can also model walk-out basements this way.


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## OilValleyRy (Oct 3, 2021)

Forgot to mention this. When stacking and gluing “terrace strips” between vertical supports, I use toothpicks as skewers to pin them in place while the glue dries. Don’t want it all to collapse an hour after you walk away to dry over night.


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## MPR (Jul 11, 2021)

I know a lot of modelers don't like this, but a hobby glue gun at low temp has worked great for my needs.


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## Djsfantasi (Mar 19, 2019)

I use a steak or bread knife (serrated) picked up at a yard sale. I’ve also heated the blade with a propane torch for a hot knife.


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## MPR (Jul 11, 2021)

Regarding shaping the foam, I have used a fishing filet knife. Very sharp and the blade is very flexible which comes in handy.


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## JeffHurl (Apr 22, 2021)

MPR said:


> Regarding shaping the foam, I have used a fishing filet knife. Very sharp and the blade is very flexible which comes in handy.


Yes, a filet knife would be a great carving tool! Great tip!


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## MPR (Jul 11, 2021)

JeffHurl said:


> Yes, a filet knife would be a great carving tool! Great tip!


Just have to be careful, can't tell you how many times I cut my fingertips. lol


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## JeffHurl (Apr 22, 2021)

I used an inexpensive utility knife that uses those long segmented razor blades. I scared myself a few times, especially when one would snap under pressure.


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## davidone (Apr 20, 2015)

For Styrofoam use white glue, stack it add some weight and let it dry overnight. For ridged foam you can use white glue also. If you want something else you can use Silicon but why when white or yellow glue will do the job.


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## Rich1853 (Jun 25, 2018)

Tigger said:


> I've searched this site and others and came up with tons of products to use. The most common problem is the availability of adhesives or styrofoam glues. Liquid nails LN 604 seems to be a decent one, cant find any locally. Same with the Loctite PL300. "out of stock" I'd like more options/ideas on what you have used. How did it work and is it available? Amazon has the Liquid Nails at $24 a tube ( 10 ounce). It's like they know its hard to find and they are gouging the public. For comparison, Home Depot sells the PL604 at $73 a case (24) 10 ounce tubes, when its available. about $6 a tube. So I could use some other ideas. thanks


I used Glidden Gripper primer sealer to butt joined the 2x2 blue foam to make a 4x8 sheet.
No problem, with my case had to use weight (gallon of water) for keeping the pieces (2 at a time) together during curing about 24 hours.


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## Norgale300$$ (Dec 9, 2021)

Use TiteBond ll for all this kind of gluing. Works great.


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## Tigger (Dec 19, 2021)

I have a lot of Titebond glue.


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## Norgale300$$ (Dec 9, 2021)

I use it for everything. I repair my plastic models with it, I glue together layers of Styrofoam and other kinds of foam, Build wood ship models with it (water proof),stick and tissue airplane models and lots of other things around the house. Not only does it stick well and cure fast but it's cheap too compared with liquid nails and the like. About $6 for a 16oz squeeze container with a nozzle on top that's adjustable a bit. I love this stuff and I'm not allergic to it at all. White glue will work for your foam and styrofoam layers too but it takes a bit longer to set up and cure. I use both a lot. Norgale


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## Norgale300$$ (Dec 9, 2021)

All my styrofoam is glued down with Titebond.






Part of a styro mine I'm building.All TiteBond.






All my subroadbed and pylons as well as all the track roadbed,cork, is glued down with TB but the track is all track nails in case I change something. Drys really strong and mostly clear.


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