What adhesive are you using to build your foamies? I used 5-minute epoxy for a long time, then a friend said he heard people were using hot-melt glue. You know, the kind used for "craft" stuff. Well, I had a hard time believing it, I just couldn't imagine it being strong enough. I happened to already have a dual-temperature glue gun, so I ran some experiments on test pieces of EPS foam. Seemed to work, the bond was stronger than the foam itself.

So then I decided to try building an entire plane using only hot glue. This was So.14, my 91st RC plane, built in December 2002. Needless to say, the hot glue held, and I was quickly converted, especially since I think any kind of waiting is terribly inefficient, and that includes waiting for glue to dry.

Here's some tips for using hot glue:

Use the right gun!

Most single-temperature hot glue guns are too hot for foam and will melt it instead of adhering it. You have to use a dual-temperature glue gun, one with a high and low setting. I use a Stanley GR-25 Pro, 40 watts, on the low setting. See photo below.

Use the right temperature setting!

Make sure the gun is set to low, and glue scrap foam together first to get the hang of it.

Don't let the glue cool before attaching the pieces!

Hot glue cools fast, so you have to work fast. The advantage is that you can get an inexpensive strong bond very quickly.

Additional notes:

Hot glue works well on EPS and EPP foams. When used on fan fold foam (Dow Blucor), I've discovered it fails over time.

I use MultiTemp glue sticks from Adhesive Tech. You can get a bag of 50 sticks at Walmart or other stores for as little as $2. Fifty sticks last a really long time. Do you know of a less expensive effective adhesive?

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