Gorilla Glue Company

Gorilla Super Glue

Reviewed By  Michael Novosad, IPMS# 36721

MSRP: $7.00 Website: www.gorillaglue.com I recently saw a full-page add in a magazine for Gorilla Glue, and almost turned the page, but something caught my eye: "Gorilla Super Glue". Their ads are quite something: a pair of gorilla's hairy hands holding one of their products, and daring the reader to grab it. Well, it certainly grabbed me. I checked out their website at www.gorillaglue.com, and saw the same big hands, but here the fingers flex. The Gorilla Glue Company is based in Cincinnati, Ohio. The super glue is not to be confused with the original Gorilla Glue. This is the glue offered by this manufacturer, and is not intended for modeling as this glue foams as it cures and expands out from the mated surfaces. Not good. Gorilla also offers wood glue, but I am not familiar with that product. Gorilla also offers a tape, which picks up where duct tape leaves off. This product definitely is not made for modelers, unless you are into permanent masking!! Most recently their website introduced Gorilla epoxy. Things are happening just too fast here. I think that I will just stick with the super glue for the moment. Super glue as we know it, traditionally has its strengths (no pun intended) as well as weaknesses. Its strength lays in its ability to hold parts and resist tension, but the main weakness is its shear (lateral or side impact)strength. Another weakness is its ability to instantly bond parts and materials together (including fingers or other body parts). I went out to check out the product. I found this product at Home Depot, Ace Hardware, Walmart, and several local hardware. After reading the product label I bought a bottle. It cost about $7.00 for 0.71 ounces! Rather costly, but if it worked as advertised I would be happy. The bottle is not too small, but after opening the package I realized the bottle appeared to be about ¾ full. I felt somewhat ripped off. The screw cap is easy to grip and twist, and include a short length of steel rod on the inside that fits into the neck of the dispenser, and serves as a self-cleaning tool every time the cap is put back in place. The glue itself is not thin as normal super glue, but not quite as thick as gel-type super glues. Now that I parted company with $7.00 was it worth it? I have used this produce to fix the flat surface of a bent photo etched part to a larger plastic surface. The bond was slower than regular super glue, and a bit quicker that the previously reviewed Gator glue. The bond appeared to be quite secure, but as in the instructions the full bonding take place over 24 hours. So in the meantime I am on to other tasks and forgot about the part. So far no problems with parts coming off during the remainder of the build process. I generally apply the Gorilla Super Glue to one of the mating surfaces with a round tooth pick, using just a small dab of the glue, making it a point not to use so much that it oozes out around the part's edges. The bonding process begins within 15-30 seconds, and the "tightening' or bonding effect can be felt. Since the glue is rather expensive I am quite selective in where and how it is used on a model. It would appear that its best use for this product would be where the potential of knocking parts off a model during the build phase is most likely. I have only used it on metal-to-plastic, and metal-to-metal surfaces that have not been painted, and the bonds have been secure. When bonding any part to a painted surface that bond is only as good as the paint-to-surface bond. I would not hesitate to recommend this product for any modeling project where there is a specific need or application for the glue.