E-freakin'-gad, what IS this gunk???

[mykturk]

Alright, so I'm wanting to get in on a contest here, and I think the Cobweb Classic is a do-able date if I start with a partial build in my musty old basement... I have several partial builds to pick from but, given the nature of the site, I think a half finished "Street Fighter" street machine build would fit in nicely. So, after a good part of the evening searching through boxes, I find most all the components I had for this. What I found was a scary sight... Have a look,

What the heck IS the moldy looking mess "growing" in the corner?
I can only guess it's "Zap" related as i did use it a lot then, there also a spot coming up through the hood, what I have here is a mix of parts from different incarnations of the "Street Fighter" '60 Chevy Panel Express, the hood was the double naca scooped version and I'd filled them in...

Soooo, my question is, how do I neuturalize/remove this gunk in a perminate fasion. There are several sections of this thing contaminated with this gunk... I've swapped roofs so I have the smaller, flat edge wheel openings in the back with the closed roof/sunroof roof, so there are seams inside and all are affected.
I'd hate to go through with a nice finish only to have this gunk raise it's ugly head... So I turn to the Pro's!

[stilljustharley]

Just a guess (before the molecular scientists get involved) but that looks to me like the Zap has reacted with the plastic while it was going off and the plastic's pigmentation has bled into the glue. In the wrong conditions CA glue can take a surprisingly long time to fully dry and Monogram were well known for using a lot of pigment in their plastic so that's my guess for the source of your gunk.

If you're planning on using that part I'd grind/ sand as much of it away as possible, throw on some primer and leave for at least a week to see what happens.

Good luck!

[blatdriver]

You could try stripping it with easy-off oven cleaner,

and if needed, i've used oil painting odourless solvent, to remove stick stuff off some kits
(BUT TRY IT ON A BIT YOU DON'T NEED FIRST)
it's safe of most stuff but not all.
then sand and primer.
thats what i'd do anyway

hope it helps

Dion

[JerryG]

The're "baby" "StreetFighter" EGGS,....ready to hatch about a hundred little kits ;D

[rocketeer]

If you were using baking soda and super glue as a filler, well, that sometimes acts strangely after a loooonnnnng time. One of the reasons I don't use it any more.

[mykturk]

Aug 11, 2008 7:31:11 GMT -6 rocketeer said:

If you were using baking soda and super glue as a filler, well, that sometimes acts strangely after a loooonnnnng time. One of the reasons I don't use it any more.

Well, this project is about 17 plus years old, and I did use baking soda and Zap-a-gap a lot then... I just wouldn't have thought I'd use that much as this gunk is everywhere I glued a part....
Now, if I try and remove it with Easy-off, will the whole thing fall apart?

[blatdriver]

don't know
never tryed it on baking soda and Zap-a-gap
but it hasen't eaten any glue i've used it on, but you never know
try it on a bit you don't need or you have a spare bit.

[peteski]

I also think that this is baking soda related. I never liked that "CA Glue and Baking Soda" idea either (and I never used it). What made me question that method was that the baking soda is water soluble. If some of it was left over uncured in the bond, it could "melt" if enough moisture got to it. And basements are sometimes very damp.

There are many other more stable accelerators and fillers which can be used with CA glues.

[stevehammann]

I would think a good sanding/primer sealer application would do the trick. The primer sealer should cut off your fungus amungus from the air and stop whatever reaction took place over the years. after you get that taken care of you should be able to finish smoothing with some 3M spot putty.