Can a broken part be fixed with epoxy

[NAILSNATHAN]

A corner of plastic broke off that holds my ejector pin in place. I have a P95 and forgot to lower the ejector after cleaning it. That's when I broke it, I guess. Can I rebuild that little area with epoxy and drill a hole in it to accept the pin? Do you think it would remain in place on the polymer with enough strength to work?
Thanks

 

[in_a_silent_way]

not an expert on the topic but have built a few boats using epoxy and have more than a few hours using different types

your question is probably more complex than it might seem
the best answer I could offer is "maybe"
the bond strength is greatly dependent on the type of plastic being repaired - I dont know anything about the type of plastic used in the those pistols, but I would GUESS that they are not conducive to making a good bond

if you try it, surface preparation is critical - you are making a mechanical rather than chemical bond so both surfaces have to be rough - I cant visualize the repair you need to make but a cross pin installed in a hole drilled through the mating surfaces is a common method to strengthen a repair - may not apply to your situation

also, selecting a quality epoxy is important - Devcon comes to mind but there are other options - you can use aluminum additives (or some such) for increased abrasion resistance depending on your situation

you might try asking Ruger - there may be an engineer there who knows the composition of the part in question who could recommend a compatible adhesive that they know will work

maybe more questions here than answers, but hoping something here helps

 

[s4s4u]

Polymers are all over the map when it comes to adhesives, and their effectiveness. Even if you find one that sticks, it might not take much to unstick it. I have used JB to rebuild metal parts, but plastic is a different animal.

 

[arfmel]

I don’t think it’s going to be strong enough to last, but you really don’t have anything to lose by trying.

 

[NAILSNATHAN]

thanks a ton. i hate to give up on the gun entirely when something might work to get it functioning without costing a lot. it's like an eighth of inch square cube. i wonder if model glue would adhere to the frame, which is a polymer. wonder if mixing model glue with the epoxy would help. since we can burn 12 tons of fuel a second to lift 6,000,000 lbs of rocket and fuel straight up in the air 40 miles, producing 190 million horsepower and 190 gigawatts of power, i should be able to shape a few drops of liquid plastic to hold a little pin.

 

[NAILSNATHAN]

Polymers are all over the map when it comes to adhesives, and their effectiveness. Even if you find one that sticks, it might not take much to unstick it. I have used JB to rebuild metal parts, but plastic is a different animal.

i know

 

[s4s4u]

Might be worth a call to the mothership, see what they have to say

 

[3manfan]

 

[hittman]

Fixed? Yes.
Safe to shoot? Think I’d pass.

 

[NAILSNATHAN]

You know what gets me? I loved this thing. It fit my hand. It felt so solid and heavy. It was snug. Never had one problem with it. Nuthin, you know? In a split-second, cause of a little mistake, I destroyed it.

 

[NAILSNATHAN]

Might be worth a call to the mothership, see what they have to say

Yup. Am planning on it. They don't sell the frames, which doesn't help. Can't find one anywhere that might fit.

 

[NAILSNATHAN]

Fixed? Yes.
Safe to shoot? Think I'd pass.

Nope. Agree. It's gotta be perfectly safe. Just seems like such a minor part, you know? Ought to be some way to work it out. We put man-made artificial knees and hips inside skin, circulating blood, soft flesh, muscle, tendons, ligaments, sinew and bone while the person is alive, warm and breathing.

 

[NAILSNATHAN]

THANKS EACH OF YOU GUYS. APPRECIATE IT.

 

[Don Lovel]

I have had amazing luck using JB Weld. Prep and enough cure time is the key. It has held threads and withstood recoil

 

[s4s4u]

Can you post up a picture?

 

[NAILSNATHAN]

Can you post up a picture?

i will try

 

[NAILSNATHAN]

 

[NAILSNATHAN]

I colored the corner that's broken off in red. Obviously, it is a small piece. It helps to hold the ejector in place with a pin that runs through both and through the other side.

 

[NAILSNATHAN]

Can you post up a picture?

I appreciate your interest and everyone's. I'm kind of floored by all the help everyone is giving.

 

[NAILSNATHAN]

I have had amazing luck using JB Weld. Prep and enough cure time is the key. It has held threads and withstood recoil

Wow. Cool.

 

[NAILSNATHAN]

Wow. Cool.

something like this? "J-B Weld Pro-Series Structural Plastic Bonder Adhesive #52039 is a is a quick-setting, two-part, urethane adhesive system that provides strong and lasting repairs and works on thermoset, carbon fiber composites, thermoplastics, coated metals, concrete & more. Plastic Bonder has a 1:1 mixing ratio, sets in 15 minutes, can be sanded, painted, drilled and tapped after it cures in 90 minutes. With a tensile strength of 3370 PSI, Plastic Bonder sets to a black color and cures to a hard, permanent bond."

 

[s4s4u]

I colored the corner that's broken off in red. Obviously, it is a small piece. It helps to hold the ejector in place with a pin that runs through both and through the other side.

Was kinda hoping for an actual picture of the broken parts of your gun to can see what you have to work with.

 

[NAILSNATHAN]

Was kinda hoping for an actual picture of the broken parts of your gun to can see what you have to work with.

Oh. I'll try. It is tight and dark but I'll see what I can get. I thought about modifying the pin on one end. I was wondering if I could bend the other end of a longer pin so it would go through the ejector, while mounted on the other side as it has been, and once you're through the ejector, bend it and make two ends--which would go further back, yet hold the pin where it belongs, and drill two new holes that would hold it in place.

 

[NAILSNATHAN]

There is always every chance I've gone completely mad! Beat tired. I'll be back

 

[Jeepnik]

Hope you get it fixed. It'd be a shame to lose a good firearm over a little broken piece.
It does, however, point out why I mostly avoid plastic guns.

 

[NAILSNATHAN]

Been reading and listening to audiobooks on Lincoln's life. Knew they were poor and had a tough go of it. Didn't imagine what it was really like grinding out subsistence in the winter in Indiana on a few acres of brush and trees, sleeping in a hut with 1 side open to the elements, at 7 years old, relying on firearms for your safety and for food. wearing tattered, homemade scraps of clothing, barefoot when warm enough, his toes bulging through the shoes they made themselves in winter. They were frontiersmen.
I remember grandad telling us how he left the family farm in Missouri and joined the navy at 15 because his dad wouldn't buy him a pair of shoes. I inherited his 12-gauge Ithaca Crass shotgun.

 

[blume357]

Give it a try it won't hurt and I like the idea of trying the JB Weld stuff... I just fixed a knife handle with some of that.
I will have to say after the repair I would not trust my life to the gun until after a few hundred rounds and then only as a last resort.
You know you can still buy used P95s... they are out there all over the place? Nothing wrong with having several.
These are mine and this is after letting a couple go to different homes:

P95s are in the arch... two lower pistols are 89s.

 

[GasGuzzler]

I use Gorilla brand 5-minute epoxy to assemble golf clubs and have had one failure that was my fault. Still don't think I would use it to fix a gun.

 

[kshaw]

You can try printing the part with a 3D printer if you can keep the :ghost gun police away.

 

[larry8]

I picked up a Browning pistol that had the part (#44 in above picture) that elongated the hole that it was in, and somebody put epoxy in to attempt to secure it, but that didn't work too well as it became loose again. I picked up some industrial liquid aluminum, and after getting out all the epoxy I secured the pin with that stuff. It is hard as a rock and cannot be filed down either. It worked perfectly and never came loose again.