Help Gluing Fiddily Bits...

I bought a bunch of models, both plastic and metal.

Predictably, in transit a bunch of small "fiddily" bits have broken off. You know the type, banner poles, the bits at the end of tails, etc.

Any advice for gluing these back on securely?

When this happened with my Stegadons, I didn't bother trying to glue them back on as I consider once it's broken at that tiny point (that has almost no support) then it will keep breaking at that point forever and so you should just leave it.

I'm happy to revise my conclusion but would appreciate any advice on, maybe, better glues? Modelling putty?

I'm willing to try anything apart from duct tape

 

A tiny pin vise and pinning with a paperclip might work. I used to do that on old metal models.

 

If very fiddly or too thin for the pin vice & paperclip trick, you can try superglue with bicarb for a stronger bond (may need some sanding after) or superglue and wrap some green stuff around it and sculpt into leather strapping (banner poles, spears etc).

 

Thanks for the input.

You mean combine superglue and bicarbonate of soda?

And what's the green stuff you're talking about?

(Sorry, I have never really gotten into modelling or painting as my first efforts were so heroically bad)

 

This is green stuff. You work equal pieces of yellow and blue to make a green putty. This can be used to fill gaps in miniatures where they don't join properly or for sculpting purposes, eg
You can also use milliput or others which do similar things.
I would roll out a piece of greenstuff into a snake and wrap it around the banner pole (after you have stuck it together) and make it look a bit like leather strapping. Possibly similar to this guy has used it for the horses reins,

If you combine a bit of bicarbonate of soda with superglue it forms an immediate plastic like weld. Sometimes this can be a bit messy which is why I would maybe try to mask it with the greenstuff.

There are plenty of youtube vids showing how to use both greenstuff type products and superglue/bicarb.
Hope any of this helps

 

Brill. Thanks. I’ll look that up.

 

What about plastic? I’ve got the special GW plastic glue, as apparently superglue isn’t really effective on plastic? (Finecast)

 

Finecast is not plastic, it's resin. You'll want to glue it with superflu.

Plastic glue only works for gluing plastic as it's formulated to disolve the material and fuse the two parts together.

 

Ah...

Didn't know that...

How can I tell what miniatures I have that are plastic and what are finecast? (As I've been buying them second hand)

 

Weight would tell you, heavy are metal, medium would be resin and light plastic, but now I realized it may not be a good point for you as you’re starting.... one could look it up online or I would say post a couple pictures here and someone will be able to help you which one are which.... generally troops are plastic/metal and generals/hero could be any of all 3.