Lock Tite.....or, epoxy?

[Odie]

I have a large bolt on a bearing press that takes a lot of torque, and need to secure it. I do have some medium strength Lock-tite, but wondering if anyone has used epoxy for a thread locker.....? These threads need to be permanently secured.

thx, ko

 

[billooms]

Try the red LocTite (#271). If you ever need to take it apart, you'll have to apply heat (like from a torch). But at least you can take it apart if you have to. I'm guessing that epoxy would be permanent and may make a mess putting it together. The LocTite product is very thin and should get into the grooves better than thicker epoxy.

http://www.loctiteproducts.com/p/t_lkr_red/overview/Loctite-Threadlocker-Red-271.htm

 

[Nate Hawkes]

Ditto that^^^^

 

[Odie]

It's a done deal.......The epoxy is now curing. As I said, it needs to be a permanent fix. thanks, ko

 

[Douglas Ladendorf]

If it's a matter of safety I think welding would be a better solution than epoxy.

 

[Odie]

If it's a matter of safety I think welding would be a better solution than epoxy.

Yes, I'd agree with that, Douglas.......but, no.....it isn't a matter of safety.

thanks, ko

 

[John K Jordan]

It's a done deal.......The epoxy is now curing. As I said, it needs to be a permanent fix. thanks, ko

It seemed to me the red threadlocker did a better job on tight threads than epoxy. Maybe epoxy would work better on sloppy threads or maybe I needed more meticulous cleaning.

BTW, you can generally soften epoxy by heating, just like the threadlocker. It may not even need as much heat. Heating the shaft is an easy way to remove an epoxied lathe tool from a handle.

Another way to permanently fix a nut to a shaft is to tighten it securely, drill a hole through both, then drive in a roll pin. The problem with this method is it makes it difficult to tighten further in the future if ever necessary.

BTW, if ever welding something like this make sure neither part is hardened steel. Welding on hardened steel subject to high stress will weaken and likely warp things, for example, welding on a shaft in a transmission. I don't know this from personal experience but from the experience of others!

JKJ

 

[John Torchick]

Two part epoxy will separate at about 180 deg. F. Used to build golf clubs and had to heat the shank to get the shaft out. Lock Tite is designed for thread coating and holding in place.

 

[Steve Worcester]

If all else fails, use JB Weld. Had a friend that used to use it to fill in the water jackets on his Pro Street cars. But in this situation, as long as all threads are clean, JB Weld is more permanent and resilient than Locktite or epoxy.
But either is easy to clean up with acetone later to try JB

 

[John K Jordan]

If all else fails, use JB Weld. Had a friend that used to use it to fill in the water jackets on his Pro Street cars. But in this situation, as long as all threads are clean, JB Weld is more permanent and resilient than Locktite or epoxy.
But either is easy to clean up with acetone later to try JB

I use a lot of JB weld around the farm. I read that JB weld is an epoxy with a filler, is that correct? If so, I wonder if the filler would interfere with a good bond in tight threads.

One perhaps interesting thing I discovered about JB weld - the filler is ferromagnetic, perhaps iron or steel powder. I once used JB to glue a small supermagnet into a fence staple holder to better hold the staple while hammering. I drilled and filled a hole, coated the magnet, then built a smooth fillet of JB weld on the outside. As I watched, the JB weld began to mound up over the magnet! I completed the tool by continuously smoothing the JB weld to where I wanted it until it started to set up.

JKJ

 

[Odie]

Matter of fact.....I have some old JB weld here. Didn't think to use it, but it might have worked ok for this. Yes, I think it has some sort of greyish filler, and has less tendency to run before it begins to set-up. I think it was Paul Harvey who was sponsored by JB weld.....and, why I have some! Most people on this forum probably know who that is.....but, Chris probably doesn't! 🙄

 

[Gretch Flo]

Matter of fact.....

I have some old JB weld here. Didn't think to use it, but it might have worked ok for this. Yes, I think it has some sort of greyish filler, and has less tendency to run before it begins to set-up. I think it was Paul Harvey who was sponsored by JB weld.....and, why I have some! Most people on this forum probably know who that is.....but, Chris probably doesn't! :

rolleyes:

"good day" odie. I have tried JB weld on some things and it didn't work. One is the "nipple" thing my sliding door latch grabs on to. still wiggles, but functional. Can't remember others but probably beyond what it was meant to do, Gretch

 

[john lucas]

I've used JB weld both successfully and unsuccessfully. It is a wonderful product to fill holes. If you buy the High heat version you can repair most things on engines. Some things like plastics it doesn't bond well too. I have peeled it off with a pocket knife. I would second the loctite to bond threads. I think part of the problem with some epoxies is the joint gets starved if the threads fit too close. When I've had sloppy fits on some jigs I simply fill the nut with epoxy, put a bolt in and let it dry, then just force the bolt out. It usually come free fairly easily. Loctite will hold a bolt very solidly but does come apart if you use heat.

 

[Bill Boehme]

I use a lot of JB weld around the farm. I read that JB weld is an epoxy with a filler, is that correct? If so, I wonder if the filler would interfere with a good bond in tight threads.

One perhaps interesting thing I discovered about JB weld - the filler is ferromagnetic, perhaps iron or steel powder. I once used JB to glue a small supermagnet into a fence staple holder to better hold the staple while hammering. I drilled and filled a hole, coated the magnet, then built a smooth fillet of JB weld on the outside. As I watched, the JB weld began to mound up over the magnet! I completed the tool by continuously smoothing the JB weld to where I wanted it until it started to set up.

JKJ

Yes, it is powdered iron in epoxy. The particle size is microscopic ... small enough that it could be somewhat of a thread lubricant. But, the thing that gives JB Weld it's great metal bonding properties is that the high percentage of iron filler mean that rhe coefficient of thermal expansion is very close to that of iron and steel. So for iron and steel parts that are subjected to operation over a wide temperature range there is less mechanical stress across the bond due to thermal expansion and contraction. Since epoxy cures to a very hard resin, the bond will eventually fail from fatigue unless the coefficients of both materials are closely matched.

BTW, the main difference between what we typically call iron or steel is the percentage of carbon.

 

[John Torchick]

Adding to the replies- Locktite is used to hold the screws in place for telescopic sight mounts on firearms. That takes a lot of punishment from the recoil of large calibers. Heat it a bit to release the bond and remove the screws. Clean the screws and reinstall with Locktite.