Super glue removal

[Amphiprion]

This is a bit OT, but I was working on an audio project the other day and managed to get some super glue on my dedicated electronics bench. This has a formica top, so I tried out some various solvents to try and get rid of it. Goo Gone, Denatured Alcohol, and Acetone were the first at bat. Acetone was the only one that was remotely successful, and after 6 applications it had barely made a dent (and it was allowed to soak the area for several minutes each application).

Lo and behold, Duro makes Super Glue Remover. It comes in a tube and has a gel-like consistency. One five second application + wipe off removed all residue.

Lessons learned? 1) Super glue remover is definitely worth the money and 2) Getting cyanoacrylate adhesive inside a loudspeaker motor will glue the voice coil former to the pole piece.

[dyazdani]

Wait until one of the glued parts is an appendage, then you will really appreciate the remover I learned some hard lessons through a few years of radio control model building...

[peter_m]

...Acetone was the only one that was remotely successful, and after 6 applications it had barely made a dent ...

Acetone usually works well for me. True it is not instantaneous but it works well enough for me so far. Could it be available in different formulation, mixed with something else and at different concentrations? Probably why it worked better for me then for you. Also stay away from scentless nail polish remover... it probably uses something other then acetone.

Peter

[JoshK]

Good to know. I used 3M 77 stuff to stick graph paper to aluminum sheets I have for drawing layout and drilling for a tube amp. I imagine the 3M stuff is a bit like super glue. Getting the 3M off proved to be more difficult that I had planned. I used Goo-gone, it worked only so-so. I ended up getting it off with some citrus paint remover that seems like a goo-gone on steroids. Maybe I should try super-glue-remover next time.

[Amphiprion]

The acetone I used was from a nail polish remover whose primary ingredient was acetone and secondary ingredient was water. I was out acetone out in the garage, so I didn't have any 100% pure stuff.

Acetone in general is really really good for an all-purpose solvent but you have to be careful with it. I tested the formica with acetone before I used it as a workstation top because I knew I would be using it as a PCB cleaning solvent. I was cleaning a circuit board at my desk at an old job and accidentally got some on my keyboard. The keys it got on were melty-smooth instead of the matte finish it had before

[PMazz]

We use toluene to clean most adhesives.

[ThomasW]

Toluene like MEK is an amazing degreaser/solvent.

Unfortunately it's also an industrial strength carcinogen, so gloves and a real respirator are advised when using it.

Acetone is almost benign compared to either Toluene or MEK

[Bent]

before I knew better I used to use toluene regularly.
(I'm sure I've taken a few years off - but it should only be near trhe end, not sometime in the middle...)