Ok so I have read all the articles on paint and what a great resource they are heaps of helpful advice.

But try as I might I can't help making a huge mess of my builds with glue pouring out of tubes to quick, glue embossed finger prints, glue that oozes from joints and parts that fall off due to lack of adhesive.

What I am wondering now is what are the top tips for gluing? The techniques that produce those wonderfully clean pre-paint builds I see here

I use Tamiya extra thin liquid cement. Green top bottle. Fine point applicator brush. Easy to apply, feeds into seams, and is much neater. I have used Testors liquid cement as well, replacing the bottle brush with an artists fine point. It is much easier to control how much glue goes into the joint.

Ditto

Yes, Tamiya extra thin liquid cement. Green top bottle is a great advise.
You have to hold your pieces in the right position with masking tape, you apply the glue with the tiny brush along the seems and then you wait the complete drying time (about 6 hours, but more is better). Tamiya cement solvents evaporate quite quickly and that's the reason why the glue doesn't leave almost any trace on plastic surfaces.The few traces that you could have could be deleted passing gently a steel wool on them after the complete glue drying

Anyway for stronger bonding you could use also Faller expert glue wich has a very useful needle applicator



Or Tamiya orange top cement which is denser than the green top one



If you decide to use the tamiya denser type DON'T USE ITS BRUSH! Is too large and could cause huge mess on your model. You can apply the glue with a tiny brush or with a wooden toothstick

If the parts are taped together, how do you get the glue in between the join?

Even with the parts firmly taped together ACROSS the join, rather than ALONG the join, the Extra Thin cement will "capillary" and travel along the join beneath the tape. You can assist this by gently moving the two parts against each other but I find I rarely need to do this. Once you remove the tape you can apply a tiny drop of cement if you find any spots the cement hasn't reached.

Cheers, D

Really ? Wow. Will it work for the tubed stuff?

Yes it works. That's the best glue to bond together half fuselages in aircraft modelling

Furthermore the extra thin glue tend to create a thin weld seam which can avoid the use of putty.
After the complete glue drying time you'll have just to remove this seam with a sharp blade and then a bit sanding down

cheers

I use different kinds of glue for different projects. Hobbycraft ca glue is my usual. However, sometimes I need to melt the plastic using Testor's glue. Also, I occasionally use two part epoxy(cheap stuff from hardware stores). In the past, I haved used Zap-A-Gap. It works great.
I apply as little glue as possible, using a glue applicator I made from a needle and wooden dowel. I've also used pipettes, but they don't last long. To apply Testor's, you just have to be very careful. I would suggest getting the plastic bottle with applicator tip. The tube stuff is a mess and requires an extremely steady hand.
If some glue seeps out at the seams, you can wipe it away with a paper towell. I keep a roll next to my workbench.

I've often wondered about the CA glues but always thought them too quick drying and too good at gluing fingers together ?

Ca glue does dry too fast for some applications. It's great for pe parts. And, it does have the disadvantage of liking to stick to skin over plastic and metal. But, it does not melt the plastic and is also great for fiddlely parts.