Repairing Plastics with Epoxy Adhesive/Filler

Street bike fairings, which are usually made from ABS, ABS/polycarbonate blends, or nylon (PA), are easily repaired with our 2020 SMC Hardset Epoxy Filler/Adhesive. Epoxy is great for repairing cracks, filling holes, and filling surface imperfections. Our epoxy is very easy to sand and featheredges beautifully on any rigid plastic.

Epoxy is necessary when doing a weld repair on plastics in order to restore the original appearance on the outer surface. After doing your weld, grind the weld slightly flush and apply a skim coat of epoxy filler to the area. When the epoxy cures, finish sand the area and refinish.

Epoxy is also used to reinforce welded repairs. Even after welding, the welded joint will not be as strong as the original plastic. But by applying a layer of 2020 SMC Hardset Epoxy to the backside over the crack, the weld may be reinforced. In this way, the repair can actually be stronger than the original.

The SMC Hardset Epoxy is a structural adhesive and filler that you'll want to have on hand when you're repairing your street bike fairings.

Repairing Rigid Plastics with Two-Part Epoxies

Step 1. Sand backside of area to be repaired with 50 grit paper or coarser. Heavy grooving of the plastic is desirable to maximize the mechanical strength of the bond. Afterward, sand lightly with 80 grit for finer grooving which will further improve adhesion.

Step 2. Mix 2020 SMC Hardset epoxy adhesive in equal parts and apply on backside of repair. Allow 15 minutes to cure before handling. Fiberglass tape may be imbedded in the epoxy for reinforcement. Allow epoxy at least 20 minutes to cure before handling.

Step 3. Sand frontside of damaged area with 50 grit paper or coarser and v-groove away from tear. The deeper and wider the v-groove is, the stronger the repair will be. Remove paint in the surrounding area and radius into the v-groove with 80 grit in a DA.

Step 4. Mix and apply 2020 SMC Hardset epoxy adhesive. Build up slightly higher than the surface to allow for sanding. Allow at least 20 minutes to cure before sanding.

Step 5. Contour and smooth the surface with sandpaper. Progress from 80 grit initally to 320 grit.