Glue to Repair Spare Tire Cover Crack

[gksmith]

I have discovered some small cracks on my spare tire cover. I would like to repair them before they get too big. What is the best way? It seems to be a type of plastic--I do not believe that it is fiberglass, but I could be wrong. So I am wondering what kind of glue to use, if any.

Thanks! Gregg

[GeorgeRa]

Using right glue for right material is necessary, some plastics like polypropylene or polyethylene, or Teflon and many other will not except any glue. If it is fiberglass than there are many choices. Post a picture of both sides of the cover.

Sometime the best way to stop further progression of a crack is to drill a small hole at the end of it, not pretty but works.

George.

[BBQ]

[BBQ]

.

from the inside, of course.

[briancummings]

My regular parts store showed me some stuff that is awesome for plastic, apparently fixes solid as new for stuff like plastic bumpers etc. I can't remember the name but will find out for you.

[gksmith]

Thanks to all for your responses. Since I had to leave soon after I posted, I proceeded on my own before I had read any of your replies. So this is what I did--I drilled very small holes at the ends of the cracks, so I was glad to hear George make the same suggestion. Then on the inside I used JB Weld epoxy and worked it into the cracks and the holes, also leaving a bead over them. The cracks are quite small, but one was movable, so I do not know how much actually got into the other cracks. The epoxy seems to be sticking to the cover, although I did not try very hard to test it. In retrospect, I wish I would have also put some of the epoxy in another location to test its adhesion properties. Anyway, I have made a repair attempt and I will keep an eye on the results.

[gksmith]

If the glue you mentioned works on bumpers, it must really be something. I have a car that could use it. I would be interested in the name of it.

[gksmith]

The JB Weld did not work as well as I hoped, due to its dark color and the tire cover being white. Consequently, I could not use it on both sides of the tire cover and the cracks opened up a little. However, I later discovered a clear formulation of JB Weld and have used it. I believe that it is going to be quite satisfactory since I could work the material into both sides of the cracks. The area is easily found upon close inspection, but is not obvious from a reasonable distance. The cracks have not opened up yet after a few months.

[BBQ]

Originally Posted by gksmith

The JB Weld did not work as well as I hoped, due to its dark color and the tire cover being white. Consequently, I could not use it on both sides of the tire cover and the cracks opened up a little. However, I later discovered a clear formulation of JB Weld and have used it. I believe that it is going to be quite satisfactory since I could work the material into both sides of the cracks. The area is easily found upon close inspection, but is not obvious from a reasonable distance. The cracks have not opened up yet after a few months.

Do you have pix?

[gklugie]

Plast-Aid

It penetrates most plastics and bonds on a molecular level.

[<<B-Guy>>]

There is a JB weld product especially for plastics - and they say it works on most types of plastic. I used it - along with "stop-drilling" to repair cracks in our AC shroud and it seemed ok.

Brian