Plastic T-track. How do you work with it?

[Sumatra]

I've got some of the plastic t-track for my Luke ANH saber and my E-11. I'm wondering how everyone is mounting it.

For the saber, what adhesive/tape works best? I've got some 3M VHB tape; would that work well? Since it's not radiused will it stick well, or do I need to somehow add a curve to the back?

For the E-11 (real Sterling), what's the best way to bend the ends? I think I remember someone (lonepigeon maybe) saying he was going to so the ends in boiling water to soften them. Is that the way to go?

Thanks for the help.

 

[sycor]

What kind of plastic? You might be able to use a hair dryer to get it soft enough for the sterling.

 

[Wolfie]

I've always held a lighter a bit below it for about 5 seconds, then bent it using a sharpie marker or sharpie accent highlighter , lol.

 

[ictvuser]

Try a curling iron.

Since it's not radiused will it stick well, or do I need to somehow add a curve to the back?

 

[Sumatra]

Thanks for the tips everyone.

If anyone has any others, keep 'em coming, otherwise I think I'll just have to give it a go.

 

[SaberFreak]

If the tracks are made of ABS plastic (like mine and Gino's are), then you can bend it with a decently strong hair dryer. Or put it over a stove for a while, but be very careful and keep moving it in and out of the flame.

For sabers, black color industrial strength double-sided tape (like those for attaching car license plates) or clear epoxy would work fine.

 

[Sumatra]

Thanks. The stuff I've got I got from you, so I guess it is ABS. Wasn't sure, but that's what I expected.

 

[GINO]

Exactly as saberfreak said. A hairdryer or preferably a heat gun. I'd be cautious about putting it over the stove.
For attaching, I would prefer a 5 min two part epoxy that you can pick up at your local hardware store.
Also, on the real style t-track, there is a curved channel on the bottom side which is specifically there for glue.

 

[SaberFreak]

I'd be cautious about putting it over the stove.

I have copious amount of t-tracks and no heat gun (until recently), and didn't know a fairly strong hair dryer would work (until much later), so I experimented with the stove initially, and got quite good at using it to heat and bend the tracks

Not advisable for those without copious amount of t-track or a good understanding of how ABS behave over an open flame, but moving it in and out of the flame and heating it up slowly is the trick.

 

[Darth Lars]

I've always held a lighter a bit below it for about 5 seconds,...

I use a candle. It is portable, but doesn't require me to hold it.

 

[Sumatra]

I ended up using a lighter. I just passed the t-track through it at the spot I wanted to bend it and used a Sharpie (as Wolfie said) and it bend just right. I just need to trim it so it fits in the hols and paint it.

I'm going to the hardware store tomorrow. I'm going to try the black double sided tape first and it that doesn't hold the way I want it to I'll try the 5 minute epoxy.

Thanks for the help everyone. Finally getting some key props of my collection finalized.