2wheelwander
New member
Will do. Dad plans to bring it over tomorrow.
Gorilla glue removal
- Thread starter 2wheelwander
- Start date
You never confirmed which of the Gorilla glues it is. They make a cyanoacrylate (Super Glue), a white wood glue (water-based), and the original polyurethane glue that foams a little to fill gaps. I don't know that acetone will do much to a polymerized PU. Pure methylene chloride will probably get it over time, but it evaporates fast and you don't want to breathe the fumes. Dimethylformamide is another one. A liquid paint stripper will typically have some of these things in it, and would be one solvent to try. If there are plastic parts anywhere (sights, for example) you can expect they will be destroyed by the soaking. Wood finish, of course, will be gone. An ultrasonic will be useless unless the glue polymerization is broken up thoroughly first, at which point wiping it off may do about as much.
Smoke & Recoil
New member
You might want to take the same glue that he used and apply
it to something else for experimenting...just my .02 cents.
it to something else for experimenting...just my .02 cents.
Agreed the first step,if possible,would be to determine which Gorilla Glue product was used.
If you re lucky enough to have it be the Superglue type,boiling water will typically be hot enough to release it. Acetone will cut it. Nail polish remover is acetone in an oily base to retard evaporation...(or it used to be! Not real healthy)
If I was faced with your situation,I'd be taking wit customer support at Gorilla Glue. No one is going to have a better idea of the chemical properties or the key.
Realize Methylene Chloride,MEK,Acetone,etc are bad for you. They are absorbed through the skin,inhaled,etc. Seems like liver cancer is one of the problems.
They are also flammable. Burn you up flammable,like gasoline.
Find MSDS data on tis stuff and read it.
Ultrasonic cleaners AFAIK are for water based cleaners. Read the directions that come with the unit.
Obviously,dealing withma pot of hot oil varies its own dangers...like frying donuts or French fries...
But a Presto electric hot pot,or a deep fryer setup will have a thermostat that you can set at 400F or so.Its even heat,no flames or overheating
Don't put the wood in it,but you won't hrt heat treat or bluing with 400 deg peanut oil.
If you go this route,flush the peanut oil out,mabe with mineral spirits. Don't let it gum up.
I would not even try this unless Gorilla Glue suggests heat will work.
And then,plan every step,from gloves,apron,eye protection,to a padded vise,etc. Know where you re going and what you are going to do.
There are urethane marine spar varnishes and gym floor finishes. There must be some form of stripper that will cut urethane.
I had to get some black floor adhesive off concrete once. The custodial supply store offed me a soybean based solvent for removing asphalt stains.
That stuff worked remarkably well and it was not hazardous.
I foud an aircraft paint stripper designed to remove epoxy aircraft paint.
I had to strip the Aca-Glas out of a Win Hiwall forend once. The mill vise was not really an option. That paint stripper softened the AccraGlas so I could scape it off.
I'm not a chemical engineer. There are a LOT of products and processes. You can spend a lot of money and go to a lot of trouble trying things.
Hopefully,Gorrilla Glue tech help can narrow it down.
If you re lucky enough to have it be the Superglue type,boiling water will typically be hot enough to release it. Acetone will cut it. Nail polish remover is acetone in an oily base to retard evaporation...(or it used to be! Not real healthy)
If I was faced with your situation,I'd be taking wit customer support at Gorilla Glue. No one is going to have a better idea of the chemical properties or the key.
Realize Methylene Chloride,MEK,Acetone,etc are bad for you. They are absorbed through the skin,inhaled,etc. Seems like liver cancer is one of the problems.
They are also flammable. Burn you up flammable,like gasoline.
Find MSDS data on tis stuff and read it.
Ultrasonic cleaners AFAIK are for water based cleaners. Read the directions that come with the unit.
Obviously,dealing withma pot of hot oil varies its own dangers...like frying donuts or French fries...
But a Presto electric hot pot,or a deep fryer setup will have a thermostat that you can set at 400F or so.Its even heat,no flames or overheating
Don't put the wood in it,but you won't hrt heat treat or bluing with 400 deg peanut oil.
If you go this route,flush the peanut oil out,mabe with mineral spirits. Don't let it gum up.
I would not even try this unless Gorilla Glue suggests heat will work.
And then,plan every step,from gloves,apron,eye protection,to a padded vise,etc. Know where you re going and what you are going to do.
There are urethane marine spar varnishes and gym floor finishes. There must be some form of stripper that will cut urethane.
I had to get some black floor adhesive off concrete once. The custodial supply store offed me a soybean based solvent for removing asphalt stains.
That stuff worked remarkably well and it was not hazardous.
I foud an aircraft paint stripper designed to remove epoxy aircraft paint.
I had to strip the Aca-Glas out of a Win Hiwall forend once. The mill vise was not really an option. That paint stripper softened the AccraGlas so I could scape it off.
I'm not a chemical engineer. There are a LOT of products and processes. You can spend a lot of money and go to a lot of trouble trying things.
Hopefully,Gorrilla Glue tech help can narrow it down.
Last edited:
stinkeypete
New member
Answer to your question and answer to what you meant to ask:
If this is the cyanoacrylate glue:
N,N-Dimethylformamide is the active ingredient in Super Glue Cyanoacrylate Debonder / Remover such as https://www.parts-express.com/super-glue-cyanoacrylate-debonder-remover-1-oz--340-640
I used to make model airplanes back in the day and lets just say it's not that uncommon to make mistakes until you get a little more experienced and check three times, glue once, not to mention this R&D project I did gluing very expensive magnets together... I mean in to a MRI scanner sized thing so over thousands of bonds, mistakes were made.
This will work in to the glue in hard to reach places and dissolve it. I have no idea what it would do to bluing, but it's a NASTY chemical- don't touch it or breath it.
If it was me, I would listen to Bill DeShivs (above) and try gentle heat and gentle mechanical force with perhaps plastic shims first and second and third choice.
Since the metal parts were not prepped for gluing and were almost certainly mirror smooth with oil residue on them, I bet the bond to metal is very weak. A bit of hot/cold cycling and gently prying would be my first second and third tries. Patience is a virtue.
Two fears with the solvent-
1. May damage finish
2. May partially dissolve and run in to even more spaces and then harden up again resulting in even more glued area.
Put it in the freezer for a while, gentle heat, gentle force cleverly applied- patience.
Good luck!
If this is the cyanoacrylate glue:
N,N-Dimethylformamide is the active ingredient in Super Glue Cyanoacrylate Debonder / Remover such as https://www.parts-express.com/super-glue-cyanoacrylate-debonder-remover-1-oz--340-640
I used to make model airplanes back in the day and lets just say it's not that uncommon to make mistakes until you get a little more experienced and check three times, glue once, not to mention this R&D project I did gluing very expensive magnets together... I mean in to a MRI scanner sized thing so over thousands of bonds, mistakes were made.
This will work in to the glue in hard to reach places and dissolve it. I have no idea what it would do to bluing, but it's a NASTY chemical- don't touch it or breath it.
If it was me, I would listen to Bill DeShivs (above) and try gentle heat and gentle mechanical force with perhaps plastic shims first and second and third choice.
Since the metal parts were not prepped for gluing and were almost certainly mirror smooth with oil residue on them, I bet the bond to metal is very weak. A bit of hot/cold cycling and gently prying would be my first second and third tries. Patience is a virtue.
Two fears with the solvent-
1. May damage finish
2. May partially dissolve and run in to even more spaces and then harden up again resulting in even more glued area.
Put it in the freezer for a while, gentle heat, gentle force cleverly applied- patience.
Good luck!
Last edited:
2wheelwander
New member
Well, its apart. Dad soaked it in acetone 3 times keeping it over a floor register for heat before he came over. Wrapped it in a towel to keep it from evaporating as best he could. It began to budge. Took it to my bench and we were able to drive out the pins. Everything was sticky. Took it to my ultrasonic cleaner and with the hottest tap water I could muster and with the heat on high, best it got to was 51 C. I'm too lazy to look up the F conversion. Used Sam's brand industrial cleaner (purple gallon bottle) and she came out sparkling. I don't believe the ultrasonic cleaner and my soap would have done the job. Hitting it with acetone, keeping it wet, and getting some heat to that I believe was the key.
Shown is a gel left behind by the acetone. Obviously glue. What line of Gorilla glue he used, I don't know, but there was glue in there. Fortunately he used it judiciously just as you should when lubricating a few points in a gun and it wasn't globbed in there. I think that saved us.
Gel like substance left behind. This pic we would find out was a primary reason the barrel would not release. He had put glue in those lugs. We drove out the pins holding the trigger group together and ended up using a drift to hammer those lugs loose. Once those broke free she came right off. Glue in these lugs I believe was 99% of our problem.
The end of this spring shows some glue that did not dissolve.
All cleaned up out of the ultrasonic cleaner. There were zero adverse affects to the bluing.
Now, for another problem. I ran everything metal through the cleaner to be on the safe side. All came out looking like new. Youtube and online schematics helped us get it back together with a light coat of gun oil on everything and a few drops where things move. However, pulling the hammer back only results in a successful cocking some of the time. I can push on the lever and it will drop a cocked hammer. If I assemble the trigger to the receiver with the hammer cocked the trigger will drop the hammer, sometimes as I'm installing it, but I can't get the hammer to cock with the trigger group installed. I thought maybe the barrel needed to be installed to function, that's not it and required drifting back the lugs again to remove the barrel.
I can use a punch to manipulate things to get the hammer to cock and use a punch to drop the hammer as if the trigger were there. There is a spring that pushes 'fore end lug' up into battery in front of the hammer I deduced may be weak and stretched it just a tad. Couldn't tell if it really made a difference or not. I should also add that running things though a cocked hammer, dropped trigger and trying to cock the hammer (won't stay back) will not open the barrel. That requires driving out pins and disassembly again to get the barrel off.
We spent 3-4 hours with it tonight between cleaning and multiple disassemblies. Walked away to sleep on it and await a brilliant revelation why such a simple mechanical device is defeating us. I'm thinking its a weak spring, scoured the scheme looking for a piece we may be missing, I'm just not getting it.
If worse comes to worse we'll pay someone smarter than ourselves to figure it out or send it to Thompson for a spa makeover.
It has a .35 Remington barrel on it, which I've never seen before. Kinda unique maybe.
I really hope no one ever needs this thread in the future, but I've honestly had fun defeating the initial problem. Maybe relieved our first attempts were successful is a more accurate way of putting it. I'm no gunsmith but I do enjoy tearing into something simple and trying to fix it. Don't send me your old Python for a make over anytime soon, but I do enjoy tinkering with the simple stuff. Made all the better doing it with my Dad.
Shown is a gel left behind by the acetone. Obviously glue. What line of Gorilla glue he used, I don't know, but there was glue in there. Fortunately he used it judiciously just as you should when lubricating a few points in a gun and it wasn't globbed in there. I think that saved us.
Gel like substance left behind. This pic we would find out was a primary reason the barrel would not release. He had put glue in those lugs. We drove out the pins holding the trigger group together and ended up using a drift to hammer those lugs loose. Once those broke free she came right off. Glue in these lugs I believe was 99% of our problem.
The end of this spring shows some glue that did not dissolve.
All cleaned up out of the ultrasonic cleaner. There were zero adverse affects to the bluing.
Now, for another problem. I ran everything metal through the cleaner to be on the safe side. All came out looking like new. Youtube and online schematics helped us get it back together with a light coat of gun oil on everything and a few drops where things move. However, pulling the hammer back only results in a successful cocking some of the time. I can push on the lever and it will drop a cocked hammer. If I assemble the trigger to the receiver with the hammer cocked the trigger will drop the hammer, sometimes as I'm installing it, but I can't get the hammer to cock with the trigger group installed. I thought maybe the barrel needed to be installed to function, that's not it and required drifting back the lugs again to remove the barrel.
I can use a punch to manipulate things to get the hammer to cock and use a punch to drop the hammer as if the trigger were there. There is a spring that pushes 'fore end lug' up into battery in front of the hammer I deduced may be weak and stretched it just a tad. Couldn't tell if it really made a difference or not. I should also add that running things though a cocked hammer, dropped trigger and trying to cock the hammer (won't stay back) will not open the barrel. That requires driving out pins and disassembly again to get the barrel off.
We spent 3-4 hours with it tonight between cleaning and multiple disassemblies. Walked away to sleep on it and await a brilliant revelation why such a simple mechanical device is defeating us. I'm thinking its a weak spring, scoured the scheme looking for a piece we may be missing, I'm just not getting it.
If worse comes to worse we'll pay someone smarter than ourselves to figure it out or send it to Thompson for a spa makeover.
It has a .35 Remington barrel on it, which I've never seen before. Kinda unique maybe.
I really hope no one ever needs this thread in the future, but I've honestly had fun defeating the initial problem. Maybe relieved our first attempts were successful is a more accurate way of putting it. I'm no gunsmith but I do enjoy tearing into something simple and trying to fix it. Don't send me your old Python for a make over anytime soon, but I do enjoy tinkering with the simple stuff. Made all the better doing it with my Dad.
2wheelwander
New member
Dad called Thompson today. They are sending a few parts they suspect may be an issue. If that doesn't work we'll send it in.
I'm glad you actually got the acetone to work. I was skeptical of it working out with PU. Once in a resin it can attack, acetone usually forms a gel, then, because acetone is miscible with water, it makes subsequent ultrasonic cleaning possible.
A couple of suggestions: After doing anything involving water-based cleaning, the usual instruction is to apply a water-displacing oil. WD-40 works for this, though I have found that if I leave it on and sitting for an extended period, it eventually gets a bit tacky and dust sticks to it, so I remove it afterward with mineral spirits. I generally prefer LPS2, which is also water-displacing, but which leaves behind a corrosion inhibitor (smells the same as the old Birchwood Casey Sheath, which seems to have been replaced by Birchwood Casey Barricade, a less odiferous product. Barricade also claims to displace water and meet all sorts of test standards for corrosion prevention so it might be a better choice. I simply haven't tried it to confirm this.
When I can, after a water-based treatment I boil the disassembled parts in distilled water for a few minutes. Upon withdrawal from the water, I shake the loose drops off and the retained heat quickly evaporates the rest and leaves a thin (you can see it if held to light at the right angle) layer of bluing on any bare steel that isn't stainless. It's not enough to prevent corrosion for any length of time but is enough to prevent rust from starting faster than you can apply a water-displacing oil. I got to do this when I discovered hints of rust could appear on freshly Parkerized parts after a cold water rinse and before I got water-displacing oil on it to get the water out of its pores.
A couple of suggestions: After doing anything involving water-based cleaning, the usual instruction is to apply a water-displacing oil. WD-40 works for this, though I have found that if I leave it on and sitting for an extended period, it eventually gets a bit tacky and dust sticks to it, so I remove it afterward with mineral spirits. I generally prefer LPS2, which is also water-displacing, but which leaves behind a corrosion inhibitor (smells the same as the old Birchwood Casey Sheath, which seems to have been replaced by Birchwood Casey Barricade, a less odiferous product. Barricade also claims to displace water and meet all sorts of test standards for corrosion prevention so it might be a better choice. I simply haven't tried it to confirm this.
When I can, after a water-based treatment I boil the disassembled parts in distilled water for a few minutes. Upon withdrawal from the water, I shake the loose drops off and the retained heat quickly evaporates the rest and leaves a thin (you can see it if held to light at the right angle) layer of bluing on any bare steel that isn't stainless. It's not enough to prevent corrosion for any length of time but is enough to prevent rust from starting faster than you can apply a water-displacing oil. I got to do this when I discovered hints of rust could appear on freshly Parkerized parts after a cold water rinse and before I got water-displacing oil on it to get the water out of its pores.
2wheelwander
New member
Good tips Unclenick. I also try to keep the water as hot as possible heating the part. Like you said, water evaporates pretty quickly, but it isn't a cure all. I have an air compressor nearby and hit the nooks and crannies with that, then oil.
big al hunter
New member
Am I reading this correctly?
You can't open the action by cocking the hammer?
Or is it that the action won't open when pulling the release lever?
The two should be separate operations. If you haven't handled the Contender before it can be difficult to open. I have some friends that couldn't open mine after several attempts. They were not happy when I popped it open with little effort. But I have more practice than they did.
2wheelwander
New member
Big Al this may be part of my problem, but pulling the hammer back does not engage the trigger either. The trigger will always trip the hammer, but the hammer does not always cock the trigger.
I will play with the release. This is my first experience with a Contender so ignorance may be at play here.
I will play with the release. This is my first experience with a Contender so ignorance may be at play here.
big al hunter
New member
Check for small amounts of the residue in the corners of the lugs and trigger/seer contact points. Wouldn't take much to bugger up the works.
That is correct. The hammer does not reset the trigger, the trigger is reset with the grip/release lever. It's a one-shot deal, you pull the trigger, you have to squeeze the release lever to reset the trigger. You can pull the trigger without cocking the hammer, too, and you have to squeeze the lever to reset the trigger. It's a Contender thing.
big al hunter
New member
I thought about it some more. It seems to me you may not be sure how the action works. The bottom of the trigger guard is the release lever. When you pull the lever on the bottom of the trigger guard back towards the grip the entire trigger guard moves a little, thus releasing the barrel. After you close the action, the hammer should function again as Scorch stated above.