Cracked plastic threads

What would be the best way to fix, or at least improve cracked threads in plastics? I don't think hot glue would work very well here, but maybe some kind of epoxy? I'm looking for something that that's easy to work with. Not so thick that I can't stuff it in the cracks, and not a complete liquid either that would spill everywhere.

Unfortunately this has happened on my Code Veronica Dreamcast years ago, when I didn't understand how screws worked. The case is translucent so the end result should look as nice as possible

 

I’ve seen some bad outcomes when folks have attempted to glue plastics or even ‘plastic weld’ thermoplastics with soldering irons or other hot ends.

One problem with a lot of superglue is the residue becomes white and can be quite visible.

I reckon it’s often best to look for a mechanical solution; metal fasteners if possible to place discretely or inserting small nutserts in the shaft and using a narrower screw.

One trick with nutserts is to heat them after insertion which can bond to the surrounding plastic making a semi-permanent fix.

 

That's a really good suggestion. I might go that route

What do you mean by heating it? Using a soldering iron? I wouldn't want to risk melting the surrounding plastic.

 

Yep, you apply a soldering iron to the nutsert very very briefly, just enough to bond the surrounding plastic to the metal. But yes, it's very risky in plastic you're not familiar with so I'd avoid it if possible.
Hopefully you can get away with no further interference to the plastic itself. I'm no expert on restoration but in general with a project like this my aims would be to 1) do no further damage to the original material, 2) find a reversible solution and 3) find a robust solution. Superglues and epoxy resin solutions really only hit point 3 and even then may not be entirely robust. I tend to only utilise them when there's a cosmetic defect - like a cracked part where I have the pieces and just need to piece it back together but your problem here is more mechanical than cosmetic because it's a part that needs to function and withstand some stress. Sometimes just browsing the catalogue of your local fastener supplier will give you some ideas to tackle these problems.

 

I personally have used clear dry epoxy. dab it in between the crack, and then some more in a non-visble area, and use something to clamp it for 24 hours

has worked for me for everything

 

“Clear dry” means transparant?

 

yes it dries transparent. Tho ive had some cheap brands dry in a yellowish transparent color.

 

Also a good suggestion. Thanks both of you. Maybe a combination of both would be good.

 

You could look into using Methyl Ethyl Ketone if the plastic being used there is the sort that MEK can work with. Its used to glue/bond plastic parts together in some model kits. Its also used to glue/bond LEGO bricks together at the LEGO parks or for those in-store large size models or the like.