by mesherm » Mon Jan 31, 2005 4:08 pm
Most epoxies will take up to 120 DegC without a problem.
Select a slower curing general purpose two-part epoxy (not the 5 minute kind). It should be clear or straw colored and definitely NOT aluminum or metal filled. Warming the tube and base up a little with a hair dryer will help the epoxy flow into small spaces. You can warm the epoxy a little too but be warned that heat will make it cure quicker so be ready to pour. 10-20cc would be more than enough. Sometimes you can buy epoxy in small two-part packages which will work fine. Just don't use the quick cure kind. You want the epoxy to flow into all the nooks and crannies. I would mask off the outside of the tube socket to make any spillover easier to remove after the epoxy has hardened. If the wife doesn't object you can place the epoxied tube, supported right side up somehow in a warm oven <70 deg C for an hour or two to cure.
Even if you cure it at room ambient, I would recommend the oven treatment anyway to give the epoxy a post cure.
Mike's N-1 Rule: When looking for N number of components to finish a job, you have a 95% chance of only finding N-1 of them.