Advice on glue marks

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IanB

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Hi all,

Any advice on glue stains would be appreciated! I've just made a bowl with a piece of 3 inch lime, but a couple of small hairline cracks appeared as I was shaping the outside, so I squirted some ca glue on them and then finished shaping, thinking that the glue stain on the surface would be cut away. However, the glue has soaked into the wood a little around the cracks, so the stain remains on the outside of the finished bowl (and more faintly on the inside).

I'm still pretty much a novice at this, so would much appreciate any advice on:

a) What finish will be best to hide/disguise the stains? Will just oiling it help, or maybe some ebonising solution first?

b) Should I have done something different with the cracks, rather than squirt ca glue on them?

c) If I stain/ebonise the outside, I would prefer to keep the rim and inside a natural colour. Any tips for keeping a crisp edge without the stain spreading onto the rim?

All the best,
Ian
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Sorry to bear bad news. The CA has soaked into the fibres, and it will be very visible under finish.

The only fix I know is to sand or scrape back until it is all gone. At that point your cracks should still be filled. Unless you plan to paint it :)

In future a couple of wiped on coats of shellac before you apply glue might help. These will stop the CA soaking in, so you won't have to scrape or sand back so far.

Turners might know some better tricks.
 
As the glue has soaked all the way through, plus the wood is fairly bland, I would use acrylic paints dabbed on with a gloved finger, (other implements are available eg brush, sponge, cloth) & spray with an acrylic gloss.

Hollow Form- painted.jpg


Tubes of metallic acrylic colours are often available in £1 shops.

Gary Lowe has done several videos on colouring basics
- https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgdG-Vh5Uj2GNdVgnsDEMtA/videos

Edit: You can also see sanding marks which probably means you are leaving the abrasive in one spot & not moving it enough. Colouring will cover the outside but the inside will probably need to be sanded by hand along the grain.
Think of it as a learning curve so if you get the same problem in future you will have practised how to resolve it. :)
 
Last edited:
You need to just fill the gap, the staining can be removed with perhaps 1mm more wood removal, the ca fill will remain. What I have found useful was a tiny tube supplied with ca bought from a pound shop, for accurate filling of cracks, remember it's wood!
 
Thanks everyone for the helpful tips. And yes, sanding is definitely something I need to improve on!

I'm the end I did ebonise it, which on the lime produced a lovely milk chocolatey brown, and toned down the glue stains a little, and finished with renaissance wax which had a minimal effect on the colour on the interior
 
Photos, please IanB, photos!!
I could kick myself - I've given it away and didn't take a photo first.

However, I've got a matching piece of lime from which the first bowl blank was cut, so I'll try to replicate it, without glue stains this time
 
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