Fear of the glue pot?

[david123]

Love it or hate it.
You spend hours planning ,preparing, cutting to size, thicknessing, squaring, jointing and sanding (or using a cabinet scraper, whatever is you choice). Easy enough with simple projects, but multiple parts that need to be fitted all at once is, for me at least is not something I relish. I know preparation is all important, dry fitting and laying out the equipment that will be needed is key, but I am always relived when it's done. For me it's a bit like starting a race, once that glue pot is out and you have coated that first joint, the clock starts ticking. Satisfaction when it all goes together, panic when you realise that the clamps you though where adequate, aren't or whatever.
Question, is it just me?

 

[tomlt]

I thought it was just me! I've been known to sit looking at a pile of bits for weeks before plucking up the courage to glue them all together. I also suffer the same trepidation with finishing, not knowing how its going to turn out (despite testing it usually), I'm always nervous I'll ruin something nice when it comes to finishing it, take my latest project...a matching bookcase for a mass produced item, it took me a good few hours to get the hardwax on and then to keep checking it for runs and drips....I've decided I don't like finishing much either!

Regards, Tom.

 

[david123]

Lol
I am ok with the finishing, I can take my time with that.
Like the book case.

 

[heimlaga]

Me too..... I don't like big glueups...... they tend to cause a mild form of concrete madness........

 

[custard]

For me it's a bit like starting a race, once that glue pot is out and you have coated that first joint, the clock starts ticking.

You make a really important point. Glue ups are hugely stressful, and I'm sure many projects go Pete Tong at the glue up stage. It's not just that PVA has such a short open time, it's also "grabby", so if a tight tenon is halfway home then the pressure can cause the glue to set well within it's theoretical open time and no sash clamp on earth will shift it. I was fitting some drawer pulls to a Shaker chest of drawers once with PVA, I'd turned the drawer pulls and left a spigot on them that pushed into a hole in the drawer front. I wanted the grain to line up with the drawer on every knob, unfortunately the fit was really tight and one knob just couldn't be turned even with a pipe wrench. I ended up drilling it out and re-turning the knob, which took a nasty bite out of the profitability of the job. Lesson learned.

Besides always having a dry glue up first, I seldom use PVA now unless it's a super simple job. Mostly I use Bordens UF glue (virtually the same as Cascamite but in liquid form), yes it takes a bit of time to mix it up, but there's no time pressure and no "grabbiness", so I can take as long as the job requires to ensure everything's absolutely square, that the tenons as well as the mortices have been thoroughly wetted with glue, and that everything's as perfect as I'm capable of making it.

 

[david123]

Good point mate
I have never used Bordens if glue. I must look into it could save a lot of grief.

Thanks for that

 

[custard]

Good point mate
I have never used Bordens if glue. I must look into it could save a lot of grief.

Thanks for that

Unfortunately Bordens UF is pretty much a trade only product as it's large quantities and only from specialist stockists. But Cascamite is pretty much the same, and is widely available in small pots. Another advantage of Cascamite is that as soon as the project is cramped up, then scrub around the joints with hot water and an old toothbrush and you won't have a hint of glue left afterwards to mess up your finishing. PVA can be much harder to clean up in that unless you get to it within a few minutes it resists water and scrubbing.

Good luck!

 

[david123]

I will look into that to, thanks

 

[Droogs]

Everbuild also have a pretty decent UF glue with a good open time once the wetted and glues surfaces meet about 1/2 an hour. comes in various size bottle too. I use this when I'm too scared to use hide glue.