Repairing a "chunk" out of cherry board

[Scott Jashinski]

 So I am sanding what will be the top of my cherry sofa table. I need to turn it over and WHAM, I catch the edge on my vice and take a 1/4" deep x 1/2" long chunk out of the edge (the front edge of course).

My current plan was to stop by the store and buy some hide type glue, mix it with some of the cherry dust I have collected as part of sanding and hope for the best.

Anyone else every had success repair this kind of mishap?

[Herb G]

Hide glue is for instruments, not furniture.

[TomFromStLouis]

Hide glue is for instruments, not furniture.

WHAT?!

Really Herb? I am glad nobody told John Townsend or John Goddard or Hepplewhite or Chippendale or Adam or really anyone who ever made furniture more than 100 years ago.

Wow. Just wow.

[Stwood_]

 So I am sanding what will be the top of my cherry sofa table. I need to turn it over and WHAM, I catch the edge on my vice and take a 1/4" deep x 1/2" long chunk out of the edge (the front edge of course).

My current plan was to stop by the store and buy some hide type glue, mix it with some of the cherry dust I have collected as part of sanding and hope for the best.

Anyone else every had success repair this kind of mishap?

So no one has mentioned, can you find the piece that broke out and glue it back in?

Hide glue is for instruments, not furniture.

Lol

[rschissler]

Cut a piece of cherry 1/4" x 1/2", or slightly oversize, glue and tap in lightly with a hammer.  When dry, chisel or plane away the bulk.  Then sand out the rest.

[Scott Jashinski]

I thought about that. I guess I would need to clean up the edges and bottom first to I get a good fit. Worried about messing that up as well 

---

Really? I got the idea after reading Bob Flexner's "Understanding Wood Finishes" book. Maybe his approach is for smaller repairs.

[Herb G]

Tape off the area you're working on so you don't get extra materials everywhere.

[joe1086]

From Fine Woodworking. Start watching about the 4 minute mark....

Edge repair video

[Scott Jashinski]

OK. I'm sold. Looks like I better sharpen my chisels and get to work 

[Kansas City Fireslayer]

Yeah....that stinks.  I'll say what the others have about taking a square piece out and then making a nice plug.  I will say that you can make a practically unnoticeable repair if you use a scrap piece from a cut off of that board.  Carefully studying the grain and doing your best to find a near match makes a big difference.  Color of the plug matching the board is the most important though.  It doesn't matter how well your grain blends if the color is way off.  This can be a bit more challenging than you think or I should say surprising that the color didn't match better when you're done.  

Another thing I do is chamfer the plug a tad on the end going in and oversize the plug just a hair.  You want it tight and ideally you'll have to tap it into place.  Give it a wet water rag wipe and hopefully the fibers will swell up a bit and help fill any gaps.  I like to use a block plane to clean up the majority and then my sharpest chisel to really get it flat.  A light sanding and then sanding sealer with fine sanding dust for anything else not filled.