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I have two oak blocks that were poorly put together with hide glue. The failure was at the glue line. So, there is no broken wood; just the original smooth faces with dried glue residue. I need to remove all the glue and put them back together. I would like to remove the hide glue completely enough so that I can re-glue with epoxy. Is just warm water enough or is something else better?
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Will
1. You can scrape, plane or sand it off while dry and brittle.
2. Warm water on a towel should soften the glue in a few hours, then you can gently scrape it off with a dull scraper, etc. Scrubbing with synthetic steel wool will speed the removal.
3. According to tests published in Fine Woodworking, hide glue is nearly as strong as epoxy and does adhere to residual hide glue, so you should consider just re-gluing with hide glue.
Doug.
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Heat the part with a heat gun or hair dryer. After a couple of minutes wearing a glove ,twist the part off. You can still use the hide glue . When the glue is hot and tacky,replace the parts correctly.You can just hold the parts in correct position til the glue cools a bit,Probably under 2 minutes.
mike
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I have sanded most of the old glue off. I think I will follow your advice and re-glue with hide. Since the glued up part will be subject to some stresses and abuse, I think I will add some screws as insurance and for peace of mind. It is a hidden structural piece, so looks won't matter.
Thanks.
