Best glue for intricate glue-ups?

[jteneyck]

Okay, I'll have to read up on and remember the working time vs. open time difference from now on. Since I don't want to have to warm or mix anything if I don't have to, it seems the extended version of Titebond would work well (as John suggested). Still, anyone have experience with Elmer's Wood Glue Max? If it's got a longer working time than regular Titebond (1 or 2), that'd be ideal since I can pick that up locally. If that's not significantly different than Titebond, I'll just go with one of the extended Titebonds (1 or 2).

I bought a bottle of the Elmer's Wood Glue Max.  It's really thick.  It might be OK for dovetails and similar joints, but when I used it for edge joints it was hard to put enough clamping force on them to get a really tight joint.  IMO it's not a good all around glue, but might be good for your needs for gluing up dovetails.   

John

[KingwoodFan1989]

I bought a bottle of the Elmer's Wood Glue Max.  It's really thick.  It might be OK for dovetails and similar joints, but when I used it for edge joints it was hard to put enough clamping force on them to get a really tight joint.  IMO it's not a good all around glue, but might be good for your needs for gluing up dovetails.   

John

How was the working time with that stuff? If it's not at least 10-15 minutes, I'll probably have to order some stuff like Titebond Extended on the internet rather than shopping local.

EDIT: I just thought about MacBeath Hardwoods and how they have other stuff besides lumber...their website lists Titebond I and II Extended as being sold by them, and there's one fairly local to me (half hour drive), so I might call them tomorrow and see if they have it in that store. If the Elmer's doesn't have a good enough working time for me, I'll just make the drive there provided they have it in store.

[Handplanesandmore]

If you are talking about dovetails, what makes them difficult to glue up? Are they half blinds (drawers) which should be a simple job - just apply glue to the sockets ( not on the tails)?

Dovetails are not difficult assemblies. I use yellow glue for them 90% of the time.

Simon

[KingwoodFan1989]

If you are talking about dovetails, what makes them difficult to glue up? Are they half blinds (drawers) which should be a simple job - just apply glue to the sockets ( not on the tails)?

Dovetails are not difficult assemblies. I use yellow glue for them 90% of the time.

Simon

I made the fronts separate from the boxes...I'm just gonna screw the fronts on from the inside. The boxes are joined at all four corners with through dovetails. Dovetails can take some persuasion to get fully into place, and I don't want the glue starting to cure. Not that I think they're necessarily hard to glue up...just more time consuming than most other joints because of all the surface areas to apply glue to.

[jteneyck]

How was the working time with that stuff? If it's not at least 10-15 minutes, I'll probably have to order some stuff like Titebond Extended on the internet rather than shopping local.

EDIT: I just thought about MacBeath Hardwoods and how they have other stuff besides lumber...their website lists Titebond I and II Extended as being sold by them, and there's one fairly local to me (half hour drive), so I might call them tomorrow and see if they have it in that store. If the Elmer's doesn't have a good enough working time for me, I'll just make the drive there provided they have it in store.

Sorry, can't help on that question.  I was using it for simple stuff that didn't require much time to assemble.  

John

[Handplanesandmore]

So you are gluing up through dovetails. These will help you:

- assemble the box partially (that is with only the corners engaged a bit)
- apply glue only to the top 3/4 of the sides/walls on the pin boards (end grain not necessary if you "run out" of time); no glue on the tails
- tap or hammer all the joints together
- check squareness and force the assembly to square by hand
- clamp the assembly and check the squareness again
- if out of squareness, correct it (there are a couple of methods available).

Don't forget the bottom if it is housed in grooves!

As you can see, regular yellow glue will do the job. Of course, if your dovetails are poorly cut(dry fitting will reveal that), you should fix that before your glue up.

Get an extra hand if you are not familiar with the dovetail glue up for your first box or drawer.

Simon

[Bill Wilson]

I make small chests that for my church to give to newly baptized infants.  The box carcasses are 10" high, 11" wide, 23" long and 1/2" thick.  I use 1/2" finger joints on the corners.  I've made dozens of them, so I have the process down pretty well, but the glue up still takes some time and the first several were a little tense.  I generally use Titebond II, but I have used white glue and liquid hide glue, looking for that ideal combination of working time, ease of use and strength.  Titebond II works as well as anything else and I have it around, so that's what I mostly use.

What I do is dry fit the box and put a quick clamp on one end to temporarily hold it together.  I remove the other end and proceed to apply glue to the fingers.  Once all the glue surfaces are covered on the end piece, I fit it back into the box.  Now I do the same with the other end.  I have a gluing jig all set up with clamps pre-positioned, just waiting for the carcass.  The gluing jig is just a platform made from 2x4's and a piece of ply.  I sawed grooves in the 2x4's to accept my F clamps, holding them in position.  I set the carcass on the jig, pushing one end and one side against stops that ensure it stays square.  I have special cauls made to work with the box joint corners and I position them and snug up the 4 F clamps that are on the bottom (2 across the width and 2 across the length.  I then take 4 more F clamps and position them on the top of the cauls and begin gradually tightening them up.  It used to get kind of nerve wracking, until I got my process down cold.  I've never timed it from start to finish, but I've never had my glue start drying up on me either.

[Phil Thien]

I use Elmer’s Glue-All, which sacrifices a little strength for some time. And you can find it everywhere.

[KingwoodFan1989]

Well, I called MacBeath and they have several 16 oz bottles of the Titebond I Extended...I need some more poplar anyway as a couple of my pin boards got screwed up (as well as one of my tail boards), and I don't want to pay 2-3x as much for that stuff at Home Depot, so I'll just go to MacBeath and buy the Titebond I Extended like at least one suggested. Thanks!