Quote Originally Posted by Mark Gibney View Post
I'm going with John TenEyck and John Lanciani - rip and reglue.
I'm wary now of using epoxy again - might Titebond III work on this tropical wood?

To John Kananis - it was clamped up very tight, and the mating edges were perhaps too smooth for epoxy (thanks Larry, sandpapering the edge might help). I bought the glue in a place that does a roaring trade so I'm confident the batch was fairly recent. And I made sure to mix it thoroughly.

Mel, I looked on ebay and craigslist but there's no Pox for sale right now. Maybe more available closer to Halloween?

Thanks for the good advice everyone. Mark
Mark

I don't know what type of epoxy you used, but there are many different formulations for different purposes. I prefer the West Systems product line. It's what I know from repairing boats. I've also used the System Three products, but they're not as easy for me to buy as the West products.
From your writeup and response, it seems that the joint may have been over prepared, and the clamping pressure enough to starve the joint. With epoxy only apply enough pressure to bring the material pieces in contact with each other.
Don't be afraid to use epoxy, thousands of gallons of epoxy are poured every year in the marine boat industry, and it works. These are tropical woods exposed to harsh environments. However, for a piece that is destined to remain inside the house, Titebond III would work just fine.
To fix it, yeah, you have to redo the joint. You'll kick yourself in the behind for not redoing it completely.