Glue only?

[Jay Yoder]

I am attaching some 1/8" hardboard to a 3/4" square stock frame (Poplar) and was thinking of using glue only. will that be strong enough or should i use pins thru the hardboard also. I was trying to keep the outside smooth...

[John Lucas]

You can use glue only as long as glue is uniformly spread and clamped. I use nylon filament strapping tape to clamp these type of projects. Take a 4 or 5 " strip of tape and start from under the edge and pull it taute over the edge and to the top. DO this all the way around and you would be surprised at how well clamped your project wil be. After glue has cured, remove the tapes in reverse order (i.e. from the top over.) ANy residue can be removed with min spirits.

http://www.woodshopdemos.com/trays6-3.jpg

[Peter Quinn]

You can use glue only if you wish to clamp it, otherwise 23GA pins will virtually disappear while the glue dries. For a good glue bond place cauls on the hardboard side to spread the force of the clamps evenly.

[Bill Huber]

If it is the type that is smooth on one side and ruff on the other, that ruff side does not hold glue very well.

Glue will hole it but you can pull the hard board right off which will leave a bunch of the hard board there stuck to the glue.

[Todd Burch]

Glue is plenty strong. When I first started woodworking, I didn't trust glue. How silly I was.

If the assembly is not together yet, you can sandwich the hardboard inside the frames and clamp them to each other for pressure. Or, you could use contact cement and not have to clamp at all - just use a roller.

[Joe Scharle]

I've had the same experience as Bill points out, with the waffle board side not getting a good bond. If you look around, you can find 'tempered' hardboard which is smooth on both sides.

Oil tempered hardboard is a fiberboard that has be "tempered" with
oil.

This is a form of hardening. Oil tempered hardboard is smooth on both
sides and has a dark smooth finish.

Regular hardboard is lighter in color and in most cases is smooth on
one side and textured on the other.

[Jay Yoder]

Thanks for all the replies. I think the safest will be glue plus pins. We shall try that in the morning. It is tempered hardboard with one smooth side and one "fuzzy" side. We shall see how it goes...Thanks again!