Glue up question - Long Boards

[Dell Moore]

Anyone have any suggestions on the best way to glue up several boards? Slow and easy (couple at a time, the glue up the previous glue ups) or the whole shebang at once? All and all, approximatly a 24 x 48" final product. It's for an island.

Thanks!

Dell

[doug faist]

Dell - Like everything else in life; it depends. Three boards I would do all at once. More than that, then a glue-up in stages makes more sense. It easier to level and surface a couple boards at a time than to try and balance the whole thing at once.

Clamps top and bottom and cauls if you need them. You might want to consider using biscuits to help with the alignment.

Have fun with your project.

Doug

[Bill Huber]

For me I would do it all at one time.

Make sure all the edges are spot on square and go for it.

If you can use some biscuits and cauls that should take care of it very well.

[Mike Goetzke]

One big trick I learned was to get yourself a short napped 3-4" roller. Saturate the roller with glue. Then use it to spread a thin uniform layer of glue on both surfaces then put the roller in a zip lock bag and put it in the frig. This sped up my glue application tremendously. This is a 37"x27" panel I recently made:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v212/mbg/Projects/Entrance%20Door/Door%20Panels/IMG_0179.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v212/mbg/Projects/Entrance%20Door/Door%20Panels/IMG_0180.jpg



It's not shown but I used a bunch of quick-grip clamps to make sure the boards were level on the ends. After applying the parallel clamps I removed the quick-grips. You may already know this but: 1) mark your boards to keep them in order (see above) 2) do a dry clamp-up first to set up the clamps and make sure the surface will be flat. 3) apply a thin even coat of glue to both edges with the roller. 4) don't apply too much clamp load (just enough to get some glue squeeze out) or you could warp the panel. 5) Check to make sure the glue up is flat. Plus dampen a rag with water to remove as much of the glue squeeze out as possible.

Also: I have a 16/32 drum sander to flatten the panels but if you say only have a 13" planer you may want to make the glue-ups in two sections and run them through the planer then glue them together.


Mike

[Bill Huber]

To add to this, I use a glue roller, that fits right on the glue bottle and this make it much faster in applying the glue.

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The other thing is I have been working with a Reversible Glue Joint Bit. The setup takes a little time to get it spot on but once you get it set it sure make a nice joint and brings the boards right together.

It is used on the router table and what I have done so far the joints have been really great plus it is very strong with all the added glue surface.
I am using the wedge type bit, the profile is the first image.


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[Chris Friesen]

I'll glue up to 5 or so boards at a time. I use TBIII or the LV glue, both of which have decent open times. I spread the glue with an old library card--I found this worked better than the rubber roller or small pain roller.

Use cauls if necessary to keep the boards lined up...I use clear packing tape to keep the glue from getting onto the cauls.

[Dave Cav]

When I glued up my workbench top, I was working with (more or less) 4/4" thick ash, 3 1/2 inches wide and around 78" long. I face glued the bench top up in two sections, and each glue up was 14 boards. This gave me two sections about 14" wide, which was all I could run through my 15" thickness planer. After each section was glued up I glued the sections together and then used hand planes to even the top out.

When I glued up the sections I used white glue because it is almost as strong as yellow glue, but it has a lot longer open time, and little or no grab. I used a LOT of 3/4" pipe clamps, about 12-14 per section, alternating top and bottom. I also clamped cauls across the top and bottom at right angles to the length of the sections; the cauls were kept off the bench top with wax paper. When I glued the two sections together I also used cauls across the width, but for the second glue up I bolted the cauls together using all thread rod through the dog holes.

Dave C

[Rick Moyer]

I spread the glue with an old library card--I found this worked better than the rubber roller or small pain roller.

Save those fake credit cards that come with offers in the mail, or use your expired cards to spread glue.

[Cary Falk]

I usually like gluing up sections that fit through my 13" planer. I would probably glue your Top in 2 sections. Send them through the planer then glue them up again. It makes it much easier to level things out. Biscuts help with the aligning. Just make sure you place them where you won't cut into them.

[Lee Schierer]

I apply glue direct from the bottle and then spread it with an old tooth brush. I put the tooth bushes in a cup of water between uses.

Regarding your glue up, depending upon how many pieces there were I would probably do it all at once and level the boards as I tighten the clamps from one end to the other. Note too much glue is much better than not enough. A heavy glue layer also gives you more working time to get things clamped.

[Kent A Bathurst]

Like a lot of things, my answer is "it depends". For high-end stuff, I limit it to one glue joint at a time, but occasionally 2 if narrow boards. I invested time & $$ some years ago on making cauls and caul-support-brackets, and on clamps. I don't send my stuff thru the planer anymore - can usually get by with just a card scraper. I use QSWO very often, and the tearout with a planer was killing me, so I worked till I learned how to get the layup flat.

Every so often, the off-cut pile starts to get in my way, and I'll take whatever is there, and glue up shelf boards for shop storage. Then I glue up however many I need all at once.

[lowell holmes]

Clamping cauls help.
I make glue line cuts with my WWII blade on the table saw. I rip the boards 1/32 wide and then run them through again removing the 1/32. It's easier than using the jointer.

[Kent A Bathurst]

Clamping cauls help.
I make glue line cuts with my WWII blade on the table saw. I rip the boards 1/32 wide and then run them through again removing the 1/32. It's easier than using the jointer.

Ya know - I have thought about trying glue-up off the TS, but I never thought about the 2-pass approach. I'm gonna try that next time

Thanks, Lowell