Veneer softener

[David Ragan]

Some of my home sawn veneer is super dry, and that poses difficulty in patching it.

Anyone have a homemade veneer softener recipe that will not result in affecting the veneer's ability to accept glue or finish?

Thank you

[Jamie Buxton]

https://www.joewoodworker.com/veneering/flattening.htm

[Mike Henderson]

You can make your own flattening solution, the active ingredient is glycerin. Glycerin is hygroscopic so it tends to keep the veneer a bit moist. But there's a process required when you flatten badly warped veneer - you can find it on the web. I don't mix glue in my flattening solution and have never seen any advantage to it.

Mike

[David Ragan]

You can make your own flattening solution, the active ingredient is glycerin. Glycerin is hygroscopic so it tends to keep the veneer a bit moist. But there's a process required when you flatten badly warped veneer - you can find it on the web. I don't mix glue in my flattening solution and have never seen any advantage to it.

Mike

The glue issue is what doesn't make sense other than to maybe bind strands together, but the problem is too much lignin(?).

You can't have it both ways, right?

[Bruce Walton]

The glue makes the flattened veneer permanently flat. Be careful with too much glycerin as it is a glue release agent. Over time with more glycerin in the mix the glue will loosen. I believe the formulation is one part water to a quarter part glycerin, half part alcohol, and half part glue.

[Mike Henderson]

The glue makes the flattened veneer permanently flat. Be careful with too much glycerin as it is a glue release agent. Over time with more glycerin in the mix the glue will loosen. I believe the formulation is one part water to a quarter part glycerin, half part alcohol, and half part glue.

I have not experienced veneer staying flat with glue in the flattening solution. If the veneer is not kept pressed, it quickly reverts to an irregular surface. What I do is flatten the veneer (in the process I dry it pressed between dry paper) and when it is "dry" to the paper, I keep it pressed between sheets of plywood, or similar, for storage.

But usually, I only flatten veneer when I'm going to use it. Once it is flattened, and dry of the flattening solution, I use it in a project. I've never had a piece of veneer come loose because of the glycerin, if I do a good job of applying the glue for pressing (not too little and not too much) and pressing it while the glue cures.

Of course, you don't want to put too much glycerin in your mix, but if you follow the recipes on the web you'll be fine. The only reason for the glycerin is that it helps keep some moisture in the veneer after you process it with the flattening solution. But it's certainly not a cure-all. Burls, especially, will revert to a irregular shape if not kept pressed after processing.

If you want to put glue in the mix, it shouldn't hurt anything as long as you don't put too much.

Mike

[Bruce Walton]

Guess I assumed the flattening steps were known.

When flattening and drying the veneer with the mixture you place the veneer between a couple of pieces of fiberglass screen. That goes between two pieces of absorbent paper and then between two flat boards that you squeeze together in a vacuum bag or clamp together. You take and replace the paper every hour or two until the veneer is dried. You should find that the veneer will remain flat.

The screen keeps the veneer from sticking to the paper.

[Mike Henderson]

To follow up on Bruce's post, you can do multiple sheets in a stack. You just put paper, screen, veneer, screen, paper, paper, screen, veneer, etc. to as many sheets as you want. The time between paper changes can increase as the veneer dries.

Without the glue, I've pressed without the screen and have not had the paper stick to the veneer. Make sure the paper does not have any printing on it or the printing can transfer to the veneer.

Mike