What do you use to remove PVA squeeze out?

[Tony Wilkins]

Working on the table top and using PVA (instead oh hide glue), I have some areas of thick squeeze out. I’ve seen both that you should and shouldn’t wipe it off fresh. I didn’t.

what do you use to take it off once it’s hardened?

[Brian Hale]

I've been using a Veritas flush trim plane, the inexpensive one, for 10-15 years. It's one tool that never leaves my bench.

[Chris Parks]

Less glue works and saves money.

[Matt Riegerix]

Sharp chisel, followed by card scraper.

[Tony Wilkins]

Less glue works and saves money.

still trying to find that balance. Already used it on just one side.

[Jim Koepke]

It is easiest to get it off before it hardens. Usually after a few hours the PVA glue is still soft though not runny. It can be taken off easily with a not so sharp chisel used bevel down or a putty knife.

Once it is hard, a bevel down chisel will still work, just be careful not to dig into the wood. A wide putty knife can also work coming in from the side instead of running along the joint.

jtk

[Steve Eure]

I like to use a crank chisel. I can keep the blade flat on the surface and not dig into the wood. In tight places, well I'm still working on that one. A regular drinking straw works well also. Flatten one end of the straw and run it down the glue line. The glue will run up into the straw and will remove most of the squeeze out. This method only works if the glue is still runny.

[mike calabrese]

I have according to my wife and most of my friends a real short patience span. Having that cleaning up glue squeeze out with anything with a cutting edge usually leaves gouges in the piece I am working on.
I learned long ago that a damp not wet rag at the time of squeeze out works best for me. Reaching under the pipe clamps can be a pain but managed by tossing a rag on the work and using a thin stick to work around and under the pipe. Yes I am old school and still use a ton of pipe clamps and not the nice parallel modern jobs.
About the amount of glue.....there are some theories out there that if you are getting glue squeeze out you are using too much glue burning up $$ and just not gluing your work correctly and have to deal with all that squeeze out. The problem with this again I am old school thinking in that you can't have too much glue you can only have not enough.
Here is a vid from Stumpy Nubs woodworking on squeeze out. I like this guy he is pretty much just the facts and make up your own mind kind of guy. He is an advocate of mechanically removing semi cured glue. He uses a scraper not a cutting edge. Notice while Stumpy is cleaning up the squeeze there are no clamps in the way. I don't like removing clamps while the squeeze out is still soft again that is an old school mentality.
Bottom line there are many rules in woodworking but the only good rule that works every time is do what works for you. Be open to other methods but don't stop doing what you are doing because someone tells you it is wrong. Without understanding the benefits to you and the way you work following the crowd can just get you lost.
calabrese55

Stumpy Nubs link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQ97tTd21Oo

[Warren Mickley]

Working on the table top and using PVA (instead oh hide glue), I have some areas of thick squeeze out. I’ve seen both that you should and shouldn’t wipe it off fresh. I didn’t.

what do you use to take it off once it’s hardened?

I flatten the face of a panel or table after glue up, so that glue gets planed away in the process.

[George Yetka]

Id say depends on your work top. I like to bring out the silicone mats if im going glue ups, they prevent everything. But in reality I often forget. I also like to put wax paper over my bar clamps but forget to do that also. Since I often forget the prevention I usually wipe up. Bench has been going strong for 4 years without having to refinish top. I chiseled, sanded, and oiled when I got it(used).

If I do miss something it will most definitely screw me up in the future by preventing something from sitting flat.

[Kent A Bathurst]

It is easiest to get it off before it hardens. Usually after a few hours the PVA glue is still soft though not runny. It can be taken off easily with a not so sharp chisel used bevel down or a putty knife.

^^This^^ After an hour or so, I take the clamps off. The glue will be "rubbery" and will peel right off. I have a dedicated OMG-ratty, stained, battered, card scraper, for this task.

Dye will not take on glue. I had to learn to NOT wipe the glue off because my early days were QSWO. The glue will get forced into the open grain - especially when watered down with a damp/wet wiping cloth. THe only way out is to plane/sand throgh the pores. Nope - not happening a second time. Note the glue-line slots in the cauls.

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[Jimmy Harris]

Wet rag, before the glue dries. That's the best option, though not always an option. After that, I'll use a hand plane, chisel, card scraper, whatever. It largely depends on how much glue I have to remove, how easy it is to access, and what else needs to be done. Though the quicker you can remove it the easier it is to remove. If you can get to it while it's still gummy, it's a lot less of a hassle to remove.

Typically, it's not a problem. The only time I've had problems is when getting dried glue out of the ends of miter joints. And then, it's either a case of being careful or backing the miter joint with a block of scrap, like you might with planning end grain for support.

[Jason Buresh]

510879

This scraper by Bahco is amazing. I use it for glue, paint, varnish, or anything else I don't want to use a good edge on. The scrapers are carbide and last a good long while too.

[mike stenson]

510879

This scraper by Bahco is amazing. I use it for glue, paint, varnish, or anything else I don't want to use a good edge on. The scrapers are carbide and last a good long while too.

saved a whole lot of frustration using one of these on my bench top glue up, especially since I intentionally over glued. I'd rather do that than deal with a top delaminating in the future.

[Frank Martin]

I use a Bahco scraper while the glue is still rubbery (about 1-1.5 hrs after glue up) to remove most of it. Based on references here before, I discovered the thick scraper sold by Stewmac that is super effective in removing the last bit of glue in addition to general scraping tasks:
https://www.stewmac.com/luthier-tools-and-supplies/types-of-tools/scrapers/stewmac-ultimate-scraper/?mtm_source=google&mtm_medium=cpc&mtm_campaign=%7C+GOO+%7C+SHOP+%7C+NBR+%7C+AllProdu ctsUSA&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiApOyqBhDlARIsAGfnyMoT9a8lI6vMqAvJJ-I1w4bzWcTUVcimoCI8XDnPTRE019nauo8Hti8aArvzEALw_wcB

[Tony Wilkins]

I flatten the face of a panel or table after glue up, so that glue gets planed away in the process.
I’ve only barely planed the boards to take slight cup out and show grain so planing yet to do. The glue won’t damage the plane blade? I also have one of those LV flushing chisels.

[Allan Dozier]

I use a dull chisel like Jim when the glue is still rubbery. If can't get to it at the right time and it hardens I usually hit it lightly with my 2 inch belt sander. I generally leave glue ups overnight so the bottom will have hard glue. I generally do large glue ups by initially making 16 in wide ones before putting it all together since that is the width of my jointer and wide belt sander. It could be that the hard glue won't damage the knives but I feel better knocking it down with a sander first.

[Richard Coers]

Wet rag, before the glue dries. That's the best option, though not always an option. After that, I'll use a hand plane, chisel, card scraper, whatever. It largely depends on how much glue I have to remove, how easy it is to access, and what else needs to be done. Though the quicker you can remove it the easier it is to remove. If you can get to it while it's still gummy, it's a lot less of a hassle to remove.

Typically, it's not a problem. The only time I've had problems is when getting dried glue out of the ends of miter joints. And then, it's either a case of being careful or backing the miter joint with a block of scrap, like you might with planning end grain for support.
Not the best option in my opinion. You can spread the glue around into wood pores with that wet rag, plus introduce even more water to the wood that requires more drying time. Surface it too soon, and the wood will shrink at the joint as well as the glue line itself. I let the glue dry for about 10 minutes and with a sharp chisel I run it down the squeeze out and the entire line of glue comes off with no effort.

[Elias Scalf]

To remove hardened PVA glue squeeze-out from a tabletop, you can use a sharp chisel or card scraper. Be careful not to dig into the wood, and work slowly to avoid damaging the surface. For thick areas of glue, you may need to soften it with a damp cloth before scraping it off.

[John Kananis]

There's close to zero chance that glue is going to damage your plane blade. The flushing chisel is for fine work but can certainly be used to clean up glue if you wish.


I’ve only barely planed the boards to take slight cup out and show grain so planing yet to do. The glue won’t damage the plane blade? I also have one of those LV flushing chisels.

[John C Cox]

I'll pile on with the rest here. The best route is to clean most of it while wet and only leave the minimum squeeze out to deal with dry.

While still wet, I use a scrap of paper towel and a sharpened scrap of wood and a little water to remove the squeeze out. The key thing here is working clean, so you don't leave smudges. So wipe a bit and throw away. The little sharpened scrap of wood helps to be precise.

Dry squeeze out is more tricky, because yanking it off can create some ugly tearout. If it is an important area on a show face, I'll use a little scrap of stainless steel shim stock to protect the wood while I sand or grind the glue blobs down to just barely proud - say 0.010" thick shim and leave the same thickness of dried glue squeeze above the wood. I then move to a freshly sharpened 90-degree bevel chisel with rounded corners. It works sort of like a card scraper to whittle down the lumps and has a lot less risk of yanking chunks of wood out than a regular chisel. A hard scraper also works well here.

[Tom Bender]

Sometimes tape is a good answer

[Tony Wilkins]

Sometimes tape is a good answer
How do you mean?

[Chris Parks]

still trying to find that balance. Already used it on just one side.

It isn't hard to do, grab some scrap timber and start experimenting and notice how less glue removes the floating that causes misalignment. Then break apart all the pieces you glued and see how the different pieces adhered to each other.

[steven c newman]

Go out and find a Stanley No. 70....and pull it along the glue lines....

[Cameron Wood]

How do you mean?

Shown here, 21:00

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4iL1aAz65rE

[Gordon Dale]

I also avoid rubbing wet glue with a damp rag. I think it just rubs glue into the pores. I'm in the "remove glue while it's rubbery" camp. I bought a Veritas flush plane a couple of years ago and it's perfect for this. In tight spots I'll use an old chisel or even a dental pick (fabulous for all kinds of things in the shop actually). Often I'll use blue tape to cover areas where I don't want glue squeeze out to get on the wood (when gluing up box joints for example). Dental picks are also very handy for removing bits of blue tape that hide in corners and other difficult spots.

[Curt Harms]

It is easiest to get it off before it hardens. Usually after a few hours the PVA glue is still soft though not runny. It can be taken off easily with a not so sharp chisel used bevel down or a putty knife.

Once it is hard, a bevel down chisel will still work, just be careful not to dig into the wood. A wide putty knife can also work coming in from the side instead of running along the joint.

jtk

Yup. When the squeeze out is rubbery - hard enough to not smear but soft enough to cut easily.

[Tony Wilkins]

My problem when doing it when it’s rubbery is that I am generally exhausted by the time I’ve worked in the shop — including glue ups.

[Rafael Herrera]

Since you've not planed the sides yet, you can plane the excess glue later.

If you are going to keep joining the boards using the same technique, it will save you time to use less glue and wipe the excess with a wet rag. Getting glue in the pores doesn't matter since you're going to plane the surfaces.

Glue ups where you have glue dripping all over the place, not an uncommon sight on YouTube how to videos, is very poor technique.

[Tony Wilkins]

That’s part of the reason I chose to wait to flatten the panel. I’m using the BTC 4/4 glue for the first time (actually first PVA in a long time after using hot and liquid hide) so I’m trying to figure out the spreading. It’s a bit gloopy.

[Rafael Herrera]

I've glued boards with Titebond glue, once dried it was pretty hard but I was able to plane through it. I'm not familiar with BTC 4/4, but if it's plain white glue, it should be no trouble.

[Jim Koepke]

That’s part of the reason I chose to wait to flatten the panel. I’m using the BTC 4/4 glue for the first time (actually first PVA in a long time after using hot and liquid hide) so I’m trying to figure out the spreading. It’s a bit gloopy.

Business cards or those pieces of plastic that comes in the mail (promoting credit cards or satellite network systems) to apply glue. It makes it easy to control the thickness of the spread.

One was set up for applying a coat of glue to dowels:

511558

This was made with a piece of PVC pipe and some blue tape.

jtk

[Eric Rathhaus]

Someone once suggested to me to apply a tiny bit of wax polish in the areas where you expect the glue to squeeze out from the joints.

[Tony Wilkins]

Added one of those flush trim plane things on my last LV order.

[Brian Hale]

Added one of those flush trim plane things on my last LV order.

I believe you'll find many uses for it. just be careful not to pinch your fingers when you put the blade back in the holder. That magnet is Powerful!

Brian:)

[Tony Wilkins]

Final update: here’s the top after some fire and scrub planing and going though the thick glue squeeze out…
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[Thomas McCurnin]

A Kunz Glue Scraper most of the time.

But where I want to avoid scratches, I clamp everything up, let it squeeze out, wipe out what I can reach, remove and re-attach the clamps and wipe out more.

I also wait about 90-120 minutes and remove the whole thing from the clamps and work with a chisel or putty knife.

[Curt Harms]

Sometimes tape is a good answer

That works. Run blue tape right against the edges to be glued up but don't cover the wood to be glued. Tape guarantees there'll be no glue in pores. It can be a little tricky with perpendicular pieces, you have to be careful to not get tape in the joint when you remove it after the glue sets. I've used both techniques, wait for the glue to partially set or tape the surfaces right beside the joint. Both work.

[steven c newman]

Have to ask...what is the hurry?

Set a Stanley No. 70 for a very fine cut....and pull it towards you along the glue lines...