Popular Post Trip Posted February 23, 2016 Popular Post Report Share Posted February 23, 2016 (edited) Been using epoxy for a while – mostly in marine applications... When I needed long open times for complex furniture assembly, I used West Systems 105 and 206 Slow Hardener. This was my go-to complex assembly adhesive for over a decade... Today, I use 105/207 Laminating Hardener. Why the switch? Answer: It cures clear! That makes perfect sense for filling knots, cracks, punky wood, etc. But why use it for joinery? Answer: It cures clear! Tip #13 is the result of a very hard lesson learned... In a complex glue-up, you’re bound to get squeeze-out somewhere... Just accept it... Death, Taxes, Snipe and Squeeze-out... Many mitigate the mess with blue tape, a release agent, wax, packing tape, etc... These all work just fine... But at some point, you’ll overwhelm the prophetic employed... It'll just happen... If the squeeze-out is epoxy, then it's at least a near disaster --- unless the joinery is hidden... And worse, if you wipe it back, now it's in the pores -- an even bigger problem... Now what? Well, you can scrape, sand, chisel, etc... You can get the squeeze-out flush with the stock, but it’s still there – to go further will do more harm than good... And worse, it'll be highly visible once you hit the squeeze-out with finish... Why do I use 207? It cures clear!... And I take advantage of that... Solution: I shoot the piece with a 0.5# cut shellac as a barrier coat. I then shoot a clearcoat. Voila, the squeeze-out disappears... BTW: squeeze-out is also one reason I use HHG/LHG for almost everything that's not epoxy-bonded... You can just scrub HG with hot water and a toothbrush... In other words, I plan for squeeze-out and select my adhesives accordingly... Here's the first piece I tried my idea on... It's an accessory shelf (hard maple) for my drill press. I'm not sure how old it is, but it's survived several drill presses... Because it was 'just a shop accessory', I didn't use blue tape to manage squeeze out.. I just couldn't be bothered -- and paid the price... There was a lot of squeeze-out in the corner -- a lot... I just ragged-it-back and decided to live with the mess... Until I realized it would cure clear -- then the light bulb went on... 5DMiii, 50/f5.6 Oh, the squeeze-out's still there, but you can't see it... Actually, that's a bit of an exaggeration: If you look in a certain light, you can see a witness line. But that's much better then starting over... This works well under shellac, lacquer, varnish, conversion varnish, etc. Any film that cures clear... Ask me how I know But it especially works well under marine varnish... I can't tell you how much epoxy I've hidden in my outdoor pieces... But it's a lot. Unfortunately, it doesn't work under oil, but you can't have everything... So, epoxy squeeze-out may not be the end of the world... Enjoy... Edited February 24, 2016 by hhh 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 24, 2016 Report Share Posted February 24, 2016 Good tip - I know 99% of us use PVA for nearly everything but you make compelling arguments for hide glues and epoxy. I also have a sneaking suspicion that the water in PVA glue can introduce warpage in panels and joints, but I could be wrong (it certainly causes joints to swell... and once wood swells who knows what happens next....). Chris Becksvort has said he has a deep aversion to water ever touching wood (he was specfically talking about using water to raise grain) and I am starting to think that is sage advice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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