Watching Craig Thibodeau’s roller-coaster ride through marquetry got me thinking about the glue roller he used.
Having been blessed with, and to date retaining 10 natural glue spreaders, I have not really ever bothered with a glue roller.
That is not, however, that I have not wanted one or do not have a use for one. I have however been put off by not having any to look at in local stores, and not knowing how to keep them.
Two questions, then:
1. Is there a glue applicator or roller that you use; and
2. How do you store it so that the glue does not dry out? I do a lot of small things and only a few that would really need the roller so it might sit a month or two unused…
Replies
I use a print maker's brayer. It's just a rubber roller, and doesn't dispense. I pour glue from a gallon jug and roll it out with the brayer. There are lots of brands and sizes. Mine is a 4 inch, and forget thebrand. It's similar to the one below.
I spread the glue, and rinse it in the sink later.
https://www.amazon.com/4-Inch-Printmaking-Application-Original-Version/dp/B07YDNKSH6/ref=sr_1_5?_encoding=UTF8&c=ts&dchild=1&keywords=Relief+Printing+Brayers&qid=1617794151&s=arts-crafts&sr=1-5&ts_id=12898611
Thanks - will go to the local art shop tomorrow!
For me a foam or low nap paint roller works better than a rubber roller.
Seems like it's a lot more work to clean, or an expense if it's disposable?
I use a Woodcraft silicone glue roller for smaller projects. Really great/well designed product - and of course glue comes off easily. https://www.woodcraft.com/products/silicone-glue-roller-and-tray
I have the Rockler equivalent. It screws onto bottle and works fairly well for smallish-mediumish areas. For really large areas it's probably easier just to pour from a gallon.
https://www.rockler.com/rockler-8-oz-glue-bottle-with-glue-roller
Foam is disposable and the rubber roller needs to be cleaned before storing.
pros and cons to each...but Foam works best for me in almost every situation, especially when doing several panels over a few days. The glue on the roller will stay nice and moist in a plastic bag between uses for up to 3 days.
Biggest con of foam are the little bits of foam that are loose on the surface of the roller from the manufacturing process. These tend to glob up with glue leaving behind clumps. Easy fix though, before first use just run the dry roller over masking tape to remove the little bits.
A rubber roller doesn't require loading like the foam roller and it cleans up easily. If you go with rubber, definitely get a good as mentioned above.
Do you use the foam for veneering? The rubber roller I only use for gluing up forms and laminating large areas. The same thing in silicone would be nice, but 8ve only seen silicone in narrow rollers.
Foam works particularly well for veneer, especially marquetry panels. I have used the foam for forms and larger surfaces too, although those silicone rollers sound really interesting.
For large surfaces, I like to use one of the small (3" I think) short nap rollers. Foam soaks up too much glue. For smaller stuff, I like to use acid brushes or old tooth brushes. When I'm through with the latter, I just toss them into a can or jar of water until I need them again. Then just wipe them off and start gluing. For the rollers, If I need to pause work, they go into a plastic bag. When the job is done, they get washed in soap and water or the cover gets tossed.
I like getting little paint roller in their own little plastic tray for larger glue ups. There so cheap I just toss them when done.
After trying a bunch of others, I got and love the glue spreader from Veneersupplies.com - easy to get just the right thickness and easy to clean up - and can get spare rollers for the inevitable times I forget to clean it...
I use a standard paint roller for yellow glue. When I'm done rolling, a little warm water & dish detergent make cleanup simple.
Someone gave me a Wolfcraft glue dispenser bottle with a roller and biscuit attachment. I don’t like dispensing glue from the bottle but I like the roller. It’s plastic and spreads glue evenly with minimal squeeze-out if you lay the right size bead. It’s also easy to clean. I dump it in a clean yogurt container filled with hot water when I’m done with a glue-up. Even if I forget, it’s simple to scrape dried glue from the roller’s plastic surface using a putty knife.
I have not done much veneering (and not in a long while). But, I have done some big laminating of panels of plywood and MDF. Also, I've done some big glue ups with contact cement.
I've always used paint rollers, short nap, or foam. Like others, I store it wrapped tightly in plastic (usually some drop cloth, which is usually handy) if I'm gluing up across a few days. After a few days, I rinse them out. I rinse them out two or three times before they get tossed... Bigger rollers that just see latex can go a lot longer, but glue takes it outta the roller.
I go through so many paint rollers in a year... I will reuse them as much as possible, but to me they are consumables. An expense of each job, calculated in.
I also use a brayer over a linoleum surface.
Cant beat it IMHO.
When I need to spread glue over a large area, I use a trowel similar to:
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Roberts-1-16-in-x-1-32-in-x-5-64-in-U-Notch-VCT-and-Flooring-Trowel-10122/100186641?MERCH=REC-_-pipsem-_-100197097-_-100186641-_-N&
It lays down just the right amount of glue, is easily cleaned, and is infinitely reusable.
Great idea. Thanks!
I’ll second JohnC2’s suggestion for a printers brayer. I use mine all the time. Clean up with water before storing. Takes just a couple of minutes. Easy to control.
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