Replies

1. 
   DonStephan | Feb 10, 2010 08:15pm | #1

   Are the legs loose in the top, so that they wiggle? Something had to change so the legs could spread enough to let the rungs drop out. If there's a wiggle, it's going to get worse with time. Do the ends of the rungs show signs of previously being glued into the legs?

2. 
   joinerswork | Feb 10, 2010 09:01pm | #2

   Why would you not want to glue the loose stretchers back into their holes? Is it because they do not show any signs of having been glued before?

   Ray

3. 
   HowardAcheson | Feb 11, 2010 12:16pm | #3

   Of course you want to glue them. What else will hold them together properly? To not have them properly fixed risks someone getting hurt. Chairs and stools have the highest risk of injury of any furniture if they fail.

   My recommendation is to use a slow set, two part epoxy. Clean out any loose prior adhesive, apply the epoxy, clamp only tight enough to hold the joint together and let is fully cure. Epoxy is the one adhesive the will bond to other adhesive residue and will fill any voids or loose joints. It will be a permanent repair.

4. 
   garyowen | Feb 11, 2010 12:43pm | #4

   Hi can't add much more on the
   Hi can't add much more on the glue up, though you may want to add a little weight to the tops to keep all the feet as even as possible. garyowen

5. 
   byhammerandhand | Feb 11, 2010 06:08pm | #5

   I agree that you want to glue them. Glue is what holds them in place unless you have some very specific joinery that is not likely to be found in factory furniture. Wedged tenons and wet-dry construction come to mind.

   The LAST thing you want to do is start putting pneumatic nails in there. Same goes for staples and screws. I've never seen a broken chair joint with one of these that didn't break right were the metal fastener was. They keep the joint from coming apart (even when you want to do it), but do not keep the joint from loosening. And they make disassembly for future repairs almost guaranteed to require damage to remove them.

1. 
   tobiasshadow | Feb 14, 2010 07:30am | #6

   Thanks everyone. I *thought* that by gluing I'd make such a tight joint that it would become a place to break. (This has happpend to me once.) Yes the legs a loose in the top. So I'll follow advice about types of glue to use.

   Safer stools comeing!

6. 
   WillGeorge | Feb 14, 2010 07:19pm | #7

   I would say, with modern glues.. Glue them. TightBond III really holds things together.