After years of hammer veneering, homemade press setups and finally some vacuum press experiments I broke down and tried veneering some test pieces with yellow glue and an iron. I read the article Mario Rodriguez did in FWW and figured I should try a few tests.
Well the pieces I have tried are small and flat. I took some small(3 x 10)pieces of curly mahogany and applied it to some3/4″ walnut scraps. Following Mario’s steps: put glue on both surfaces(titebond basic stuff) and let it dry for about 20 minutes. Fired up the iron and it worked as advertised. No bubbles or glue bleeding thru. I am satisfied and impressed with the bond.
Question: Have any of you veneering experts used this method on large pieces? Any surprises? Like to hear from others that have given this a try. Maybe you have found other glues that work better/worse.
Replies
I used this method for about 5 years until I invested in a vacuum press (best investment ever I might add). The iron on method is great but does have some limitations. First of all, wildly figured woods such as burls and crotches I personally don't recommend doing with this method. I found that even misting water on the non glued side to counter act the effects of the glue drying were not enough, basically still turning the piece of veneer into a pretzel. I also found that the burls and crotches tended to develope cracks when ironing them out. That being said, this method is really good for regular and figured veneers that have a straight grain pattern. I've used it on everything from quilted maple to waterfall bubinga with no problems. How in terms of doing larger surfaces, what I did was basically do it in pieces. For example, I once made a 4 x 8 dining table that was veneered with this method. I was lucky enough to have some 24" wide by 9 foot long quilted maple, so I made two two foot by 8 foot panels and then glued them together. In order to get the faces to line up nicely you need a good biscuit jointer and space the biscuits about 6" or so appart from one another. All in all the process was quite painless. Hope this helps.
Russ.
http://www.jensenfinefurniture.com
Hi Dan believe it or not I did this on a front door to my old house in Oakland about 11 years ago. I planed off the old door skin with a hand held power planer, sanded it smooth then coated the door and the new door skin with yellow glue I think it was titebond II let it dry then put it together and used a close iron to melt it together worked great but took a long time to do that big of a surface and I wore the Teflon off the iron. I have since sold the house but have seen it in the last year and it has held up fine. Anyway it does work but a large vacuume press would be a lot easier.
Troy
Yeah I've seen some homemade veneer presses before, seemed like a lot of work to me so I decided that I do enough veneering to justify buying a press. I think that making your own pump could save you ton of money, but if I were you I would buy the bag. I got mine from vacupress (http://www.vacupress.com). I've had it for about six years now with no problems. I have a 4 x 8 20 mil bag, it runs about $150.00, but you can get a 4 x 4 one for $85.00, good investment to be sure. In terms of glue for veneering I use their unibond 800 urea glue. Awesome stuff, just make sure if you use it, use a proper respirator, many links to cancer with that stuff. I get most of my veneers from Rosebud veneers in Lexington Kentucky (http://www.rosebudveneer.com), either through their e-bay auctions or calling them direct, very reasonable prices and beautiful veneer. Anywho, cheers for now.
Russ.
http://www.jensenfinefurniture.com
Edited 8/29/2007 8:10 pm ET by Russell
Edited 8/29/2007 8:12 pm ET by Russell
Russ
That's just the poop I need. I have been hesitant to by the bag material and glue up the edges hoping for a good seal???
I'll take a look at that veneer supplier. I have written to Certainly Wood and they are sloooooooooooooooooooooow to return answers.
I know you're enjoying the summer temps more than I am here in North Carolina. As August comes to an end, we are setting the record for the hottest summer in recorded history. We had 17 days in a row over 95 degrees F. I know you folks above the border like the C but I'm task overloaded now and forgot my conversion chart. I guess around 36 c??
later
Dan
Hi Dan,If you're leaning towards a bag now, Marc has a whole podcast (episode 17) dedicated to it and the trials of building your own bag. Go to the wood whisperer and check it out.
http://thewoodwhisperer.com/?p=192Glen
Here in the UK we have been able to get glue film for very many years, from Art Veneers at Mildenhall. Its glue on a roll protected by a greaseproof paper. You iron it on, strip off the paper and iron the veneer on over the exposed film.
It always works a treat for me on the rare occasions I use veneer. The bonus is the constancy of the glue layer and the cleanliness of the whole operation.
Rockler sells a hot-melt adhesive film:
http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?Offerings_ID=5544
I don't know if it's the same stuff they have over on the right-hand side of the pond or not. I haven't tried it, but I probably will one of these days.
-Steve
Hey Dan,
I don't know if you have access to the online articles but if you do, this one might help you out:
http://www.taunton.com/finewoodworking/SkillsAndTechniques/SkillsAndTechniquesPDF.aspx?id=2326
It's an article on vacuum veneering and how to build your own press. By the way, the veneer on the right is the one you should go with. Just my opinion... Hope that helps. L8ter.
Russ.
http://www.jensenfinefurniture.com
Hey Dan,
Marc has got a pretty sweet shop, that's for sure. AFAIK, his full time job is wood-working, so if you're a hobbyist then don't get too jealous. I remember watching one of his first podcasts where he's showing off the shop. I had thought he was a hobbyist and I was just eating myself alive with the quality and quantity of tools he has. And let's not talk about overall shop space either...
He's also got nearly free labor helping keep the place organized and clean. His father-in-law does a lot of behind the scenes stuff that you and I get to slog through. :-)
Glad the link was helpful.
Glen
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