Replies

1. 
   Woodcrazy | Sep 15, 2002 11:42pm | #1

   veneer used to be applied with hide glue, which softens in water, so try a rag soaked in hot water and let it sit on the piece for a few minutes, try peeling or lifting it off with a putty knife, if there is a raw edge it would be easy to start there. if contact cement or some other glue was used - can't help you with that.  Good luck with the project.

1. 
   Jasmid | Sep 18, 2002 03:39am | #2

   Thanks for the tip. If I find any time I'll give it  a try.

2. 
   JeffKurtz | Sep 18, 2002 04:55am | #3

   An antique dealer I know does a lot of restoration work and he also uses wet cloth, but only damp so as not to ruin the wood beneath the veneer.

   Jeff

3. 
   Paul_Snyder | Sep 18, 2002 05:02am | #4

   This article has some info on removing veneer - http://www.assoc-restorers.com/r-articles/sal/removen.html

4. 
   DavidxDoud | Sep 18, 2002 05:21am | #5

   saw a person remove veneer with a steam iron -  -

1. 
   JeffKurtz | Sep 18, 2002 05:27am | #6

   David,

   I would like to have seen that.  He must have modifies the edges into a sort of chisel or scraper and...

   Jeff

1. 
   DavidxDoud | Sep 18, 2002 05:48am | #7

   no  -  just got it hot and steaming and moved it back and forth over the veneer he wished to loosen(the top of an old console radio that had been water damaged) - think he might have had a cloth between the iron and veneer    -  remember the veneer becoming loose and flexible  - he then took a roller(1/2 of a wringer from a washer),  rolled it flat while it was cooling off,  and viola!,  repaired top - he did piano repair and used this trick occasionally - not sure it qualifies as 'fine woodworking',  but a neat trick in the right place -

1. 
   Rdan1 | Oct 18, 2002 08:11pm | #8

   David,  Do you know what kind of glue was used to originally put this veneer down.  I recently made some boxes with veneered lids. I used Titebond yellow glue for the job.  One of them is developing some loose spots, and I'm not sure how to fix this.  I'd consider removing the veneer using this method, but I don't really want to go after this until I can find a good solution.  Any advice? Thanks, Dan

1. 
   Glendo | Oct 19, 2002 11:15pm | #10

   You may be able to soften the glue and re-affix the veneer by gently pressing with a warm iron. What it does to the finish is someone else's best guess.

   Good luck,Glendo.

2. 
   DavidxDoud | Oct 20, 2002 06:30am | #11

   Do you know what kind of glue was used to originally put this veneer down. 

   I'm sure it must be hide glue -

   using this technique on yellow glue?  I know it won't work the same way, as the polemerized yellow glue will not de-polemerize in response to heat and moisture - but it might be effective breaking the bond,  if you can't repair the loose area with a syringe and cyanoacrylate(super glue),  there's not much to lose (probably the finish,  as someone noted) -  

2. 
   Splintie | Oct 18, 2002 09:30pm | #9

   David and Jeff-

   I repaired some walnut arm chairs that had gotten damaged in a fire and needed the veneer seat re-veneered in new material. Non-figured walnut veneer over solid walnut--i still can't figure that one out. I used a steam iron on "cotton" and kept it moving, peeling chunks of veneer with a dull putty knife as i went along. Oviously, i wasn't trying to save the veneer, as in the poster's case. It was hide glue BTW.