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My glue-up method was wrong for years and I only found out at a library sale
I was looking at a rebound copy of 'The Old Man and the Sea' at our local library's annual sale. The spine was perfect, no cracking at all after years. I asked the volunteer how they did it, and she said they used a cold PVA mix and let it set for a full 24 hours before casing in. I had been using a warm mix and rushing it in 6 hours, which explained why my older projects always got stiff. Has anyone else switched to a longer cold set time and seen better results?
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troy9771mo ago
Honestly, I've had the opposite experience. I stick with a warm PVA mix and a quick clamp time, maybe 8 hours tops. My stuff holds up fine and I've never had a spine crack. Waiting a full day just kills my workflow, I'd never get anything done. Sometimes the old fast way works if you do it right.
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riley551mo ago
Oh man, that's hilarious. You were basically speed-running your glue and wondering why it got brittle. I guess the library isn't just for books, it's for free workshop fixes too.
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Yeah the "old fast way works" thing got me too. Used to rush every glue job thinking time was money. Then I fixed a hundred year old chair that had been glued slow with hide glue. That joint outlasted every quick repair I ever did. Changed my whole view on curing times. Now I just plan for the dry time and work on something else. The wait feels worth it when things don't fail later.
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