Thread: Which hide glue for veneer and core for box making

Hi Wolfau,

Can’t advise you on hide glue as I never use it although I do a lot of veneering. Titebond Cold Press Veneer Glue is one option, but most people seem to use TB2 or TB3. 2 part epoxy is another option. For curved surfaces I use Cascamite, i.e. urea formaldehyde glue because it forms a rigid bond to stop any spring-back once the curved piece is removed from clamping.

For the core I make up a “sandwich” of ply and the “show” timber, so the show timber is seen at the bottom, and both sides of the top/bottom separation. Here’s an example using ply and rock maple (both 12mm).

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Cheers,

Brian

Most people only use hide glue if they are restoring antiques the are a lot of more user friendly options in these modern times, such as mentioned above

Hide glues (cow, hog, fish, rabbit or bird skins) are of great use to a luthier
who may be called upon to open a string instrument to effect repairs then button it up again.

Not the kind of function of modern wood adhesives for furniture.
I'd be inclined to replace hide glue in old furniture unless an accurate period restoration was expected.

When i started making boxes i used ply for bases and veneering but the quality was poor and hard to get a nice cut. Then i went to timber and was using pine for bases and veneering along with some other timbers and with all of these methods i had more failures than successes.
I now use MDF for bases and veneering. When you apply an oil or finish to MDF it looks good and has a constant colour and because i make boxes to a price range i have found that veneering MDF on one side only works all the time and have found the secret to stop it moving is to keep weight on the panel well after it is dry and right up till when i want to use it. Once it is cut and glued together it does not move. Once the lid is cut i apply a timber bead to the exposed edges and either line the inside to completely hide the MDF or just oil it.
As far as glue goes i cannot fault Titebond.

Thanks for the replies guys. You guys are awesome.

Have been out of the game for a while now but getting back into it slowly.

During my apprenticeship days we did use hide glue a fair bit for veneering panels hence why I asked the question around this.

I realised I posted this in the wrong section as well so my apologies.

We do have so many choices today in reference to glues where many moons ago the trusty yellow mdf glue was my go to when making timber doors and the like.

I want to make quality small boxes eg jewelry, cremation, keepsakes etc so I may use an mdf core. Though these may take a tad longer to make compared to using solid timbers
I think the effort is worthwhile with minimum shrinkage as an outcome.

At the moment I have titebond 3 which is used for when I make cutting boards.

I have been thinking and processing this in my mind now for a few days on the best way to make these. My conclusions have been been confirmed by a number of replies here.
Though a tad more time is required its worthwhile i think.

double.d if you only veneer the outside of the box do have you any movement issues with the insides only oiled up?
Which titebond do you use for the veneer to mdf? I know the 3 have drying and hardness differences.

Do you also use a 9mm or 12mm mdf core?

Thanks again for the replies. Its appreciated.

I have both Titebond 2 and 3 and i use whichever one is within arms reach.

And i use only 12mm MDF as i've had some failures with 9mm.

If you don't want raw MDF on the inside, you could have it flocked

Well, given the overwhelming damning of hide glue here it may come as a surprise that I believe it is still a great option in many circumstances. Yes, I primarily use it for antiques, but I also use it as a preference for many other veneering jobs with hand-cut veneers. Hide glue is a surprisingly good glue and furniture made with it is still tight after hundreds of years. That cannot be said of any modern adhesive.

if you do want to try hide glue the way I understand it is that if you are veneering with a very thin veneer (.6 mm or whatever) then the rabbit skin glue is the recommended one. if you are using hand-cut, thicker veneers of 2-3 mm you would use pearl glue (hoof and hide glue). A good, double walled, heavy cast iron glue pot makes using hide glue easy. Having said that, one of the best cabinetmakers that I know here in Brisbane uses a beauty wax heating pot for his hide glue.

Don't forget that Titebond also make a liquid hide glue that seems to work very well without the need for a glue pot.

One of the marvellous things about hide glue is that it helps if you stuff up with that special 'irreplaceable' piece of veneer. Just add hot water and start again.

You also have a long working time with hide glue in Australian climate (in the US it is faster because of the lower temperatures for much of the year).

If I am veneering new, large panels of thin veneers for a box or other piece of modern furniture I use a vacuum press and low-foam polyurethane like Purbond. I have no idea how many years such a piece will last, but then we live in a throw away society so maybe that doesn't matter for modern items.

For substrate it depends on what you are making, your price point and whether you are fussy or not. I do not work commercially and have no $ incentive, so I try to make items that resemble those that have stood the test of time. I abhor mdf (no flaming from those that love it please!). When veneering I use either home-made ply - so two show timber outer veneers with some plainer, hand cut veneer sheets inside, or veneering onto a very stable, dry timber like straight grained Australian cedar.

So, my answers to your questions are "it depends" - on what you are making, for whom and what price point. Don't ignore hide glue - in the correct circumstances I believe it still excels - especially if you are making items that you want to be remembered for long after you are gone.

I have had good results with Titebond Liquid Hide Glue.
During winter though I found that I needed to stand the container in hot water as it tended to thicken up.

Regards
Keith

I luuuuuuvvvvv MDF

If you a hater (that's OK) I buy absolutely fantastic ply from TimberWood here in Hume Canberra. They have other outlets.

It is not expensive, void free, comes in a heap of thicknesses and offer AA, AB, BB in a billion species/finish/veneer options.

Originally Posted by Xanthorrhoeas

Well, given the overwhelming damning of hide glue here it may come as a surprise that I believe it is still a great option in many circumstances. Yes, I primarily use it for antiques, but I also use it as a preference for many other veneering jobs with hand-cut veneers. Hide glue is a surprisingly good glue and furniture made with it is still tight after hundreds of years. That cannot be said of any modern adhesive.

if you do want to try hide glue the way I understand it is that if you are veneering with a very thin veneer (.6 mm or whatever) then the rabbit skin glue is the recommended one. if you are using hand-cut, thicker veneers of 2-3 mm you would use pearl glue (hoof and hide glue). A good, double walled, heavy cast iron glue pot makes using hide glue easy. Having said that, one of the best cabinetmakers that I know here in Brisbane uses a beauty wax heating pot for his hide glue.

Thanks for the replies guys.

Not discounting hide glue at all. Have used it in the past and besides the smell works really well.

Is there a go to supplier for rabbit skin glue and hoof and hide glue?

Thanks Again.