Love it all but the glue!

[carey morgan]

Dear Modeling friends,

I'm a beginner and know about as little as anyone can when it comes to modeling. I am having fun though, I'm working on my first building! Plenty of mistakes but that means plenty of lessons learned. If someone has a moment to reply to this very basic inquiry I would greatly appreciate it.

What glues do you recommend for wood? I'm using Elmore's Wood Glue but get really frustrated with the drying time. Is there a faster drying glue that is just as strong?

Also, is there a place for beginners to post images for feedback?

Thanks for your patience and expertise.

Carey Morgan

[marc_reusser]

Welcome to the forum Carey.

Feel free to ask whatever you want...nothing is a "stupid question".

I personally use the yellow Elmers "Carpenters Glue" the 'interior' type....they also have an 'exterior' type, but that is more of a beige/greyish color. I have never found any issues with drying time with this. Generally does the initial set in 5 mins, and fully cured in probably an hour or less. Dry time and bond quality though have a lot to do with the amount of glue you are using, and how you are applying it. More is not always better. On say framing or siding I tend to use very small dabs applied with a sharpened toothpick, or for longer joints seams, also using the toothpick, I apply a very small thin line of glue the length of the joint. All joints bonds are always weighted to create a firm bond, and I always make sure that I never apply so much glue that it seeps out from the joint. (often times this is mitigated by lighty smoothing out or thinly spreading the dab to cover more of the joint surface area.

One thing to be aware of. If you are building a wooden structure and using a water soluble glue, it is advisable to stain your wood pieces prior to assebly, otherwise you stand a good chance of the joint de-bonding if you stain after assembly.

To post images, just start a thread in the appropriate category/section....or if you don't know where, the "General Forum" is always a good default.......then give this forum thread a read, http://www.finescalerr.com/smf/index.php?topic=3.0 as it will explain step-by step, the two methods you can use for uploading images. Try to make sure your images do not exceed 800 pix in max dimension if linking from a site, as this can cause undue load time for non-dsl/cable users, and it also forces readers to scroll sideways...which is annoying.  If you are ussing the "additional options" choice to attach photos, you will be limited to 200kb per post upload (be that from 1 image, or a combination of multipiple images).

HTH.

Marc

[RoughboyModelworks]

Welcome to the forum Carey. As Marc says, ask away... nothing here is a stupid question. Everybody learns from the questions and answers here (perhaps not what was intended, but nevertheless...  ). For information on glues, check out the blog article a Sticky Subject...

Paul

[lab-dad]

Welcome!
I use yellow wood glue all the time.
I use tooth picks to apply it.
I have found that an hour under the weights or clamps and I can carefully work with the assembled parts.
Marty

[Younger]

I also use yellow carpenter's glue, applied with a round double pointed toothpick. Any squeeze out can be removed quickly with a dampened toothpick before it sets.
-Younger

[Chuck Doan]

Me too (all of the above).

[carey morgan]

Wow! Thanks for the feedback. I've been clamping for a minimum of 6 hours and often overnight. I'll try working with the pieces after just an hour, that'll speed things up.

This is an amazing site. The work on display here is inspiring and the free advice is wonderful.

Thanks again,

Carey

[finescalerr]

I use white glue or yellow glue (whatever is handy), Walthers Goo, and even CA depending on the kind of joint and how soon I need to work with it. -- Russ

[Tom Neeson]

Also, if you are not already aware of this, if you assemble raw lumber with Elmers or similar, the glue will form a barrier that cannot be stained. So if the glue oozes out of any joints you will get bare spots.

Best to stain all parts before assembly.

Tom

[Ray Dunakin]

Welcome aboard!

[TRAINS1941]

Good to have you with us.
Yellow or white glue they both work just fine.

Jerry

[carey morgan]

Thanks again for the advice. As I mentioned in the original question this is my first structure. I've already glued most of it together and unfortunately, I have not stained or painted the structure and I know there is some glue that has seeped out of the joints. Lesson learned.

On another note, I also wanted to know if there is an ethical problem with my structure. I'm building it from a photo. I got this photo from a well know manufacturer of g-scale buildings. I have made some minor modifications. At the time I started the building it was just an exercise to deal with stress of work, sort of therapy. It never dawned on me that I was stealing someone else's design.

Any rules of the road here?

Thanks again,

Carey

[lab-dad]

As long as you dont sell it your cool.
But on a similar note the whole point of scratchbuilding is having something unique or not available in your particular scale.
-Marty

[JohnP]

Over the years I've read about many modelers who have used a manufactured kit as an idea for scratchbuilding. You just can't make money from it. So have fun with no-guilt modeling.

I use CA for many things including wood. The thicker CA is needed for wood joints because capillary action soaks thin CA into the grain. But the good ol' yellow Elmer's works well enough. Even with this you may need to pre-apply a bit to the end grain and let it set up some.

John

[chester]

Just a few additions to what's been said. If you know a joint will be exposed to moisture, use an exterior grade wood glue. I use Titebond exterior and have literally soaked assembled pieces without glue joint failure. Another note is that many wood glues come formulated for use with darker hardwoods and will dry a dark color. Often a sufficient darkness, not to be noticed if staining after assembly is necessary/desired. Lastly, when building furniture or modeling, if glue seeps out of a joint on the surface that will be seen, a wipe with a damp cloth will usually remove enough not to be noticeable through the stain in the finished product. And as has been mentioned, clamping and/or weighting is advisable for a stronger joint.