# Edge gluing thin stock



## jayjay (Jan 22, 2010)

Hey fellas.
I was wondering if there was any trick to edge gluing 1/4" and thinner stock, and keeping it flat. I have some 1/4" stock that I would like to glue up to make a wider piece, and I really don't have any room to plane it down any further after glue up. So I'm trying to glue these pieces together, keeping them flat and parallel to each other with minimal mismatch. Is there any special edge prep that would help in this situation. I was thinking of maybe cutting a 45 degree bevel along both mating edges to form the joint, but then I wouldn't be able to clamp them together without them separating and wanting to overlap eachother. Would a half lap joint be practical on something that thin, or would a square edge glue joint be strong enough? Thanks for any advice.


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## KayBee (Jul 6, 2009)

Luthiers work with thin stuff all the time. Wood Whisperer has a video on building a guitar has the guy gluing up some thin pieces for the back. I think it's part 2, you might check it out over at his sight.


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## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

Hey Jason
David marks used clamps with lite pressure and some bricks wrapped in duck tape to keep it from bowing up.


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## woodworm (Jul 27, 2008)

Like you said, rip on Table Saw with the blade tilts 45 degree to get wider glue-up area is possible. Then do as Jim said. I've done it before. Lay on flat surface (glass/acrylic/phenolic) so it won't stick. Keep enough pressure (vertical and horizontas).


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## jayjay (Jan 22, 2010)

Thanks for the excellent suggestions. I'll check out the wood whisperer video.


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## stefang (Apr 9, 2009)

If the project allows it, you could also use some battens.


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## Gary (Jul 24, 2006)

Before applying any glue, I lay the pieces out snug and hold them snug (sometimes having an assistant provide third and/or fourth hands) while applying blue painters tape.
Then, I can fold them back, apply glue to the edges and roll it back out to the original flat position.
I'll then apply blue painters tape to the opposite side.
If it seems necessary, I'll also use wax paper to prevent sticking while overlaying other stock and weights.
I've used dumbells, cinder blocks, and the like to keep things flat on occassion.


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## jayjay (Jan 22, 2010)

Thanks you gentlemen for the pointers. I found that gluing up thin stock as a whole new set of challenges. It was definitely a learning experience for me. Thanks to all of you suggestions, I made it through the glue up.


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## kimball (May 16, 2009)

I've had some success by lining a piece of MDF that is slightly larger than my glue-up w/ wax paper. I screw a straight piece of scrap to one edge and another straight piece to the other side. I glue up my edges, place them together and use wedges to apply clamping pressure. I use a smaller piece of MDF on top (w/ wax paper) and weight it down. 
I leave it 'til dry. Preferably over night. I remove the piece and scrape it clean of glue and Viola! A flat glue-up.


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## kimball (May 16, 2009)

I was just watching a video by the "Wood Whisperer". He addressed this by laying out the boards (in their intended orientation) face down. He stretched strips of blue masking tape tightly across the seams and one covering the seam lengthwise. He then turned them over, bent them away from each other and applied glue. Next he laid them flat, scraped off the excess glue and ran another strip of tape over each joint, lengthwise. That was easy and it and it seemed to work fine so I am goint to give it a try.


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## SCOTSMAN (Aug 1, 2008)

try also when working on shelves edge clamps I have about six of these and they have served me well.Alistair


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## mdbohica (Jan 21, 2010)

I am going to second (or third?) Gary and Kimball's suggestion with one difference. I would use clear packing tape. It has a higher tensile strength. Also, to hold them together, if you have a proper workbench with an end-vice, you can use that with some bench dogs to hold them snug while you tape them up.

Hope this helps.


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## teenagewoodworker (Jan 31, 2008)

i would say use some clamps and make sure you have one as far out on the edge of the wood as possilble. Then you can take a piece of wood and use it as a caul across the top of the joint and clamp it to the outer clamp. it works very well and the wood stays flat and can not go anywhere. the brick idea also works very well. just when glueing up pieces this think using parallel clamps is a good idea. its gonna be harder if you're using pipe clamps.


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## JimDaddyO (Dec 20, 2009)

When I did my top and bottom for my guitar, I got a pice of plywood and waxed it. I put the pieces to be glued up on the ply with a 1/2" strip under it at the glue joint. I then put a series of nails along each edge of the parts to be glued. I then glued, put the pieces between the nails, a pice of waxed paper over the seam and weighted it. The nails on the outer edge forces the seam together, and the weights helped line up the glue seam.


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## jayjay (Jan 22, 2010)

Wow….....thanks for the great suggestions. I think I ought to be able to use just about every one of those techniques one way or another.

Thanks alot!


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## craftsman on the lake (Dec 27, 2008)

Simple. it's like gluing a guitar top. get a board. nail two strips on it so that your two pieces fit between it with about 1/4-1/2" to spare. lay wax paper on the board where the seam will be. make a few small wood wedges, apply glue to the seam and put wedges on one side where the gap between the strip and workpiece is. Tap the wedges till the seam is snug. Place another strip of wax paper on the seam and put a narrow board over the seam. put a few weights on the board to hold things down. A guitar back and side about 1/8" or less in thickness will last a lifetime with this method.


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