How flat should veneer be before glue-up
Hello. I have some old 1/32″ thick walnut venner (43 X 10″) that I plan to apply using a vacuum press. Using Tom Schrunk’s advice from his article in FW I sprayed both sides with a 3 pt water/2 pt white glue/1 pt glycerin/1 pt alcohol mix and clamped a piece between melamine boards. As advised, I used lengths of Bounty on both sides, changing the sheets every hour until the veneer dried. The result was okay, but certainly not dead flat. It’s wavy and a bit cupped.
It does not crack after being clamped firmly flat between the melamine so I am guessing that it will press flat and adhere well in the vacuum press. But I don’t know and don’t want to ruin a nice old sheet of walnut veneer. So, in short, how flat should “flat” be??
I’ll be using Old Brown Glue for the glue-up, BTW. Thanks. -David Lane
Edited 6/25/2008 5:37 pm ET by davidlane
Replies
Good question. Bump.
The Wood Loon
Acton, MA
An update from the original inquirer: I went ahead and tried the veneering with the pieces as flat as i could get them and, in the veneer press, it worked perfectly. I used water-mixed urea-formaldehyde glue (wear a mask) and cycled the vacuum for 4 - 5 hours, doing one side at a time. They are dead flat with no bumps. As for the flatness of the veneer before gluing, on a scale of 1-10 (10=dead flat, 1=warped beyond use) I'd say I had them at about an 8. They were wavy but no big bumps or troughs.
I think the secret lies with the vacuum press. I'd not used one before and am amazed at the power and simplicity of the device. It pulled the pieces down flat in about 15 seconds and provided 100% contact.
Anyway, hope this helps someone. -DL
Edited 6/30/2008 11:18 am ET by davidlane
Edited 6/30/2008 11:19 am ET by davidlane
Edited 6/30/2008 11:19 am ET by davidlane
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