TOOL
Glue
Three glues, three jobs, and none of them interchangeable.
| Hide glue | High strength, hard, reversible with heat and moisture |
|---|---|
| Aliphatic | Strong, easy, moderate creep under load, not reversible |
| Cyanoacrylate | Fast, brittle, excellent for small repairs |
| Open time | Hide 30 s – 2 min; aliphatic 5 – 15 min; CA seconds |
| Clamp time | Hide 4 – 12 h; aliphatic 30 – 60 min; CA minutes |
| Reversibility | Hide only |
| Hide glue mix | 192 – 251 g strength, soaked then heated to 60 – 65 °C |
|---|---|
| Aliphatic | Thin film, clamped firmly; squeeze-out cleaned wet |
| CA | Accelerator available; use sparingly |
| Joint prep | Clean, dry, oil-free; scrape rather than sand where possible |
| Temperature | Both wood and glue at room temperature |
| Price band | Low |
Hide glue, aliphatic resin (yellow wood glue) and cyanoacrylate all get used in guitar building, and each is right for a different joint. Hide glue is the traditional choice for structural joints: it dries hard and glassy, transmits sound well, and releases with heat and moisture so a joint can be taken apart.
Aliphatic glue is strong, easy and has a long open time, which makes it the practical choice for bracing and box assembly. Cyanoacrylate is for small, fast, hard repairs — fret ends, inlay, hairline cracks — where its brittleness does not matter.
At this stage
Glue choice is made per joint. Structural joints that may one day need to come apart — the bridge, the neck, the fretboard — are the ones hide glue exists for.
Suits these instruments
- All guitars
Works with
- Clamps
- Go-bar deck
- Hide glue pot
- Sanding sealer
- Cyanoacrylate bonds skin in seconds. Wear eye protection and keep a debonder or acetone within reach, and never lean over an open bottle.
- Hide glue is heated. A glue pot at 65 °C will burn you; use a double boiler and never leave it unattended.
Working notes
- Warm the joint before hide glue. Cold wood chills the glue and it gels before it wets the surface.
- Clean squeeze-out while it is still soft. Set aliphatic glue is almost impossible to remove from a finished surface.
- Use a thin film. A thick glue line is a weak glue line.
- Keep CA and accelerator apart until the moment of use.
Related
Nitrocellulose lacquer
The traditional finish: thin, clear, and easy to repair.
French polish
A shellac film applied by hand, one thin layer at a time.
Sanding sealer
The first coat that stops the wood drinking the finish.
Clamps
Enough of them, and enough reach.