Pearl Hide Glue - Laminated Sides

[Kim Strode]

I've been looking at http://www.ukuleleunderground.com while researching information to build a Cavaquinho. I came across a post on laminating Ukulele sides. On this thread I noticed mention of a Pearl Hide Glue recommended for gluing veneer. It occurred to me it could be of interest to others. Find the glue at http://www.leevalley.com/en/wood/pag...110,42965&ap=1

This is the link to laminating Ukulele sides - http://www.ukuleleunderground.com/forum ... -Uke/page1

[ernie]

hi I have a website were I do videos of various aspects of ukulele making http://www.ateliertomi.com
Have built a tenor uke using a double rib. We used titebond to laminate a 1mm piece of pecan to a 1mm rib of cottnwood. The density of our pecan here is about the same as e indian rosewood and the cotttonwood is soft as spruce. I have found that this laminate makes an extremely stiff side without a lot of extra weight. I would be hesitant to use hide glue, in our cold climate, as it would set before we had a chance to rollout the titebond glue and laminate the 2 rib pieces in a mold. M cheers , hope this helps ernie
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[Allen]

Welcome to the forum Ernie. That's a great selection of videos you have posted. Great resource for people. Thanks for taking the time.

Further to Kim's initial post, I'm just in the process of building some laminated sides for a uke. Used 312 hot hide glue and everything worked a treat. Though my conditions are probably a bit more favourable to open time as it was 43 degrees in the shed when I was doing it.

[ernie]

Glad that the hide glue worked for you, and that you enjoyed the videos I hope they were helpful. If you have further questions. I can be reached through my website. We used a hard and fast drying white cabinetmakers glue. Being frugal I purchased it on sale for $7 us per 132 oz us gal. I/m assuming that since its middle of summer in oz that you meant 43 deg C. My basement, where I bend and laminate ribs fluctuates between 55 F in winter to 75F in summer. Winters are dry with low humidity 25-35% and summers are hot and muggy 55-70% . This creates a lot of problems for bending sides particularly sycamore or american butttonwood. In winter I lay the sycamore ribs down on the bsmt concrete floor to pickup some moisture from the floor. In summer I try to very quickly put the ribs on my form with a watlow heater before the ribs start to curl. Hope this helps. Check out our video on bending sides using a homebrewed particle board form with a watlow heater cheers ernie

[matthew]

if you use a silicone heat blanket for bending you can lay up laminated sides primed with HHG and use the heat blanket in the press to re-heat and fuse the hide glue between the laminates. "open" time is therefore not a problem. I have done this successfully on a 9" wide bass rib.

[P Bill]

matthew... Did you lam. to make the rib thicker than normal or because of a difficult bend ? DB ribs seem way to thin to survive anything but the most careful treatment. Good technique by the way.

[matthew]

Bill, I read about that technique, and a iColleague in USA had done it, so it was a test to see if I could do it. I could.

mt

[Allen]

Yes Ernie, it's summer and in the very wet tropics of Northern Australia. though winters aren't all that much cooler but usually drier than we've had of late.

[ernie]

Thanks to all who shared. Matthew, I/m curious . I have a DB in the works, was planning to use1/8 in or 3 mm baltic(russian) birch plywood for db ribs. When you did the double lamination for the db ribs on the heating blanket.How thick were each of the 9 in ribs, what species were you using, and at what temp?? thanks ernie

[simonm]

Hey Ernie ... you made the first post of 2011.

Simon

[matthew]

Thanks to all who shared. Matthew, I/m curious . I have a DB in the works, was planning to use1/8 in or 3 mm baltic(russian) birch plywood for db ribs. When you did the double lamination for the db ribs on the heating blanket.How thick were each of the 9 in ribs, what species were you using, and at what temp?? thanks ernie

as I said, it was only a test on one rib. I used silver ash on the inside and silky oak on the outside. The grain in both pieces ran parallel. 2.5mm was final thickness I think. Temp was done in two stages, I bent the laminations in a sandwich first (hot) onto the mould, then I opened it up, primed with HHG and before it got too dry I re-made the sandwich and bent again (not so hot)
MT

[ernie]

thanks for sharing matthew, ernie