Monkeying about with Gorilla Glue ..

[PuzzledMoose]

Wondering if anyone has used it - I used some last night (because I'd run out of ordinary wood glue) to glue a separate foot to a turned bowl ... spigot on the bowl and rebate cut into the foot ...

Clamped the piece together, checked for squeeze-out - nothing ...

An couple of hours later went to check it .... it had oozed out and grown like a swamp monster from a sci-fi movie .... aargh!

I did manage to clean it up OK since it hadn't completely set - and cleaned off the residue with acetone which seems to work and doesn't seem to damage a shellawax finish.

Just wondering though .. what did I do wrong? Does it always behave like that?

[William Young]

Ian;
Apparentlly it acted quite normally . I know some turners that have used it for gluing brass tubes into pen blanks and had nightmare experiences with it.
Occasionally I hear of a person that likes it. .
I have heard enough complaints about it to make me not want to buy any to even try it.
I use CA if I want to start turning right away and if I am doing a large batch I will use 5 minute epoxy and let them cure overnight.
Ordinary yellow wood glue works very well with a piece of brown paper bag material between the joint for what you were gluing but of course you were using plan B because you had run out of wood glue.
I think the Gorilla glue is best saved for any outdoor products because it is so much more waterproof than the other types of glue.

Maybe a person has to be a gorilla to appreciate gorilla glue but then what do I know . . . I'm just a 600 pound gorilla in the room . . .


W.Y.

[sgimbel]

I used gorilla glue all the time building humidors. The wood will break before a joint will. It will set rather quickly and is activated by water. The "FOAMING" as you put it is some long name in small letters and is a side effect of it. I don't see and need for it here unless you are building a box. Then I'd use it again.

[Fremmed]

Ian,
Yeah that stuff foams like mad! You really have to use sparingly. I saw a demo where they used it to glue a drawer handle to a cinder block. The glue foamed up and looked ugly, but sure enough, it was strong enough to hold the block.

Kevin

[Pajaro]

William I was just looking at your picture trail of "Views from the work shop" Makes me want to go back to Vermont. Great pictures. Your work is great also. But the idea of getting up at 5 am to shovel snow is what keeps me attached to Texas. What state are you from Colorado ?

As for Gorilla Glue. I used some last year when I made a new screen door for the house. It is definitely an outdoor use glue.

[Neal Moore]

I've used Gorilla glue a lot but not very often for gluing wood. It's best used on non-porous surfaces where other glues don't bond well. As Bill said, good old yella carpenters glue is as good as any when bonding wood.

[DukeNukem]

I have used it also and have found it very good for some things but not all, If you don't put a lot of it on the piece you're working with it wont give your end result, I've relized that putting a small amount near the center it will only ooz out so far. BTW that's the way it's made to cure.Jerry

[workin for wood]

I like gorilla glue. It makes a big difference for gluing a tube in a pen if the wood has a vast amount of segmentation to it, otherwise isn't necessary for that. Works great gluing corian. Works great for end grain glue ups. Sure it does expand, but tells you that right on the bottle. You are also supposed to wet wood surfaces before applying the glue. It's great for turning segmented bowls, especially if you want to turn them thin. It does not creep like wood glue does, and definitely bonds stronger.

[PuzzledMoose]

Thanks for the comments - I don't think I'll try using the Gorilla glue anywhere near a turned piece in future ..

As I said I only used it because I'd run out of ordinary wood glue.

I originally bought it because it was recommened to me for gluing the brass tubes into oily wood/and or Corian. I've used thick CA on both with no problems yet .. hence the full bottle of GG.

I thought a had been sparing with it - and yes I dampened the wood slightly too - occasionally I read intructions ... usually after all else fails but not this time .. lol

PS love the graphic there, Bill ..

[AKAkopa]

There is a reason it's called Gorilla glue----it is as strong as a gorilla and just as ugly! Used it in the past making patio furniture and found out quickly about the "foaming" action. Was a SOAB to chip off the excess glue as I figured the ole adage if a little will work the more the better! Lesson learned!