Gluing advice for a beginner

[Bernardo]

Hello,

This is my first post and I apologise if my questions are both 'old hat' or boring.

I've bought an excalibur 21" scroll saw with the intentions of making toys and plywood jigsaw puzzles for my grandchildren.

I've viewed a number of web sites but would appreciate advice from 'experts' as to the best way to both adhere and seal jigsaw puzzle pictures onto 6mm plywood. I'm not sure if 'wet' or 'dry' glueing is the best way to glue photos onto the ply and whether a glue/laminating machine is a better alternative than a vacuum press. Cost and the time to complete the glueing/sealing process are both important aspects.

I'm sure once I've mastered the adhering process I will be returning for further advice.

Many thanks
Bernardo


I moved your thread to a more appropriate forum to maximize traffic and get you more responses to your request/question.

[ncsealeveler]

Welcome to the group.I don't cut puzzles so can't help you there.On other gluing I use Tite Bond 2.
Tony

[wood-n-things]

Purchasing a laminating machine and all that goes with it or a vacuum sealer for making gifts for your grand kids is a bit over the top in my estimation. Very expensive and i would think more time consuming and less productive.

First get quality plywood, most of us have found poplar plywood best for puzzles however some have good success with Baltic Birch as well, and others use Oak and cherry too. It is your personal comfort level but 1/4" is the standard. Using just run of the mill plywood will not work due to voids and splinters.

Most of us use a liquid glue such as aileens tacky glue or a craft glue and spread it thinly to cover the entire board in a thin covering. Read Carters tutorial on gluing. Some prefer to use pray adhesive but have learned to get a good adhesion for a puzzle to spray both surfaces and let ti set for a minute or so to get tacky.

Here is carters link.

http://www.scrollsawer.com/forum/scr...zles/35538.htm

Wander over to the welcome members forum& introduce yourself. looking forward to pics of your projects.

[Bernardo]

Hello,

This is my first post and I apologise if my questions are both 'old hat' or boring.

I've bought an excalibur 21" scroll saw with the intentions of making toys and plywood jigsaw puzzles for my grandchildren.

I've viewed a number of web sites but would appreciate advice from 'experts' as to the best way to both adhere and seal jigsaw puzzle pictures onto 6mm plywood. I'm not sure if 'wet' or 'dry' glueing is the best way to glue photos onto the ply and whether a glue/laminating machine is a better alternative than a vacuum press. Cost and the time to complete the glueing/sealing process are both important aspects.

I'm sure once I've mastered the adhering process I will be returning for further advice.

Many thanks
Bernardo


I moved your thread to a more appropriate forum to maximize traffic and get you more responses to your request/question.

Thank you. Which section of the forum have you placed me in?

Cheers

Bernardo
"downunder"

[Bernardo]

Purchasing a laminating machine and all that goes with it or a vacuum sealer for making gifts for your grand kids is a bit over the top in my estimation. Very expensive and i would think more time consuming and less productive.

First get quality plywood, most of us have found poplar plywood best for puzzles however some have good success with Baltic Birch as well, and others use Oak and cherry too. It is your personal comfort level but 1/4" is the standard. Using just run of the mill plywood will not work due to voids and splinters.

Most of us use a liquid glue such as aileens tacky glue or a craft glue and spread it thinly to cover the entire board in a thin covering. Read Carters tutorial on gluing. Some prefer to use pray adhesive but have learned to get a good adhesion for a puzzle to spray both surfaces and let ti set for a minute or so to get tacky.

Here is carters link.

http://www.scrollsawer.com/forum/scr...zles/35538.htm

Wander over to the welcome members forum& introduce yourself. looking forward to pics of your projects.

Hello Wood-n-things.

Thank you for your advice. I will trial a couple of gluing methods and see how things work out. Not sure if we can purchase Baltic Birch in Australia. However, I'm confident we will have an appropriate alternative.

I can purchase a hand operated vacuum press for A$99 which may help the removal of any air bubbles during the gluing process and give good compression to the the picture. If not, a stack of old books might do just as good!!

I shall now go and digest Carters Method tutorial.

Many thanks

Bernardo
from 'downunder'

[wood-n-things]

You are welcome and post a thread in the wood forum requesting where to acquire wood in the great down under. We have several members from your neck of the woods.

[turtleteasers]

I can purchase a hand operated vacuum press for A$99 which may help the removal of any air bubbles during the gluing process and give good compression to the the picture. If not, a stack of old books might do just as good!!

Bernardo
from 'downunder'

Bernardo,

You don't need anything as sophisticated as a vacuum press (or even a stack of old books!).

Think of it as "hanging wallpaper". Roll onto the board a thin layer of white glue with a foam paint roller. Make sure that the glue is glistening all over, especially at the edges of the board. Then place the dry paper image on the wet board and roll the image out from the center to the sides to get any air bubbles out. Deal with any stubborn air bubbles with gently finger pressure. I use a hard rubber roller called a printer's brayer, but a pastry rolling pin would do at a pinch. If any glue gets on the face of the image, wipe it off gently with a barely damp paper cloth. If you use the right amount of glue the suction of the dry paper will hold the paper to the wood without any additional aids.

Of course, that stack of old books doesn't cost anything and certainly won't do any harm, but it is a complication you don't need.

[jim bell]

I have use a number of the spray adhesives and they work well, but the super adhesive ones seems to come out stringy. However, this did not seem to have any effect on the picture, and they seem to go down well with no bubbles. My only problems are that I have gotten some of the glue on the picture and when placing the picture on the wood, hard to get it aligned. End up trimming the wood to both align the picture and to cut off any glueing mistakes.

My last two have been with contact glue, letting my put some freezer/kraft paper between the picture and wood. This has worked well, but I am still getting some separation with the photo paper, that is, the picture coming off the paper backing - always thought photos were just a single layer!