Glue Preference

[Two Much]

How do you feel about the different carpenters glue out there?
We have Gorilla ( white ) glue, good old Elmers Glue, Tight Bond # 1 & 2?
We have used all of them...We tried all
of them ... what's your opinion on the best carpenter glue out there?

[cwsmith]

I honestly don't know what is best, as I'm sure there are some that work better for particular applications, and some will have experiences well beyond mine. I've used "good old Elmers" white glue in the past but it was so long ago that I don't know remember what it was used on or what it may look like today; or really whether it was even wood glue or their craft glue.

I've tried hide glue decades ago, and I recall that after several years the wood piece separated. Hide glue, I think, is pretty old fashioned. I bought some of the original Gorilla glue years ago to repair a part on a shop vac... it worked really well, but the remainder hardened before I could finish the small plastic bottle. I haven't kept up with their products so I don't know about their "wood glue", if they make something for just that purpose.

Since early 2003, when I actually got back into carpentry and general woodworking as a hobby, I've almost exclusively used Titebond II. I can't give you any particular reason except the general idea that it is supposed to be better than Titebond I and it's not as expensive as Titebond III.... when in doubt, pick the middle one I guess. However, if I was going to build something for outside, I'd definitely consider Titebond III for that.

In any case, it has worked really well for my needs. I've done quite a bit of edge jointing for the window seats in our library, as well as some table tops. It's been several years now and despite the humid summers and dry winters I have not experienced any separation whatsoever. Any such joinery is done with dowels or biscuits, edged glued and clamped for several hours. I don't use metal fasteners (brads, screws, etc.) in my projects unless absolutely necessary.

I hope this is helpful,

CWS

[twistsol]

Without any reason other than habit, I pretty much use TiteBond II unless it is going to be outside, then it is Gorilla Glue.

I've never had glue joints fail with either of them and other than Gorilla Glue being a complete pain to clean up if it strays from where you want it, they are both easy enough to use.

[radhak]

One old-timer told me once that any glue-joint is stronger than the wood; ie, if applied properly, the wood will break before the glue/joint comes apart. Just to test his assertion, I tried out around a bunch of different glues on scrap wood, and left them alone for a week. The glue I tried were Gorilla superglue (cryanoacrylate), Gorilla wood glue, Titebond II, Titebond III, Elmer's 'wood glue', Elmer's regular glue, and even my daughters arts-and-craft glue (white in color and rather watery). At the end of the week (actually, 10 days later), that assertion was proved right : none of the joints could be pulled apart without breaking the wood (or, the wood tore out leaving the glued area behind).

So, for regular indoor use, any glue works. For special conditions, pay attention to the manuf instructions : eg Titebond III for outdoor use; and CA does not work well with moisture.

[atgcpaul]

I switch back and forth between TB orIginal and 3. 3 seems thicker and i prefer it when working with walnut because it's darker. I haven't done any outdoor projects with it, though. I used Gorilla glue (the foaming poly kind) on a indoor table made of ipe. Hated the foaming and it didn't stick that well to the ipe.

For veneering I use Titebond white glue. I haven't made the leap to hide glue for that but have some but don't want to experiment yet.

[BadeMillsap]

For MOST things inside I use TB-II, for the very few veneers I have done I used TB-liquid hide and it seemed to work fine (I would use real cooked hide glue on lutherie projects rather than the liquid stuff). For outside projects I use either TB-III or if on a more industrial piece like deck furniture I use construction adhesive augmented by pocket hole screws or dowels.

[JimD]

I use Titebond II unless I know the project will be outside or I'm feeling like I have a lot of money to spend on glue, then I get Titebond III. I've bought a gallon before but it takes me so long to use it I usually just get a quart.

[dbhost]

If it is an indoor project Titebond II is my glue. For outdoor / automotive / marine type projects, Titebond III. Mostly out of habit, and availability.

[RAFlorida]

Titebond II mostly for the carpentry in the kitchen and bath. It is very hardy and holds forever.

[jussi]

I don't think there's a definitive best answer. I have heard many different well regarded woodworkers use different brands. I know William ng uses good old elmers white glue. I forgot his name but there was a fine Woodowrking contributor who even uses gorilla glue. The standard polyurethane version, not their glue version. I forgot his reasoning but he said it works really well if you use it properly.

I've always TB2 but am starting to use TB 3 more because it's a little easier to clean up.

[LCHIEN]

there are different types of formulations for different working conditions.

The usual Gorilla Glue is polyurethane (its not a "white" glue like the OP stated) which is very strong and waterproof and needs some moisture in the joint to set up. I like it a lot but for the fact that once opened it usually sets up int he bottle before I use the whole thing and its a bit expensive.

White glue is elmers, the other woodworking formulations like Titebond and Elmers wood glue are similar to Elmers white glue. The Titebond (original or I),II and III are a lilte different - I is non-water resistant, II and III are water resistant. The III has a double working time or Open time as they all it 10 mis vs 5 mins for I and II.

CA is good, but has a short working time and it sets up quickly in opened tubes. Expensive for large projects, too if you use a lot.

[Carpenter96]

For anything that requires moisture involvement, I like to use epoxy. Most other wood working projects I use Yellow (Carpenters) glue or for darker woods LV 2002GF glue. I have never had any thing come apart because of the glue, but I had some Walnut plugs come out of a Maple stool because of different rates of movement between the two species. I told the customer it may be a problem and about 2 years later they loosened up and we replaced them with Maple plugs and 20 years later they are still nice and tight.

Regards Bob