Ungluing Yellow glue tip

ed sautter

Member
Messages
238
Location
Cortland NY
I am a turkey call maker of sorts and make the turkey box calls among the types of calls I make. Well it has happened to me that I made the mistake of gluing up one of the sides inside out. I didn't notice it till the next day that I had made the mistake and bu then the glue was rock hard. It made me sick to think I had done all that work to just throw it away with my mistake. But then I figured all the work that went into it I needed to see if there was any way to correct this. To the web to find a solution.

I found many ideas on line to remove the glue but none really sounded like they worked. I stumbled upon one guy that said his idea worked fantastic and it sounded easy enough so with nothing to loose I'd give it a try. The process was to set the oven to 300 degrees and just put the project in and wait till it got hot and take it apart. How simple is that? What did I have to loose?

So back home i got to work. Made sure the oven was up to temp and set at 300 degrees. I then placed the call in the open to let it get hot. Set a timer to remember to come back (good idea if you're getting old) in 10 minutes. Came back and with a small knife I tried to open up the glue joint around the end block. To my surprise it opened up with little effort. With the end blocks out the side remained. They would wiggle but didn't budge. Didn't want to mar them with pliers (which would have pulled them right out) so back in the oven for a little bit more as everything had cooled down. A bit more heat and they came right out. Clean them up, reassembled them correctly, and the call looks as it should. Can't even tell there was ever a mistake.

Now these pieces are thin (1/8" and 1/4") so they warm up quickly. If you have thicker boards they may take more time to heat. Also if they don't fit in the oven then your bet it to use a heat gun and work the joint free a little at a time. Some joints may come apart easier than others but I believe they all can come apart if given time, heat and patience.
 
Good tip Ed thanks for sharing it. You think you can post a pic of those calls you make some time. I am a wanna be hunter and after following many turkey hunting stories I realise there is more to this turkey hunting that most have any clue of. On a course I did I gave a few calls they had a try was not impressed with them but figured they been abused too much during courses. Would like to see what you make.
 
Good to know, maybe a person could use a heat gun on low heat. Have to be careful though a heat gun may concentrate the heat into too little of an area.

I to would like to see pictures of your calls.
 
Heat does work for white glues (PVA's), and yellow glues (aliphatic resins). For small items an oven will work (as you found out), but I'm not one to put wood in an oven. Understandably, some glue ups just won't fit in an oven. For other pieces which may have an elevated moisture content, an oven could cause cracking from shrinkage. Usually a heat gun concentrating on the glue joint will do the job.


MikesMasterLogo2.gif

movingplane1.gif


.
 
You know what happens when you shoot a turkey and he looks dead, acts dead and you put him on the floor of your front seat, only an hour later you're driving and you find out he's not dead? Yeh, that's what happens :eek::eek::eek:

Sharon, the trick is to not go Possum turkey hunting. ;) :rofl:

Over the past decade, or so, turkey's have really made a comeback in NH, to the point where it's no longer a big deal to see them alongside the road, or even in one's back lawn. Unfortunately, the eating,in my opinion, isn't what it's cracked up to be. This probably will get a few responses from the smokers, but the most edible part is the breast, as the legs are rather lean, not the drumsticks of raised turkeys.

Now let's see what this brings on! :rolleyes:
 
Last edited:
Top