Advice: Gluing Plastic Binding to Wood

sequoia

sequoia

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I am going to be gluing on some plastic binding. I would like to know what would be the best glue. I've experimented with "weld-on" glue, but the set time is almost instantaneous. I tried super-glue which was slightly slower, but not much better. What kind of glue to you pros use?

Thanks,
Rick
 
I have used thin super glues for years and have never had a failure. Super glue is fast and instant. If you are having problems or think it is a slow progress, perhaps it is your technique or method of application.


Littleriveruke said:
I am going to be gluing on some plastic binding. I would like to know what would be the best glue. I've experimented with "weld-on" glue, but the set time is almost instantaneous. I tried super-glue which was slightly slower, but not much better. What kind of glue to you pros use?

Thanks,
Rick
Click to expand...
 
Thanks for your reply. I'm using store-bought Goriilla super clue which is kind of thick. The watery stuff is probably more like it. Almost make me want to give up and go to wood bindings. At least I know titebond is gonna work. Onwards and outwards!
 
But I think that is for plastic to plastic. I'm talking about plastic to wood.
Click to expand...

No, the LMI binding cement works great for plastic to wood.

From LMI's web site: "This product was developed using it in combination with 14 different woods and 28 different plastics and it worked well with all. This means you can use it on oilier woods like Cocobolo with good adhesion."
 
Last edited:
Littleriveruke said:
Thanks for your reply. I'm using store-bought Goriilla super clue which is kind of thick. The watery stuff is probably more like it.

Almost make me want to give up and go to wood bindings.

At least I know titebond is gonna work. Onwards and outwards!
Click to expand...

CA to answer your question, but...

I do have to say once I purchased my first "high-end" guitar many, many years ago (Lowden) and experienced first-hand what wood bindings really looked like it was the last time I ever wanted synthetic binding on any instrument I made. Wood has a ton of pluses going for it, so don't look at its use as throwing in the towel. You will dent a corner occasionally, but that just contributes to the Velveteen Rabbit effect. Musical instruments should never "need" bumpers, so that's not much of a reason to use plastic. With modern finishes its no longer considered as necessary to seal end grain in tops or backs, so give it a chance.

If you happen to really prefer plastic, nevermind my comments. They are given in the best possible light.:)
 
You will have to access the videos via YouTube - Taylor has taken down the series which is a shame because it is a 'must watch' for anyone in this game. I got so many good ideas from it.
 
For years I used Titebond with celluloid bindings after first roughing up the glue side with a 60 grit belt sander. On occasion I pulled it loose while scraping the top edge of the binding and had to use thin CA to mend it. Weld-On works great but must be left over night for the plastic to re-harden before scraping. For the last several hundred guitars I've used Slo-Zap CA and I have no complaints. I glue down 4-5 inches at a time, just as with Tite Bond and wood bindings. Most of the folks using thin CA tape the whole strip in place and then seep in the glue, which works fine but it doesn't suit me.

Refining the rabbet that the binding is glued into is important with all binding or you will get unpleasant gaps. Wood binding must be a good fit to the rabbet all the way around before starting or it will only cause misery.

I love wood binding, but I have also come to enjoy the stark contrast that plastics can provide, as well as the old-timey look of turtleoid. I like plastics because they typically take half the time to fit and apply as wood, and they cause no grief while scraping it to the wood after application.
 
jcalkin said:
Refining the rabbet that the binding is glued into is important with all binding or you will get unpleasant gaps. Wood binding must be a good fit to the rabbet all the way around before starting or it will only cause misery.
Click to expand...

For the best fit it also helps to knock down that inside sharp corner of the binding where it meets the rabbet with a bit of sandpaper.
 
Moore Bettah Ukuleles said:
For the best fit it also helps to knock down that inside sharp corner of the binding where it meets the rabbet with a bit of sandpaper.
Click to expand...

Ditto, but I like to go a step farther and hit the back side (and bottom) with a light pass of a scraper to create a tiny bit of angle before breaking the inside corner. It really ensures that the binding fits tight to the channel edges.
 
rudy said:
Ditto, but I like to go a step farther and hit the back side (and bottom) with a light pass of a scraper to create a tiny bit of angle before breaking the inside corner. It really ensures that the binding fits tight to the channel edges.
Click to expand...

That's another good trick I do if I find I need to. The thing is to dry fit your hidings first to make sure they are snug.
 
Rather than break the inside corner of the binding (a good idea, though) I use a chisel as a scraper to clean out the inside corner of the rabbet. I wear a magnifier as I go, and any small weirdness of the rabbet can be fixed with the chisel. If anything looks funny I slap in a length of plastic binding to check the fit at that particular point, looking for gaps. I only dry fit the entire wooden binding on cutaways. If the bend is close and the rabbet is clean, there is never a problem. In fact, the wooden bindings for O, OO, and OOO guitars are interchangeable, likewise with D and slope D bodies. They aren't the same, but bindings bent to any one of them fit the others. None of my ukes interchange, worse luck.
 
For many years I have used Titebond I to glue on celluloid binding, but before I apply the glue I use another brush to wet out the binding with acetone, being sure to work fast enough that the binding is still sticky when the Type I goes on. This works well enough that the work will be destroyed if I try to pull it apart a few days later. Not once has the binding required further attention. I use this technique because I am putting on the binding AND wood purflings at the same time.
 
Bruce Sexauer said:
For many years I have used Titebond I to glue on celluloid binding, but before I apply the glue I use another brush to wet out the binding with acetone, being sure to work fast enough that the binding is still sticky when the Type I goes on. This works well enough that the work will be destroyed if I try to pull it apart a few days later. Not once has the binding required further attention. I use this technique because I am putting on the binding AND wood purflings at the same time.
Click to expand...

Bruce---I use Slo Zap for this. Ivoroid binding, ivoroid side purfling, and herringbone all go on at the same time as separate pieces. No need to mix glues if you don't want to.
 
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