How to Tame Glue Squeeze Out on Panel

[Richard Amabile]

I am in the process of gluing up some panels for a frame and panel bed headboard and foot board made of 3/4 inch thick white pine. The pine boards have been planned to a relatively consistent thickness. The panels will be about 13 inches wide and made up of four boards glued together. The headboard panels will be about 27 inches tall and the footboard panels will be about 11 inches tall. I plan on using a router to make a one quarter inch wide by one half inch deep tenon all around the panel to fit into an already made grove in the frame pieces (those are of 1 1/8 inch thick pine). The panels will have space balls in the groove to allow for some expansion.
I have glued up panels and table tops before and I always get a significant amount of squeeze out from the joints. This can make the finishing process quite difficult. But, I don't want to starve the joints either.
I would appreciate any suggestions you have on how to keep from needing major work to chip away and then sand down through the glue squeeze out. I find that sometimes I have to sand off 1/32 or even more to get rid of the glue so that it does not cause problems when staining. I really don't want to have to loose that much from each side of these boards.
Thanks in advance for your thoughts.

[Roger Jensen]

Just the usual tips:

1. Put masking tape on the exposed surfaces so the squeeze out goes on top of the tape. I personally haven't tried this, but I always figured some would still sneak under the tape.
2. Don't wipe off the glue immediately. Wait about 10 minutes so you can scrape/peel the semi-dried glue off. This has worked well for me.

Titebond now has a glue that glows when lit by a blacklight. I couldn't find it locally, but it is an interesting idea. You still have to wash it off, but you know when you can stop scrubbing.

Roger

[Clint Schlosser]

You are talking about the art of the glue up. You will find most people have experimented with many techniques. My experience is mentioned above. You need to get a feel for how much glue is enough before you clamp the boards. This will make the job significantly easier. I usually just use a brush to even it out and have a feel for what looks "right".

[Neil Brooks]

I've taken to using the masking/painter's/"frog" tape method.....

[glenn bradley]

Varies with climate but, I put enough glue to get a bit of squeeze-out for the length of the joint, both sides. I set a timer for about 30 minutes and use a sharp chisel to pare the leathery glue bead off. When the clamp bars are contacting the panel surface I have to remove a clamp to reach an area, put it back and remove the next, etc.

[Tom Esh]

I wait for it to harden a bit, then use a flush plane I made from a cheap chisel. Lee Valley makes a nice inexpensive one too.

[Mark Berenbrok]

The masking tape method that Roger mentioned works well. I've had better success with the blue painters tape - it doesn't tear so easily when you're pulling it off. If time permits, its best to let the glue harden for a few days. That way alot of the glue will crack off when you remove the tape. Rather than sanding, I use an old Stanley 220 block plane (with a very sharp blade) to go over the joint. A few passes and its clean.

[keith micinski]

the best solution is to have a little to much then be a little to little. Then let it set up for a half hour and you can even use a paint scraper to clean the excess off. This was one of the best tips I ever got. I used to use a wet rag and wipe it off but that doesn't get it all and just smears it around in to the wood. sometimes you have to use the wet rag but the semi dry scraper trick is the best.

[Grant Wilkinson]

I've had excellent luck with Waxilit. You can get it from Lee Valley. I imagine others have it, too.

[Tom Rick]

Let the glue gum up a bit then zip it off with a good scraper.

I use these:

http://www.hartvilletool.com/product/11211

[Leo Graywacz]

Just use less glue. If you are getting substantial squeezout you are using too much glue. The final dried glue line should only be about 2-3 thousandths of an inch thick. So pretty much any more glue than that is just a waste. I usually put a bead of glue on and spread it with my finger, it should be close to transparent when spread out. Takes practice.

[Ron Citerone]

The last one I did, I put a thin coat of finish on the joint area that was to be the outside of he cabinet, let the finish dry overnight. The next day I glued it and scraped the glue with a scraper. Worked great for me. The finish kept the glue from leaving a stain in the wood.

[Neil Brooks]

Another thing that some do is to rub a bit of paraffin on the sides of the joint, first.

Glue pops right off, when dry.

[Rod Sheridan]

As others have mentioned, don't apply too much glue, wait for it to harden to the plastic state and scrape it off.

I use a card scraper, some people use a paint scraper or chisel.

Don't wipe it off with a wet rag, that smears it into the wood.

Regards, Rod.

[Eiji Fuller]

+1 in the paraffin. Best method for me and I've tried them all.