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swentastic81

Paging ctycdm: glue-up this weekend. Ten million clamps?!

Your profile doesn't have an email so here goes:

I've been pouring over articles on gluing up before we attempt to DIY these kitchen shelves. I'm really struggling with how much pressure they're saying our boards will require and I'm afraid we're grossly under-equipped.

http://www.finewoodworking.com/item/27122/how-to-glue-up-joints-the-right-number-of-clamps

That's the article I've been reading, and if I follow their advice for our 75" long shelf, I'd need 90 1000lb clamps to do it properly. That's more than one clamp for every inch!! I'm not sure I can even get clamps that strong - I'm worried I'll only be able to get my hands on rinky-dink clamps.

I ordered hard maple (was that a bad idea??) and I'm going to screw this up by not clamping them properly. I didn't realize how hard this stuff really is.

I was planning on borrowing clamps from anybody and everybody we know, and only doing one shelf at a time. I am going to use titebond (since that seems to be the popular recommendation) and do this in our half-heated garage where it'll be 55 degrees or more. I'm going to use cauls to keep them flush, and I understand that I should have an even bead of glue coming out along the entire glueline once it's clamped. I'm really the most concerned about getting it clamped tight enough to form a solid joint.

Can you lend any advice? Does anybody rent clamps? Is there a better way? AAAAH!

Comments (6)

  • cookncarpenter
    9 years ago

    Oh Swentastic, oops guess I need to change my e mail settings...
    Without reading the article, I'll just say that sounds overkill! For a 75" long shelf, one clamp every 12"-16" should be plenty. So maybe five or six clamps, one in a few inches from each end, and space the others out evenly. Hard maple was a good choice for durability, but will be heavy even before loading up, so your support system will be tested :)
    Good choice on Titebond, it's what I use also. I'll send you an e-mail so you can ask me anything else... best of luck!

  • Swentastic Swenson
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Thank you!!

  • meganmca
    9 years ago

    How'd you get that out of their calculation? Are you doing some hugely thick wood? I mean, your gluing surface would be 75 in x board width (say .75 in)...just not seeing how you get to 90 1000 lb clamps that way. Though their picture does show a LOT more clamps than I'd have on hand to glue a 36" glue line of maple...

    Bar clamps are, generally, the cheapest--pipe clamps, not the fancy pants lovely kind ;)

  • schicksal
    9 years ago

    Harbor Freight is a great place to go if you need a whole bunch of clamps now, and you may never need that many again.

  • sombreuil_mongrel
    9 years ago

    The thing that will make it go easier is having an adequate jointer to flatten the edges of the boards. If you are able to use thicker stock and have it thicknessesed to the finished dimension after the glue up, it is really simple, because rough alignment at the edges is all you have to worry about. In your case with maple, you have chosen a sort of difficult to work wood, because it tends toward tearout when jointed/planed, so thickness sanding is a better mode.
    If you are making one wide board out of finished lumber and believe that you can get invisible joints without some degree of surfacing afterwards, you must have a magic touch.
    I have been making 15" wide glue-ups all summer for a furniture-building sideline, and while I have an 8" long-bed jointer, all I have is a 12" planer, so I have been using the ancient technique of the "rubbed glue joint" (with hot hide glue). The rubbed joint is cool because no clamping is needed, but the edges must be perfectly mated and the hot glue just right.
    p.s., I used some clamps anyway, to make myself feel better, and because this is a new technique for me, and a bad joint was not an option.
    Casey

  • chiefneil
    9 years ago

    You might be overthinking it for a shelf. The shelf will presumably be supported across the width, so there wont' be a lot of stress on the joints and it won't be all that wide anyway.

    I'd probably use 6-8 clamps or so, depending on my mood. Be sure to alternate the clamps over/under, i.e. some on top and some below. For removing squeeze-out, I've found it best to let it partially harden then scrape it off when it's soft, like fresh play-dough consistency.