Glue Pot Question

[Russ498]

 I just bought a glue pot from Weaver.   It is the type with the brush going through a cylindrical lid that I am guessing is supposed to keep the glue sealed when the brushes in place. I have been using Barge glue which is pretty pricey. Is this type of glue pot meant to store the glue long-term words this one that you fill just for the days use? I don't want to put $40  worth of glue in it and have it harden up before the next day.   Using the glue out of the can with the built-in brush is kind of a pain and can be messy. Thanks for your help

[JLSleather]

I got away from that type. Your glue won't set up on you in there, EXCEPT that the more you have it open the more it loses the reducer - so it will set up when left open.  But sitting on the table with glue in there won't cause a problem.

I used to use those, and maybe once a year knock the top off and then hot glue it back on once it's all cleaned out in there. You might just as easily clean it on occasion by scraping out the majority, then flushing with glue thinner.  You'll likely get leather bits in there, or brush hairs, and at some point you will want to clean it out.

I went to the plastic dispensers, and throw away brushes I pick up right at hobby lobby -- like $5 for a 6 pack -- use em for a while and pitch it, grab the next one ....

 

[Matt S]

$40 of glue? Blimey I get a litre of mind-bendingly good leather-specific contact cement for £8.40 including 20% tax. Not often that stuff's cheaper here on the right-hand-side of the pond!

I have no direct experience of that style of glue pot. I use the TS Boy glue pots, which are pretty widely available. Smallest size is about £10 over here and holds enough glue for at least 3 SQFT of coverage, which is plenty enough for me to do a batch of a dozen dog leads or belts. They're not completely gas-proof so glue does eventually dry out in the pot but they seal well and it does take quite some time (days to weeks) for it to set solid (faster in the hot weather). Even if it does go thick I follow advice I was given an oldboy and set the pot turned on its back when it's not in use, so there's plenty of space inside to pour solvent if/when it dries out. Give it a few swirls round and leave it a few hours and it's back to normal. Brushes live in a mayonnaise jar full of solvent when not in use.

[Mattsbagger]

Might wanna watch this.

[Harry Marinakis]

I use animal (hide) glues.

Initially I bought a glue pot like yours, but discovered that it's worthless. It's too big and holds too much glue.

Now I just mix up what I need and heat the glue in double boiler on a hot plate.

Anyone want to buy a lightly-used glue pot?

Edited November 30, 2018 by Harry Marinakis

[ScoobyNewbie]

How do you make hide glues? 

[Mattsbagger]

1 hour ago, ScoobyNewbie said:

How do you make hide glues? 

https://www.stewmac.com/Materials_and_Supplies/Glues_and_Adhesives/Glues/Wood_Glues/Behlen_Ground_Hide_Glue.html

[Matt S]

7 hours ago, ScoobyNewbie said:

How do you make hide glues? 

It's made by boiling up bits of bone, hoof, scraps of rawhide etc. to extract the collagen. Craftspeople usually buy the dried extract and rehydrate it in warm water. It's traditionally used for sealing leather edges over here as well as its more common uses in luthiery, cabinetmaking, veneering etc.

[ScoobyNewbie]

Luthiery?

Edited November 30, 2018 by ScoobyNewbie

[Mattsbagger]

1 hour ago, ScoobyNewbie said:

Luthiery?

Making stringed instruments. Guitars and the like.

[Aven]

18 minutes ago, Mattsbagger said:

Making stringed instruments. Guitars and the like.

That would be luthiery.

[Big Sioux Saddlery]

If you can get $40 work of glue in one of those pots, you're buying your glue at the wrong place.  I get a whole gallon for around $40.  

Those glue pots are for people that use a lot of glue on a regular basis.  I did like JLS and ditched the pot but still is the brush.  I keep the brush stuck in the top of a gallon can. By the time the can is empty, the top is a mess, but I can throw it away and start with a new can.  I'll add thinner occasionally to keep the glue workable.  I also keep an old quart can around, the kind with the brush applicator on the lid, and fill it about a third full and regularly add thinner to it.  I use that for applications where the bigger brush is too big.  I also use cheap little disposable paint brushes for really small glueing jobs.  For years I wanted one of those glue pots, and then once I got one I decided they were way over rated.

[ScoobyNewbie]

Thank you.