Oak Chair Re-glueing

On this trip with the Wizard we will explore the process of chair re-glueing. Right off the bat, you need to disassemble the chair properly. Place the chair dierctly in front of you, with the seat facing you. By using a rubber mallet, begin to tap chair loose. When pulling chair parts away, put them down in an organized fashion. Do this by placing something which comes off the right side of the chair off to the right of your work area. And place things from the left side of the chair off to the left of your work area. And so on, and so on... You do realize, when reassembling the chair, your job will be made much more simple this way?! This is an important rule of thumb, because over the years, chairs will develop their very own wear spots in the sockets and you will want to replace these pieces exactly where they were removed from. This will leave the chair ready to clean the male and female joints, which is necessary to do before glueing.

Next, you need to remove old glue from the joints, by scraping it away with a chisel. Now you're ready to reassemble. I find Titebond Glue an appropriate glue for projects such as this. Us a "soldering brush" to spread glue evenly. This type of brush is especially nice because it allows the glue to get into the sockets and joints, as well as, keeping your hands clean. Once you have done this, use bar clamps to hold together the chair parts until they dry. You will want to put it on a flat surface to insure squareness. It is not uncommon to use at least six clamps. While glue is oozing from the joints, wipe the excess with a damp papertowel. For best results, let the chair sit overnight.

The Furniture Wizard
http://www.furniturewizard.com/