Official Luthiers Forum! :: View topic

jfmckenna wrote:

Just curious which two fish glues are you comparing? I've only ever tried Norland and what ever it is LMI sells and they appeared to be the same consistency. I'd be weary of thinning it myself unless it was for non structural purposes like binding.

Both batches are Norland. Same container size. I still have a small amount of the 1st batch, that I have had for 3 or 4 years, and it is still thinner than the new batch I ordered. I'm not complaining, it works fine. I was just accustomed to the consistency of the 1st batch. I am learning to work with the new batch. Who knows, it may be better than the 1st one.

I assume you are referring to wood binding, since my tests on plastic, PVC, etc have all failed with the fish glue. Wood to wood joints are all that I have used the fish glue for.

Author:	guitarjtb [ Fri Jun 14, 2019 5:40 pm ]
Post subject:	Thinning Fish Glue
I just ordered a new batch of fish glue and the consistency is thicker than the last batch that I ordered. Has anyone had experience thinning fish glue? The directions state that it can be thinned with water, but I wonder how that will affect the reliability of the joint.

Author:	mountain whimsy [ Fri Jun 14, 2019 10:15 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Thinning Fish Glue
I heat up my Fish Glue most of the time that I use it to get it to thin out. I've also added a tiny bit of water if I really need it thinner. Nothing's exploded on me yet.

Author:	Ernie Kleinman [ Sat Jun 15, 2019 8:47 am ]
Post subject:	Re: Thinning Fish Glue
What is your goal ? weaker glue joint ? Recently took out back bracing with fish glue , what a pita, and time consuming

Author:	guitarjtb [ Sat Jun 15, 2019 7:34 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Thinning Fish Glue
Ernie Kleinman wrote: What is your goal ? weaker glue joint ? Recently took out back bracing with fish glue , what a pita, and time consuming Are you asking me or Tony?

Author:	Ernie Kleinman [ Sun Jun 16, 2019 8:31 am ]
Post subject:	Re: Thinning Fish Glue
Yes, james, what is the reason you wish to dilute fish glue ?

Official Luthiers Forum! http://w-ww.luthiersforum.com/forum/

Thinning Fish Glue http://w-ww.luthiersforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10101&t=52046	Page 1 of 1

Author:	guitarjtb [ Sun Jun 16, 2019 9:26 am ]
Post subject:	Re: Thinning Fish Glue
Ernie Kleinman wrote: Yes, james, what is the reason you wish to dilute fish glue ? No, I don't need weaker joints. That's what I was wanting to avoid. If thinning weakens the joint, then I don't want to try it. This batch is thicker than before and is a little tackier when spreading, and it seems to have less open time before it starts setting up. I did a small test batch, adding 10% distilled water and it brings it to the consistency of my previous batch. I got use to the old batch and it was easy to get just the right amount on the wood, and the squeeze out was just what I liked. I did some test joints with the 10% thinned glue and after 24 hours, I got wood fiber failure, (spruce on spruce), with no glue failure when breaking the joints apart. So short term, it seems fine. I just thought someone might have more long term experience on this.

Author:	jfmckenna [ Sun Jun 16, 2019 10:49 am ]
Post subject:	Re: Thinning Fish Glue
Just curious which two fish glues are you comparing? I've only ever tried Norland and what ever it is LMI sells and they appeared to be the same consistency. I'd be weary of thinning it myself unless it was for non structural purposes like binding.

Author:	Ernie Kleinman [ Sun Jun 16, 2019 11:19 am ]
Post subject:	Re: Thinning Fish Glue
I have never thinned fish glue. Once hardened it is IMHO a PITA to remove. I use a fish glue purchased from ye olde mill cabinet shoppe in Pa . I use a pint at a time . The rest is frozen. Previously got mine from LV and it was OK , The company above specializes in selling supplies for conservators and repairers

Author:	guitarjtb [ Sun Jun 16, 2019 4:38 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Thinning Fish Glue
jfmckenna wrote: Just curious which two fish glues are you comparing? I've only ever tried Norland and what ever it is LMI sells and they appeared to be the same consistency. I'd be weary of thinning it myself unless it was for non structural purposes like binding. Both batches are Norland. Same container size. I still have a small amount of the 1st batch, that I have had for 3 or 4 years, and it is still thinner than the new batch I ordered. I'm not complaining, it works fine. I was just accustomed to the consistency of the 1st batch. I am learning to work with the new batch. Who knows, it may be better than the 1st one. I assume you are referring to wood binding, since my tests on plastic, PVC, etc have all failed with the fish glue. Wood to wood joints are all that I have used the fish glue for.

Author:	George L [ Sun Jun 16, 2019 5:28 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Thinning Fish Glue
FWIW, I’ve thinned Norland and not had any problems.

Author:	jfmckenna [ Mon Jun 17, 2019 8:34 am ]
Post subject:	Re: Thinning Fish Glue
James Burkett wrote: jfmckenna wrote: Just curious which two fish glues are you comparing? I've only ever tried Norland and what ever it is LMI sells and they appeared to be the same consistency. I'd be weary of thinning it myself unless it was for non structural purposes like binding. Both batches are Norland. Same container size. I still have a small amount of the 1st batch, that I have had for 3 or 4 years, and it is still thinner than the new batch I ordered. I'm not complaining, it works fine. I was just accustomed to the consistency of the 1st batch. I am learning to work with the new batch. Who knows, it may be better than the 1st one. I assume you are referring to wood binding, since my tests on plastic, PVC, etc have all failed with the fish glue. Wood to wood joints are all that I have used the fish glue for. Hmmm Interesting. I guess they changed their formula. They don't actually sell it in certain thicknesses do they? Yeah I was talking about wood to wood binding. I've never tried it on plastic or PVC but I would have guessed that it would have worked for that, good to know.

Author:	WaddyThomson [ Tue Jun 18, 2019 12:45 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Thinning Fish Glue
I have thinned fish glue to as much as about 3 parts fish to two parts water, and used it to flood rosettes. It worked just fine. You do have to seal the grain edges with shellac, or it will stain the top wood. I don't think I'd do that for anything structural though.

Author:	banjopicks [ Tue Jun 18, 2019 2:42 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Thinning Fish Glue
I've been considering using fish glue but after reading this, I'll stick to HHG.

Author:	guitarjtb [ Tue Jun 18, 2019 10:07 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Thinning Fish Glue
banjopicks wrote: I've been considering using fish glue but after reading this, I'll stick to HHG. I'm curious, what was said in this thread that would discourage you from using fish glue? I'm not advocating for fish glue, but I don't see any negative comments above. HHG is great, and I use it a great deal. But, I also find some applications where the extra open time, with fish glue, is good.

Page 1 of 1	All times are UTC - 5 hours
Powered by phpBB® Forum Software © phpBB Group http://www.phpbb.com/

Author:	bluescreek [ Wed Jun 19, 2019 7:19 am ]
Post subject:	Re: Thinning Fish Glue
been using fish glue for years. I never thinned it. I do use HHG for bridges but love the open time and repairability of both HHG and Fish. Norland is the #1 maker so most of it is most likely from them. As stated above heat helps thin this out very well.

Author:	Hans Mattes [ Sat Jun 22, 2019 8:16 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Thinning Fish Glue
The label on the fish glue from LMI says, "thin with water." I use fish glue for most assembly joints because of the tack and long open time -- I'm not nearly adept enough to deal with HHG. I thin the fish glue 10% with water to attach wood bindings -- and I pre-wet the channel and the binding/purfling. That way, having pre-cut 30 or so strips of binding tape, I can brush the thinned glue on an entire binding channel (e.g., half of the soundboard) and install the binding and purfling in one step. When I try to glue-a-little, tape-a-little, I always make a mess. I realize that the thinned glue and the pre-wet surfaces may lessen the adhesive solids in the glue joint, but it does distribute them and the joint isn't structural. So far it's worked for me.