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I know this has been discussed a million times, but do you prefer to glue side purfling to the binding strip, or do you prefer to glue it in separately from the binding?

If you glue it to the binding strip, what glue do you like to use? I remember Tightbond 3 being common in the past.

If you glue it in separate from the binding, do you use a teflon dummy strip to help position it?

I used side purfling for the first time on my last guitar and struggled quite a bit with it even though the final result was good. I'd like to go in with a better game plan this time to make the process as efficient as possible.

I glue the side purfling to the binding first. Last time I used TB 3 and had no issues while bending the binding.

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Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"

Why Titebond III?

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Hutch

Get the heck off the couch and go build a guitar!!!!

Hi James,
Pretty much all of my guitars have side purfling, anywhere from 1 to 4 lines. I do the bending in my Fox bender, using sacrificial strips of maple taped to keep them from twisting. The waist is the most difficult.
I roughly position the purfling in the channel and hold with a few strips of tape. Next is to mitre the purfling as required to fit around my tail graft and tack into position with CA. I can then fit and glue the binding and any top purfling, working from the tail to the heel end.


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It won’t let go in the bender under the steam and heat.

James, I glue purfling in first with thin CA, then binding, but also wanted to share something that might be useful. I cut proxy binding strips out of HDPE and tape it all up just like I do for binding. Then tack the purfling in place with CA. It lets me get the entire thing in place and locked down with tape. It adds an extra step and uses more tape but I’m neurotic and it helps calm the demons.



Brad


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I like to glue laminates for the 2 or 3 lines to a binding stock blank, usually 3 1/2" wide...that's the typical width of my
veneers, and then rip the bindings with the veneer lines at the table saw. Nothing wrong with TB3 for the extra heat delam
prevention but I just use Lepages wood glue with no issue. This way I don't have to sweat getting all those lines into place
during the binding process, leaves me just having to concentrate on the top and back lines...so for me, having the lines
pre-attached simplifies the binding operation making it almost enjoyable.

Thanks, everyone!

I have demons too, Brad! I think I'd like to take that extra step. I hadn't even thought to pre-bend it as Tim mentioned!

Where did you find your HDPE to cut into a dummy strip? That would even allow for gluing top purfling separate from the binding.

Yep, I also glue the top purfling at the same time. I went even a step further there and bought 60” lengths for top purfling so I don’t have to make a butt joint where two pieces normally meet at the bottom of the top and back. Like I said, demons...

I use strips of HDPE that I bought from eplastics. I bought a sheet precut that is ~0.065 thickness. I’ll send you a PM.

Brad


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If I understand you correctly, your side purfling is completely glued in with CA before attaching the binding and top purfling.

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Hutch

Get the heck off the couch and go build a guitar!!!!

I install the side purfling separate from the binding. It makes getting nice sharp miter joints at the end graft and at a cutaway very easy to do.

I prepare the side purfling by first ripping it down to about 0.080-0.084"" width on the band saw with a zero clearance support. This makes the purfling much more receptive to being bent on edge without twisting. I then sandwich two pieces of side purfling between two pieces of binding and tape them together tight and bend on the hot pipe.

I install the bent side purflings using CA starting with the miters at the end graft. I do this with the body on edge in the body vice on the side of my bench. It's important to rotate the body as you go to keep the already glued section of purfling "downhill" from the part you are going to glue next so that the CA doesn't run ahead into an as yet unglued section. To hold the purfling in position as I apply the CA, I use the long side of a nut blank and apply the CA sparingly so as to not glue the nut blank to the guitar. Fortunately, CA doesn't seem to stick to bone quite as well as other materials so the occasional over application of CA isn't a big deal.

I picked up this approach here on the OLF from Michael Giltzow.

Side purfling/bindings taped together for bending:




Installing side purfling:

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Thank you so much. Consider this process logged.

_________________
Hutch

Get the heck off the couch and go build a guitar!!!!

No. I tack the mitred corner in place with a very small amount of CA, just to hold it in place. If I’m using CA for the binding, both the binding and purfling are taped into place dry, triple checked for fit, then CA applied. The waist is the usual tricky spot, and I may tack it in place if it’s stubborn.

A single thickness purfling line (about half of my guitars) is the most difficult to bend, mitre and install. Thicker purflings (multiple lines) are much easier, but somehow less elegant. I don’t feel any need to glue the purfling before the binding, and there is some risk of causing an uneven mating surface for the binding as the CA can swell the purfling and accumulate on the mating surface. By fitting dry, I can ensure an ultra-tight fit, taking advantage of CA ability to wick everywhere. I’ve been using fibreglass packing tape in recent years to ensure really tight joints.

I also use fish glue on some guitars. The process is the same as fitting dry, as the working time for fish is very generous. A bit more messy during the glue up, but infinitely easier for cleanup and scraping. I tend use fish at least for the top when using softer woods like Englemann or WRC that can damage easily during scraping.


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I’ll have to try that. Although I might rip the purfling with a fret-slotting blade to avoid destroying it! Great idea - thanks!


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Edited my response because I thought Tim was doing purfling alone first then binding, which is how I have been working.

Tim, good points about the channel. I do meticulously go back over the channel afterward to make sure there are no spots of glue. Since I’m just tacking it in I drop the thin CA in a way that mostly avoids messing up the channel. Good point about swelling though, I hadn’t thought about that and will watch more closely.

Thanks for the tip!
Brad


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I haven't seen swelling of the purfling from CA. Maybe different CAs. Maybe because I spray the section of the channel I'm about to glue the purfling into with accelerator right before gluing. The CA sets up right quick so I'm thinking it doesn't have time to soak into the purfling. Anyway, it hasn't been an issue. Like Brad, I'm super meticulous (anal) about going over the channels and the side purfling after it's installed to make sure everything is good for the next step.

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Once in a while you get shown the light in the strangest of places if you look at it right - Robert Hunter

Because it is heat resistant and doesn't come loose on the hot pipe when you bend it.

As always, there are several different good ways to do this, each with it's own advantages and drawbacks.

I've glued the side lines to the binding and bent them together for decades. It saves a step in getting them down tightly, since the binding applies the pressure, but you do have to fit the miters somehow. For a long time I dry fitted them to the end graft, which was already glued in, and then tried to be careful about pulling the ends tightly together when gluing on the bindings. It was hard to avoid small gaps. Then I started cutting the channel for the end graft, but not gluing it in. The bindings are simply butted at the ends, and the miters cut afterward. The purfling lines can be glued in separately with CA, and then the end graft fitted. It works a bit better that way, I think, but it's time consuming and fussy either way. I knew the job was dangerous when I took it....