Est. 1998 — 27 years of woodworking knowledge
Good Glue for Teak?
Steve Elliott
>Can someone recommend a good glue for repairing a teak chair that has a split area near a joint? I seldom work with teak and know its oiliness is a concern. If possible, I'd like a glue that could be thinned enough to inject using a syringe.
Re: Good Glue for Teak?
William Duffield, on the Cohansey
>I haven't needed to repair any teak, but for new work in teak, I usually use epoxy (West System) or sometimes Gorilla Glue, if I'm feeling cheap, in a hurry and it's not a critical joint. Either one can be thinned by warming it up so it can be forced through a small needle. I have used a hypodermic syringe many times to inject epoxy to repair other woods, but I don't think I would recommend Gorilla Glue, because it is very difficult to get the Gorilla Glue out of the needle so you can reuse it (the needle, not the glue :^). The problem with warming epoxy, of course, is that the hotter it gets, the quicker it sets, so the quicker you have to work. I would use a slow hardener, especially in the summer. On cold days, I have mixed the epoxy, loaded the syringe, attached the needle, and dropped it in a hot water bath (my hide glue pot) to warm it quickly. Also, fillers that you might add for increased structural strength also thicken it, making it very difficult to force through a hypodermic needle, so you will probably have to go with straight resin and hardener, or a small proportion of filler. I clean the syringe and the needle by pumping acetone through it, then immediately disassemble so it dries before the acetone can do a lot of damage to the rubber stopper.
Re: Good Glue for Teak?
Mike Swindell
>Go to www.systemthree.com for $20 you get a great starter kit, I like their epoxy because it an easy 2 parts to 1 mix - no special pumps are needed. I've used for 20 years on everything including teak.
You might want to try and put some actone in the joint and let it dry, but more than likely for a small repair, the epoxy alone will suffice.