On 3/30/2010 8:47 PM, Upscale wrote:

I'm fully familiar with gluing up planks for width such as table tops,
but I was wondering about gluing up planks for thickness. I'm sure
they still exist, but it's been a long time since I've seen hardwood
planks 1-1/2" thickness for sale.

Considering the cost of thicker hardwood, I'm wondering about gluing
up 3/4" planks to increase thickness. Have you any experience with
that? If so, how invisible do the edge glue lines turn out?

I know I can add a layer or more of plywood and use some veneer edging
to give the same appearance, but I'm considering something that's all
hardwood.

I've done that quite a bit on table legs, and also on chair rails, where
it's often hard to get the thickness required to cut a suitable arc
without compromising the integrity of the wood due to grain direction.
I've yet to have a problem.

I've also "laminated" the sides of casework with two thicknesses of wood
with what I think is success, but it may take another 100 years to prove
that.

About the only caveat I would recomment is to consider trying to match
the "cut" of the wood ... i.e, flat, rift, quarter, etc.

Mind you, this is my experience and I like to experiment, but in that
experience, as long as you stay "long grain to long grain", with roughly
the same dimensional instability characteristic of your stock, you
should be fine.

This should keep you in the ballpark on the latter:

http://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/documnts/fp...tr113/ch12.pdf

--
www.e-woodshop.net
Last update: 10/22/08
KarlC@ (the obvious)

On 3/30/2010 8:11 PM, Swingman wrote:

I've done that quite a bit on table legs,

Example" These are 3 x 3 table legs made from glued up 6/4 stock:

http://www.e-woodshop.net/images/QSWO%20Ends2.jpg

There has been no measurable/discernible movement in about 7 or so years.

--
www.e-woodshop.net
Last update: 10/22/08
KarlC@ (the obvious)

I'm fully familiar with gluing up planks for width such as table tops,
but I was wondering about gluing up planks for thickness. I'm sure
they still exist, but it's been a long time since I've seen hardwood
planks 1-1/2" thickness for sale.

Considering the cost of thicker hardwood, I'm wondering about gluing
up 3/4" planks to increase thickness. Have you any experience with
that? If so, how invisible do the edge glue lines turn out?

I know I can add a layer or more of plywood and use some veneer edging
to give the same appearance, but I'm considering something that's all
hardwood.

Thanks.

"Upscale" wrote in message
...

I'm fully familiar with gluing up planks for width such as table tops,
but I was wondering about gluing up planks for thickness. I'm sure
they still exist, but it's been a long time since I've seen hardwood
planks 1-1/2" thickness for sale.

Considering the cost of thicker hardwood, I'm wondering about gluing
up 3/4" planks to increase thickness. Have you any experience with
that? If so, how invisible do the edge glue lines turn out?

I know I can add a layer or more of plywood and use some veneer edging
to give the same appearance, but I'm considering something that's all
hardwood.

Thanks.

I was told a long time ago to glue up wide flatsawn planks with the same
sides in the middle. ie heart-to-heart or bark-to-bark. This supposedly
matches the expansions and, more importantly, the cupping cancels each
other and the planks stay flatter over time and humidity changes. I've
always followed this and have had excellent results and no long term
problems. YMMV.
Art

On Tue, 30 Mar 2010 20:41:56 -0500, Swingman wrote:

http://www.e-woodshop.net/images/QSWO%20Ends2.jpg
There has been no measurable/discernible movement in about 7 or so years.

What I'm more concerned with is how visible are the glue lines? Sure,
it makes sense to match grain with grain, but if hypothetically I
glued up 3 x 3/4" planks and if needed, ran the edge through a
jointer, is the resulting 2-1/4" edge likely to look like one solid
piece? And if that piece was stained, would it continue to look like
one solid piece or would the possibility of stain soaking in amplify
those glue lines?

On Tue, 30 Mar 2010 20:47:42 -0500, Upscale
wrote:


I'm fully familiar with gluing up planks for width such as table tops,
but I was wondering about gluing up planks for thickness. I'm sure
they still exist, but it's been a long time since I've seen hardwood
planks 1-1/2" thickness for sale.

Considering the cost of thicker hardwood, I'm wondering about gluing
up 3/4" planks to increase thickness. Have you any experience with
that? If so, how invisible do the edge glue lines turn out?

I know I can add a layer or more of plywood and use some veneer edging
to give the same appearance, but I'm considering something that's all
hardwood.

Thanks.

Sounds unusual that you want a 1.5" thick table top--will make a top
look (and be) heavy? Make it look thicker by adding a hardwood lip
around the edge.

On 3/30/2010 11:28 PM, Upscale wrote:
On Tue, 30 Mar 2010 20:41:56 -0500, wrote:

http://www.e-woodshop.net/images/QSWO%20Ends2.jpg
There has been no measurable/discernible movement in about 7 or so years.

What I'm more concerned with is how visible are the glue lines? Sure,
it makes sense to match grain with grain, but if hypothetically I
glued up 3 x 3/4" planks and if needed, ran the edge through a
jointer, is the resulting 2-1/4" edge likely to look like one solid
piece? And if that piece was stained, would it continue to look like
one solid piece or would the possibility of stain soaking in amplify
those glue lines?

You be the judge ... of the four legs shown in this photo, three of them
have glue lines, on the sides facing the camera lens, that are almost a
decade old:

http://www.e-woodshop.net/images/Gluline1.jpg
http://www.e-woodshop.net/images/Gluline2.jpg
http://www.e-woodshop.net/images/Gluline3.jpg

Your skill/care in doing the joinery, and your choice of grain matching
will be no different than if you were doing a glue-up for a table top of
panel.

Sorry about the photos ... took them before light this morning in an
area of the kitchen that is not all that light at the best of times, and
on my blackberry's camera.

--
www.e-woodshop.net
Last update: 10/22/08
KarlC@ (the obvious)

"Upscale" wrote in message
...
On Tue, 30 Mar 2010 20:41:56 -0500, Swingman wrote:

http://www.e-woodshop.net/images/QSWO%20Ends2.jpg
There has been no measurable/discernible movement in about 7 or so years.

What I'm more concerned with is how visible are the glue lines? Sure,
it makes sense to match grain with grain, but if hypothetically I
glued up 3 x 3/4" planks and if needed, ran the edge through a
jointer, is the resulting 2-1/4" edge likely to look like one solid
piece? And if that piece was stained, would it continue to look like
one solid piece or would the possibility of stain soaking in amplify
those glue lines?

You are going to have to experiment and see if it is acceptable to you. I
have pieces that are glued up to make thicker stock. On one end it looks
like a solid piece of wood. Going down to the the other end the grain on
one board changes and brings out the differences of the two boards.

Still I think the difference is a non issue most of the time. I really do
not mind if you can tell if there were two or more boards used to make up
the needed thickness.

And you can always trim the edge of the glued up panels with a solid one
piece board to cover the joint line.

On 03/30/2010 07:47 PM, Upscale wrote:

I'm fully familiar with gluing up planks for width such as table tops,
but I was wondering about gluing up planks for thickness. I'm sure
they still exist, but it's been a long time since I've seen hardwood
planks 1-1/2" thickness for sale.

Go to an actual lumberyard or hardwoods dealer and ask for 6/4 ("six
quarter") stock. If you need it to end up at 1 1/2" finished thickness,
ask for 8/4.

Considering the cost of thicker hardwood, I'm wondering about gluing
up 3/4" planks to increase thickness. Have you any experience with
that? If so, how invisible do the edge glue lines turn out?

Same as any panel glue-up. Depends which glue you use and how good your
grain and colour matching is.

Chris

What I'm more concerned with is how visible are the glue lines? Sure,

You can make one edge nearly invisible by book matching. Say you need
a 1 1/2 thk by 3 " wide board.

Rip a 6" wid board and roll one side over on top of the other. The
edges where you ripped it are mirror images of each other and the
joint is usually nearly invisible.

As an added benefit, on the far side at least they are both from the
same board so color maych and stain absorbtion (density) should be
pretty much the same.

I do this a lot.

Great tip on the sanding after the water is out of the glue. This is
really bad when you use biscuits. I have seen them telegraph clearly
along a joint on panel glue-ups when you sand it flat while the wood
is still swelled at the buiscuit locations.