I've posted here before about gates I am making out of cypress. They
will be very similar to these:

http://opalko.smugmug.com/Other/Marc...34_ezNY8-M.jpg

First question: In addition to the carriage bolts that sandwich the
pieces together, would it make sense to use glue or construction
adhesive to glue the pieces together (in the same places the carriage
bolts are located)? I always thought gluing long grain against short
grain was a no-no, but would it do any good here?

Second: I have a lot of 2" wide strips left over from making the
pieces for the gates. Rather than toss them in a ravine, I was
thinking I could take 2 or 3 of these strips and exterior glue, and
make new, wider pieces (with a jointer). Would these new 5" or 6"
glued up pieces be usable outdoors just as 'regular' solid pieces;
i.e. will glue hold up here?
Cheers!

On Apr 2, 7:59*am, " wrote:
I've posted here before about gates I am making out of cypress. *They
will be very similar to these:

http://opalko.smugmug.com/Other/Marc.../IMG0868/80640...

First question: In addition to the carriage bolts that sandwich the
pieces together, would it make sense to use glue or construction
adhesive to glue the pieces together (in the same places the carriage
bolts are located)? *I always thought gluing long grain against short
grain

I meant cross grain, not long vs. short.

" wrote in message
...
On Apr 2, 7:59 am, " wrote:
I've posted here before about gates I am making out of cypress. They
will be very similar to these:

http://opalko.smugmug.com/Other/Marc.../IMG0868/80640...

First question: In addition to the carriage bolts that sandwich the
pieces together, would it make sense to use glue or construction
adhesive to glue the pieces together (in the same places the carriage
bolts are located)? I always thought gluing long grain against short
grain

I meant cross grain, not long vs. short.

I am of the opinon that gluing would be a waste of time and materials,
The wet/dry cycles the gates go through will unbond anything you put
on it in a short time anyway.

basilisk

wrote:
On Apr 2, 7:59 am, " wrote:
I've posted here before about gates I am making out of cypress. They
will be very similar to these:

http://opalko.smugmug.com/Other/Marc.../IMG0868/80640...

First question: In addition to the carriage bolts that sandwich the
pieces together, would it make sense to use glue or construction
adhesive to glue the pieces together (in the same places the carriage
bolts are located)? I always thought gluing long grain against short
grain

I meant cross grain, not long vs. short.

Might help a little for a while but I would expect the width of these to
be sufficient that since they're outside and getting wet/drying out that
the grain movement will eventually either break the glue joint or cause
splitting to relieve the stress.

That's a guess; I've not used much cypress at all--perhaps it's soft
enough it wouldn't. My recollection is cypress needs care in gluing for
as it's resinous??? The inexperience is showing; somebody w/ more
hands-on can add confirmation/rebuttal or look on the US Forest Products
Lab site for characteristics...

Cypress being fairly soft, I don't know how bad it is/will be on
elongating the bolt holes over time--cedar is pretty bad about that ime.

--

" wrote in message
...
I've posted here before about gates I am making out of cypress. They
will be very similar to these:

http://opalko.smugmug.com/Other/Marc...34_ezNY8-M.jpg

First question: In addition to the carriage bolts that sandwich the
pieces together, would it make sense to use glue or construction
adhesive to glue the pieces together (in the same places the carriage
bolts are located)? I always thought gluing long grain against short
grain was a no-no, but would it do any good here?

Second: I have a lot of 2" wide strips left over from making the
pieces for the gates. Rather than toss them in a ravine, I was
thinking I could take 2 or 3 of these strips and exterior glue, and
make new, wider pieces (with a jointer). Would these new 5" or 6"
glued up pieces be usable outdoors just as 'regular' solid pieces;
i.e. will glue hold up here?
Cheers!


It would not hurt to add exterior construction adhesive. Make up new boards
out of scraps. Hardly worth the effort for more expensive hard woods, I
would not even consider the effort for fence grade material. You will
probably spend more for the adhesive that buying a new board.

With your scraps, make a child's chair or a bird house as a gift.

Seems you're out in the country. How about a rustic pot plant holder
of some kind? Find an old wheel and build a wheel barrow (pot plant
holder) around it. It'll last about 3 years (raw wood).

Any glue will eventually separate itself from the cypress, but it will
hold for a while, depending on its location relative to weather. A
sealer doesn't seem to help much, either. Old cypress holds up better
than the younger "yellow" cypress.

Sonny

On Apr 2, 5:59*am, " wrote:
I've posted here before about gates I am making out of cypress.

First question: In addition to the carriage bolts that sandwich the
pieces together, would it make sense to use glue or construction
adhesive to glue the pieces together

I'd say yes. Metal fasteners in wood can work loose (make it first
creaky,
then wobbly, then all the holes turn eggshaped...). Twisting forces
at the joints put high stresses on the sides of the bolts, and glue
can keep those forces in check. It also fills any gap that might
otherwise
collect water and freeze.

Don't tighten the carriage bolts much; crushing the wood fiber isn't
useful.