Glue (and wood)

[mtompson]

I wondered what wood glue and wood people use for their puppets?

I would be very keen to hear from Richard Coombs, (if you don't mind Richard) as he glues many pieces together to make heads & hands.
I was going to try a similar method and use lime? ( I just didn't want all the pieces flying apart when hit! )

I posted here instead of emailing Richard directly as I thought it would be a good discussion.

many thanks

[Chris]

Jeluton seems choice if you are a novice at carving. All fruit woods are good. Lime is most readily available.
For glue just use a good wood glue. Evostick Resin W one of the best - stronger than the wood. Oozing can be removed with a damp cloth. Dries clear in 24 hours. I'm sure there are dozens of others.

[mtompson]

Thanks Chris

[Richard Coombs]

Goodness Chris ..Evostick Resin W !!!!
How on earth is a beginner or young child going to be able to afford such luxurious and costly glues ?

-- I jest of course ---

You are quite right that particular glue is excellent.
( but I guess I am only partly joking : as it it too expensive for me to buy )

I use my wood glue not only for making puppets but also general woodwork , shed building or ( as at the moment ) re-working my big Wooden Summer Booth.

As such I do get through rather a lot of the stuff.

So I buy Screwfix own brand wood glue
This is the same stuff as Resin W in all but name ...and price!
Like Resin W it dries fast and clear , is incredibly strong ...whether the wood is clamped , or pined or simply left pressed into the glue with only the woods own gravity to secure it while drying.

Acrylic artists paints can be mixed (slowly) into it : and as such I use a glue/paint mixture to seal inside my hollowed out heads.

Again like resin W it claims to be "water resistant" so for indoor or outdoor use.
Hope that is useful mtompson,

Richard

[Chris]

Sorry Richard, I hadn't realised that mtompson was a young child, nor that Resin W at £25 for 2.5 litres would be too expensive for you to buy. You both had me fooled.

[Richard Coombs]

Actually Chris you are right ..I've no idea how old mtompson is.

Here is a link to Screwfix glue page:

http://www.screwfix.com/p/no-nonsense-p ... 5ltr/45135

£29 for 5 litres
It is available in one litre bottles too.

[lesclarke]

Useful to know the exact type you use and recommend Richard.

These days it is almost impossible to give a simple answer to the question of 'how much' something costs,
especially well known brands.

Quick google for the Evostick resin W, give prices from £17 per half litre on ebay , giving £34 per litre, to £8.22 per litre on amazon.

With amazon for 3 litres at £24.66 would qualify for free delivery

I find Wilko 2.5 litre pva/sealant at about £10 a good general pva, anything much cheaper just seems more diluted. So I will stick with that!

[Chris]

Thanks for the link Richard.
Actually, as I don't build many sheds I tend to buy smaller quantities of glue, and since Evostick which I can pick up locally is only a £1 more than the Screwfix 1 litre (on which I would have to add postage) the prices seem about the same. So your accusation that I was recommending "such luxurious and costly glues" seems a tad unfair.

[mtompson]

Thanks Richard

[Richard Coombs]

Of course I was only pulling your leg Chris ( if it fell off I wouldn't know what to stick it back on with though ) he he

And yes I never buy a solo litre of glue from screwfix ...when i want the smaller bottles to have dotted around the workshops I always buy 3 as the cost goes down.

But the 5 litre container is the best bet financially... so I top up my litre bottles from that.

And I am lucky in that there is a Screwfix 6 mies from me in Lichfield and another 7 miles away in Burton.

Chris you are getting a good price on your Resin W at £25 for 2.5 litres.

I guess we all will stick with what we know eh Les

Mtompson : As to which glue to use , as for which type of wood to carve ..there are no hard and fast rules , it it what ever works best for you ( which is often dictated by what is closest to hand !)
Necessity is nearly always the Mother of Invention

Richard

[Richard Coombs]

Actually, as I don't build many sheds I tend to buy smaller quantities of glue,

At the moment the dividing line between shed building and Booth making has become very blurred for me.
All I know is , I am using a LOT of wood glue !

https://www.flickr.com/photos/rkcpuppet ... 3424281779

Best
Richard

[Richard Coombs]

My turn to ask questions of those who have worked with more types of timber than ne.

I am loving working in Lime wood .

As stated in another thread viewtopic.php?f=2&t=1599
I only started carving in Lime in 2012.

But I would never go back to Pine or plywood having tried Lime.
Lime a lovely wood with almost no knots or grains.
Smooth clean and carves and sands like a dream.


I have been using bits of Oak for noses and chins and also to make the fingers of my puppet hands that 'bang the play board' .
I have only used oak for half the hand - glueing a slice of it to a bit of pine - as I never had much oak , and only used some small scraps I was given by another carver some years back.

My supply of Oak ran out the other week so I decided to go back to the place where I bought the Lime wood and actually buy some.

Sykes Timber at Atherstone was the woodyard ( midlands ) http://www.sykestimber.co.uk

Here is photo from their website:


This is just one of several sheds on their site
As you can see they stock many different types of hardwoods
Had I wanted more Lime , I would have had to buy another great big slice ..actually larger than the planks shown in the pic.
This is what I did last time , and cut it into storable chunks.
I have enough Lime wood to see out my carving days and needs.

I had feared that to get any Oak I was going to have to buy a big quantity.
But when I phoned them to check , they told me that had done a lot of restructuring to the site since I was there in 2012 , and one of the improvements was an 'Offcuts" Shed.
Loads of different types of wood there , all arranged into named piles , and each bit individually marked and priced.

There was everything there , except Lime.
It was a joy to rummage around.

Here is my pic

They let me wander around in there and handpick the bits I wanted undisturbed ...which was great as I did not want to feel rushed by having someone stood over my shoulder all the time .
The only down side was that when I got to the shed , I did not know where the lightswitch was .
It was light enough by the windows to select the timber , but did not make for a great photo even with using flash.
I got some Oak chunks , enough to last me many years the amount I use.
Also some Idigbo which I had never heard of .



Idigbo are the thinner strips on the right of the pic.
I am told that it is used a lot in outdoor furniture. and it is fairly hardwiring.
I am going to try using that for making hands.
But my post here is to ask if anyone has carved Cedar ?
The reddish chunk of wood on the left is Cedar.
It felt very light in my hands , reminding me of Lime not only because of its weight , but also because of its very close grain and lack of knots.
Thought I might try a couple of heads in it and see how it handles.

Any advice please from anyone who base used Cedar

Thanks

Richard

[Chris]

I've tried cedar Richard, but a long long time ago. Ron, who taught me to carve, had got a bit of it. He got some offcuts from a sign maker. Apparently it's durable oudoors. This was in the days when you made do with whatever you could get. As I recall although it was a soft wood it needed very sharp tools because it was very brittle and had a tendency to splinter if your edge was less than razor sharp.
Stan Martin used it for marionette legs and arms. It made durable joints. But that's about all I know of it.

I've never come across idigbo - well not knowingly. Let us know how you get on.

By the way, the cheapest way to get oak is probably in a second-hand furniture shop. It always amazes me that you can still buy furniture made from real wood more cheaply than modern blockboard flat pack stuff. Anyway, since it doesn't matter what condition the furniture is in you can probably pick up something quite cheaply to dismantle and retrieve the timber. At least you know it must be well seasoned.

[Chris]

Just googled "cedar wood" and found it is popular in America for carving decoy ducks.

[Richard Coombs]

...in which case id be "Quackers" not to give it a try !

Thank you for your detailed replies Chris.
Good tip about old/damaged furniture being a good source of Oak

Actually the Oak I was given by a carver in the past was part of an old school desk lid.
So I was not unaware of using non 'virgin' woods.
When the school desk ran out I switched to some sections of oak floor planchettes that I had to remove from inside the cupboard under the stairs a few years back when my house was rewired.

That little stash ran out and I figured it was time to give the Timber yard another try.

But good advice.

Looking forward to seeing you and Michael perform Peter and the Wolf on Sunday

Best
Richard