Andrew Anderson wrote: > I've been searching my mailbox and can't find anything this specific. > > I've heard how great working with hide glue is, so I bought a mini slow > cooker and the glue, now what? > > proportions? what is the urea for? etc. > > Andrew Anderson (hide-glue rook) Hi Andrew, First, where'd you get the glue, and what's the gram strength? Here's something I posted on the subject 7 months ago. More about hot hide glue, since this part has never been discussed here to my recollection. Hide glue comes in different gram strengths. In practical terms, it's a measure of the ultimate strength and gel rate of the glue. Most people start with too high a gram strength and shoot themselves in the foot. Those who say they found hot hide to be unmanageable usually bought it from Schaff. Theirs is 370-399 gram, which I consider to be impossible for general use. Pianotek sells a 251 gram weight, which is manageable, but still touchy for general work. I prefer 192 gram. It's a balancing act between thickness and gel time. For hammers, particularly, you want a fairly thick glue that won't "string", and will still gel before it runs down into the hammer tail cove. The high gram weights are super critical of water content for this use. Thin enough to not string means too thin to gel in time to not sag. The 251g has a wide enough operating range, and is quite usable for hammer hanging since you can get a quick gel and minimum sag with a mix that's not too thick to use. I find it too much for player and felt work though. Add enough water to make it usable covering pneumatics, and the initial tack isn't good enough to let you move on without standing around holding things and waiting for the glue to grab. The 192g is good enough for hammer hanging, and much better for player and felt work. It can be mixed thick enough for hammers, with a gel time that works, without stringing glue, and thin enough for player and felt work without losing the initial tack that lets you get on with it. Dries brittle, scrapes easily, softens with heat and moisture. That, everyone already knows. And no, I don't use urea. I bought some to play with, but haven't needed to yet. Mix consistency (water added) determined by trying it and adjusting as necessary. Ron N
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