I have cork roadbed I want to glue to a sheet of 5/8 inch plywood which is my table top. I’ve seen people on here mention using carpenter’s glue to do this. I was told at Home Depot that wood glue is the same thing as carpenter’s glue, is that right? I bought a bottle of yellow wood glue to fasten my cork to plywood.
Thanks!
Mike
The more experienced wood workers and carpenters may know more about this. But in my experience wood workers glue dries stronger and more water proof than white glue.
There are different formulas of wood glue depending on your intended use. Elmers yellow carpenter’s glue is what I use for glueing my cork roadbed to plywood. I have had no problems with it in 10+ years
Enjoy
Paul
From the Do-It-Yourself wiki:
[quote]
These are the most common woodworking glues which can be divided further into two types - white and yellow glues. They are an emulsion of polyvinyl acetate resin in water and are inexpensive, nontoxic and easy to use.
White glues like Elmer’s are often dismissed as poor glues for wood but they are just as strong as their yellow counterparts. On the positive side, they have a slightly longer open time which makes them good for complex assemblies like chairs and large panels. On the negative side, they are rather runny and do not sand well because they soften easily under heat.
Yellow glues were originally formulated to overcome the negative aspects of white PVA’s and are as close to an all-purpose woodworking glue as you can get. Some companies market a version of yellow glue that is coloured brown to be less noticeable on dark woods.
Yellow glues are really white glues that have been modified to have better woodworking properties. They are less runny because they are thicker and have a higher solids content (the ratio of resin to solvent.) They sand better because the resin is harder and consequently doesn’t gum up and clog sandpaper.
While yellow glues have a number of advantages, there are several disadvantages you need to take into consideration. They have a short open time of around five minutes so you have to work quickly. They also have a high initial tack which makes re- positioning very difficult. Also, these type of glues and the white varieties have poor creep resistance. Their elastic nature allows them to slowly stretch under sustained loads. This is a problem in bent lamination and load bearing assemblies like structural beams. What happens is that the glue is so elastic it will move, which results in eventual joint failure. <
Yellow wood glues are pretty much the same thing. (maybe a slight difference) The big difference is between white and yellow glue. Yellow is stronger and water proof, white is not.
Carpenter’s glue and Type I wood glue are the same thing. Although the accepted term used in my woodworking mags is wood or yellow glue. There is also Type II (water resistant) and Type III (water proof) wood glue. Additionally there are special versions of Type I glue formulated for extra open time; to be extra thick (called molding or trim glue); and dyed versions for dark woods.
White glue works acceptably, however, it’s more runny then yellow glue, doesn’t sand well, and dissolves easily in water. Even Type I wood glue is water resistance to a degree. Personally, I use Type II for all my projects. I make a lot of toys and games for children, where the added water resistance is beneficial. It’s easier to stock one type of glue.
Nick
Depending on your definition of water proof, Type I wood glue is not really water proof. It’s certainly more water resistant then white glue. Continued exposure to moisture, IE outdoors, will eventually dissolve Type I glue. There is actually a warning on the Type I label “not for exterior use or where moisture is likely.”
Type II is rated for outdoor exposure, but not constant soaking. Type III is reputed to be completely waterproof once dry.
Nick
I’ve mentioned it with WS foam on plywood. I use yellow wood glue. Generally Titebond but I have found most general purpose yellow glues are pretty similar. I use white glue on scenery. You should be fine with the yellow glue. I just can’t vouch for cork. I also use yellow glue to glue the track to the WS foam. It works great. Others here swear by caulk.
I used yellow glue in benchwork assembly (legs, cleats, risers, etc.)The ONLY thing I use white glue for is diluted for ballasting track and ground foam for scenery. For anything that has to do with holding down track or roadbed (I use cork), I use acrylic latex caulk. The nice thing about white glue, is that if you want to reuse a section of track, soaking it in water will free up the old ballast. A putty knife is all I need to lift the track or roadbed that’s held in place with caulk.