Old Brown Glue

Old Brown Glue - 5 Oz or 20 Oz.

Old Brown Glue is a modern, premixed liquid version of traditional granular hide glues. It retains the wonderful properties of the original without the inconvenience and mess of a hot glue pot. Old Brown Glue sets through water evaporation, giving it 15-45 minutes of open time depending on shop temperature and humidity. It eliminates panicked glue-ups and allows you to repair even the most botched job. If you've made an error in glue-up, simply apply moist heat to the joint (a piping hot wet rag usually does the trick), and you'll be able to pull the joint apart.

Old Brown Glue fully sets in 24 to 48 hours depending on shop temperature and humidity. It is excellent for antique restoration, veneer work, musical instruments and chairs. In short, it's great for any project requiring sturdy joints that are easily repairable.

If the viscosity of Old Brown Glue does not suit your needs, put the container in warm water to thin or in the refrigerator to thicken. Each bottle is dated and has an 18 month shelf life (can be extended with refrigeration).

Peter Galbert, master windsor chairmaker, passed along a great tip on how he handles Old Brown Glue:

The problem - constant re-heating of the glue bottle causes the unused glue to get clumpy and unusable before you can actually use all of the contents of the bottle.

The solution - empty the glue into an old ice cube tray, and put the ice cube tray in the refrigerator (not the freezer!) The cold turns the glue into gelatin-like cubes that you can store individually in a ziploc bag in the refrigerator and then easily pull out, one at a time. One cube is usually enough for the glue-up of a single chair!