Stage 4 Cont: Veneer Replacement (pt 2)

After allowing the front of the chest to set, we began to apply the veneer to the rest of the lid. Before painting on an even coat of glue and cinching the pieces tight (above), we laid all our veneer down to make sure all the pieces butted up evenly. Where they didn't, we took a block of 100-grit sandpaper and lightly sanded the toes off to get a true edge. Once satisfied, we painted on a good layer of glue and started the process of applying the veneer. As you can see, the wood sucked up the moisture in the glue, which caused it to curl. To combat this effect we kept pressure on the curled edge until the glue got tacky and we could continue to work.

In order to prevent seams or visual gaps between the pieces of veneer, we laid each piece down and drug it towards the front of the chest, causing the glue below not only to spread more evenly over the backside of the veneer, but also to come up between the pieces and seal the seams, where we were sure to wipe down the excess. Sadly, one of our pieces cracked in the handling, and to prevent further damage, we filled the crack with glue before applying to the chest.

With all the pieces glued on, we used masking tape to make sure the edges remained butted up together. We also applied stage weights to keep the veneer from picking up, and you can see where we needed to put a bar across the back to prevent the back of the veneer from picking up like it wanted to - even under weight. When we returned and removed our hardware, we noticed where the stage weights had left some nasty black residue on the wood where the glue had come up between the cracks (below). There were also some places along the edges where the veneer had pulled away from the chest some and we should have (though we didn't know it at the time) put another bar with clamps to give it some pressure. The places marked with tape are where the bubbles were, and there are a few on the other side as well.

Additionally, where the adhesive got too wet in the front bubbled up as well. We have plans to inject all these areas with wood glue using a hooked syringe when the time is right. For now we press on to begin sanding and cut veneer for the trim along the bottom.

Work Time: 2.5 Hours
Total Time: 30.5 Hours