Unlike my previous several projects, I am doing at least some of the assembly on the cookbook shelves before finishing. Worse yet, I will probably be using stain.
I tried to remove all of the squeeze-out during the glue-up, but I was working quickly and I am sure I got a gluey fingertip on the work at least once or twice. I'm sure because I found such a spot today.
Even though I presanded everything, I decided to lightly resand the outside faces at least. But how much is enough, and how do I check?
I just wiped some mineral spirits over one of the assemblies. I figure any glue spots wouldn't "change color" due to being wet. Does that sound right?
Don't worry about any fingerprints. It's a cookbook shelf. Chalk it up as cookbook shelf decor. Prolly, thems womens folk (and applicable mens folk) will have their cookingbooking fingerprints all over it, in no time.
Those cooking clean-freaks will think it's their messy prints and will huff and puff to scrub them off, so you're good to go, with a clear conscience.
This was your first mistake. Never attempt to remove glue squeezeout during assembly. It will only make things worse. To deal with glue squeezeout: Complete your assembly. Take care not to disturb any glue squeezeout. Let it rise and leave it alone. Wait until the adhesive has begun to cure (with aliphatic resins, this is usually about 15-20 minutes). You can wait longer, but there is most definitely a 'sweet spot' in the timing for every adhesive. With a sharp chisel, shave the glue line. Adhesive that has squeezed out in beads will pop off the surface very easily and cleanly. Glue that has formed a continuous line of squeezeout may require waiting a little longer, but when the timing is right, it will peel off the wood and leave no residue. Let the glue finish hardening. You can then lightly shave or scrape the joint to make sure you've removed it all.
This works because the squeezeout is just sitting on the wood, and has not penetrated into the wood's fibers, so its bond to the wood is extremely weak. Trying to wipe it or wash it off while it's wet or sticky simply pushes it into the fibers, making clean removal extremely difficult. I don't know how that wiping/washing method ever got pushed by so-called experts, but it's an exercise in futility.
Yes. Any liquid will darken the wood as it absorbs the liquid, and glue residue will remain a lighter color since it absorbs the liquid much less. That's why errant glue is a problem in the first place.
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