Gluing Wood Veneer With Contact Cement. Some Finishes Can Seep Through A Paper Backed Veneer And Attack the Contact Cement, Which Can Cause The Veneer To Bubble Or Peel Up.

Q.   How should I glue wood veneer with contact cement? --- I’m new to veneering.  Do I put contact cement on both the substrate and the veneer and let both coats dry completely and *then* put the veneer on the surface?  Or do I wait for the 2nd coat of contact cement to tack up and then apply the veneer?

A.  When gluing veneer with contact cement, apply a coat of the contact cement to the veneer and a coat of contact cement to the substrate.  Let the contact cement dry (it usually takes 30 minutes to 2 hours).  Then, apply a second coat of contact cement to the veneer and a second coat of contact cement to the substrate.

Let the second coats of contact cement dry.  Then, mount the veneer to the substrate and apply pressure all over the surface using a veneer roller or a blunt piece of wood.This helps the contact cement to make a good bond.

Once the second coat of contact cement is dry,  it is best to wait no more than 2 hours to lay the veneer onto the substrate.  If you wait too long, the contact cement will lose its ability to make a good bond.

The width of the blunt piece of wood or the veneer roller should be about 1” wide.  The narrower the roller (or blunt wood), the more pressure per linear inch of veneer surface that you are able to transfer.

If your veneer roller is too wide, the pressure gets distributed across a wider area and this diminishes the pressure. 

You can use a 1” wide wallpaper seam roller to apply pressure to the veneered surface.   Wallpaper seam rollers are available at wallpaper stores and craft stores.   Don’t make the mistake of using a wallpaper roller that is crowned.   The roller should be a wallpaper seam roller, which is flat across the surface.

Be aware that some finishes can seep through a paper backed veneer and attack the contact cement.  This can cause the glue bond to loosen, and it could even cause the veneer to pull up or  bubble.  This is not a problem with the 2 ply wood backed veneers, as a finish cannot seep through the wood backed veneer, which is thicker than a paper backed veneer.

Regards,

Bob Morgan, pres.

Veneer Factory Outlet.com

Wood Veneer Factory Outlet.com