Glueing brass

[graningwood]

I have tried a few times to glue some brass to a wood blank. I have ruffed up the brass, used JB Weld,CA, and gorilla glue, when I drill the hole the bond breaks. Am I drilling to fast and creating to much heat? What is the best way to keep things cool? This last pen I tried is a cigar with a 10mm hole.

Thanks in advance
Mike Graning

 

[Rifleman1776]

What kind of brass piece are you trying to glue to the wood? I believe CA would be the poorest choice.

 

[graningwood]

I bought a sheet of brass and am cutting it down into 3/4 by 3/4 squares as I need to accent if I can get this to work.

Thanks

 

[byounghusband]

Mike,
Do you mean brass inlayed between sections of wood in a segmented blank? I drill it separately. I made a jig to hold the brass at the necessary angle and drill it, then drill the wood and glue them together.

 

[graningwood]

Bob, Thanks That is exactly what I did a while ago hoping that would work. Yes I am trying to glue between wood segments.So if I want to cut my segments at a 30 degree angle I would maybe sandwich the brass between two pieces of wood in a jig at 30 degrees and drill the hole. If that is right then what glue do you use, maybe a brand name also.

Thanks
Mike

 

[loglugger]

Mike, you might try a small bit for a pilot hole, also with it being on a angle you will need very sharp drill bits.
Bob

 

[byounghusband]

Mike,
I used Med CA and accelerator. If you build a gluing form and line it with packing tape or wax paper, you could use epoxy, which might work better. I didn't have a problem with CA, but CA can be brittle as Frank eluded to.
I also use the same jig for Corian, credit card, and pick guard accent pieces. Those all work well with CA.

 

[tnilmerl]

What type of drill bit are you using? A brad point tends to pull and tear the brass out, especially if drilling at an angle to the brass layer. I have better success using a bullet type or metal cutting bit.

 

[cbonner]

I just gave it a go last week. I used epoxy for both blanks I glued up. If you angle the brass and it is more than about a 32nd thick, make sure you drill through the metal with a small bit first and work up to your final size. The brass sheet I used was about 1/8th thick. I had glue failure when I tried to start with the 7mm bit. I tried a second blank with a 1/8th bit, followed by a 7mm bit - no problem. Turning the wood/ metal combo was a bit of a challenge, but managed to get through it by going slow. I would love to have one of those miniature metal lathes to make playing around with metal a bit easier. Anyhow, I was happy with the use of epoxy to bring the two materials together. - Craig

 

[bjackman]

Chris Hendley did a demo at the Rendezvous on this topic. According to his experience. Two part epoxy has been his best glue for wood/metal bonds that will be drilled for a tube.

 

[graningwood]

Thanks for all the help. I guess I will give it a try,again.

Thanks again
Mike