Tolex covering help

bluebuddha

Hi all,

I've just finished building a little angled 1X12 cabinet, its time to cover it and i'm not sure what glue to use.

I've tried a carpet adhesive on the back plate and it was too thick and lumpy, i'm considering spray adhesive but want to know the general consensus?

I don't want to use something like Timebond because of the fumes, I have nowhere other than my kitchen to use it and don't want to fumigate the house.

thanks in advance.

hywelg

Common or garden PVA, but only if you have a hot air gun. HElps to dry it out where you're bending it round edges, soften the tolex and warm the glue so that when it cools it grips. 

benvall

hywelg said:

Common or garden PVA, but only if you have a hot air gun. HElps to dry it out where you're bending it round edges, soften the tolex and warm the glue so that when it cools it grips. 

@hywelg I've seen the cabs you've made they look great I can use the old PVA that i bought from wickes when I did some plaster repairs to my walls? Will the wife's hair dryer work?

hywelg

Not sure the hair dryer will be hot enough tbh. It might just take you longer.

bluebuddha

When you use PVA are you using it like a contact adhesive, or just applying straight away and then heating with the hot air gun?

thanks for the advice

hywelg

Roller it on to the tolex, nice an even, wrap the cab with it.

Do the edge away from the overlap first. Apply more pva to the wood around the edge, trim the tolex so you can wrap it round then heat the glue till it gets really sticky, the press the text into place an wipe with a damp sponge to cool it and stiffen the glue. Do the other sides, then the overlap on the bottom, do the corners last applying more glue. You will need to lift parts of the sides to do this.

Hot air will allow you to mould the tolex at the corners but to get an accurate mitre cut through two thicknesses of tolex with one cut.

bluebuddha

Well I tried the PVA method with less success than I had hoped for, so I went with spray contact adhesive and it was so very very easy!

thanks for the support though chaps

Modulus_Amps

next time just get some contact adhesive from BnQ, you get solvent free version that works well, but nothing like getting a little high when applying tolex ! I have never found a spray glue that would hold for very long