For thousands of years, animal glue was the most common adhesive product used as a wood adhesive for woodworkers and carpentry works.

Today, animal glue's use as an adhesive product, has transgressed from more than just a woodworking glue, to being used primarily for speciality applications, furniture repairs, and antique furniture restorations.

ANIMAL GLUE AS AN ADHESIVE PRODUCT

Artists, who use glass as a medium of work, find hide glues adhesive qualities and ability to bond with glass, as a great advantage.

Because most animal glues are soluble in water, they can be used for joints, which at some time may need to be separated for repairs, thereby, making joints reversible and repairable.

Adhesive products such as animal glue, allows joints to separate easily with the application of heat and steam. So, as it has the ability to stick to itself, a repairer can apply new glue to the joint and reclamp it. PVA glues do not have this property, once cured.

For furniture repairs and restorations, the advantage of breaking up a joint, without splinters, or removing some wood material along, has made the art of furniture restoration very attractive.

With the regular PVA glues, trying to break off, or separate joints made many years before, creates an irregular, difficult to repair break, and may destroy an otherwise valuable piece, or an heirloom.

For example, instruments in the violin family require periodic dissembling and re-assembling for its repairs and maintenance. The use of animal glue as an adhesive product, allows the top of a violin to be easily removed, by prying a palette knife between the top and the ribs, running it all around the joint, enabling easy dissembling. The brittleness allows the top to be removed, often without significant damage to the wood. To re-glue, just apply new hot hide glue to the joint. There will be absolutely no damage to the varnish, nor will there be any removal of some wood material. This ensures perfect re-assembly.

Hide glues functions like a clamp of sorts. As the adhesive begins to gel, it pulls the joints together as it hardens.

Hoof glue is a very popular adhesive today, for its use in woodworking, furniture restorations, and especially for cabinetry construction.

Cow bone-adhesives come in pearl forms

Cow hides- glue products comes finished as grains and cubes

Rabbit skin-comes produced as a powder(coarse), or in small grains

Pigs skin- finished products come in form of plates

Sturgeon Fish bladder-adhesives comes in form of plates

Fish skin- a thick liquid form of animal glue

If you have a passion for preserving family heirlooms, restoring or repairing your personal collection, or, you wish to start a business for the repair and restoration of antique wood furniture, then  its better you use the appropriate adhesive product to get the job well done.

Using animal glues is the best option, because antiques need proper care  and their repairs can be painstaking task if you make the mistake of using chemical based glues, such as PVA.

If you decide to will them to your children, who may become careless in handling and using them, and do not protect them from everyday hazards that may occur in their own home, there may come a point in time when they may need to do minor (or major ) repairs on them.  And if the wrong adhesives products had been used, Result?  the antique furniture piece may be destroyed and become worthless.

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