| If you are attaching to bare wood, Elmers carpenter wood glue
works quite well (no fumes either). If you have a painted or
already finished cabinet that you can to cover over, use
contact cement (in a well ventilated area).
The procedure for applying Tolex (or Ozite for that matter) and
Elmers (or any other varient of the same type of glue) is to
do a side at a time. Most people try to start at an area that
will be covered by hardware (like metal/plastic corners), and
try to put all seams on the bottom of the cabinet. Give yourself
lots of leeway when cutting the covering material. Measure the
material and make sure that you include the extra that you need
to round all of the edges and up until the material can butt up
to any braces. Add another 1 to 2 inches to allow for you not
aligning everything perfectly straight. Never put a seam directly
on a corner (always an 1/2 to 1 inch from that edge), unless you
plan to totally cover the corner with aluminum/plastic edge covers.
When spreading the Elmers glue, pour out from a large container
(you'll use a lot of glue - buy the 32 oz size, not the small
containers), and then smooth with a spreader (the type that are
used with the auto body filler work very well & can be washed and
re-used - or a piece of wood, or a 3 inch wide cheap paint brush).
Get a thin coat on the side & lay the covering material in place.
Do the outside surfaces before attempting to pull the material
around the front and back edges of the cabinet. Make sure that you
have a good staple gun. If using TOLEX, make sure that you work
your way from one end of the cabinet to another to avoid getting
air bubbles under the TOLEX. OZITE lets the air thru, so it's not
a problem.
Once the outside is done, to the inside edges. The procedure is
to coat the tolex where the edge will be pulled over, then
coat the wood where the staples will be attached. Start in the middle
of the edge & work your way out to the corners. Use lots of staples.
Put staples in places where they won't be seen in the final product.
Finishing corners is an art into itself. I suggest getting corner
hardware (lots of music stores sell it). This way you accuracy is
not so obvious.
Doing the back is just like doing a side & some edges.
As a side note, I put about 700 staples into a case when I cover it
(this is a large case & this number includes grill cloth), because
I expect the case to look perfect when I'm done. Nothing looks more
sloppy than air bubbles or loose covering material.
The process for contact cement is similar, except that you paint
both the covering material and the cabinet with contact cement.
Let both dry for 20 minutes & then carefully start applying the
material (you don't get a second chance to move things). Be wary
of trapped air, so work your way from one end to the other. I
also use a rolling pin to force good contact. You may find this
easier going if you have someone to help you. Liberally use staples
as you would have when using Elmers (they can't hurt).
I prefer Elmers when possible (it's more forgiving) & holds on
quite well, you just have to avoid putting too much glue on (it
soaks right thru OZITE).
Jens
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