[SML] Stapling lauan

[Dougherty, Jim]

On 12/29/15, Randy Storms wrote:

>I need to build a number of Hollywood flats with 1/4" lauan faces - I have
>had difficulty in the past securing the skins in this situation - screws
>are too visible, and brads and staples pull right through.  I end up
>stapling and gluing, then repairing them after every performance.  Anyone
>have a secret trick?

I¹ve used narrow crown (7/32²) staples with white glue for a long time
with success.  Make sure the pressure is regulated such that the heads
just go below the surface, and I prefer to put them in so that the crown
is perpendicular to the grain unless the lauan will be stained; other than
that I¹ve had no issues and the flats have traveled and flown in various
situations.  It helps to let the glue dry, with the flats flat, before any
rough handling.  Destroying them at the end of their useful life usually
results in the lauan failing before the glue/staple joint.

Where are you seeing failures? Staples popping out? Glue joints failing?
How are the flats handled during the show?

- Jim Dougherty
ATD, Middlebury College Theatre Dept.