Kashka-Kat wrote:OK I got out my long bar clamps - plus assorted other types - just going to put on the new hide glue whereever I can, clamp however I can.... and hope it all comes together reasonably square! I must say, one thing about hide glue I like is the idea that if I goof it up, I can soften it with water, disassemble and start over. Whoever thought that could be a virtue!
using hide glue is preferable if it is an true antique because it can still be repaired. Once you use epoxy you are done.. but i think there are cases where you just want to fix the thing and have it not come apart. maybe the decision comes down to whether it's a 50's chair that you want to use or a valuable heirloom that is very old and where originality may be more important.
One thing I would say with the epoxy , if you use it take precautions not to get it on exposed parts that are to be refinished, you can use masking tape sometimes to make sure it doesn't bleed onto the areas that show. also if you have big gaps to fill , if you can put a thin stick in the gap a lot of time that's better and stronger than filling big gaps with glue. - usually not that hard to cut some thin sticks of the same type of wood for this.
it depends on what you are repairing too, for example if someone stood on the piece and broke a leg in half, You might be less concerned with ever being able to re-break and reset the leg. in that case it isnt' repairing your repair you want it is a good strong joint that isn't going to break again so the epoxy might be a better choice.
if it were a beautiful and valuable old hand carved table then I'd be less enthusiastic about breaking out the epoxy and gluing the legs to the top for example.
often the corner blocks were done with hide glue and were "rub joints" they coated the glue blocks with glue and gave them a little wiggle as they put them in and they weren't always glued up with clamps, to speed production. this was common practice especially with mass production 1930's style furniture. So it isn't too uncommon to spot ones that have let go and may still be attached to just one side and not doing anything for strength, and they often left the factory just like that. Usually just a sharp tap with a small hammer will knock them free and you can refit and re-glue them up properly.