Brice Willis asked for more details on "easier hide gluing".  This
is my reply to him, sent 6/12/2009.

My glue pot came with a kind of removable bucket I got from Player
Piano Company years ago.  I opened up this glue pot to see whether the
heating element was on the bottom or the side.  Mine was on the sides,
not the bottom, so it cannot heat the bottoms of the bottles too much,
just the sides.

I just removed the bucket and set my bottles in the glue pot with the
roast thermometer all the time (it reads from 90degrees to 190 and cost
6.95 at grocery store), and I don't rely on the glue pot's thermostat to
keep the temperature from getting too high.  I never let it get above
130 degrees F.  Once it is melted and at the right ratio it will stay
liquid in the house but it jells if I leave it out in the shop at
night.  In the summer it heats up too hot.

I never make glue in the pot any more as it is uncovered and is wasted
work cleaning the residual glue out of it each time.  I put the glue
crystals in a peanut butter jar with a lid to keep the air out half
way up or so and add just enough water to just come up to the level of
the crystals (not just in the pot) and then let it warm till it is all
a nice syrup, no need to stir it.

I pour some into my squeeze bottles and then add either a little
bit more glue crystals or a few more drops of water till I get the
consistency I want in each of the different bottles.  I use the 2-ounce
bottles for covering pneumatics and 4-ounce bottles for gluing pipes.
I keep the spout caps on every time I set the squeeze bottle down, to
keep the very small hole from being closed up from the glue drying in
it and plugging it up!  I got these ideas from one of the other
restorers' great web site.

Best regards
Robert Leber