Antique 4' level repair

[dacust]

My dad has an antique wood 4' level. He found replacement glass bubble vials to replace the broken ones. The old ones are mounted inside a brass tube. The vial should be mounted solid, and the tube is adjusted to calibrate.

The question is:

What would be the best thing to glue the vials into the brass tubes?

-dan

[James S]

I would think the original tolerances would have been close, It may not need adhesive, maybe a bit of heat on the brass tube to expand it to allow the glass vial to fit.
If not I'd probably go with epoxy, but try and apply the same amount in the same locations uniformly on each end....just to minimize/equalize any movement due to thermal or moisture activity.

[GordMay]

Super Glue Glass Adhesive?
Dries Clear Glass Adhesive - Super Glue Adhesive Products

[dacust]

Thanks. I'll let you know what he decides. He will probably research for a while. I think he is trying to find out what might have been used originally. He says it looks like some kind of putty.

[James S]

That may have been window glazing...you can still buy that if he's trying to keep it semi original.

[dacust]

Originally Posted by James S

That may have been window glazing...you can still buy that if he's trying to keep it semi original.

Ah, maybe it's a linseed oil based glazing or putty. The current stuff they use for glazing will get hard after several years. But the old linseed oil based stuff stayed semi-flexible for decades. That may be headed in the right direction.

Thanks.

-dan