Pre-operative guidance for re-gluing bellows on 23C

[Trey]

As per the recommendation by Photo Engineer in (there was a url link here which no longer exists), I've just got my hands on some Walther's Goo. I get the process of what I have to do: glue the thing back together. I'm just looking for any advice from those who may have done this in the past. Mistakes I can avoid? Something that seems really simple in hindsight?

The enlarger was in storage for the past five years, and the bellows has totally come off from each side, so I have to glue both the collar onto the bellows, and the whole thing back onto the negative stage. You can see the patient here:

 

[Rick A]

Make danged sure that all mating surfaces are clean and devoid of loose or old adhesive and dirt.

 

[John Koehrer]

What Rick says to paraphrase "cleanliness is next to stickiness.
Alignment isn't difficult, I do the top first because it's a bit tighter. The bottom you can put a piece of waxed paper between the bellows & board 'til it's lined up & remove the paper when it's aligned. This works best if you double the paper over(one piece). The bottom will want to stick to the board, just a slow pull will bring it out.

The nice thing is no clamps are needed. Once the bellows is in place, close 'em a bit to clamp.

 

[Trey]

Thanks for the tips guys. I got it done, and it was quite a bit less daunting that I had anticipated. I used sandpaper to remove as much of the old adhesive as I could, then I glued the bellows to the collar first (it was the top bellows... the one on the condenser lens), let that set overnight, then glued it onto the negative stage the following night.

Now I just have to get the rest of everything set up, and I'll be printing again! I'm super-excited!