I have a project that requires bonding thin copper sheets to 1 inch thick fir plywood.

I have access to a cold press if need be.

Can anybody recommend an adhesive for this job. Also any tips for applying the adhesive would be handy too. The surfaces are approximately 24 X 48 inch in footprint.

Any suggestions?

Why are you sticking copper to wood? (permanent or cosmetic bond?) You could choose from epoxy to spit for all we know.

Don't understand your question.

I want to bond the copper to plywood in a way that they will stay bonded together. Spit likely won't do.

These might be used as wall art or table surfaces. Nobody will be walking on them. They won't be submersed in water but they might come into contact with a damp cloth from time to time.

OK, interior cosmetic use rather that industrial or exterior application.

Contact Cement is typical in interior casework as in any other laminate. The disclaimer from Weldwood is reported to be unwarranted.

Of course faux metallic laminate sheets or tiles are already available (you don't have to actually buy real copper sheeting and laminate it yourself). Some of these products are peel-n-stick. The difference is they won't patina, rust or conduct electricity like real metals. Most of the glitter you see in trendy magazines or futuristic movie scenes, are made from these products.

Thanks Jim.

I had good luck gluing copper to western red cedar with Gorrilla glue polyurethane on an outside lantern. I roughed up the copper with 80 grit. About the only place I would use that glue.

I recently asked a similar question to the folks at Titebond, I was thinking about glueing copper and wood w/ there HiPur former hot melt, and was told that this would not be recomended. It seems that the copper will oxidize at some point and the oxide will flake off, thus causeing the glue bond to fail, as was stated "A glue bond is only as strong as it's weakest component."

Poly Glue is the best..... You do have to prep the both surfaces 80 to 100 grit scuff. then light wipe down with Denatured Alcohol.

we glue a lot of 16 gauge steel panels to plywood and have great success with Roo-Glue. (panel will warp, if not balanced!).
I think it is also the most cost effective glue.
Of course you need a press or lots of clamps to apply pressure for a few hours.
I would think that polyurethane glue would work as well but have not tried myself.

So were you successful with any type of glue? I have a mirror with a frame made of wood and has copper sheets that are coming off in the corner. I tried different glues with no success.

Other comments not withstanding, copper (real copper, not "Hollywood glitter") is a very typical kitchen material - both ancient and up-to-date.

Besides bar tops, another typical use is to bond a 4'x8' piece of copper to the same sized plywood sheet. Then, a combination of metal railing and copper hooks is used to hang iron skillets, pots and pans, and the like.

It's quite handsome, and the copper is such that one can easily hang a still hot iron skillet up and the heat has no ill effect.

Copper is one of the most recycled materials the world has ever seen. In recent years well over half the copper consumed in the United States has been derived from recycled scrap, and this percentage has grown somewhat over the last two decades. About 55% of this scrap in recent years has been "new" scrap, such as turnings from screw-machined rod, and 45% has been "old" scrap, such as used electrical cable or auto radiators.

It's also possible that some of the copper used today was first mined out of the earth over 5000 years ago, because copper was literally the very first metal that humans came into contact with. As such, every single application made, was made out of copper.