glue-containing grooves

Here's a trick I used today while working on my workbench stretchers:

Look closely to see a shallow groove outlining the glue area's perimeter. Also shown is the tiny plane I used to do it.

I wanted to use the glue-up to create a rabbet, laminating two boards offset from each other. I didn't want glue seeping out on that side to keep it clean. So I made a small groove to contain the glue by catching a little squeeze-out. I used a little convex palm plane since I have one handy, but if I didn't have that I might tilt a shoulder plane and make a couple passes with the corner. I am sacrificing a little strength near the edge by doing this, so there's a trade-off. In this case there is an enormous amount of glue area so it's worth sacrificing a small amount of strength to make a clean joint.

Two notes in case you want to try this:

1.) Spread the glue well, and try hard to put the right amount on, since the grooves only catch a little. Spreading it with a card really helps you see where it might need more to wet both sides. Experience helps a lot, here.

2.) Clamp near the grooves first. This will force the glue out the other side.