Shellac as an Adhesive in Wooden Boats

I got a call today from a company that builds wooden boats. They were inquiring about which grades of shellac to use as an adhesive between the two wooden layers on the hulls of boats. This is a traditional use for shellac that has gone out of favor in the last 40 years with the advent of modern glues.This call was spurred by an article in a wooden boat magazine (I happened to see this article several weeks ago and made a copy of it). It seems like the use of shellac for this purpose could take off among the many small companies that build wooden boats.

Anyway, the man I talked to wondered what grade of shellac would work best. They want something with minimal refinement and as inexpensive as possible, as they require a very heavy cut for this adhesive. (Woodworkers use a 2-pound cut - he will use a 9-pound cut). We discussed what would have better adhesive qualities for wood - dewaxed or waxy. I told him I thought dewaxed would work better. What do you think? If waxy would be better, we thought he could go with a seedlac. I told him about the debris involved, and he didn't think it would be a problem.

Lately, I have been wondering what I can do to increase the market for shellac, and this discussion presents a real possibility. I plan to advertise in the next issue of this wooden boat magazine and continue to explore additional markets for shellac.