Thirty five years ago I made a dining set out of cherry.  Since then, it’s been moved three times and seen almost daily use.  So I’m inclined to be charitable when one of the chairs cries out for help.  The glue at one of the most highly stressed joints has failed.

Fortunately, I use hide glue for nearly all my projects.  Hide glue has the distinct advantage over other glues, of being reversible.  Moist heat will dissolve it.

Some saturated bar towels heated in the microwave for two minutes and wrapped around the joint will do the trick.  One on the joint and another heating; repeated as needed until the joint is pried apart with a reversed clamp (the measuring cup is for transporting the scalding hot towel from the microwave to the bench).

A touch up of the finish and it should be good for another 35 years, or more.