Build Your Own Arcade Controls Forum
Main => Woodworking => Topic started by: hir0 on November 22, 2006, 08:43:22 am
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So i'm gonna build some kind of cabinet soon.
But i'm still undecided about the kind of wood i'm gonna use.
I see that everyone is using MDF, but I also read about the dust, the precautions you have to take and other "problems".
Further I first thought about using Plywood (or multiplex as it is called here) since i have experience with it, but now i'm kinda in the dark.
I like to hear what everybody experience with both are, and what I should be choosing.
thanks all :)
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The choice of wood is personal for the most part. MDF is the recommended material by far for reasons that I don't understand. If you choose to use multiplex (plywood) then get cabinet grade. This usually has one side that is smooth with no knots. This will be more expensive than the normal multiplex but it will be a better end result. I'd do a search in the woodworking forum to get better recommendations if I were you.
TTFN :cheers:
Kaytrim
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MDF is the recommended material by far for reasons that I don't understand.
It is cheap and smooth .... I prefer plywood myself.
Cheers
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How much does enough wood to build a full cab cost? Lets say I use MDF or Plywood. Thanks.
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3 sheets.
I like MDF because painting it is easy since it's so smooth. You can't see wood texture through the paint.
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Most people seem to use MDF. Don't ask me why! The stuff is super-heavy, not particularly rigid, and nobody seems to take advantage of it's best feature: the ability to route smooth profiles anywhere in it.
My favorite material is medium-density overlay (MDO). This stuff is plywood, with a thin layer of MDF on each side. It's light and rigid like plywood, holds screws well, and the MDF face makes it easy to paint. It costs more than cheap plywood, but less than a furniture-grade hardwood (oak, maple, etc) plywood. I think in my area it's $45-55/sheet. For comparison, birch plywood is $35-40/sheet and hardwood plywood starts at $60/sheet and goes up to $120+/sheet for the really nice stuff! MDO isn't available at available at your local home center (Home Depot, Lowe's, etc). Usually, it's a special-order item at a real lumber yard.
If you've got access to good woodworking tools and don't want to paint, melamine-covered particle board might be an option. It has many of the same downsides as MDF, but the melamine surface means you don't need (or want) to paint. It comes in white, black, almond, and a number of wood-grain patterns. White, black, and almond are commonly stocked at decent lumber yards; the wood-grain patterns are usually a special-order item. I think I typically pay around $35/sheet for 3/4" thick black.
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I would buy the best possible wood i could get my hands on, i wouldn't use some crappy mdf on a long and expensive project cab i plan to keep for myself.