plywood edging

[Peggy]

A quick question re plywood. We are making all new cupboard/closet doors out of plywood. Don't want to bother with that iron-on edging. What works well to fill the porous cut edges, so it doesn't look so plywoody? I'm making a closet door, with six panels cut out, and planning to insert punched tin panels. Saves weight.( Anyone from the Maritimes will probably have seen these things, eg in PEI, eg. old pie safes) Should I use polyfilla? Dap? Even Elmers wood glue says it will work as a filler. Want a nice finished product, after all the cutting. Thanks!

[Brian B-P]

I'm not going to recommend any treatment over the others, but if you're using white glue or carpenter's glue as a filler, the usual method is to mix sawdust into it, so the glue is just a binder, and wood is the body of the filler.

[Yuri Verbowski]

Question... Why not use MDF, no edge problems then. The stuff is as strong as plywood and less prone to warp. Its what most cupboards that are painted are made of.

[Lainey]

Maybe you could router the exposed edges, just to cleam them up and smooth them out? Might have an interesting look nice once stained.

I like 3mm PVC tape to exposed millwork edges, tought and durable, but I think you need bigger machinery to adheare it on properly. That's what is on my dinette table and it is strong.

Fill them and sand out smooth and then tape off the fronts/backs and paint the edges a solid colour to compliment your decor.

[Lainey]

Question... Why not use MDF, no edge problems then. The stuff is as strong as plywood and less prone to warp. Its what most cupboards that are painted are made of.

Ohhh just saw this. How about the LIGHTWEIGHT MDF? Super light, very router-able (is that a word)

[Peggy]

Oh, but the big closet door is already in the garage, with it's panels cut out from the plywood. Hate to start over with MDF. But it would have been a good idea. Still needing to fill all those edges.

[Greg A]

I took 3/4 Birch ply and just did a simple 45degree cut all the way around the edge. Sanded and stained.
Has a very nice look to the edge. Haven't seen the need to fill as their aren't many places that would need it, but if I did I would use the fill matching my stain.

[Brian B-P]

Question... Why not use MDF, no edge problems then. The stuff is as strong as plywood and less prone to warp. Its what most cupboards that are painted are made of.

While MDF does not warp in the same way as plywood, is easy to work (e.g. rout), and finishes the same on all surfaces (including edges) I have yet to see MDF which approaches plywood in the more important (to me) characteristics such as strength and moisture resistance. In a horizontal load-bearing application, it sags badly compared to plywood of the same thickness, and it is quite dense so anything built of it ends up heavy. I don't want it in most applications in my house, let alone the weight-sensitive environment of my trailer.

[Brian B-P]

Ohhh just saw this. How about the LIGHTWEIGHT MDF? Super light, very router-able (is that a word)

I'm trying to imagine what would be in this stuff to make it "lightweight". Are you referring to Lightweight lumber-core board with MDF facing? I can't see wanting to work with that, and it would seem to be just as bad for edge finishing as plywood, but in some applications it might have good strength-to-weight characteristics.