Veneered MDF

[Martin Titmus]

A friend has asked me to cut and edgestrip doors and drawer fronts in veneered 20 mm mdf (zebrawood) from large 3mtre panels he has ordered from Paris - to replace kitchen units - i have experimented with 80 tooth blade for panel cuts and all ok both sides but am nervous about edging - trimming the glue-on edging with chamfering bit - it leaves an indentation on the soft veneer from the guide bearing. Can anyone advise with better method for trimming - also what is ideal height for saw blade to minimise veneer chipping on both sides of board
I have some reservations about the robustmess of glue-on edging for doors in constant use and would prefer to edge with solid wood if my project - anyone any comments or suggestions gratefully received

[Mark Singer]

I perfer to veneer the doors first a bit oversized. Then trim them to size on the tablesaw with a fine blade. That way you are cutting the mdf and veneer together.
For the edges you can rip 3/16" flat strips from solid stock and drum sand....zebra must really be sanded. After sanding the edging should be about 1/8" ....apply with a pin nailer and glue...use a few clamps and calls to even the pressure

[Martin Titmus]

Hi Mark - thanks for your reply and advice re edging in solid wood - my client has already supplied glued veneer strips for edging and i would like to advise him before starting work so :
Do you think this solution will be robust enough for kitchen cabinet doors and drawers in constant risk of dings? (If not I plan to recommend edging in some solid wood - not necessarily zebra))
If OK to edge with veneer then I plan to either:
a) trim glued edging with block plane and carefully sand or
b) use chamfering bit in router using some masking tape to prevent leaving indent from guide bearing
As you can see I need some confidence before launching into some expensive veneered board - thanks in advance of any useful advice here
Martin

[Mark Singer]

I used veneer tape on the workstations I made and they are still fine. I have a small edgebander that uses heat sensitive material. Solid wood is better, though you will see a small line where they meet. With a wood as figured as zebra, you will see that the panels have an ede molding quite easily. I think would test the edge banding....it should be made from zebra ...do a sample and see how well it holds. The temperature must be correct and the speed that it runs through the edgebander is critical. I would not use a flush trim router to trim the veneer....it is too sensitive to slight angular movements of the router. The plastic 2 sided trimmer that uses small blades is better and a hand sanding block with 220 grit to finley detail the edge. I use a sharp chisel , with the panel vertcal to chop the tape flush.