Pocket Holes & MDF

[Carroll Courtney]

Guys I have about a 6' section of wainscoting to build which about 3' high. Since HD has MDF 1x6's already primed I was thinking about using MDF. But I have never tried pocket holes on MDF before, I also going to use glue to help hold it together till nail it to wall. No raise panels just a 1/4 birch plywood for the back panel. Not wanting to invest a lot into this just kinda pretty it up little to put house on market I hope next year.

[Steve Jenkins]

I’ve used pocket hole joinery on some mdf cabinets in my laundry room and it worked fine. Used coarse screws and be careful not to strip them.

[Warren Lake]

Pocket holes are illegal in canada

[glenn bradley]

I’ve used pocket hole joinery on some mdf cabinets in my laundry room and it worked fine. Used coarse screws and be careful not to strip them.

Here too. A few tests to get a good clutch setting on your driver speeds things along.


Pocket holes are illegal in canada

And I thought California was the king of oddball restrictions ;-)

[Jim Becker]

Coarse pocket hole screws and don't over-drive them. Works fine.

[Doug Garson]

Pocket holes are illegal in canada

Should I be concerned that the RCMP will be raiding my shop?

[Warren Lake]

yes

these are the men and woman that will visit your shop, They came here and tried to find a Kreg jig. After and hour they gave up then started to look for a domino machine then they realized I was a dinasour and they left.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dXd3gWi93DA


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCrnDkE5A-I (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dXd3gWi93DA)

[Carroll Courtney]

Lots of good answers and some humor, thanks guys coarse screws and don't drive them to much.
SMC is best

[Howard Rosenberg]

Pocket holes are great.

They’ll work just fine - just use the others’ advice.

BUT - I’d recommend rabbets on rails and stiles. Easier to cover the panels and compensate for any variances by just gluing everything down.

MAYBE - use pocket screws on the rails where they meet the stiles.

REASON - pocket screws can really make it easy to introduce “pulling” if they’re used in different contradictory directions.

It’s made even worse because it’s very rare for walls to be straight/square/plumb/even, whether drywall or plaster.

Rabbets will let you compensate for a multitude of processing/assembly/installation sins in relation to the inevitable variances your walls will exhibit.

PLUS - way less work and will be easier to install.

[Jim Becker]

Relative to some of the things that Howard mentions, clamping properly and securely is really important with pocket screw joinery, especially with systems that have a higher angle (the popular "portable" or small pocket hole jigs/systems) as compared to a more industrial pocket cutting machine that provides a very low, nearly horizontal screw path.

[Greg Quenneville]

If 1/4” mdf is available that might be a cheaper option for the panels too. I find that it’s easier to get a better paint finish faster with MDF than ply.

[Mark Bolton]

Dont run your spacing too tight or near edges. The mdf will split