MDF Question

[Don Dean]

Can MDF be rabitted?

[tod evans]

yup, sure can.....02 tod

[Steve Cox]

Very clean and nice also. The dust is horrible though!:mad: One thing to be aware of since rabbetting frequently leads to fastening into the end grain of a connecting piece is that MDF has real tendency to split with nails or screws driven into the edge of a panel. Pilot holes are necessary and they had better be properly sized!

[Jim Becker]

...MDF has real tendency to split with nails or screws driven into the edge of a panel. Pilot holes are necessary and they had better be properly sized!

Very true. And using fasteners designed for the material is also a plus. Confirmat screws are best for MDF and other manufactured materials such as particle board. They hold strongly without damaging the material. These fasteners are larger in diameter and use a special drill bit for the pilot holes.

[Mark Singer]

It shapes very well too...I have used it for bending forms for chair parts and it can be moulded by routing and sanding

[tod evans]

It shapes very well too...I have used it for bending forms for chair parts and it can be moulded by routing and sanding

and sweet talkin` so you tell me.:)

[Jim Becker]

and sweet talkin` so you tell me.

Tod, (and Mark)...this is a good opportunity for some of that Sawmill Creek wine spoken about in the OT forum...
------

And to Marks real point, MDF really can be shaped quite well. It's tough on cutters due to the abrasivness of the resins, but that's the way it is with tooling...it wears out over time. The end result is what counts. MDF is a very versatile material when used to best effect and in appropriate places. (But good dust collection is NOT optional...)

[Wes Bischel]

And to Marks real point, MDF really can be shaped quite well. It's tough on cutters due to the abrasivness of the resins, but that's the way it is with tooling...it wears out over time. The end result is what counts. MDF is a very versatile material when used to best effect and in appropriate places. (But good dust collection is NOT optional...)

One of the reasons I use MLCS bits so much - I use MDF a lot. They may not be as "good" as higher end bits on hardwoods, but they seem to take very well to MDF.

Wes

[Michael Adelong]

I finally broke down and upgraded my cable TV so that I could get some more WW shows. I noticed that David Marks uses MDF in just about every project he builds. Mostly for templates and jigs. He uses 1/4", 3/8", and 1/2" thick sheets. I've never seen these sizes on any store rack. Everyone stocks the 3/4" stuff.

Does anyone have a supplier of the 1/4" thick stuff that they've had a good experience with? I'd like to try some instead of that brown hardboard stuff that I've been using. Smells terrible.

Michael

[Matt Meiser]

Does anyone have a supplier of the 1/4" thick stuff that they've had a good experience with? I'd like to try some instead of that brown hardboard stuff that I've been using. Smells terrible.

I got 1/2" in a 4x8 sheet and 1/4" in a 2x4 sheet at Home Depot.

[Jim Becker]

Michael, try a full service "real" lumber yard. Many carry or can get you MDF in various thicknesses. Unlike Matt's HD, all 5 of the HDs (as well as Lowes) in this area only carry 3/4" in full sheets. 1/2" is only provided in 2' x 4' panels. My local lumber yard is perfectly happy to order any thickness for me or I can get it through a cabinet maker friend who can buy sheet goods from a commercial distributor.

[Chip Olson]

How's MDF for moisture resistance? I have a commission from a seamstress friend to replace the board part of a sleeve board (small ironing board for sleeves), the original of which was made of cheap particleboard and cracked in half after not much use. I was going to replace it with 1/2" plywood, but didn't have any handy, and was wondering if I could get away with 1/2" MDF. I'd rather not repeat the manufacturer's stupidity in using a material that falls apart when it gets wet in a high-moisture application.

[Doug Jones from Oregon]

Chip...here is how I look at your situation.

MDF will work, I would want to be sure to coat it well with a finish.... but, Baltic Birch plywood would work even better and for the price difference in the material...your labor will be the high part (and you can save by not having to put a finish on the BB)

Doug

[Chip Olson]

Yup, BB is my first choice.