Speeding up edgebanding?

[Bryan Hall]

Historically, I do very little edge banding. However, I'm working on a kitchen right now that when all said and done has several hundred pieces. Somewhere along the way I realized I don't actually know how long it takes me to measure, cut, iron on, trim, sand and have a door set aside for finishing. So, I timed 4 doors, not rushing, and it came out to about 80 minutes, or approximately 5 minutes per piece of edge banding. Expanding on that calculation and having well over 200 pieces of edge banding to do in this project I'm looking at 16-20 hours of nothing but edge banding.

I'm all for a good audio book while I'm edge banding but this is a bit much. It got me looking around at alternatives to speed it up if I ever had a project like this again.

So, #1, am I just horribly slow at this?

#2 has anyone used a machine like this before? I looked at a few non iron on options and this looked like the fastest and best bang for the buck, but still a pricey investment.
https://tooltechindustry.com/edge-banding-machine/

[Kevin Jenness]

Historically, I do very little edge banding. However, I'm working on a kitchen right now that when all said and done has several hundred pieces. Somewhere along the way I realized I don't actually know how long it takes me to measure, cut, iron on, trim, sand and have a door set aside for finishing. So, I timed 4 doors, not rushing, and it came out to about 80 minutes, or approximately 5 minutes per piece of edge banding. Expanding on that calculation and having well over 200 pieces of edge banding to do in this project I'm looking at 16-20 hours of nothing but edge banding.

I'm all for a good audio book while I'm edge banding but this is a bit much. It got me looking around at alternatives to speed it up if I ever had a project like this again.

So, #1, am I just horribly slow at this?

#2 has anyone used a machine like this before? I looked at a few non iron on options and this looked like the fastest and best bang for the buck, but still a pricey investment.
https://tooltechindustry.com/edge-banding-machine/

No you're not horribly slow, it just takes time to do manual edgebanding. I don't have much use for veneer banding myself except for low wear situations, but if you are going to use it profitably you should definitely be looking at as good an edgebander as you can afford.

I have no experience with that line of machinery. The price and weight are very low for a glue pot bander (as opposed to a hot air machine using preglued tape). Edgebanders are typically the most complicated and sensitive machines in a cabinet shop so make sure you have tech support available. Almost any edgebander will put tape on but getting a decent looking glueline with the minimum amount of handwork is not simple.

[Michael Burnside]

With that many pieces, have you looked into the Festool Conturo?

[Bryan Hall]

With that many pieces, have you looked into the Festool Conturo?

I did, but to be honest that machine comes with a stiff price tag and I’m not convinced it would be wildly faster. I’d want an in person timed demo to confirm value before purchase.

[jack duren]

You have to be careful with those portable edgebanders…

[Bryan Hall]

No you're not horribly slow, it just takes time to do manual edgebanding. I don't have much use for veneer banding myself except for low wear situations, but if you are going to use it profitably you should definitely be looking at as good an edgebander as you can afford.

I have no experience with that line of machinery. The price and weight are very low for a glue pot bander (as opposed to a hot air machine using preglued tape). Edgebanders are typically the most complicated and sensitive machines in a cabinet shop so make sure you have tech support available. Almost any edgebander will put tape on but getting a decent looking glueline with the minimum amount of handwork is not simple.

Seeing as how I have not used an edge banding machine before, I appreciate that perspective a lot. It’s such a rarity for me to do edge banding that I’d want great results with minimal hassle if I was going to dedicate floor space. It sounds like that’s not what I should expect!

[jack duren]

Edge banding machine is much different than a portable unit. I’ve both and the portables can be a lot of extra work

[Michael Burnside]

I did, but to be honest that machine comes with a stiff price tag and I’m not convinced it would be wildly faster. I’d want an in person timed demo to confirm value before purchase.

Understood. I know it's expensive, but if you're like me, I always have to weigh my time cost too. If I had 200 to go, boy I don't know, that's a LOT of time.

Having said that, I've played with the Conturo a little bit as I have a friend in the cabinet business, it was pretty slick. Not for me as I almost always use hardwood edge banding, but he likes it quite a bit. He also has a floor tool that I don't know much about or model. I just figured I would mention it since he is a professional cabinet maker and has one, so it's not pure garbage. He does some pretty high-end builds, so if it was junk it wouldn't be in his shop.

[Bryan Hall]

Understood. I know it's expensive, but if you're like me, I always have to weigh my time cost too. If I had 200 to go, boy I don't know, that's a LOT of time.

Having said that, I've played with the Conturo a little bit as I have a friend in the cabinet business, it was pretty slick. Not for me as I almost always use hardwood edge banding, but he likes it quite a bit. He also has a floor tool that I don't know much about or model. I just figured I would mention it since he is a professional cabinet maker and has one, so it's not pure garbage. He does some pretty high-end builds, so if it was junk it wouldn't be in his shop.

Oh absolutely, time contribution is a big deal. Fully setup with the conturo is $4500 (with its table). If I did, even two kitchens in a year that were all edge banded I’d definitely be seeking out a demo for this machine. In general, I steer my clients away from edge banding but quite plainly I got caught on this one. Job was booked as a raw edge appleply kitchen and then while I was demoing the kitchen the client surprised me with a “Hey you know what let’s do doug fir ply instead.” So, here I am haha.

I think there’s also a piece of me that knows if I don’t have a nice edge bander then I will turn away edge banding work. If I do have one though….. I’ll be edge banding more than ever before.

[jack duren]

You can buy a roll of non glue edge banding and use contact adhesive.

I edge them as fast as I have room

[Bryan Hall]

You can buy a roll of non glue edge banding and use contact adhesive.

I edge them as fast as I have room

Interesting idea. How’s the durability vs iron on?

[Michael Burnside]

Oh absolutely, time contribution is a big deal. Fully setup with the conturo is $4500 (with its table). If I did, even two kitchens in a year that were all edge banded I’d definitely be seeking out a demo for this machine. In general, I steer my clients away from edge banding but quite plainly I got caught on this one. Job was booked as a raw edge appleply kitchen and then while I was demoing the kitchen the client surprised me with a “Hey you know what let’s do doug fir ply instead.” So, here I am haha.

I think there’s also a piece of me that knows if I don’t have a nice edge bander then I will turn away edge banding work. If I do have one though….. I’ll be edge banding more than ever before.

Haha, I hear you brother, that might be reason enough to suffer through this one!

[jack duren]

Interesting idea. How’s the durability vs iron on?


Lots better. We do it a lot on commercial boxes..

[Richard Coers]

You can buy a roll of non glue edge banding and use contact adhesive.

I edge them as fast as I have room
Are you suggesting contact cement, or pressure sensitive tape? I can't imagine the mess of using contact cement on all the 3/4" edges.

[Richard Coers]

Virutex makes a hand held that also fits in an accessory table. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftzRKn4pzvA
But I would suggest you take all your parts to a local shop and have them run the parts through their edgebander. Easiest money you could spend.

[Rich Engelhardt]

I did, but to be honest that machine comes with a stiff price tag and I’m not convinced it would be wildly faster. I’d want an in person timed demo to confirm value before purchase.
All Festool tools come with a 30 day - no questions asked - money back return.
This sounds exactly like the type of trial Festool has that policy for.

[jack duren]

Are you suggesting contact cement, or pressure sensitive tape? I can't imagine the mess of using contact cement on all the 3/4" edges.

Yes. You stack or cover what you don’t want glue on. It’s not as hard as it looks..

[Kevin Jenness]

Richard's suggestion of subbing out the banding to another shop is good, but make sure you have them run some samples before you commit. A well set up bander will need no or very little subsequent handwork.

The handheld Festool bander could be useful for curved work, but painfully slow for quantities of rectangular parts compared to a feed-through stationary bander. The Conturo just glues on the banding, then the trimming is done with a manual end clipper and a laminate trimmer, plus it appears you have to precut the bands as opposed to working off a roll. Good banders are expensive because they save a lot of labor and are built for production. You'll have to make a business judgment as to what level of investment to make in light of what kind of work you want to pursue.

[Phillip Mitchell]

Is this paint grade or clear/stain grade cabinetry? Have you considered hardwood banding? I have used plenty of iron on commercial veneer banding and, like you, have found it to be a painful, tedious and slow process doing it all manually. It makes sense in certain budget scenarios, I suppose, but not really if you aren't set up with a decent edge bander that also trims. I also don't like how thin it is and it can be hard to make the corner glue line between the banding and veneer truly disappear in certain species and wood tones, which bothers me as a picky woodworker.

I have moved to using 1/4" solid hardwood, usually matching species of veneer on the ply, and glueing it on with PVA glue and painter's tape. Then trimming flush on the shaper (or router table...) and having a much better looking and much more durable edge. If I prep and mill the 1/4" x 7/8" strips at the beginning of the project all at once and have them ready to go by the time I need to edge then it's really not any/much more time or effort than the iron on...may even be faster overall once you get into the groove of it and set up. Just a thought.

[Bryan Hall]

Richard's suggestion of subbing out the banding to another shop is good, but make sure you have them run some samples before you commit. A well set up bander will need no or very little subsequent handwork.

The handheld Festool bander could be useful for curved work, but painfully slow for quantities of rectangular parts compared to a feed-through stationary bander. The Conturo just glues on the banding, then the trimming is done with a manual end clipper and a laminate trimmer, plus it appears you have to precut the bands as opposed to working off a roll. Good banders are expensive because they save a lot of labor and are built for production. You'll have to make a business judgment as to what level of investment to make in light of what kind of work you want to pursue.

The speed of the Conturo is really what I fear about it. I'm sure it does excellent work but you are correct, every single piece of edge banding has to be individually cut and then fed into the machine. Then all of the manual cleanup after. The only time savings I can see would be had by simply getting to avoid the iron speed. Tasks like this make me think it would be nice to have an apprentice.

[Bryan Hall]

Is this paint grade or clear/stain grade cabinetry? Have you considered hardwood banding? I have used plenty of iron on commercial veneer banding and, like you, have found it to be a painful, tedious and slow process doing it all manually. It makes sense in certain budget scenarios, I suppose, but not really if you aren't set up with a decent edge bander that also trims. I also don't like how thin it is and it can be hard to make the corner glue line between the banding and veneer truly disappear in certain species and wood tones, which bothers me as a picky woodworker.

I have moved to using 1/4" solid hardwood, usually matching species of veneer on the ply, and glueing it on with PVA glue and painter's tape. Then trimming flush on the shaper (or router table...) and having a much better looking and much more durable edge. If I prep and mill the 1/4" x 7/8" strips at the beginning of the project all at once and have them ready to go by the time I need to edge then it's really not any/much more time or effort than the iron on...may even be faster overall once you get into the groove of it and set up. Just a thought.

Your method is, undoubtedly, my preferred way of edge banding. However, this is stain grade work, all with the rift sawn doug fir look. The 1/4" top and bottom band running the opposite direction just wouldn't fly.

[jack duren]

I’ve used hand held, stationary and full edge banding machines. Hand held tskes practice on curves, trust me.

I’d would not sub this out. #1.. you have to buy tape and buy the shops time. I wouldn’t do it for less than $200-$300 for an hour+ materials.

Now if your a business, it would be worth it.

I’ll admit , I’m fast at it.

Buy one of these..

Virutex ET6 ET-6 Single Side Edge Trimmer for PVC, ABS, Wood Edgebanding

Set up,a table lay all your part ps together that get edge banding. Buy painers paper, cover what fpdoesnt get sprayed and spray what does.

I bought a $15 sprayer from HF , just to do counter tops.

[Bryan Hall]

All Festool tools come with a 30 day - no questions asked - money back return.
This sounds exactly like the type of trial Festool has that policy for.

For some reason I’ve always felt weird about taking advantage of that. Maybe it’s because it’s more hassle for my local vendor.

[Jim Becker]

The speed of the Conturo is really what I fear about it. I'm sure it does excellent work but you are correct, every single piece of edge banding has to be individually cut and then fed into the machine. Then all of the manual cleanup after. The only time savings I can see would be had by simply getting to avoid the iron speed. Tasks like this make me think it would be nice to have an apprentice.
The Conturo is definitely going to take more time than a dedicated, higher end edge banding machine. Where the Conturo shines is that it is portable...take the machine to the material which is handy for edge banding large components or assemblies in one piece, can also be fixed to a bench for processing smaller panels and what some folks like is that it handles thicker banding if desired, such as 1mm thick solid banding. It's worthy of consideration along those lines, is a much lower investment than a big machine and doesn't take any space up than a Systainer when not being used. But it's certainly not a "high volume" machine for sure!

[jack duren]

Too much money for a few pieces. One set of cabinets won’t pay for it..

[Rod Sheridan]

Depending upon model, stationary edge binders can do everything from 0.5mm tape to solid wood edging in strip form with spectacular results.

Regards, Rod

[Bob Jones 5443]

I’m reading this with some trepidation. I’m planning to edge band my maple ply cabinets that will have full overlay doors and doors. I bought a roll of maple edging and a little racecar trimmer. It’s maybe 30 feet total. Am I missing something? Wish me luck.

[Rod Sheridan]

I’m reading this with some trepidation. I’m planning to edge band my maple ply cabinets that will have full overlay doors and doors. I bought a roll of maple edging and a little racecar trimmer. It’s maybe 30 feet total. Am I missing something? Wish me luck.

I use a knife because the grain direction is opposite on opposite sides…..Regards, Rod

[Bryan Hall]

I’m reading this with some trepidation. I’m planning to edge band my maple ply cabinets that will have full overlay doors and doors. I bought a roll of maple edging and a little racecar trimmer. It’s maybe 30 feet total. Am I missing something? Wish me luck.

30 feet and you'll survive. I'm pushing 500 feet on this project. Every night I lay down in bed and I ask myself "did I unplug the iron!?!?" :confused:

[Warren Lake]

I did volume stuff in contact. Stuff being done stacked floor to high and one side sprayed at once but it was all the same size. Laminate strips lay down tape across good side then flip the mass of them. Contact sprayed stuff layed on each part trimmed then opposite side done. had no failures but even so I might trust Iron on more but haven't used it enough to know.

They had a huge edge bander at one of the shops I was in but it was nothing but grief. they were improving in the years after as they had to because people would not put up with all the issues. I worked out my own ways for solid edges and past stuff banded in 1/4 solid. Not for what you are doing now thats a lot to do. You better clean the iron before you press the next shirt.

[jack duren]

I ran a Cehisa edge banded for 7 years.You can run it fir 2-3 days and then seems yo have to do maintenance on the glue tank…

My buddy bought a 3M edge bender at an auction for $1000. Spent $2500 to completely go through it and says it works like a charm..

[Minh Tran]

Historically, I do very little edge banding. However, I'm working on a kitchen right now that when all said and done has several hundred pieces. Somewhere along the way I realized I don't actually know how long it takes me to measure, cut, iron on, trim, sand and have a door set aside for finishing. So, I timed 4 doors, not rushing, and it came out to about 80 minutes, or approximately 5 minutes per piece of edge banding. Expanding on that calculation and having well over 200 pieces of edge banding to do in this project I'm looking at 16-20 hours of nothing but edge banding.

I'm all for a good audio book while I'm edge banding but this is a bit much. It got me looking around at alternatives to speed it up if I ever had a project like this again.

So, #1, am I just horribly slow at this?

#2 has anyone used a machine like this before? I looked at a few non iron on options and this looked like the fastest and best bang for the buck, but still a pricey investment.
https://tooltechindustry.com/edge-banding-machine/

I just pulled the trigger on the $3500 Festool KA 65 Set. Comes in 1-2 week. Iron-on edgebanding takes a ridiculously long time and I'm a hobbyist (i.e., time is a premium). I can't justify spending 1 hour ironing on and finishing 8 edges of a single cabinet.

I'm working out of a 1.5 car garage so floor space is a premium; a dedicated edgebander is out of the question. I'm designing and building cabinets for my office atm and just finished building and installing a bank of 13' cabinets and edge banding took a big chunk of time (~4 hours total). Most of the time was wasted on moving the iron and waiting for the glue to melt. I'd say it takes about 20 minutes to iron on 8' of edgebanding and 5 mins to trim the excess. The KA65 can do a 20 minute job in 2 minutes.

From watching some instructional vids on how to use the KA65, this thing is pretty maintenance-free. The only thing that might need cleaning is the heated nozzle. Switching between glue-puck colors is wasteful but not a problem for me - I HVLP spray paint last.

I'll definitely save at least $3500 building the kitchen and office cabinets myself, over the course of several years. And even after a decade of service, I can probably resell this thing to a contractor for $1000.

The FSKA65 is a production-grade tool:
YT: Festool: Doors & Drawers of Ann Arbor: The Festool CONTURO Edge Bander (promo) (https://youtu.be/QafTGIQXwlw)

[Jim Becker]

Conturo is a very nice tool and very space effective, particularly for the small shop. Congrats on that, Minh!

[Brian Holcombe]

I used the conturo on a job last year, it worked ok. I used it for site-installed paneling. One seriously annoying part of using it, once you start the band it runs until the material runs out. So, I always had to plan the length of my run, which means I'm going through more edge banding because I'm trimming off a bunch of material.

You need to plan your approach on the work, you have to be able to press firmly against the edge and if you don't it'll make a thick glue line.

For shop-made work, I much rather laminate solid material to the substrate, than veneer faces right over the edge material. This looks better than edge banding in my opinion, but it's more work.

[Warren Lake]

Almost always used solid and set up to trim it. Clamped on beams, having a lipping tool and a stroke sander make it a breeze.