Baltic Birch Plywood

[Jerry Solomon]

I'm always hearing about making jigs (and other things) using BB plywood. Unfortunately, I have never seen any of this material in the lumber and building supply places I frequent in our area (New Orleans). What do you folks use as a substiture for BB that can be more easily obtained?

[Jim Becker]

Jerry, you probably will not find BB in the places you mention, although a full-service lumber yard should have no problem ordering it for you. But try your local yellow pages for plywood suppliers...many may only be wholesale, but should be able to point you to a local firm that can order for you in the small quantities you want or need. the 5' x 5' (typical) sheets of this material can also be shipped UPS, although that will further raise the cost.

One of the major reasons that BB is specified for jigs, etc, is that it is extremely stable with more plies than regular plywood and has no voids in those plies. It's hard to find that in anything "off the shelf".

You might also do a Google search on "ApplePly", which is a North American version of this multi-ply product. Woodfinder.com may also be helpful. Finally, many of the online woodworking retailers offer smaller pieces of BB for such purposes, but you will pay through the nose for the privilege!

[Carl Eyman]

Jerry, In the first place, I have gottrn it at Paxton out in New Orleans east. In the second, when I need some I ask my local yard, they order it, and I get it in one or two days. Good stuff. Carl

[Alan Turner]

I use BB all the time for jigs. I get it through a firm where my wife works, which has the ability to buy for resale. All are 5' x 5'. 3mm is $6, 12mm is $15, etc. Not too expensive. I priced it at a yard for special order, and the 12mm was $25/sheet. I keep one sheet of each of 3, 6, 12 and 25mm on hand at all times, and it lasts a long time. I use the 3mm for drawing full size prints, and for patterns (for marking, not for routers; i.e., a cabriole leg). All of the plys are hardwood, no voids, quite stable. I spent 4 hours making a David Charlesworth cross grain shooting board, which has a 25mm BB sub base, and the shooter is right on (splits a fine knife line marked with a Starrett), and should stay that way. To me it is well with the expense for permanent jigs, fixtures, etc.
I have never seen apple ply up close (David Marks uses it on his DIY show), but through my wife I learned that it is either $200 or $300/ a 4x8 sheet, wholesale, which is way too rich for my blood.
Alan

[Phil Phelps]

...such as Formica, Wilsonart, Nevamar, Pionite, etc. These companies usually carry substraights and cabinet hardware. Worth a try.

[Jerry Solomon]

Thanks guys for the feedback. I'll investigate the local Paxton store. I've heard of Appleply but have not seen it anywhere. They have something called Sandeply at the local HD but I've not heard anything about it positive or negative.

[Jim Becker]

Thanks guys for the feedback. I'll investigate the local Paxton store. I've heard of Appleply but have not seen it anywhere. They have something called Sandeply at the local HD but I've not heard anything about it positive or negative.

"Sandply" is just sanded softwood plywood.

[Roger Fitzsimonds]

Believe it or not. The HD near me has birch plywood in the plywood cut off section. this is the this multi-ply stuff. They don't call it Baltic Birch but it looks like the same stuff Woodcraft sells. I think it was $16 for a 44x4 sheet of 3/4. I am not saying this is Baltic birch but I haven't had any voids and use it for jigs. YMMV

Roger

[David Rose]

Roger, I dug through 25 sheets of that tonight looking for a flat one. :( About 1/3 of them had external filled voids so I suspect there will be internal ones too. Though I didn't see any around the edges. Also the outside layers weren't quite up to the quality of the Baltic Birch at Woodcraft. But of a few sheets of the "real thing" that Woodcraft had, none were flat either. I may be expecting too much, but I have bought flat plywood in the past. I think HD here is getting about $25 a 24x48" sheet. It was all good enough that I would have bought a sheet for a fixture... if it had been flat. I understand plywood prices may be going up due to export to help Iraq rebuild. I am NOT trying to start anything with that comment! That is just the reason I have heard. The store did have plenty of it!

David


Believe it or not. The HD near me has birch plywood in the plywood cut off section. this is the this multi-ply stuff. They don't call it Baltic Birch but it looks like the same stuff Woodcraft sells. I think it was $16 for a 44x4 sheet of 3/4. I am not saying this is Baltic birch but I haven't had any voids and use it for jigs. YMMV

Roger

[Scott Kuykendall]

I pay $25.00 for a 5X5 sheet of 3/4 Baltic Birch. The true baltic burth is flat as can be and I have never seen it at any HD. They have Birch but not the right stuff. The real stuff doesnt have any voids at all.
Scott

[Kevin Post]

I have never seen apple ply up close (David Marks uses it on his DIY show), but through my wife I learned that it is either $200 or $300/ a 4x8 sheet, wholesale, which is way too rich for my blood.
AlanYou should keep shopping, Alan. I can get Apple Ply in 3/4" Maple for about $90/sheet on a special-order basis from a local supplier. This local supplier seems to think that they are the only people who sell this stuff and price accordingly. I get baltic birch for a lot less but I have to drive a ways to get it (Lake Elmo Lumber near Minneapolis). The local Home Depot doesn't offer either.

-Kevin

[Alan Turner]

You should keep shopping, Alan. I can get Apple Ply in 3/4" Maple for about $90/sheet on a special-order basis from a local supplier. This local supplier seems to think that they are the only people who sell this stuff and price accordingly. I get baltic birch for a lot less but I have to drive a ways to get it (Lake Elmo Lumber near Minneapolis). The local Home Depot doesn't offer either.

-KevinKevin,
Thanks for the post, and the info. I have never seen apple ply, and just assumed that it was face veneered in apple. Your post suggests that it comes in maple. Does it come in other woods as well? What is the difference between appleply, and BB? Same number of plys? All plys hardwood? No voids? Flat and stable and strong? Is there an advantage of appleply over BB? If so, how and why? I have never actually bought 3/4" or 19mm BB, but based upon my price of 60 cents a ft. for 12mm, I would assume that 19mm is about 80 to 90 cents a foot. At $90 a 4x8, apple ply is just under $3 a foot.
I use BB for jigs, patterns, and occ. for a sub base for shop cut veneer. Is appleply better for any of these tasks? I recall David Marks using it a base for veneer.
Thanks in advance for the info.
Alan

[Jim Becker]

I have never seen apple ply, and just assumed that it was face veneered in apple. Your post suggests that it comes in maple. Does it come in other woods as well? What is the difference between appleply, and BB?

ApplePly (http://www.statesind.com/prod/ind_2a2.html) is just a brand name for a premium veneer plywood product that can be used in the same way as Baltic Birch typically is. No apples were harmed in it's production...other than those consumed during the worker's lunch... :D

[Alan Turner]

ApplePly (http://www.statesind.com/prod/ind_2a2.html) is just a brand name for a premium veneer plywood product that can be used in the same way as Baltic Birch typically is. No apples were harmed in it's production...other than those consumed during the worker's lunch... :D
Jim, Thanks,
Have you bought any? We are near to each other geographically, so wondering if you have prices and suppliers.
Is it better that BB? Seems about the same to me, unless you get it prestained for juvenile furn, which I don't make (yet). Do have a new grandchild, my first, so who knows.
Alan

[Jim Becker]

Have you bought any? We are near to each other geographically, so wondering if you have prices and suppliers.
Is it better that BB? Seems about the same to me, unless you get it prestained for juvenile furn, which I don't make (yet).

No, I haven't tried it. My favorite tool dealer (Woodworker's Haven in Southampton) stocks BB. But the ApplePly reportedly performs very much the same...and was designed to do so. The one difference is that BB comes in 5'x5' sheets and as far as I know, AP comes in 4'x8' sheets. That might require some adjustment in plans calling for one or the other.

[Alan Turner]

No, I haven't tried it. My favorite tool dealer (Woodworker's Haven in Southampton) stocks BB. But the ApplePly reportedly performs very much the same...and was designed to do so. The one difference is that BB comes in 5'x5' sheets and as far as I know, AP comes in 4'x8' sheets. That might require some adjustment in plans calling for one or the other.
Jim,
Thanks. Actually, if memory serves, I could order BB in 4/8's as well, but if so, it might be in imperial as opposed to metric thicknesses. I sort of like the 5x5 as my shop space is limited, and I have too many tools (did I really say that?).
Alan

[Kevin Post]

Baltic Birch (as the name implies) originated as an imported product from the Baltic states of Eastern Europe. This is one of the reasons for it comes in the strange 5x5 sheet. This is the only way I've ever purchased it. The stamps on the plywood stacks at my supplier's warehouse indicate the stuff he's selling is actually imported from Russia. Baltic Birch is extremely stable but it has a tendency to splinter a bit when I cut it. I've used it for drawers and as a substrate for veneer.

Ancient folk lore has it that ApplePly was developed and marketed as an alternative to Baltic Birch. It was given its name as a sort of play on words... Made in the USA and as American as Apple Ply (Pie). States Industries (http://www.statesind.com/prod/consumer_2b2.html) has some standard color and clear finishes as well as maple veneer. Maple is the only way I've been able to find it... I've heard you can get it in Oak and cherry but I've never seen it either. It's available in 4x6,8 and 10 ft sheets. I tend to use Baltic Birch more frequently because it costs me less. If I need a high-quality veneer, I apply it myself. I've used it for drawer boxes, table and desk tops and found it excellent for speakers. (It's been a while since I've built any speakers though...)

http://www.statesind.com/images/photos/ApplePly.jpg (http://www.statesind.com/prod/consumer_2b2.html)

-Kevin