Just peeled the label off some "Classic Birch"...

[David Rose]

from the Borg, and whadayaknow... It says "Made in China" stamped into the wood. :( It's the flattest, best sided ply I have bought from Home Depot. 13 plies if you count the thin veneer on the outside. It's flatter than the Baltic Birch I have seen at Woodcraft. That is kind of a shame, but at least we can get some decent plywood.

David

[Julie Wright]

What is the cost of that type ply ?

[David Rose]

Julie, I'm sorry that I missed your post when you asked. I believe I gave (ticket is in the shop) $34 plus tax for a 4x8' sheet.

Added note is that I have found no internal voids in cutting most of it and there were no edge voids showing.

David


What is the cost of that type ply ?

[Jeff Ward]

My supplier down here has what he calls china birch. I have used for about 6 months now and just love it. It stains really well and as you say 11 ply and I have never seen a void in it. Best ply I have ever used. I think I am paying about 29 a sheet.

Did not know the borg started stocking it.

[Jamie Buxton]

David --
That sounds like plywood one of my suppliers has been selling under the name Andilou -- 13 plies, very few voids, and $35 per sheet in 3/4". I've found that it is oddly unstable. You'd think that with all those plies it'd be very stable, but it isn't. If I leave a piece of it standing on end against a wall for a couple weeks, it curves. I'm not mistreating it horribly -- Finn-ply has withstood similar storage without curving. When I use it for heavily-loaded shelves, it does the same thing. It sags, and the sag remains after I take the load off the shelf -- kinda like MDF.
I still use it, but I am kinda cautious about it.

Jamie

[David Rose]

Ouch! Thanks for the warning. I already used some of it for the rotating table on a stand. A little warpage won't hurt there. Much is something else. I'll be careful with the rest of it. I guess the stability must have something to do with the glue.

David


David --
That sounds like plywood one of my suppliers has been selling under the name Andilou -- 13 plies, very few voids, and $35 per sheet in 3/4". I've found that it is oddly unstable. You'd think that with all those plies it'd be very stable, but it isn't. If I leave a piece of it standing on end against a wall for a couple weeks, it curves. I'm not mistreating it horribly -- Finn-ply has withstood similar storage without curving. When I use it for heavily-loaded shelves, it does the same thing. It sags, and the sag remains after I take the load off the shelf -- kinda like MDF.
I still use it, but I am kinda cautious about it.

Jamie

[John Piwaron]

David --
That sounds like plywood one of my suppliers has been selling under the name Andilou -- 13 plies, very few voids, and $35 per sheet in 3/4". I've found that it is oddly unstable. You'd think that with all those plies it'd be very stable, but it isn't. If I leave a piece of it standing on end against a wall for a couple weeks, it curves. I'm not mistreating it horribly -- Finn-ply has withstood similar storage without curving. When I use it for heavily-loaded shelves, it does the same thing. It sags, and the sag remains after I take the load off the shelf -- kinda like MDF.
I still use it, but I am kinda cautious about it.

Jamie

This is interesting. I bought some deluxe ply at my supplier under the name I thought was baltic birch that has warped. I assume it was Baltic Birch. I'll check closer when I go back. Fortunately I'm using small enough pieces in a place it doesn't matter that much. But I'm still disappointed.

[John Preston]

I assume the birch plywood you are talking about is not birch all the way through.

I've had experience with HD's imported plywood (and other suppliers carry it too), most of it good. Whatever they use for the internal plies is soft, but no softer than the plywood made in the US with pine plies. The first time I cut it, I thought my saw was on fire, it smelled so different, I thought something was burning. The internal plies are made of wood with small spots on it. Definitely fewer voids than similarly priced pine cored plywood. I've picked it up as low as 24$ a sheet, but not since summer.

If the plywood you are discussing is birch all the way through, then you're talking about a different animal entirely.

As mentioned above, not the strongest plywood, will sag when heavily loaded, but veneers are usually better than locally made plywood.