Mdf

[Debbie Gillett]

I have a few questions on MDF. First off I am looking for some place to maybe purchase 1/8 or even 1/16th inch MDF.
2nd I need to know (well actually this needs to be the first question) Can I cut MDF with my laser and
3rd I have been trying to research it and have come across that MDF is made with formaldehyde and that the dust from the MDF can be cancerous. So I guess I would love to know the answers to this question.
Thanks bunches,
Debbie

[Rags Alan Ragland]

Yes Debbie you can laser cut MDF, and yes it is made with formaldehyde and yes it has been shown to contribute to cancer. However, I use it all the time and intend to continue. I am not one to panic everytime the "C" word is used in association with a product. As far 1/8" MDF you have me stumped.
Good luck
Dr. Rags

[Mike Null]

You can buy a mask at Lowes of HD or the hardware store which will give you protection while you're working with it. Look for the numbers N95 or N99 on the masks. (there really shouldn't be a risk in the laser)

I have not seen anything thinner than 1/4" and I'm not really sure about that.

[Darryl Hazen]

Debbie,

Contact a lumber yard locally and ask them where to get it. 3mm mdf is available in 4'x8' sheets. You can then have them cut down to fit your engraver. We use it all the time for prototyping items.

[Doug Griffith]

1/8" MDF (HDF?) was available at my local Home Depot up until about a year ago in 2' x 4' sheets. Well it was smooth like masonite but softer and the same color as MDF. It cuts great but breaks easilly. Take a look at HDF door skins. 1/8" cuts on my 45 watt but only at about 10 speed.

Cheers,
Doug

[Jack Harper]

I buy 50+ 4'x8' sheets every couple weeks from Lowes in the 1/8", tempered on both sides i.e. smooth finish. I have not tried it on my laser yet although I am about to attempt a 4'x8' mural using a Jatoba veneered 1/4" mdf just to see if it works.

[David Brasfield]

Try asking for "tempered" hardboard. It comes in 1/8th and 1/4 inch thicknesses. It is often confused with MDF as it is very similar.

Hardboard is typically considered by the (usually) uninformed staff of most "borgs" to be pegboard, which is hardboard with holes in it, tempered on one side only. Look through the shelves close to the "peg board" and see if you can find what you need in a nearby shelf.

Your best bet is to make friends with, and open an account with a decent lumber/flat-goods supplier. That usually won't be the local company that supplies building materials (such as ACX plywood or OSB), but that does supply furniture grade lumber and cabinet grade plywoods.

All the best,
David

[Scott Challoner]

I use the tempered hardboard a lot and it cuts better than MDF IMHO.
Make sure you get the stuff that's smooth on both sides. Hardboard that is rough on one side (typically the peg-board stuff) chars pretty badly.

[Gary and Jessica Houghton]

We use 1/8" and 1/4" MDF all the time. It works awesome for the toys from Buzz. We have a 35w Epilog and cut it at about 17s / 100p / 500 freq with the focus set about 2 clicks into the material (for 1/8"). 1/4" will only run at about 7s for a single pass cut.

We also discovered Mexican hardboard a while back and use that in the same applications. We find that either MDF or Mexican Hardboard make outstanding jigs and templates fir the laser (MUCH less expensive than acrylic for this purpose).

MDF glues great with wood glue or liquid mails. Either of those are ready to handle in about 15 mins.

We have used MDF to make boxes and other things, such as a super-inexpensive awards (like for "best costume" at a halloween party). We cut shapes, spray paint them, then raster through the paint. You can use different speed and power settings on thew raster to get different effects and contrast with through the paint. We even used 1/8" MDF to make a kiosk for our dog tags to be placed on the counter at local vets. We painted those white, then rastered through. It looked great.

We love MDF. There are tons of applications for it. We also often use it as a base for other wood cuttings / engravings (such as Wall Tributs from Buzz, since they get painted anyway - it takes paint VERY well).

We buy ours in 4x8 sheets from a plywood supplier in Fort Worth called Plywood Company of Fort Worth (about 30 mins away from us). However, as mentioned in a previous reply, you should be able to find it at the same suppliers used by cabinet builders in your area. The price fluctuates a bit, but generally we pay only about $7 or $8 for the full 4x8 sheet. That's hard to beat for making jigs!

We will post pictures of a couple of the things we have used it for a bit later.

[Gary and Jessica Houghton]

Here are some pictures of things we etched/cut out with MDF. The first is a picture of an inexpensive award we created by cutting tree pieces of 1/8" MDF for the top, glued together, painted, rastered, then glued to the base.
The second picture is flowers cut out of both 1/8" and 1/4" MDF. The backgrounds of the petals are the 1/4" the outline of the petals are 1/8" and the circles and stems are also 1/8". These pieces were cut out and given to the customer without any paint. The customer painted and assembled the pieces. Very Simple and inexpensive.