High gloss plywood

[Doug Filo]

I will find out tomorrow the cost they list that they make doors and panels so that could be an option but what about the cases I would still need laminate for them right.

[Jerry Miner]

Doug, it sounds like you're pretty new to cabinet making. You may want to start with a smaller, less expensive project to get your feet wet.

Yes, there are software programs that you can use to generate cabinet plans and cut lists. There is a learning curve as well as a dollar cost to invest in the software. If you are only building cabinets for your own use (i.e. not going into the cabinet business) I suggest you do some reading and do your own design work.
Door and panel sizes will depend on your design decisions and the hardware you'll be using.

There are a lot of different ways to build cabinets. Some involve high-tech industrial equipment. Some involve only hand-tools. Most of us cabinet-makers fall somewhere in between. You'll have to figure out where you want to be on the spectrum. Using an expensive high gloss material for a beginning project may prove frustrating, expensive, and disappointing. Proceed with caution.

[Wayne Lomman]

Just wondering why everyone is so dead set against painting this job? This style of cabinetry is a routine paint job and painting is the common way to do it. The paint will be expensive, but only in comparison to enamel or similar. You use a satin melamine mdf so that you only have to paint one side and edges. You never use single face melamine because the sheet will bow. Anyway decent polisher will get a good finish. Buy the paint to the exact tint from an auto paint seller. Use 2 pack or water-borne the so that you get good curing on the edges. I have probably sprayed a acre of these in recent times as it is the in thing and has been for years. What you guys call euro cabinets is just the way kitchens have been here for about 40 years. The prefixing products will put all your profits into the manufacturer's pockets and leave you with a lower standard job. Cheers

[John Kee]

Wayne, the ability to spray a high gloss finish is a skill I think you are taking for granted. How many spray jobs did it take you to get to being able to a great finish let alone the skill it takes to buff out the job. The OP asked about sheets goods in red and I believe that we helped to answer that question along with the pitfalls. We had no indication to his skill level until the most recent posts.

[Wayne Lomman]

Yes, not everyone can spray. Neither does everyone have a latest tech edge bander. All I am saying is the simplest, most error proof and cheapest way to do this is to make it out of mdf, disassemble it, paint it and then install it. If you make a mistake, you bog it and have another go or at worst you cut again from low cost material. You prep sand it yourself ready to paint. The OP may be a beginner or may be experienced. However, like the rest of us, he is capable of deciding what he can and can't do and sending out the bits he can't do. In this case I am recommending subbing out the painting. There will be an auto repair shop somewhere close that will jump at an easy flat panel job and will supply top class work that beats to splinters any laminate and edgestrip job. Cheers

[Jerry Miner]

+1 on Wayne's recommendation. Build it then paint it.

[Bob Leistner]

A good automotive painter will likely spray and walk away. That's why I suggested the bc/cc paint in a previous post. In four or five coats I can lay down a glass finish and can handle the pieces in about three hours. No buffing or worrying about build up wrecking your gaps. The finish will look ten miles deep and will be as hard as any finish you have ever experienced. Depending on the quality of the color coat you can achieve color brilliance unknown even five years ago. $150 a gallon color will look good, $900 color will blow you away. Lots of choices in between to fit every budget.

[Doug Filo]

<p>
So if I go the route of painting what material should I use for the doors.I have built a fair amount of cabinets from scratch but not like this. I was just thinking if I had a program I could spit out all the door and drawer sizes at once I could order what I needed and start building the boxes.</p>

[Ole Anderson]

Wayne: I presume you would edge band first?

Also everyone, please go to your Profile, then About Me tab and enter your location. It really helps us answering many types of questions if we know where you are located. Tasmania, Germany or New Jersey?

[Doug Filo]

I have a festool edge bander. I will talk to some friends i have at the career center maybe they would paint them in the autobody program. I’m not setup to paint auto paint. My goal in all this is a first run with the red (garage) so I can do are kitchen in gray

[Wayne Lomman]

If painting, don't edge band. Cut the doors to size, run a 2mm radius on the face edges, sand and then paint. This assumes mdf melamine as the substrate.

Working on a carpet topped bench, sand the raw mdf edges to 150 until they're a bit glazed. Make sure the radius has smooth transitions. Sand the face with 280 after the edges are done. This is to remove the shine off the melamine an give the primer a key. Mask up the back with tape and paper to keep overspray off it.

The primer needs to be a two part primer/filler. A double header coat goes on the edges and a full wet coat on the face. This fills the edge grain so that edge tape is not needed.

When the primer is cured, sand it flat with 400. Apply a full coat of the 2 pack polyurethane top coat wet on wet. This means spray once, allow it to just tack off and then spray a second time. That's it, painting is done. Allow it to cure, strip the masking and re fit the doors and panels. No extra coats, no clear coats, no buffing. You will see your face in it, no problem.

By the way, all the internal carcases are usually white melamine and edgebanded. Just the seen panels get the painting. Cheers

[Warren Lake]

most painters dont get glass off the gun, lots of shine and some degree of not perfect true flat. Pickey ones block with hard flat boards. Base clears pull and build up at edges but you are talking single stage, they pull as well in urathane. What products and what gun are giving you glass? I know automotive continues to change constantly so maybe there is some that has less peel now then last time I did it. Speaker manufacturers using polyester or automotive all have to cut and buff. Chip Fooses stuff is sanded and polished back and hes using top gear and product so curious. the only clears that level like glass ive seen are furniture finishes, way more forgiving than automotive stuff was.

[Peter Kelly]

If the doors are all square edge another method would be to laminate all sides / edges of flakeboard (not MDF) with white HPL, finish sand all surfaces then paint with automotive finish.

[William A Johnston]

When we have MDF doors made for paint grade cabinets we use a brand called Plum Creek which is very similar to high density fiberboard. The edges have a lot tighter grain and don't absorb as much paint. Some suppliers also carry a HDF which you might inquire about.

[Justin Ludwig]

I'm wondering why lacquer would be preferred over a basecoat/clearcoat urethane. It would hold its color and gloss longer and be very easy to keep clean. It is more expensive to spray, but would be worth the results. Also getting that level of shine doesn't come out of the gun with lacquer, so a bunch of sanding and buffing is usually in order.

Not true. I can get a shine like that with Pre or Post Cat Lacquer. If you want it really shiny, buy a 5 gal bucket that's not been shaken in a while. Pour off the top 2 gallons in another container for final coats. Then stir it up and get your solids mixed in.

1 coat sanding sealer (sand)
2 coats of pre cat with the dense solid mix (sand)
2 coats of the gloss pour off (don't sand between)

If everything is thinned with retarder 3% and premium thinner 15%, you'll get a nice build that won't exceed 4mil.

It's ridiculous to do this but it works. I personally don't like high gloss unless it's on a vehicle.