Advice on different brands of MR MDF for MFT suitability

[Danmickread]

Good evening all,

I hope the title doesnt put you off and you think god not another MDF MFT post! I cant find any specific previous posts that answer my question though.

Im building an MFT workbench out of aluminium extrusion with an MR MDF top. Now i have a few builders merchants in my town but trying to find out exactly what brands they stock is not that easy.
I have Travis Perkins that sell Caber, not sure if its trade or the pro version, Huws Gray that couldnt tell me what they stock only who there supplier is which wasnt much help, MKM that sell Kronospan and a small independant merchants that sell Medite.

Now ive read that Medite seems to be the market leader in decent quality dense MR MDF, the small independant company sell Medite but they want near on £80 a sheet for MR MDF which i cant afford and the price seems excessive to me. TP and HG both want approx £30-£40 + vat a sheet and MKM is the cheapest at £32 all in for the Kronospan.

So i want decent quality MR MDF for the MFT top that produces good results when the holes are drilled and doesnt leave fluffy cut edges so the dog holes are a nice fit. I also want to use the same board to create cabinets to fit within the bench framework so require nice cut edges to get the best finish when painting with the least amount of work.
Kronospan is good quality isnt it after all they make all sorts of high quality furniture boards like Egger etc so would assume there MDF would be good and its the cheapest i have available to me.

Also apart from lots of coats of paint and sanding inbetween whats the best stuff to use to prime the edges with. Ive read that alot of people seal with PVA primer first, ive never done this but would be worried it would stop the paint adhering to the board. Tool station sell the Rustins water based sealer is this any good?

Appreciate the pros thoughts/experience on this please.

Many thanks
Dan

 

[Spectric]

There has been a lot of good threads on the UKW about MRMDF for worktops and other purposes but also Valchromat is a good material to use. You have not mentioned how you are going to actually drill the 20mm holes, LR32, Parf system or what but you can now buy tops from Benchdogs

https://benchdogs.co.uk/collections/mft-tops

There is also a lot of advice on technique if making your own, just do a search .

 

[Wilson joinery]

Hi Dan

I bought a sheet of 18mm MRMDF for the same purpose some time ago without really understanding the difference between different brands of MR. I ended up phoning several places and just going with the cheapest (think it was about £60) for a full sheet. I have to say the quality is really poor. Extremely rough face surface and drilling the holes for the MFT took an age as the material just turned to fluff and ended up clogging the drill bit so it was really slow going. I have a feeling this was standard caberwood stuff.

Ive then recently bought some medite MRMDF (brown surface and green core) and the different is day and night. Very smooth surface which is pretty much ready for painting and also made it very hard to carry (bloody slippery!). Drilling the holes for the Blum Hinges I used was an absolute doddle. Material came out as a continuous shaving rather than fluff.

So I’d definitely recommend medite and I think I only paid about £60 for a full size sheet of that too in 18mm. Prices do seem to have dropped since Covid.

Hope that helps
Pete

 

[Woody Alan]

my local huws gray does good stuff about £40 a sheet, much better than the fluffy rubbish I got from my normally reliable supplier. Tthey always let me go in and see if I am happy with the product before paying. They know its good stuff as they have a regular tradesman who will only buy from them, who machines it for panelling. I've just used it for MFT and the holes are perfect as are the chamfers I put on some drawer fronts. Not sure of the manufacturer though. It's quite a deep green clour and hard smooth surface. Whether their supplier is national I don't know.

 

[Chubber]

Priming - Any MDF will benefit from two coats of Rustins MDF primer. I apply both coats with a 4" fleece roller and lay off the second as I go with a 3" wide brush of the sort used by artists to varnish their paintings, very flat, usually with an unpainted flat wooden handle. The roller makes edge priming quick and easy. Dries quickly.

 

[Danmickread]

There has been a lot of good threads on the UKW about MRMDF for worktops and other purposes but also Valchromat is a good material to use. You have not mentioned how you are going to actually drill the 20mm holes, LR32, Parf system or what but you can now buy tops from Benchdogs

https://benchdogs.co.uk/collections/mft-tops

There is also a lot of advice on technique if making your own, just do a search .

Hi Spectric, I have bought the parf system as want flexibility to just make my own size top. I see the BD are now selling custom but didn't want a join and I've read that even some companies with cncs even can't guarantee accuracy so couldn't be bothered with all that hassle.

 

[Danmickread]

Hi Dan

I bought a sheet of 18mm MRMDF for the same purpose some time ago without really understanding the difference between different brands of MR. I ended up phoning several places and just going with the cheapest (think it was about £60) for a full sheet. I have to say the quality is really poor. Extremely rough face surface and drilling the holes for the MFT took an age as the material just turned to fluff and ended up clogging the drill bit so it was really slow going. I have a feeling this was standard caberwood stuff.

Ive then recently bought some medite MRMDF (brown surface and green core) and the different is day and night. Very smooth surface which is pretty much ready for painting and also made it very hard to carry (bloody slippery!). Drilling the holes for the Blum Hinges I used was an absolute doddle. Material came out as a continuous shaving rather than fluff.

So I’d definitely recommend medite and I think I only paid about £60 for a full size sheet of that too in 18mm. Prices do seem to have dropped since Covid.

Hope that helps
Pete

Hi Pete, I know what you mean. I've drilled hinge holes in crap mdf before and have to stop every 2 seconds to clear the drill but as just clogs and doesn't cut anything. Pain in the butt!

 

[Danmickread]

my local huws gray does good stuff about £40 a sheet, much better than the fluffy rubbish I got from my normally reliable supplier. Tthey always let me go in and see if I am happy with the product before paying. They know its good stuff as they have a regular tradesman who will only buy from them, who machines it for panelling. I've just used it for MFT and the holes are perfect as are the chamfers I put on some drawer fronts. Not sure of the manufacturer though. It's quite a deep green clour and hard smooth surface. Whether their supplier is national I don't know.

It's annoying that they can't even tell you exactly what your buying. Just shows you how much the average person knows about the difference in quality with any sheet material and just buys it thinking mdf is mdf. Then when I go and ask what brand they sell they look at me like I'm mental for wanting to know!

 

[Danmickread]

Priming - Any MDF will benefit from two coats of Rustins MDF primer. I apply both coats with a 4" fleece roller and lay off the second as I go with a 3" wide brush of the sort used by artists to varnish their paintings, very flat, usually with an unpainted flat wooden handle. The roller makes edge priming quick and easy. Dries quickly.

Hi Chubber, think I will give this stuff a go, even for the mft top just to protect it and leave it clear. Do you ever use for microfiber paint pads? I find these good for clear coats.

 

[Chubber]

Hi Chubber, think I will give this stuff a go, even for the mft top just to protect it and leave it clear. Do you ever use for microfiber paint pads? I find these good for clear coats.

Hullo! I have no experience of paint pads, I presume they are for pre-coating flat material as I can't see how one would get into corners et cetera? Incidentally, the Rustins clear helps to beef up the very thin outer veneers on cheap multiply prior to sanding. At about £10/litre it's worth trying...

 

[Spectric]

I have bought the parf system as want flexibility to just make my own size top

I can understand that because you might well end up with more than just an MFT top as I have. As I said there are some good workbench threads to be found that will open up many posibilities, for me I use both 20mm holes and the Microjig slots which I find really helpful and also apart from just an MFT worktop also think about an MFT apron on the bench which can assist in assembly and working on the ends of workpieces.

 

[Sideways]

I'd offer the view that
Medite or similar priced is worth it.
Valchromat is great but very expensive indeed
Hidrofugo is more expensive than medite and probably superior based on what I've read. Some built in cabinetry folk demand it supposedly because it requires less finishing and gives better edges. Perhaps that is a step too far.
Cheapest MDF is false economy

There is the option to buy a ready CNC machined top - not bad value - see ebay for some well established vendors.
If using the parf system, oil or wax both sides of your top, or seal with diluted (wiping) varnish and allow to dry before you drill it.
Applying finish afterwards, it squeezes over into the holes and makes fibres swell so it can be hard to force the dogs into the holes.
Wax is good for preventing glue ups or spills from adhering to your top, but makes it slippery so less good for holding. Wiping varnish is pretty good but you must do both sides as it tries to shrink and wants to cup the sheet. My next top will get wiping varnish.

Seal the edges of the boards with whatever you like, whenever you like. This makes no practical difference so doesn't matter if you do it or not.

The more you consider the top sacrificial and are happy to cut, chisel and drill into it, the less I'd be minded to spend on fancy board.

 

[sammy.se]

I'm very very happy with my Medite MRMDF as an MFT.
Learning from experience, I would buy a pre-drilled CNC top from somewhere, to ensure 100% accuracy, unlike what I have. I used an MDF template, but because my router had a fraction of a MM out of alignment, it compounded and now I can't use the bench holes to make square cuts

 

[Spectric]

because my router had a fraction of a MM out of alignment

Did you use a centring cone to align the bush with the collet ?

from https://www.wealdentool.com/acatalog/#aSTP015|

There are others from Axminster and I think Festool do one .

 

[Distinterior]

I had this one made for me by a guy I know with a CNC business. It's a Medite board I think (normal MDF top & bottom with a Green central core)
He made it for me back in 2018 and it's now been extensively cut into, but I'm yet to flip it over and start cutting into the underside.
I do consider it to be sacrificial, but it's still relatively intact even after 6 years of extensive use.

Mine is bang on accurate and I gave him some of the Dogs that I was planning on using, so that he could machine the holes nice and snug...

The holes are a much nicer fit than they are in my original Festool MFT top....

Personally, I would always try and have one made as at least you can guarantee the accuracy.

 

[sammy.se]

Did you use a centring cone to align the bush with the collet ?


View attachment 182399
from https://www.wealdentool.com/acatalog/#aSTP015|

There are others from Axminster and I think Festool do one .

Unfortunately not :-(

 

[Danmickread]

I'd offer the view that
Medite or similar priced is worth it.
Valchromat is great but very expensive indeed
Hidrofugo is more expensive than medite and probably superior based on what I've read. Some built in cabinetry folk demand it supposedly because it requires less finishing and gives better edges. Perhaps that is a step too far.
Cheapest MDF is false economy

There is the option to buy a ready CNC machined top - not bad value - see ebay for some well established vendors.
If using the parf system, oil or wax both sides of your top, or seal with diluted (wiping) varnish and allow to dry before you drill it.
Applying finish afterwards, it squeezes over into the holes and makes fibres swell so it can be hard to force the dogs into the holes.
Wax is good for preventing glue ups or spills from adhering to your top, but makes it slippery so less good for holding. Wiping varnish is pretty good but you must do both sides as it tries to shrink and wants to cup the sheet. My next top will get wiping varnish.

Seal the edges of the boards with whatever you like, whenever you like. This makes no practical difference so doesn't matter if you do it or not.

The more you consider the top sacrificial and are happy to cut, chisel and drill into it, the less I'd be minded to spend on fancy board.

Hi, appreciate cheapest is not the best just wanted to find out if any one had any experience with the kronospan thats all regardless of price as thats an option i can get hold of. As i said the Medite i can get for £80 a sheet seems alot and ordering sheet material online just isnt practical due to delivery costs. And its not just for the mft top its general cabinet making as well for the bench.

 

[Distinterior]

Hi, appreciate cheapest is not the best just wanted to find out if any one had any experience with the kronospan thats all regardless of price as thats an option i can get hold of. As i said the Medite i can get for £80 a sheet seems alot and ordering sheet material online just isnt practical due to delivery costs. And its not just for the mft top its general cabinet making as well for the bench.

I'm sure you will find the Kronospan MRMDF to be fine for your needs......Just take on board what some of the others have said regarding protecting the board and get all them holes drilled...!

 

[HOJ]

My suggestion, buy the MFT top from @Chrispy and make the rest from the cheapest stuff you can buy, it is a workbench after all.

I was going to suggest Ipswich Plastics could have been a good option but just seen they've sadly shut down.

 

[Chrispy]

How, thank you for the recommendation, I was about to say I found the Medite MR is the best that I can find but even that can be uncertain as I believe they make a pro version and a cheaper one often seen in the big sheds and builders merchants, and the people selling it won't necessarily know what it is they stock.