Making a laminated plywood table top

[pistolpete]

Hi Guys

I’m looking to build a table top from plywood and have a few questions

The top will be approximately 60cm x 30cm x 3cm

1. I believe there is different grades (quality) of plywood, what are these grades and which should I be using for the table? the edging will be on show but I’m hoping to have the top in white (melamine?)

2. Do I need to use a vacuum pump and bag to get a good finish or can I use clamps?

( I would like to do a few pieces using this laminate technique would it be worthwhile investing in a pump?)

3. What sort of glue should I be using and which is the best way to apply it?

Any other tips would be very helpful

Pete

 

[MikeG.]

Pete,

others may well think differently, but I would be really cautious of having 30mm of ply edge on show. I think you will struggle to prevent splinters breaking off the long-grain edges, and the end-grain will always feel rough. Personally, I would apply a lipping all round.

Mike

 

[George_N]

If you do want to have the ply edging on show you will need to use good quality birch ply with no voids. It is possible to get a pretty smooth finish and a few coats of polyurethane varnish will seal it nicely. As for the laminate, you don't need a vacuum press. You need to get a sheet of high pressure laminate aka "Formica". This comes in 10'x4' sheets and should cost around £35 (it did when I bought some for a router table top) and can be cut to size by your supplier if required. It is applied using contact adhesive (Evo-Stick) applied to both the ply and the laminate, allowed to become almost dry and thenstuck together. A "J" roller of very useful in making sure you get rid of any air bubbles. When the adhesive is fully dry it can be trimmed flush with the edges of the table top, a router with a flush trim bit is the tool of choice for this. It is also good practice to laminate both the top and bottom faces of the piece to balance the top, otherwise it can absorb moisture through the non-laminated side and warp.

 

[pistolpete]

Thanks guys

Bit of a change of plan

I went to B&Q today to look at the plywood, an 18mm laminated birch plywood caught my eye look good quality with no voids (from what i could see) , has anybody ever used this? (it was £48 for a big board cant remember the size unfortunately)

would this be a more suitable width to have a nice exposed edge?

 

[Paul Chapman]

Generally the ply they sell in B&Q isn't best quality, and the way they store it you'll be lucky if it's flat.

Cheers :wink:

Paul

 

[George_N]

I've had pretty good birch ply from B&Q but it can be a bit variable, and the sheets would be 1220 x 2440 mm or 4' x 8'. If you still want the look of the laminations on the edge then birch ply is the way to go.

 

[joiner_sim]

the first time i brought ply from b & q was the last. It was bent all over the place.

 

[podesc]

There is a big variety in quality - I have used Birch ply from Technomar and the quality is excellent - they will give you details on local stockists.

Paul

 

[misterfish]

Thanks guys

Bit of a change of plan

I went to B&Q today to look at the plywood, an 18mm laminated birch plywood caught my eye look good quality with no voids (from what i could see) , has anybody ever used this? (it was £48 for a big board cant remember the size unfortunately)

would this be a more suitable width to have a nice exposed edge?

Yes, I've had a couple of '8 x 4' sheets of this plywood from the Portsmouth B and Q that I've used for part of my kitchen. Mine was nice and flat and didn't give me any problems when working with it - so much better than the cheap (about half the price) stuff.

Misterfish

 

[woodbloke]

I'd tend to stay clear of board material from any of the sheds as they tend to stock only the lower quality stuff. Decent birch ply is the stuff to go for, just make sure you've got fairly deep pockets 'cos it's not cheap - Rob

 

[TheTiddles]

I'd tend to stay clear of board material from any of the sheds as they tend to stock only the lower quality stuff. Decent birch ply is the stuff to go for, just make sure you've got fairly deep pockets 'cos it's not cheap - Rob

On that subject, where would you go then? As you're around Salisbury too I'd be interested where you go, given that B&Q charge £49 per sheet for 18mm birch ply which looks ok and they won't charge for ripping it into sections. I need some ply, maybe several sheets for my rolling tool cabinets, what would you use and from where? Edens have an outlet in New Milton and are about the same price as B&Q, that siad their prices are for delivered sheets which is good. Would a lower quality ply be ok if it was lipped?

ta

Aidan

 

[woodbloke]

Aidan - I had it on good authority some time ago (from the manager no less) the the Timber Centre at the back of Wickes near Tescos on the Southampton Rd will be stocking the better types of board material (as well as marine ply) including some hardwood. In conversation with him I pointed out that there's nowhere in town to get decent ply or a range of hardwoods and he agreed, so it might be worth a punt to see if they've got any in stock yet - Rob