small OSB production process advice sought.

[johnny]

I have come across a large supply of 12mm OSB boards 1225 x 800mm
I am thinking about buying 20x or so for this project as Ply would be way too expensive and MDF not strong enough for this application as it needs to be self supporting from the edges like a shelf and carry modest loads . Mdf is also too susceptible to damp

The boards will need cutting to a rectangle which I'll do with my circular saw and then I'll need 6x shaped cutouts to the edges .The cut outs are symmetrical if you were to cut the board in half either vertically or horizontally the cutouts would overlap .

I cut out a prototype board with a jigsaw and it was tough going and difficult to maintain a decent shape to the cutouts . I tried using a thin jigsaw blade for all the curved cutouts but 12mm made it slow work or the blade would break

My question is without investing in an expensive bandsaw how would you advise going about this job using DIY hand tools . Would a router be a better option than a jigsaw to remove the cutouts ? I was thinking I could then construct a jig to lay over each board ?

How expensive might that be in router bits ? would I be better off making a template for my jigsaw ?

 

[rogxwhit]

That really is the sketchiest information on which to base advice. A drawing would help. I'm curious as to the loading and the span, to relate these to the 12mm thickness. Man-made boards will tend to sag more than real wood, because they lack its aligned grain structure.

Are your jigsaw blades blunt, or the wrong tooth pattern? Because they should cut 12mm osb like a doddle.

Yes you could make a production pattern that a router could follow, but I don't think that would be hugely more productive in terms of time & energy.

Spill a few more beans!

 

[Bingy man]

I would definitely agree with above post , what jigsaw are you using - a diy type or a heavy duty professional type . 12 mm osb compared to 40mm work tops - had to do the cut out for hob and sink and I had to go slowly for the accuracy but the saw was flying. By the time you’ve made a jig and sorted out you router a jigsaw should of finished the job . Again as above 12 mm osb or weatabix as I call it won’t hold up any weight and it loves water and moisture hence my referral to that well known cereal. If cost is an issue for you I’d go with 6 mm plywood on 2x1 Barton’s and screw the shelves into the batons. Keep it simple. If your osb becomes damp it won’t last long and before you know it you’ll be starting again cursing yourself that you didn’t use ply. Sorry to be brutal but no point wasting money.

 

[Bingy man]

Ps what is the actual project you have in mind as you’re not giving much away.

 

[johnny]

That really is the sketchiest information on which to base advice. A drawing would help. I'm curious as to the loading and the span, to relate these to the 12mm thickness. Man-made boards will tend to sag more than real wood, because they lack its aligned grain structure.

Are your jigsaw blades blunt, or the wrong tooth pattern? Because they should cut 12mm osb like a doddle.

Yes you could make a production pattern that a router could follow, but I don't think that would be hugely more productive in terms of time & energy.

Spill a few more beans!

the span is approx 800mm in one direction and 950mm in the other direction simply supported along the edges ......... its a shelf not a dance floor

 

[shed9]

If MDF is being avoided because of being susceptible to damp then this is something to be aware of concerning OSB as well. Not all OSB is the same and you will need to check the materials you are already considering buying. Generally, OSB is fairly resistant to water however the different grades of OSB have different protections against water ingress and all OSB needs sealing when a fresh cut edge is exposed.

I'd also be inclined to avoid it personally, it's a false economy over ply in my opinion in this instance despite the lack of detail.

 

[johnny]

Ps what is the actual project you have in mind as you’re not giving much away.

I don't have to ....
I am not asking you for your approval of my intentions or purpose ,nor am I asking for your design advice or opinion on my choice of materials and their suitability for the purpose

If I were to make the mistake of telling you the purpose of my project i'd attract a whole raft of negative comments and pointless non constructive opinions............... I've made that mistake before .

I am simply asking for some advice about which tool would be best for cutting some curved shapes into the edges of 12mm OSB to form a non loadbearing horizontal shelf or platform. Its as basic as a project could be .I imagine that a router with template is going to cut a quicker neater shape than a jigsaw but I'm guessing that OSB is going to blunt the bits pretty quickly . I have a 1/2" router that I have never used which should be up to the job . I have some thin jigsaw blades for cutting tight curves but cutting 12mm OSB I found challenging as the blades are fragile and I am probably impatient .

 

[johnny]

If MDF is being avoided because of being susceptible to damp then this is something to be aware of concerning OSB as well. Not all OSB is the same and you will need to check the materials you are already considering buying. Generally, OSB is fairly resistant to water however the different grades of OSB have different protections against water ingress and all OSB needs sealing when a fresh cut edge is exposed.

I'd also be inclined to avoid it personally, it's a false economy over ply in my opinion in this instance despite the lack of detail.

thanks for your opinion but without you having a clue of how this board is going to be used or where it is going to be placed , your opinion is pretty pointless isn't it. !
If this project goes ahead it would not attract sufficient return to justify buying a sheet of 12mm Plywood . Do you have any idea how much plywood currently costs ??? how would you justify using plywood when I can buy these OSB sheets for £5.00 each.!?

Sheesh ... trying to get a simple constructive answer to a simple question out of you lot without having the Spanish Inquisition is impossible

 

[shed9]

thanks for your opinion but without you having a clue of how this board is going to be used or where it is going to be placed , your opinion is pretty pointless isn't it. !
If this project goes ahead it would not attract sufficient return to justify buying a sheet of 12mm Plywood . Do you have any idea how much plywood currently costs ??? how would you justify using plywood when I can buy these OSB sheets for £5.00 each.!?

Sheesh ... trying to get a simple constructive answer to a simple question out of you lot without having the Spanish Inquisition is impossible

So to summarise:

You: I'm thinking of doing something. Im not going to give you any real details but is it going to be expensive?
Forum: Can you tell us a little more so we can actually help?
You: Nope and you can have my pram toys while I'm at is as well.


You originally pointed out choosing one material over another because of the potential for damp and I raised the point to you that this is also an issue with your actual chosen material and as such that potentially needs consideration. I also simply added that with the little info presented so far and until such time as more is given, ply is still likely a better material in terms of weight-supporting shelf structures.

There often isn't a simple constructive answer to a simple question when you ask that simple question to a collective of people who very likely collectively know more than you and are able to recognise real world potential issues beyond the initial question. You asked for advice, people are going to pick up other aspects to the initial question and try to help.

If that's come across as the unavoidable Spanish Inquisition from 'us lot', sincere apologies, what was I thinking. As you were.


Addendum: And you have now edited your original post with bold and underlined text to really gel with your audience. I'm starting to see why you fear negative comments in response to your questions. I'll go and get the popcorn.

 

[Sgian Dubh]

Would a router be a better option than a jigsaw to remove the cutouts ? I was thinking I could then construct a jig to lay over each board?

How expensive might that be in router bits ?

I'd say do that, and make a 12 mm thick MDF template for use with your router. Use MDF because it's easy to refine (plane, sand) an irregularly cut shape (curved, etc). You have two choices for the template or pattern type.

1. Template of the exact profile plus a bearing guided router bit. With this option you'd need to set the template on the OSB, pencil around it, and cut close to the line with your jigsaw. It wouldn't matter much if your jigsaw cut is a bit erratic and rough as long as it's close to the line. Then put the template back in place, fix it, screws maybe, and rout the shape off the template.

2. Template plus router mounted guide bush, plus straight bit with the template appropriately profiled with an offset from the required profile to allow for the difference between the diameter of the router bit and the guide bush diameter. No pre-cutting with a jigsaw would be necessary because with this option you could rout the shape with successively deeper plunges of the router. Having said that, using a jigsaw to rough out the shape prior to routing would mean less work for the router and less wear on the router bit, but pre-cutting with a jigsaw isn't essential with this methodology.

In both 1 and 2 above I'd generally recommend router bits of 12 mm diameter or bigger, unless there are special circumstances requiring a smaller diameter bit. Your task doesn't seem to warrant a smaller diameter bit. One half decent router bit like this one at less than £20 will almost certainly be good enough to mash through several dozens of linear feet of OSB before it needs resharpening.

And as others have noted, you do seem to be coming across as a bit sensitive and secretive for no obvious reason that I can see: cutting up a piece, or even multiple pieces of OSB accurately and repetitively to a specific size and shape or profile is a pretty basic and simple task, whatever the end product. Slainte.

 

[Rozza]

You probably already know the answer so why bother asking?

Jigsaw is the right way to go. Invest in proper blades for the job; take your time; and if you want consistency, use a template.

Yes you can do it with a router and you will blunt the bit(s); it will cost you probably 5x-10x more for them over jigsaw blades and the amount of dust will be considerable. And for consistency you will still need a template.

In the time spent debating it, the job could have been done!

 

[Sandyn]

I think you have answered your own question. I would do a test run with the router and see how well it cuts. You have tried the jigsaw and failed. I would just get a template cutter from Amazon. Yonico are great cutter and cheap. Try and see. Good luck

 

[Limey Lurker]

Could the 20 or so boards be stacked together on their edges, clamped, and a router used to make all the cut-outs in one pass?

 

[rogxwhit]

That would be a 5hp router with a 250mm long bit ...?

 

[Jones]

A router will be fine . Either use a cutter with a top bearing and a template which is the exact size you want or fit the template bush to your router and use an undersized template. You can only get radius corners down to the size of the cutter.

 

[Br5d]

You'd need a very big router to do that (10in) and arms the size of an elephant's thigh

 

[johnny]

A router will be fine . Either use a cutter with a top bearing and a template which is the exact size you want or fit the template bush to your router and use an undersized template. You can only get radius corners down to the size of the cutter.

thank you Jones

 

[johnny]

I think you have answered your own question. I would do a test run with the router and see how well it cuts. You have tried the jigsaw and failed. I would just get a template cutter from Amazon. Yonico are great cutter and cheap. Try and see. Good luck

thank you Sandyn

 

[johnny]

I'd say do that, and make a 12 mm thick MDF template for use with your router. Use MDF because it's easy to refine (plane, sand) an irregularly cut shape (curved, etc). You have two choices for the template or pattern type.

1. Template of the exact profile plus a bearing guided router bit. With this option you'd need to set the template on the OSB, pencil around it, and cut close to the line with your jigsaw. It wouldn't matter much if your jigsaw cut is a bit erratic and rough as long as it's close to the line. Then put the template back in place, fix it, screws maybe, and rout the shape off the template.

2. Template plus router mounted guide bush, plus straight bit with the template appropriately profiled with an offset from the required profile to allow for the difference between the diameter of the router bit and the guide bush diameter. No pre-cutting with a jigsaw would be necessary because with this option you could rout the shape with successively deeper plunges of the router. Having said that, using a jigsaw to rough out the shape prior to routing would mean less work for the router and less wear on the router bit, but pre-cutting with a jigsaw isn't essential with this methodology.

In both 1 and 2 above I'd generally recommend router bits of 12 mm diameter or bigger, unless there are special circumstances requiring a smaller diameter bit. Your task doesn't seem to warrant a smaller diameter bit. One half decent router bit like this one at less than £20 will almost certainly be good enough to mash through several dozens of linear feet of OSB before it needs resharpening.

And as others have noted, you do seem to be coming across as a bit sensitive and secretive for no obvious reason that I can see: cutting up a piece, or even multiple pieces of OSB accurately and repetitively to a specific size and shape or profile is a pretty basic and simple task, whatever the end product. Slainte.

thank you sgian dubh for your highly detailed reply its much appreciated. I have never used a router larger than a trimmer and have virtually no experience. I wanted some expert advice like yours before I lay out a load of cash on lots of OSB boards and router bits and then find the project is too much for me or not viable.

 

[johnny]

So to summarise:

You: I'm thinking of doing something. Im not going to give you any real details but is it going to be expensive?
Forum: Can you tell us a little more so we can actually help?
You: Nope and you can have my pram toys while I'm at is as well.


You originally pointed out choosing one material over another because of the potential for damp and I raised the point to you that this is also an issue with your actual chosen material and as such that potentially needs consideration. I also simply added that with the little info presented so far and until such time as more is given, ply is still likely a better material in terms of weight-supporting shelf structures.

There often isn't a simple constructive answer to a simple question when you ask that simple question to a collective of people who very likely collectively know more than you and are able to recognise real world potential issues beyond the initial question. You asked for advice, people are going to pick up other aspects to the initial question and try to help.

If that's come across as the unavoidable Spanish Inquisition from 'us lot', sincere apologies, what was I thinking. As you were.


Addendum: And you have now edited your original post with bold and underlined text to really gel with your audience. I'm starting to see why you fear negative comments in response to your questions. I'll go and get the popcorn.

what a useless non constructive unhelpful reply. Sounds like it is you throwing your toys out of the pram because I criticised your unhelpful response . Yours is the typical unhelpful non constructive opinions that is so common on this forum .

Several other members have managed to give me detailed helpful and constructive advice and support with the information that I have provided.
Why couldn't you ?.............no please don't answer that