Interesting discovery...

[pslamp32]

I'm in the midst of a new sideboard style project. It will have a maple ply carcasse with Sapele tabletop, drawer faces and framing. Sapele is fairly expensive ~$4.5 / BF for 4/4 stock. I didn't really consider solid wood construction partly because of stability, mostly because of perceived cost considerations. I'm estimating the cost of materials for this project at ~$300. This doesn't include consumables I already have like Dominoes, finish products, metal for legs, glass for door faces... etc.

I was thinking how much the project would have cost if I had chosen to go solid wood and I discovered that it would have been fairly equitable! Wow, I hadn't even considered how expensive quality plywood is. I may reconsider my construction materials in the future. I guess I just assumed that solid wood construction would be much more cost prohibitive. Actually, never really figured it out before.

[McRabbet]

Peter,

You're right when you consider the cost of good quality hardwood plywood. I pay about $2.60/square foot for A-1 White Oak plywood and $2.70/Board Foot for S2S White Oak. I'm currently doing a set of Dining Room built-in base and wall cabinets and will use 6 sheets of 3/4" A-1 WO ply and nearly 165 BF of S2S WO lumber. I prefer using plywood for the dimensional stability one gets for carcases, but none of it will be exposed on the outside surfaces.

Here's what it will look like:

Rob

[cpowell]

Peter, I've reached the same conclusion on quality ply vs. solid stock. I use ply when I don't want movement but use as much solid stock as possible. I will admit that it takes a lot more labor to dimension and glue up a large panel than to simply cut a sheet of ply!

Chuck

[pslamp32]

Originally Posted by cpowell

Peter, I've reached the same conclusion on quality ply vs. solid stock. I use ply when I don't want movement but use as much solid stock as possible. I will admit that it takes a lot more labor to dimension and glue up a large panel than to simply cut a sheet of ply!

Chuck

What I've realized is that this may be offset by all the time gluing edge banding or building frame and panels to hide plywood. Not to mention the horrible finish issues! i know this may seem crazy, but this is like a revelation to me!

[Sabre2]

When I decided to start woodworking 5 years ago I debated on solid wood vs ply construction. My decision was to use solid wood based on a couple of factors. One is handling a 4x8 sheet by my self is not what I want to do and I don't really have the room to break down sheets to size. Second, I like the satifaction of using solid wood construction. I know it takes a lot more time to cut stock to size, plane down and then glue up a panel, but much easier to handle. I buy all my wood back east when visit my dad (if I drive). I just stack it on the side of my shop and grab what I need to use. This way I never think about the cost. It would be much easier to use ply in most instances because of wood movement, but .


Self confession: I used oak ply once (not furniture grade) and the results were less than stellar. I sanded thru the ply and the finish was terrible. However it was not all the ply's fault as I was just starting out.


Gary