Baltic Birch and that outer stuff
 

To save money I purchased 5 sheets of 1/2" 9 ply birch veneer plywood at
Lowe's. It has birch veneers on the outside and one side is preprimed.
The inner 7 plies may as well be MDF.

I saved $15 per sheet going with this stuff vs. a 4x8 sheet of Baltic
birch, $35 vs. $50 per sheet. I bought 5 sheets for the work bench
project and for a quilt design wall for my wife's quilting studio. For
her design wall I am simply building frame work with the other stuff to
hold 1" thick insulation foam board, two of those. The design wall will
88" wide and 92" tall. On top of the foam she will wrap a material to
completely cover the foam board and frame work.

The other 4 sheets were for the flat workbench that I recently built.

Anyway I have built countless drawers and several jigs with 1/2" Baltic
Birch. Baltic birch plywood is all hardwood outer and inner plies. It
just about works like solid wood. I can use 5mm Dominoes in the edges
of the material and use 1" pocket hole screws with out the screws
collapsing the inner plies.

The other stuff has a pretty tough primer coat. That is all the good I
can say about it. The inner plies blow out when tapping in Domino
tenons and the 1" pocket hole screws easily crush the inner plies.

I made this material work as it does not have to be pretty and I used a
lot of glue so hopefully nothing will come apart.. ;~)

Just a caution that the other stuff is a very far cry from being similar
to actual Baltic birch.

And yes 4x8 sheets of 9 ply all birch inner and outer veneer can be had
but is costly. As I mentioned above the 1/2", 4x8 Baltic birch plywood
is $50 per sheet or $1.56 per square foot. I can get regular 1/2", 5x5
Baltic Birch for $21 per sheet or 84 cents per square foot. That is
darn near half the price per square foot as the larger sheet.

Never again for this purpose...

Baltic Birch and that outer stuff
 

On Mon, 26 Feb 2018 15:44:16 -0600, Leon lcb11211@swbelldotnet
wrote:

To save money I purchased 5 sheets of 1/2" 9 ply birch veneer plywood at
Lowe's. It has birch veneers on the outside and one side is preprimed.
The inner 7 plies may as well be MDF.

I saved $15 per sheet going with this stuff vs. a 4x8 sheet of Baltic
birch, $35 vs. $50 per sheet. I bought 5 sheets for the work bench
project and for a quilt design wall for my wife's quilting studio. For
her design wall I am simply building frame work with the other stuff to
hold 1" thick insulation foam board, two of those. The design wall will
88" wide and 92" tall. On top of the foam she will wrap a material to
completely cover the foam board and frame work.

The other 4 sheets were for the flat workbench that I recently built.

Anyway I have built countless drawers and several jigs with 1/2" Baltic
Birch. Baltic birch plywood is all hardwood outer and inner plies. It
just about works like solid wood. I can use 5mm Dominoes in the edges
of the material and use 1" pocket hole screws with out the screws
collapsing the inner plies.

The other stuff has a pretty tough primer coat. That is all the good I
can say about it. The inner plies blow out when tapping in Domino
tenons and the 1" pocket hole screws easily crush the inner plies.

I made this material work as it does not have to be pretty and I used a
lot of glue so hopefully nothing will come apart.. ;~)

Just a caution that the other stuff is a very far cry from being similar
to actual Baltic birch.

And yes 4x8 sheets of 9 ply all birch inner and outer veneer can be had
but is costly. As I mentioned above the 1/2", 4x8 Baltic birch plywood
is $50 per sheet or $1.56 per square foot. I can get regular 1/2", 5x5
Baltic Birch for $21 per sheet or 84 cents per square foot. That is
darn near half the price per square foot as the larger sheet.

Never again for this purpose...

For the difference in price, I wouldn't use the Lowes/BORG stuff,
either but I have no idea where I'd get at that price. I've seen it
close to that for a 2'x2' piece.

Baltic Birch and that outer stuff
 

On Mon, 26 Feb 2018 15:44:16 -0600, Leon lcb11211@swbelldotnet
wrote:

To save money I purchased 5 sheets of 1/2" 9 ply birch veneer plywood at
Lowe's. It has birch veneers on the outside and one side is preprimed.
The inner 7 plies may as well be MDF.

I saved $15 per sheet going with this stuff vs. a 4x8 sheet of Baltic
birch, $35 vs. $50 per sheet. I bought 5 sheets for the work bench
project and for a quilt design wall for my wife's quilting studio. For
her design wall I am simply building frame work with the other stuff to
hold 1" thick insulation foam board, two of those. The design wall will
88" wide and 92" tall. On top of the foam she will wrap a material to
completely cover the foam board and frame work.

The other 4 sheets were for the flat workbench that I recently built.

Anyway I have built countless drawers and several jigs with 1/2" Baltic
Birch. Baltic birch plywood is all hardwood outer and inner plies. It
just about works like solid wood. I can use 5mm Dominoes in the edges
of the material and use 1" pocket hole screws with out the screws
collapsing the inner plies.

The other stuff has a pretty tough primer coat. That is all the good I
can say about it. The inner plies blow out when tapping in Domino
tenons and the 1" pocket hole screws easily crush the inner plies.

I made this material work as it does not have to be pretty and I used a
lot of glue so hopefully nothing will come apart.. ;~)

Just a caution that the other stuff is a very far cry from being similar
to actual Baltic birch.

And yes 4x8 sheets of 9 ply all birch inner and outer veneer can be had
but is costly. As I mentioned above the 1/2", 4x8 Baltic birch plywood
is $50 per sheet or $1.56 per square foot. I can get regular 1/2", 5x5
Baltic Birch for $21 per sheet or 84 cents per square foot. That is
darn near half the price per square foot as the larger sheet.

Never again for this purpose...


" If you want first quality oats you need to be willing to pay first
quality price.
If onthe other hand you are willing to settle for oats that have
already been throiugh the horse, they DO come a little bit cheaper "

The borg birch faced "plywood" definitely classifies as "already been
through the horse".

Baltic Birch and that outer stuff
 

On 2/26/2018 6:46 PM, Clare Snyder wrote:
On Mon, 26 Feb 2018 15:44:16 -0600, Leon lcb11211@swbelldotnet
wrote:

To save money I purchased 5 sheets of 1/2" 9 ply birch veneer plywood at
Lowe's. It has birch veneers on the outside and one side is preprimed.
The inner 7 plies may as well be MDF.

I saved $15 per sheet going with this stuff vs. a 4x8 sheet of Baltic
birch, $35 vs. $50 per sheet. I bought 5 sheets for the work bench
project and for a quilt design wall for my wife's quilting studio. For
her design wall I am simply building frame work with the other stuff to
hold 1" thick insulation foam board, two of those. The design wall will
88" wide and 92" tall. On top of the foam she will wrap a material to
completely cover the foam board and frame work.

The other 4 sheets were for the flat workbench that I recently built.

Anyway I have built countless drawers and several jigs with 1/2" Baltic
Birch. Baltic birch plywood is all hardwood outer and inner plies. It
just about works like solid wood. I can use 5mm Dominoes in the edges
of the material and use 1" pocket hole screws with out the screws
collapsing the inner plies.

The other stuff has a pretty tough primer coat. That is all the good I
can say about it. The inner plies blow out when tapping in Domino
tenons and the 1" pocket hole screws easily crush the inner plies.

I made this material work as it does not have to be pretty and I used a
lot of glue so hopefully nothing will come apart.. ;~)

Just a caution that the other stuff is a very far cry from being similar
to actual Baltic birch.

And yes 4x8 sheets of 9 ply all birch inner and outer veneer can be had
but is costly. As I mentioned above the 1/2", 4x8 Baltic birch plywood
is $50 per sheet or $1.56 per square foot. I can get regular 1/2", 5x5
Baltic Birch for $21 per sheet or 84 cents per square foot. That is
darn near half the price per square foot as the larger sheet.

Never again for this purpose...


" If you want first quality oats you need to be willing to pay first
quality price.
If onthe other hand you are willing to settle for oats that have
already been throiugh the horse, they DO come a little bit cheaper "

The borg birch faced "plywood" definitely classifies as "already been
through the horse".


FWIW Baltic birch pretty much stands more than head and shoulders above
the rest, including most any other plywood that my trades supplier has
to offer. But BB does not always fill the bill for everything.
Regardless of where I bought my non BB material, I would have had the
same results.

Baltic Birch and that outer stuff
 

On Tue, 27 Feb 2018 08:22:04 -0600, Leon lcb11211@swbelldotnet
wrote:



Never again for this purpose...


" If you want first quality oats you need to be willing to pay first
quality price.
If onthe other hand you are willing to settle for oats that have
already been throiugh the horse, they DO come a little bit cheaper "

The borg birch faced "plywood" definitely classifies as "already been
through the horse".


FWIW Baltic birch pretty much stands more than head and shoulders above
the rest, including most any other plywood that my trades supplier has
to offer. But BB does not always fill the bill for everything.
Regardless of where I bought my non BB material, I would have had the
same results.


I was not casting aspersions on the source - just on the product and I
needed to identify the product in some way.
Yes, youcan buy basically the same crap at any "lumber supplier".

Baltic Birch and that outer stuff
 

On 2/26/18 2:44 PM, Leon wrote:

And yes 4x8 sheets of 9 ply all birch inner and outer veneer can be had
but is costly. As I mentioned above the 1/2", 4x8 Baltic birch plywood
is $50 per sheet or $1.56 per square foot. I can get regular 1/2", 5x5
Baltic Birch for $21 per sheet or 84 cents per square foot. That is
darn near half the price per square foot as the larger sheet.

Never again for this purpose...


That jives with the 5x5 1/2" BB prices I've seen at the nearest HW
dealer. The "real" stuff is fantastic to work with, but I have had a few
sheets that developed slight bowing. My biggest gripe is the variance in
thickness lot-to-lot can be rather extreme.

I'm still amazed at how a tree can be peeled so perfectly like that. It
just don't seem right 8^)

-BR

Baltic Birch and that outer stuff
 

On 3/3/2018 8:57 AM, Brewster wrote:
On 2/26/18 2:44 PM, Leon wrote:

And yes 4x8 sheets of 9 ply all birch inner and outer veneer can be had
but is costly.Â* As I mentioned above the 1/2", 4x8 Baltic birch plywood
is $50 per sheet or $1.56 per square foot.Â* I can get regular 1/2", 5x5
Baltic Birch for $21 per sheet or 84 cents per square foot.Â* That is
darn near half the price per square foot as the larger sheet.

Never againÂ* for this purpose...


That jives with the 5x5 1/2" BB prices I've seen at the nearest HW
dealer. The "real" stuff is fantastic to work with, but I have had a few
sheets that developed slight bowing. My biggest gripe is the variance in
thickness lot-to-lot can be rather extreme.

I'm still amazed at how a tree can be peeled so perfectly like that. It
just don't seem right 8^)

-BR

Yeah, a very sharp knife on a lathe like machine. Little waste!

Baltic Birch and that outer stuff
 

On 3/3/2018 11:23 AM, Leon wrote:
On 3/3/2018 8:57 AM, Brewster wrote:
....

I'm still amazed at how a tree can be peeled so perfectly like that.
It just don't seem right 8^)

-BR

Yeah, a very sharp knife on a lathe like machine.Â* Little waste!

VERRRRY, VERRRRRRRRRRY sharp, indeed!

I had opportunity many years ago to incorporate a control system on a
veneer mill up in BC. This was plywood mill using Doug fir "twigs" for
stock; the "small" (16" and under) leavings the sawmill folk left
behind as beneath their dignity/trouble to mess with.

These were 10-ft blanks; standing next to it was a truly remarkable
feeling; it just had an evil-sounding hiss to the knife slicing through
the material...similar attraction as standing up river at Niagara Falls
with the power of the river or the first in line at the railroad crossing.

--

Baltic Birch and that outer stuff
 

On 3/3/2018 5:03 PM, dpb wrote:
On 3/3/2018 11:23 AM, Leon wrote:
On 3/3/2018 8:57 AM, Brewster wrote:
...

I'm still amazed at how a tree can be peeled so perfectly like that.
It just don't seem right 8^)

-BR

Yeah, a very sharp knife on a lathe like machine.Â* Little waste!

VERRRRY, VERRRRRRRRRRY sharp, indeed!

And to really boggle your mind, just how sharp are the cutters that are
used for for making "3 ply" plywood that is only 1/64" thick?? That is
not even a hair thicker than .005" for each ply, assuming glue is
thinner than that.

https://www.easybuiltmodels.com/ply.htm



I had opportunity many years ago to incorporate a control system on a
veneer mill up in BC.Â* This was plywood mill using Doug fir "twigs" for
stock; the "small"Â* (16" and under) leavings the sawmill folk left
behind as beneath their dignity/trouble to mess with.

These were 10-ft blanks; standing next to it was a truly remarkable
feeling; it just had an evil-sounding hiss to the knife slicing through
the material...similar attraction as standing up river at Niagara Falls
with the power of the river or the first in line at the railroad crossing.

--

Baltic Birch and that outer stuff
 

On Sunday, March 4, 2018 at 4:49:13 PM UTC-5, Leon wrote:
On 3/3/2018 5:03 PM, dpb wrote:
On 3/3/2018 11:23 AM, Leon wrote:
On 3/3/2018 8:57 AM, Brewster wrote:
...

I'm still amazed at how a tree can be peeled so perfectly like that.
It just don't seem right 8^)

-BR

Yeah, a very sharp knife on a lathe like machine.Â* Little waste!

VERRRRY, VERRRRRRRRRRY sharp, indeed!

And to really boggle your mind, just how sharp are the cutters that are
used for for making "3 ply" plywood that is only 1/64" thick?? That is
not even a hair thicker than .005" for each ply, assuming glue is
thinner than that.

https://www.easybuiltmodels.com/ply.htm


When the plies are that thin, you don't need glue. The molecules just get all tangled
together. ;-)

Baltic Birch and that outer stuff
 

On 3/4/2018 3:49 PM, Leon wrote:
On 3/3/2018 5:03 PM, dpb wrote:
On 3/3/2018 11:23 AM, Leon wrote:
On 3/3/2018 8:57 AM, Brewster wrote:
...

I'm still amazed at how a tree can be peeled so perfectly like that.
It just don't seem right 8^)

-BR

Yeah, a very sharp knife on a lathe like machine.Â* Little waste!

VERRRRY, VERRRRRRRRRRY sharp, indeed!

And to really boggle your mind, just how sharp are the cutters that are
used for for making "3 ply" plywood that is only 1/64" thick??Â* That is
not even a hair thicker than .005" for each ply, assuming glue is
thinner than that.

https://www.easybuiltmodels.com/ply.htm
....

Indeed. I've not seen one of the super-thin ply mills but many of the
furniture-grade veneer mills use a rotating squared blank that isn't
spun on its center but rotated like a cam against the knife. That's
cutting flitches for book-matching and the like, not face sheets like
for ply, of course.

--

Baltic Birch and that outer stuff
 

On 3/5/2018 8:46 AM, dpb wrote:
On 3/4/2018 3:49 PM, Leon wrote:
On 3/3/2018 5:03 PM, dpb wrote:
On 3/3/2018 11:23 AM, Leon wrote:
On 3/3/2018 8:57 AM, Brewster wrote:
...

I'm still amazed at how a tree can be peeled so perfectly like
that. It just don't seem right 8^)

-BR

Yeah, a very sharp knife on a lathe like machine.Â* Little waste!

VERRRRY, VERRRRRRRRRRY sharp, indeed!

And to really boggle your mind, just how sharp are the cutters that
are used for for making "3 ply" plywood that is only 1/64" thick??
That is not even a hair thicker than .005" for each ply, assuming glue
is thinner than that.

https://www.easybuiltmodels.com/ply.htm
...

Indeed.Â* I've not seen one of the super-thin ply mills but many of the
furniture-grade veneer mills use a rotating squared blank that isn't
spun on its center but rotated like a cam against the knife.Â* That's
cutting flitches for book-matching and the like, not face sheets like
for ply, of course.

--
Wow I would like to see that!

Baltic Birch and that outer stuff
 

On 3/5/2018 9:08 AM, Leon wrote:
On 3/5/2018 8:46 AM, dpb wrote:
On 3/4/2018 3:49 PM, Leon wrote:
On 3/3/2018 5:03 PM, dpb wrote:
On 3/3/2018 11:23 AM, Leon wrote:
On 3/3/2018 8:57 AM, Brewster wrote:
...

I'm still amazed at how a tree can be peeled so perfectly like
that. It just don't seem right 8^)

-BR

Yeah, a very sharp knife on a lathe like machine.Â* Little waste!

VERRRRY, VERRRRRRRRRRY sharp, indeed!

And to really boggle your mind, just how sharp are the cutters that
are used for for making "3 ply" plywood that is only 1/64" thick??
That is not even a hair thicker than .005" for each ply, assuming
glue is thinner than that.

https://www.easybuiltmodels.com/ply.htm
...

Indeed.Â* I've not seen one of the super-thin ply mills but many of the
furniture-grade veneer mills use a rotating squared blank that isn't
spun on its center but rotated like a cam against the knife.Â* That's
cutting flitches for book-matching and the like, not face sheets like
for ply, of course.

--
Wow I would like to see that!

Yeah, too bad when I was doing all that stuff lo! those many years ago
there wasn't such a thing as a cell phone with video capability;
somewhere in the depths of the storage/moving boxes are photos, but
those haven't been unpacked since the move back to the farm in 2000...

--

Baltic Birch and that outer stuff
 

On 3/6/2018 11:02 AM, dpb wrote:
On 3/5/2018 9:08 AM, Leon wrote:
On 3/5/2018 8:46 AM, dpb wrote:
On 3/4/2018 3:49 PM, Leon wrote:
On 3/3/2018 5:03 PM, dpb wrote:
On 3/3/2018 11:23 AM, Leon wrote:
On 3/3/2018 8:57 AM, Brewster wrote:
...

I'm still amazed at how a tree can be peeled so perfectly like
that. It just don't seem right 8^)

-BR

Yeah, a very sharp knife on a lathe like machine.Â* Little waste!

VERRRRY, VERRRRRRRRRRY sharp, indeed!

And to really boggle your mind, just how sharp are the cutters that
are used for for making "3 ply" plywood that is only 1/64" thick??
That is not even a hair thicker than .005" for each ply, assuming
glue is thinner than that.

https://www.easybuiltmodels.com/ply.htm
...

Indeed.Â* I've not seen one of the super-thin ply mills but many of
the furniture-grade veneer mills use a rotating squared blank that
isn't spun on its center but rotated like a cam against the knife.
That's cutting flitches for book-matching and the like, not face
sheets like for ply, of course.

--
Wow I would like to see that!

Yeah, too bad when I was doing all that stuff lo! those many years ago
there wasn't such a thing as a cell phone with video capability;

No Kidding

somewhere in the depths of the storage/moving boxes are photos, but
those haven't been unpacked since the move back to the farm in 2000...

I miss analog/film, except for that part. ;~)

Baltic Birch and that outer stuff
 

On Tuesday, March 6, 2018 at 1:46:39 PM UTC-5, Leon wrote:
On 3/6/2018 11:02 AM, dpb wrote:
On 3/5/2018 9:08 AM, Leon wrote:
On 3/5/2018 8:46 AM, dpb wrote:
On 3/4/2018 3:49 PM, Leon wrote:
On 3/3/2018 5:03 PM, dpb wrote:
On 3/3/2018 11:23 AM, Leon wrote:
On 3/3/2018 8:57 AM, Brewster wrote:
...

I'm still amazed at how a tree can be peeled so perfectly like
that. It just don't seem right 8^)

-BR

Yeah, a very sharp knife on a lathe like machine.Â* Little waste!

VERRRRY, VERRRRRRRRRRY sharp, indeed!

And to really boggle your mind, just how sharp are the cutters that
are used for for making "3 ply" plywood that is only 1/64" thick??
That is not even a hair thicker than .005" for each ply, assuming
glue is thinner than that.

https://www.easybuiltmodels.com/ply.htm
...

Indeed.Â* I've not seen one of the super-thin ply mills but many of
the furniture-grade veneer mills use a rotating squared blank that
isn't spun on its center but rotated like a cam against the knife.
That's cutting flitches for book-matching and the like, not face
sheets like for ply, of course.

--
Wow I would like to see that!

Yeah, too bad when I was doing all that stuff lo! those many years ago
there wasn't such a thing as a cell phone with video capability;

No Kidding

somewhere in the depths of the storage/moving boxes are photos, but
those haven't been unpacked since the move back to the farm in 2000...

I miss analog/film, except for that part. ;~)

I don't miss analog film. I'm doing so much better now than if I had stayed
at the big yellow box. The kick in the butt they gave me (and 60K+ others)
was the best thing they could do for me.

They expected film to be their cash cow forever while other imaging companies
were leaving them in the dust. In reality, it was great for me that they were
so stubborn/short sighted.

Baltic Birch and that outer stuff
 

On 3/6/2018 5:18 PM, DerbyDad03 wrote:
On Tuesday, March 6, 2018 at 1:46:39 PM UTC-5, Leon wrote:
On 3/6/2018 11:02 AM, dpb wrote:
On 3/5/2018 9:08 AM, Leon wrote:
On 3/5/2018 8:46 AM, dpb wrote:
On 3/4/2018 3:49 PM, Leon wrote:
On 3/3/2018 5:03 PM, dpb wrote:
On 3/3/2018 11:23 AM, Leon wrote:
On 3/3/2018 8:57 AM, Brewster wrote:
...

I'm still amazed at how a tree can be peeled so perfectly like
that. It just don't seem right 8^)

-BR

Yeah, a very sharp knife on a lathe like machine.Â* Little waste!

VERRRRY, VERRRRRRRRRRY sharp, indeed!

And to really boggle your mind, just how sharp are the cutters that
are used for for making "3 ply" plywood that is only 1/64" thick??
That is not even a hair thicker than .005" for each ply, assuming
glue is thinner than that.

https://www.easybuiltmodels.com/ply.htm
...

Indeed.Â* I've not seen one of the super-thin ply mills but many of
the furniture-grade veneer mills use a rotating squared blank that
isn't spun on its center but rotated like a cam against the knife.
That's cutting flitches for book-matching and the like, not face
sheets like for ply, of course.

--
Wow I would like to see that!

Yeah, too bad when I was doing all that stuff lo! those many years ago
there wasn't such a thing as a cell phone with video capability;

No Kidding

somewhere in the depths of the storage/moving boxes are photos, but
those haven't been unpacked since the move back to the farm in 2000...

I miss analog/film, except for that part. ;~)

I don't miss analog film. I'm doing so much better now than if I had stayed
at the big yellow box. The kick in the butt they gave me (and 60K+ others)
was the best thing they could do for me.

Certain things I do not miss. The cost of film and developing plus
storage. I was talking to a friend the other day and mentioned that I
missed using film. With film you have to think about your shot, it was
going to cost you 15 cents to see the result. And that was 40 years
ago. I only liked shooting slide film. That film was easy to develop
in the kitchen sink and you could immediately see the results with out
having to process further and transfer to paper, like you do with
negative film. I studied light and lenses in college so learning to
shoot a relatively manual SLR and get the effects that I wanted came
pretty easy for me.

Today with digital it is point and shoot a hundred pics. And hope that
a few are keepers. It is letting the camera do more and you doing less.
And shooting fast still leaves you with artifacts and noise on the
point and shooters. I think digital photography is great, but like the
dwindling number of woodworkers, the process is lost. I also used to
play a LOT of golf, 5 days a week when I was in school. I walked and
did not use a golf cart. Today it is hard to find a course, in this
area, that will let you walk. Again, if you can ride to where your ball
ended up you really don't try as much to get a good shot. The better
your shot the less walking in the weeds you do and the fewer balls you
lose. ;~)





They expected film to be their cash cow forever while other imaging companies
were leaving them in the dust. In reality, it was great for me that they were
so stubborn/short sighted.