How do you guys get great results with-----

[gordon 131]

edging plywood for paint grade cabinets?  Just wondering what procedures you guys use to get the best results for professional looking painted cabinets.
I have made some fairly decent painted cabinetry for my garage that turned out pretty nice, but I it seems like I spent a bunch of time ( filling and patching and re-priming etc with the edge area ) of the plywood boxes. Last ones I built I did not have a face frame and I attached solid poplar on the edges with tongue and groove joinery and then flush trimmed on the router table the material, but there still seems to be tiny voids etc along the edge that I spent a ton of time on. I used bin 123 primer then BM advance topcoat and got pretty good results but would like to up my game as I am looking at an interior cabinet/buffet project in the near future. Should probably use face frame construction and spray the finish?
Any advice or procedures would be greatly appreciated!
Thank You 
Gordon

[Cooler]

I rub in Park's grain filler then sand smooth.  I get it at Home Depot in the flooring finishing department.  It is meant to fill the grain in oak flooring.  It applies like shoe polish with a rag and has the consistency of sour cream.  It dries very quickly and sands extremely easily.  

I like to coat my raw wood and raw mdf edges with shellac to prevent grain raising.  

I am going to spray my first cabinet next week.  I am using PPG's "Breakthrough!".  It dries in 20 minutes and can be recoated in 30 minutes.  It can be installed the same day it is coated.  

I probably will shellac the raw wood first.  Are you getting any grain raising when using the BM Advance?

https://images.homedepot-static.com/prod...4_1000.jpg

[K. L. McReynolds]

I generally cut thin strips of poplar/pine and glue/pin the strips on the ply edges. I do a bull nose profile on stain ply stuff.

I get a good joint because I have a fine finish Freud blade on my saws which produces a good mating surface that does not need filling. If I use a thick primer, the seam between the ply and the edging is filled .

In the picture are two desk towers, one made 20 years ago(left) and one made three years ago. Same blade(I have three with the same tooth count/grind).

   

[gordon 131]

I rub in Park's grain filler then sand smooth.  I get it at Home Depot in the flooring finishing department.  It is meant to fill the grain in oak flooring.  It applies like shoe polish with a rag and has the consistency of sour cream.  It dries very quickly and sands extremely easily.  

I like to coat my raw wood and raw mdf edges with shellac to prevent grain raising.  

I am going to spray my first cabinet next week.  I am using PPG's "Breakthrough!".  It dries in 20 minutes and can be recoated in 30 minutes.  It can be installed the same day it is coated.  

I probably will shellac the raw wood first.  Are you getting any grain raising when using the BM Advance?

https://images.homedepot-static.com/prod...4_1000.jpg

Thanks cooler, I was using the shellac based Bin 123 primer before the BM advance  The Bin primer I really like dries super fast a sands excellent, just seemed to put too much effort and time into filling the edge etc. to make it nice.
Thanks for the reply
G

[gordon 131]

I generally cut thin strips of poplar/pine and glue/pin the strips on the ply edges. I do a bull nose profile on stain ply stuff.

I get a good joint because I have a fine finish Freud blade on my saws which produces a good mating surface that does not need filling. If I use a thick primer, the seam between the ply and the edging is filled .

In the picture are two desk towers, one made 20 years ago(left) and one made three years ago. Same blade(I have three with the same tooth count/grind).

KL  do you trim the piece with block plane? or? or do you try to have the edge strips exact width first before applying?  is the piece 1/4" thick or less? Apply the bullnose then cut off the thin strips?
Thanks for your response
G

[Stwood_]

One of 2 things. Either edge with wood as Mac does, using a lipping router to smooth the edges down afterwards, or use drywall compound and fill the edges/holes/voids.
You can also use wood glue, thinned down with a dab of water and brushed on. But, paint won't stick to it as well.

[K. L. McReynolds]

KL  do you trim the piece with block plane? or? or do you try to have the edge strips exact width first before applying?  is the piece 1/4" thick or less? Apply the bullnose then cut off the thin strips?
Thanks for your response
G

usually cut the trim a schosh wide, install with one edge flush, and trim with a flush bit in a router---have a block plane, but that is just to say I have one.
 

Flat trim is about 3/16", unless I trip off the face layer of scrap hardwood ply. Bull nosed is done with a bull nose bit(3/4") and ripped off as close to the edges as possible. It is possible to get the bull nose the same width as the ply when doing that. The plus for that technique is I only waste about 1/4" of stock if I screw up.

Couple other tips. I have several zero clearance inserts for both table saws, which help make a clean cut. To set the fence for ripping thin/bull nose strips. I use a 6" piece of scrap of the desired shape(made from short scrap) so the fence is parallel to the blade. I use dimensional lumber for the trim. For bull nose, I route both edges of the stock, then rip both(usually 10' stock, since most of what I do is 5' or less to 8' or less long). Then route two edges and rip and so on. I generally rip all the trim I need plus 10% in one operation. That makes all the trim the same. Works as long as I don't screw up the settings.
 

I also cut all the trim angles on a TS, using a V27 Incra gauge, instead of using a miter saw. To minimize struggling with 10' long pieces of thin trim, I measure the length I need, say 46 inches. I cross cut a 50 inch piece of trim, then cut the miters.

[K. L. McReynolds]

BIN shellac based primer will stick to almost everything---to include thinned wood glue(dry).

Water based BIN is thick enough to fill small voids/cracks.

I used to build over the toilet storage towers using pine 1" by 12" from the borg, knots and all. Used shellac based BIN and a gloss alkyd enamel. Never had a bleed through from pine sap and the enamel weathered the moist bath environment well(one is 20+ years old and still good).

The water based BIN is thicker than the shellac based, so applying the water based smoothly takes a really good brush and some skill(or patience). And the shellac based does not necessarily cover a uniform coat. Never had a problem tho.

[Cooler]

I recently performed a casual test of paint adhesion.

I painted some panels that were primed with BIN with a white paint.  I scrubbed my hands after painting and the stuff washed right off.

I painted a bathroom with Behr Marquis paint/primer combination and it took two showers for all the paint to wash off.

I got some non-shellac primer on my arms and it took nearly a week for it to all disappear.  

Just washing with soap and a washcloth.  But clearly the real primer adheres better, and the paint/primer better than just regular paint.  

I think that in places like the bathroom, and especially the kitchen where adhesion might be an issue that I will use a primer.  Otherwise, just a paint/primer combination product which clearly has better adhesion than the plain paint.

[KyleD]

edging plywood for paint grade cabinets?  Just wondering what procedures you guys use to get the best results for professional looking painted cabinets.
I have made some fairly decent painted cabinetry for my garage that turned out pretty nice, but I it seems like I spent a bunch of time ( filling and patching and re-priming etc with the edge area ) of the plywood boxes. Last ones I built I did not have a face frame and I attached solid poplar on the edges with tongue and groove joinery and then flush trimmed on the router table the material, but there still seems to be tiny voids etc along the edge that I spent a ton of time on. I used bin 123 primer then BM advance topcoat and got pretty good results but would like to up my game as I am looking at an interior cabinet/buffet project in the near future. Should probably use face frame construction and spray the finish?
Any advice or procedures would be greatly appreciated!
Thank You 
Gordon

Tongue and groove not needed; Crisp edges and smooth glueing surfaces are a must. I get good crisp-smooth edges off the TS with a good quality and sharp all purpose blade and zero clearance insert. Sometimes I need to stick a strip of painters tape down to the the bottom cut-line when working with end grain to eliminate chip-out.  Cut the edge strips the thickness of the radius of any edge treatment you plan to use and a 16th wider than the thickness of the ply and glue them on. Like R L McReynolds, I hold the stip just proud or flush on one side and glue and clamp it. Pin nails or strips of painters tape are sometimes needed to hold the edging in place while the clamps are tightened. If possible a good trick is to glue two panels at a time and clamp them together edge to edge. They become each others platens and spread the clamping force out nicely.