Edge banding ply/melamine

[RJT123]

So those of you who saw my post on Kitchen Cab Shelves, you had to figure this question was coming.
What type of solid wood edging attach systems do you like? I have seen V and T router bits. Never used them. Sure there are more ways to attach them.
How deep into the shelve do you make them? I mean, 3/4" stock, maybe 1" deep, then profile it to match the shelf?

[KLaz]

Do you necessarily need solid wood edging?

You can get real wood edge banding, iron on and save yourself a lot time. Very easy to install

[JGrout]

it depends.

vee grooved ( I use extensively) the depth of the vee + 1/4" -1/2 for profiling. This is more about how you want the edge to look than any particular set number. A lot of times I will reverse the vee make the wood cut the female cut to gain more working surface for profiling

If you are making the edge thicker (more than the shelf thickness) a simple rabbet and a few biscuits to line it up during gluing is good

[Splinter Puller]

I use 1/2" maple plywood for my kitchen shelving. I simply glue and pin 1/4" ripped strips of maple to the edges. Once all the shelves are dry I gang clamp all the shelves to my bench on edge with spacers between and route the edging flush with both surfaces. I then sand them and use my edge sander to give each edge a quick smooth over, lifting each shelf to give them an eased edge. Its about the fastest way I know for solid wood edging.

For finishing I spray them with a water borne varnish... two coats.

[jteneyck]

If the shelves will be behind doors I would use iron on edge banding. If the shelves are exposed and if you are going to add some kind of profile to it then of course you need a solid piece of wood glued to the edge. I just glue on a rectangular piece of the wood, no alignment means required. I make it 1/8" thicker than the shelf, glue it on as Scoony described, and then route the edges flush with the shelf, mill the profile, etc. You can make it complicated, but there's no need to.

John

[Cooler]

KLaz said:

---

Do you necessarily need solid wood edging?

You can get real wood edge banding, iron on and save yourself a lot time. Very easy to install

---

I bought this fancy edge banding router set and never used it.

http://www.amazon.com/CMT-855-510-11-Ban...+bits&psc=1
Each time I think I should I end up using iron on. If you get your technique down pat these can be very durable and quick to install. I angle trim the bands with my oscillating sander (about a 30 degree angle) and then I bury it under a couple of coats of clear and I never have any getting undone.

I have one of those blade trimmers and I use it on white melamine banding but it wants to follow the grain and can mess up a good job. Plus the 30 degree angle makes it less susceptible to getting torn off.

[Joel H.]

Cooler - so you don't trim, you just use an oscillating sander? Would a random orbit sander work just as well? Or a Dremel with a sanding head?

Joel

[Cooler]

Joel H. said:

---

Cooler - so you don't trim, you just use an oscillating sander? Would a random orbit sander work just as well? Or a Dremel with a sanding head?

Joel

---

They both work fine. I use whatever is handy. I go gently back and forth at the 30 degree angle until is is flush ( I test by running my finger I've the edge).

I use 120 grit which is what I would use to sand the piece anyway. It takes just seconds and I never ruin a band anymore. With the blade I used to have to examine the grain to see which direction to cut.

Use a very light touch on the ends of the band or use a sanding block and hand sand one direction only so as not to pull off the band at th end.

Many of my shelves are not banded on the sides so those ends are easily trimmed the the random oscillating sander.

When you are laminating the trim with an iron follow up by pressing a block of wood to maintain good contact until the adhesive cools and bonds. Once I started doing that my edge bands have been perfect.

[jteneyck]

I do the same - follow the iron with a block of wood to assure the glue flows out and you get a good, thin glue layer. But I use an edge trimmer to trim both Melamine and wood veneer edge banding. If you look at the veneer you will see which way the grain runs. Just run the trimmer down hill to avoid tearout. Sometimes the grain goes wonky and you have to run the trimmer one way then the other, but that's rare. After I finish with the trimmer I run a piece of 180 grit sandpaper wrapped over a wood block along the edge to further smooth and put a chamfer/radius on it. Never found reason to think about using a power tool, but suppose I would if I was faced with doing miles of it.

John

[JR1]

I buy turning blanks, on sale, from a couple local sources—most often Woodcraft. They are usually 2x2x12 although I do buy other sizes if the wood is particularly interesting. I resaw them to match the thickness of the shelf and as deep as needed to support the profile that I want to use. I put in 1 to 2 4mm or 5mm dominoes per piece and then glue the piece to the shelf. I find that with bookcases—particularly for large books—that pressure gets applied to the edge band when removing or inserting books. As for profile it depends on the grain of the wood and what looks good to me at the time.