Wood veneer advice please?

[surv1v0r]

I would like to apply wood veneer to the exterior of my cabinets. I tried veneering many years ago and it was something of a nightmare. I understand that there are better (easier to use) products available these days.

I would greatly appreciate advice on three fronts from anyone who has actual practical experience:

1. Technique, tips and pitfalls?
2. Plain wood veneer and glue (of some sort), iron-on -or- self adhesive wood veneer (PSA)?
3. A good source in the U.K.?

Width will be no more than 25 cms so there ought to be a fair choice. I would probably choose either teak or mahogany.


Thanks in advance

 

[Steven-H]

From my experience....Unless you have a vacuum press, veneering w/unbacked veneer and glue is a nightmare (as you've learned as well).
My suggestion is to purchase paper backed veneer and use contact cement. Here's a helpful link:

Veneering Without A Vacuum Press

 

[DUG]

My dad used to use contact cement (the real "smelly" stuff put on with a brush...not water based) and would roll the bonded parts with a hard roller.

 

[evanc]

I have not had good experience with contact cement and wood veneer. Laminate for counter tops yes...wood no. I use a vacuum press and either yellow pva glue or Unibond 800 Vacuum Pressing Systems -- Veneer Glue
Maybe someone else can chime in on the iron on method.
Evan

 

[Studio Au]

Are you cabinets boxes or curved?

Ive bought plain and iron on veneer, from Veneers Online, has a website and eBay shop.

I just bought some iron on cherry in 30cm piece, 2.5m long. Will wrap around my curved cabinets like a charm. Never used iron on, especially on a curved surface, hope it works out.

If you doing it by hand, a veneer hammer is really useful if using hot melt hide glue.

At college we used Cascamite (Urea Fomaldihye) this takes 24hrs to set or 4minutes under heat press.

PVA is good, and sets under heat, so you can use an iron. Titebond is an amazing glue, but not remotely PVA, so behaves really differently.

Vacuum bag is a really good way to do it otherwise. I have one which runs off a compressor, and didn't cost the earth.

Where is the uk are you?

 

[surv1v0r]

Thanks all. The cabinets are "boxes" without any curved edges so shouldn't be too tricky. I had never even heard of a vacuum bag or press, I had anticipated using some sort of roller or a mallet initially to remove air bubbles and then scrap MDF held in place with clamps.

I may be able to do some of the veneering before assembly - largest (side) panels I think, I'll have to check.

Thanks again.

 

[stonehome]

I have used water based and solvent based contact cements but the last few years I use aerosol cans or PSA (pressure sensitive) veneers. Much cleaner and easier. PSA is my preferred method.

 

[evanc]

Titebond is an amazing glue, but not remotely PVA, so behaves really differently.

Titebond 2 and their white glue are pva
Titebond - Product
Titebond - Product

 

[surv1v0r]

From my experience....Unless you have a vacuum press, veneering w/unbacked veneer and glue is a nightmare (as you've learned as well).
My suggestion is to purchase paper backed veneer and use contact cement. Here's a helpful link:

Veneering Without A Vacuum Press

Thanks for the link, very interesting.

I have used water based and solvent based contact cements but the last few years I use aerosol cans or PSA (pressure sensitive) veneers. Much cleaner and easier. PSA is my preferred method.

I think that PSA will be my chosen route.

 

[oldmanaudio]

Search on you tube. Titebond wood glue painted on both sides let it dry and then use an iron to make it stick. I have done it myself and it works well.

 

[oldmanaudio]

There is a video of a guy doing a speaker. Easy iron-veneer application with tite bond.

 

[chrisb]

+2 on the iron on with standard "yellow" cabinetmakers glue and paper backed veneer - I've done literally hundreds of boxes with this method over the past decade.

much more latitude for precise grain alignment than with contacts, and the bonded glue will be immune to interactions with solvent based finishing products

vacuum bagging is only really practical when there are no openings in the panels/ cabinets - great for laminating flat panels, or with sufficiently sturdy forms, curved panels.

 

[Einric]

I used contact cement (the smelly kind) with raw 1/42" veneer on these speakers and it worked out fantastically.
It was a bit slow doing 1 facet at a time but it worked out very well in the end.

If you are keen on Mahogany veneer then look for Sapele veneer, it is very similar to Mahogany and much cheaper.
The front baffle chamfers on these speakers is Sapele veneer with TruOil gunstock finish.

 

[kimbo]

I covered these (obviously a long time ago by the CRT TV in the picture) with iron on veneer. The sort that comes with the heat activated glue already applied. It was easy and I was able to get around the 1 inch radius corners with a bit of careful work.

The only issue was that after a year or two, if you got the light just right, I could see very slight bumps where the filled over screw heads were. Either the MDF had shrunk a tiny bit or the filler had expanded slightly over time in a heated room. However I think that this would have been an issue no matter what sort of veneer or glue I used.

The jarah is a lovely red tone.

 

[nigelwright7557]

I used to use ready veneered chipboard and use veneer strips along the exposed edges.

These days for a hard wearing solution I just cover my cabinets in a thin carpet.
Thin carpet is easy to work with and cut to size.
It also hides a multitude of sins in my wood work.
It hides any screws too.

 

[surv1v0r]

I used to use ready veneered chipboard and use veneer strips along the exposed edges.

These days for a hard wearing solution I just cover my cabinets in a thin carpet.
Thin carpet is easy to work with and cut to size.
It also hides a multitude of sins in my wood work.
It hides any screws too.

I can't visualise carpet as a covering - unless for PA speakers?

I used Hessian (aka Burlap) on the very first cabinets I ever built (a Wharfdale kit). Easy to use and fairly attractive (in my opinion). However I am keen to have a go with wood veneer again.

Interesting about screw heads showing through. I have endless trouble with nail heads appearing where plasterboard is fixed to ceilings so I will have to bear that in mind - thanks Kimbo.

I am not absolutely set on Mahogany, I just don't want a light coloured wood - I will look at Sapele - and Jarah if I see it.

 

[chrisb]

Depending on your geographical location, the terms Sapele and "African" Mahogany (vs. Honduran, West Indian) may be used interchangeably, and to the casual observer they'd look very similar.

Yes, Nigel is big on rugged wearing finish, and IINM, rather like Cal, many of his systems may perform double duty in both mobile sound reinforcement and home use.

 

[oldmanaudio]

here are two pics of some of my work with the iron.

 

[nigelwright7557]

I can't visualise carpet as a covering - unless for PA speakers?.

Yes I use it for a mobile disco and playing guitar at gigs.
Due to lots of moving around the speakers can easily get knocked.
The carpet works well along with plastic cabinet corners and speaker metal grills. Large metal handles make lifting easier. I also have castors on to make moving them any distance a lot easier.
Most of the speaker cabinet hardware comes from Maplin.
Here's one that's nearly complete, just needs tidying up a bit.

An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.

 

[Crossrh]

I just finished a pair using the Knockdown speaker kits from Parts Express (great boxes, BTW,) and I'm in the veneering stage of a new build, using a slightly larger knockdown box and Zaph Audio's SR71 design, with the speakers and crossover from Madisound.

I've had good luck with 10 mil paper-backed veneer, Weldwood contact cement, and a J-Roller (the thing with the green handle, which took a while to find, but worth it.) Lining up the grain to match is tricky but doable. Hope the pics below help.