I wanted to share this with you guys. Birch plywood has become very difficult to source (at least in the UK) and the price has doubled since this time last year. This is due to the fact a lot of Birch comes from Russia and well.. you know.
This is an alternative I actually like more than Birch plywood! It is alternating layers of Poplar (AKA Tulipwood) and Globulus (AKA Eucalyptus). The thing I really like here is the amazingly clean edge grain appearance. Birch ply, even high grade stuff, has lower quality cores than the faces and this leads to some dots and streaks on the edge grain.
This one is made by Garnica (Spanish) and distributed in the UK by James Lathem. They do one shown here with Maple faces (more expensive) and one with the Poplar as faces. I sanded and clear-coated. I'm not saying you should buy this exact one, but knowing such a thing exists is good.
For comparison this is Birch plywood.
This is an alternative I actually like more than Birch plywood! It is alternating layers of Poplar (AKA Tulipwood) and Globulus (AKA Eucalyptus). The thing I really like here is the amazingly clean edge grain appearance. Birch ply, even high grade stuff, has lower quality cores than the faces and this leads to some dots and streaks on the edge grain.
This one is made by Garnica (Spanish) and distributed in the UK by James Lathem. They do one shown here with Maple faces (more expensive) and one with the Poplar as faces. I sanded and clear-coated. I'm not saying you should buy this exact one, but knowing such a thing exists is good.
For comparison this is Birch plywood.
James Lathem do not sell direct unless you buy a lot, so you'll need to ask the price from your local wood yard. Nearly all UK wood yards deal with James Lathem. I can say the Maple faced one is similar price to Birch ply and the Poplar face one is less expensive.
I use a CNC for the circles. I used to have a Jaspar jig but I think it's just as easy to make one. Once you have a piece of wood that connects to your router base you can just drill holes anywhere for the size of circle you need. Remember to do the basket rebates first, because once you do the full cutout you can't cut anymore lol.
I use a CNC for the circles. I used to have a Jaspar jig but I think it's just as easy to make one. Once you have a piece of wood that connects to your router base you can just drill holes anywhere for the size of circle you need. Remember to do the basket rebates first, because once you do the full cutout you can't cut anymore lol.
haha thanks yeah realised that yesterday almost made that mistake . First time I've cut out holes with the router I made my own jig but wasn't happy with the accuracy as i dont think my holes to mark the center of cutout or the distance holes in the jig went in dead square . unfortunately don't have a drill press so I'll try again and see if I can use the router somehow to drill the holes first .
do you have any of your projects on here I can read about ?
do you have any of your projects on here I can read about ?
Poplar is not that good, not stiff and damped enough for speakers, Beech, bamboo or even oak plywood is much better and depending on where you live and the moment you can get them much cheaper than Birch plywood. I also heared that hemp fiber artificial wood would be good for this, but that kind of wood is not widely availeble yet (they are working on it).
But mdf is neighter good on that, nor particle board. And both were used for speakers with good result in the past, often even by big companies that have all the resources they could need for this. It's how you use it and work arround it's bad sides...
But mdf is neighter good on that, nor particle board. And both were used for speakers with good result in the past, often even by big companies that have all the resources they could need for this. It's how you use it and work arround it's bad sides...
I don't think I have any projects on here really, just bits and bobs. You might enjoy this one I did, although no wood involved! - https://www.instructables.com/Mr-Speaker-3D-Printed-DSP-Portable-Speaker
They call this 'reinforced' because of the mix with Eucalyptus which they say gives it good mechanical strength. FWIW this is a long way from typical cheap 'poplar plywood' you might find in a DIY store. Im not sure how Birch throughout compares but here is the spec:
https://www.garnica.one/en-uk/plywood-panels/range/reinforced/reinforced-globulus-maple.html
Boy I wish I could buy all those varieties of plywood you mentioned! But when you talk about oak or beech ply is it oak or beech throughout? Got any web links for the manufacturers?
So Birch plywood has a modulus of elasticity of 10,000 Long grain - 7000 Short grain.
https://www.wisaplywood.com/siteassets/documents/brochures/handbook-en.pdf
https://www.wisaplywood.com/siteassets/documents/brochures/handbook-en.pdf
I buy those locally at big woodshops in Belgium that cater mainly to pro's (but take B2C orders also) and have those in stock most of the time. I could link you with those, but i'm affraid that has no use as you live in the UK. You can also only see their stock/prices/specs when you have a trade account with them, and they won't give it to you as you live outside the EU. But if you want to try, try Haesens Hout (Gent) and DewaHout (Deinze/Ronse). Both are very known woodtraders in Belgium, and deliver high quality wood in general (or at least, you get what you pay for). I don't know what brands they sell, and i don't care actually... I know i get quality.
Trust me, when their current stock runs out they will have trouble to replenish it at this time.
But at this price they might never run out.
Attachments
I’m using something similar called “Tru-Ply” in the US. It’s got amazing surface quality on the birch exterior sheets and the end grain is very clean. They use this for furniture I think. Currently the wood used for my XSD speaker.
These are raw pieces from the CNC just glued together and no extra sanding yet. The faces are nearly perfect.
These are raw pieces from the CNC just glued together and no extra sanding yet. The faces are nearly perfect.
That is very expensive, In Belgium i pay about 160€ (139£) per plate (VE called in this printscreen) of 125x250cm 18mm B-BB quality birch multiplex at Dewahout. And it's in stock (but not at the location of delivery) so delivery times are probally about a week.
I think that just depends on the face veneer. Most wood is fine for clear coat. If you want to stain, some take it better than others but I wouldn't bother with a fancy face veneer if you are going to cover it with a stain, lol
It should be noted that while the lower grades of BB may be structurally sound, they’re not all guaranteed to be void free, and their face veneers - often single piece rotary cut- might include dozens of small pin-knots or larger football or bow-tie patches. While with some light RO sanding they can readily take clear coat finishes, I found that staining evenly would require pretreatment.
The Russian product I used to buy in 5x5 sheets was particularly splotchy, but the US sourced maple faced Murphy Ply (“European” sourced platform core with applied selected species of veneer) was markedly superior. Many of the architectural grades of plywood are seldom available to the general public and require factory mill orders, usually in lift quantities. (i.e. 40shts @ 3/4”).
The Russian product I used to buy in 5x5 sheets was particularly splotchy, but the US sourced maple faced Murphy Ply (“European” sourced platform core with applied selected species of veneer) was markedly superior. Many of the architectural grades of plywood are seldom available to the general public and require factory mill orders, usually in lift quantities. (i.e. 40shts @ 3/4”).