Better Drawer Sides
// November 5th, 2009 // No Comments » // furniture
Most standard birch plywood has very thin face veneers glued to three thicker layers of softwood or utility hardwood veneers. These inner layers could contain rough areas, knots, voids and splits. When you hit those areas with a router, the result is chip-out.
Baltic birch and ApplePly are made from many more layers of thinner veneers. The inner veneers of both of these high-density plywoods are very smooth, and the greater number of thin inner plies makes chip-out much less likely.
The top edges of your drawers will look better, too, because there are fewer and smaller voids in high-density plywood. You won’t have nearly as many unsightly holes to fill.
Baltic birch is a generic term for imported plywood with birch faces and birch-core veneers. ApplePly is a trade name for one domestic manufacturer’s plywood with maple faces and birch- or alder-core veneers.
Baltic birch is available at many lumber dealers in various thicknesses, but it only comes in 5-ft. by 5-ft. pieces. One annoying problem: a whole sheet may not fit into the back of your truck or van without cutting first. ApplePly also comes in a variety of thicknesses and is made in standard 4×8 sheets.
