White veneers

[Guest]

Last year, or perhaps even the year before, we replaced our battered cockpit table with a new white one which, I think, came from the Plastimo catalogue. Although not quite the same as this one, it is along similar lines.

Now the table is basically made of what can only be described as compressed board with a white upper and lower veneer. The end result is rather neat. Now there are a number of other elements I wish to replace aboard Silver Dream but these I will have to build myself. So the question is this.... how easy is it to get hold of these veneers and how difficult are they to work with? I am hoping the answers are "very" and "not very" respectively. I admit I have not actually looked into obtaining the materials quite yet.

The alternative is to use plastic or perspex or something similar but I have little experience of working with these materials. Wood, I would have thought, would be much easier but I don't want a wooden finish - I'd like a nice white finish to match my boat.

Thoughts anyone?

[Antares_9]

Sounds remarkably like faced MDF (cue Carol Smiley) to me Simon, in which case it should be easy to source. Working with it presents no special problems apart from I believe the better quality water resistant stuff is a tad hard on cutting tools.

[Guest]

Well that's the thing, of course. Condensed board tends to blow when it gets damp so you'd need something a bit more resilient which I assume (hope) the Plastimo one would be. Faced MDF, it's easier to look for these things when you know the actual name. My only concern with used faced materials is that when you have to cut into them you end up with rough bits without facing at one end. I'd need to find a way "re-facing", or a similar looking face / veneer that could be re-applied to the cut ends of sections.

[pks1702]

You can buy a tape that sticks/attaches to the cut end Simon.

Go have a look at that Chandelers in disguise B&Q

[Guest]

Go have a look at that Chandelers in disguise B&Q

I'm too scared Perry - David might hear about it and I'd have to endure his sardonic witticisms on the matter until the end of time. No white veneer in the world is worth that.

[Antares_9]

Stuff like that edge strip is ideally bought from B & Q (other large DIY stores are available) Simon, as indeed are a number of items, particularly “branded†tools, good quality plumbing fittings, you may well even find some faced MDF intended for bathroom use there which is OK for in the cabin. What amuses me is when totally inappropriate B & Q type stuff is used on boats, I will even accept that for many boats that never get within 10 miles of corrosive sea conditions except to transit Breydon once in a blue moon the stuff may well last quite a while. Stuff like locker handles that stick out waiting to catch you as you go by, cheap brass screws as soft as putty and the like, it’s all just spoiling the ship for a hap’orth of tar, in my view anyway.

[Guest]

good quality plumbing fittings

No comment.

Right well a trip to B&Q is scheduled today anyway so I'll take the chance to have a wander around and see what there is to see. Roy's DIY store is also very good, though quite small, and generally rather cheaper than B&Q. It isn't, however, opposite my office whereas B&Q is.