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Posted

Sitting in a turkey induced haze looking at a piece of mdf on my workbench and started thinking what it could be used for other than as a building board.  My local HomeDepot has 1/8" MDF sheets and I was thinking it might be a good material for building forms.  Couldn't find any references to it use for forms but thought I would put it out here for comment.

My advice and comments are always worth what you paid for them.

Posted

Hi.

MDF is not very stable and if glued will pull apart very easy. The glue joint will hold but the fibres of the MDF will part.

It's very poor to cut and will absorb moisture very quickly and swell.

On the plus side it's cheep and easy to get hold off.

 

Been there used it and I put it down to expearance learnt.

So for me it's a no no.

But others may have had better expearance's.

it's brill for making Jigs.

 

Regards Antony.

Best advice ever given to me."If you don't know ..Just ask.

Completed Mayflower

Completed Fun build Tail boat Tailboat

Completed Build Chinese Junk Chinese Pirate Junk

Completed scratch built Korean Turtle ship 1/32 Turtle ship

Completed Santa Lucia Sicilian Cargo Boat 1/30 scale Santa Lucia

On hold. Bounty Occre 1/45

Completed HMS Victory by DeAgostini modelspace. DeAgostini Victory Cross Section

Completed H.M.S. Victory X section by Coral. HMS Victory cross section

Completed The Black Pearl fun build Black Queen

Completed A large scale Victory cross section 1/36 Victory Cross Section

Posted

The false keel and bulkheads on my Amati Pegasus kit were of mdf. I much prefer it to the alternative use of plywood for these parts.

 

No problem in gluing it and it cleans up quite nicely.

 

B.E.

And no warping either!

 

These guys: http://www.imaginethatlaserart.com/ , make a full line of laser cut architectural and railway models out of mdf. Amazingly well done.

 

Andy

Quando Omni Flunkus, Moritati


Current Build:

USF Confederacy

 

 

Posted (edited)

I don't see any problem myself,as it is dimensionally stable providing you don't get it wet.There are however moisture resistant versions on the market now.

Kind Regards Nigel

Edited by NMBROOK

Currently working on Royal Caroline

Posted

Isn't Amati or Victory Models using MDF for bulkheads?   I also thought I read about another kit manufacturer using it also.

Mark
"The shipwright is slow, but the wood is patient." - me

Current Build:                                                                                             
Past Builds:
 La Belle Poule 1765 - French Frigate from ANCRE plans - ON HOLD           Triton Cross-Section   

 NRG Hallf Hull Planking Kit                                                                            HMS Sphinx 1775 - Vanguard Models - 1:64               

 

Non-Ship Model:                                                                                         On hold, maybe forever:           

CH-53 Sikorsky - 1:48 - Revell - Completed                                                   Licorne - 1755 from Hahn Plans (Scratch) Version 2.0 (Abandoned)         

         

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

Posted

MDF is extensively used these days in the furniture industry and by architectural model makers. I am using it for the bread-and-butter construction of a hull. Sanded and let in with quick-sanding filler it actually gives a nice surface and I have used it as workbench back and for similar applications. I quite like the material as it has no 'direction' and doesn't splinter like plywood when sawn. Also, it doesn't warp when used properly, i.e. access of humidity from only one side.

 

wefalck

wefalck

 

panta rhei - Everything is in flux

 

 

M-et-M-72.jpg  Banner-AKHS-72.jpg  Banner-AAMM-72.jpg  ImagoOrbis-72.jpg
Posted

 

B.E. Hi! I fully support)))

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Using the clipper to ship fish I like it.

 

I have used a lot of MDF in displays and exhibits. It is a good material for jigs and as a smooth flat surface I use it all the time for zero clearance inserts on my tablesaw.

 

Michael

Current builds  Bristol Pilot Cutter 1:8;      Skipjack 19 foot Launch 1:8;       Herreshoff Buzzards Bay 14 1:8

Other projects  Pilot Cutter 1:500 ;   Maria, 1:2  Now just a memory    

Future model Gill Smith Catboat Pauline 1:8

Finished projects  A Bassett Lowke steamship Albertic 1:100  

 

Anything you can imagine is possible, when you put your mind to it.

Posted

MDF is pretty good a material to work with and widely used in the joinery trade for all sorts of furniture and panelling. I come across it widely in my job. Several people have said to me that they prefer the water resistant version which is universally coloured a pale green and takes a finer finish when sanded ready for painting. The cost of goint to water resistant is just a few pounds per 8 by 4 foot sheet, Its widely available from 6mm ( 1/4 inch) to 25mm (1 inch nominal) but beware its very heavy in full sheet sizes.

 

Norman

Norman

 

 

Current build Trumpeter Arizona 1:200 with White Ensign PE and a Nautilus Wooden Deck.

Built Caldercraft Convulsion, HM Brig Badger and HMS Snake.

Awaiting - Zvelda HMS Dreadnought planning to get the Pontos Deck and PE Upgrades, Panart 1:23 Gun deck model and couple of the cannon kits Manatu - French siege mortar, and American coastal cannon.

Posted

Wayne,

 

Nope....MDF is usually a brown, smooth and looks like what we knew as Masonite.  Might be the same stuff. https://www.google.com/search?q=particle+board&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=86GbUqKrH6q5igLJ7YGQBg&sqi=2&ved=0CEUQsAQ&biw=1348&bih=742#q=mdf&tbm=isch

 

Particle board is wood color, and you can see the chunks of wood.   https://www.google.com/search?q=particle+board&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=86GbUqKrH6q5igLJ7YGQBg&sqi=2&ved=0CEUQsAQ&biw=1348&bih=742

 

Similar but different.

Mark
"The shipwright is slow, but the wood is patient." - me

Current Build:                                                                                             
Past Builds:
 La Belle Poule 1765 - French Frigate from ANCRE plans - ON HOLD           Triton Cross-Section   

 NRG Hallf Hull Planking Kit                                                                            HMS Sphinx 1775 - Vanguard Models - 1:64               

 

Non-Ship Model:                                                                                         On hold, maybe forever:           

CH-53 Sikorsky - 1:48 - Revell - Completed                                                   Licorne - 1755 from Hahn Plans (Scratch) Version 2.0 (Abandoned)         

         

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

Posted (edited)

Particleboard in the Uk is commonly known as chipboard and is widely used as melamine faced panels for furniture, when wet it will turn into something like soggy weetabix or cornflakes. Another common material is Hardboard usually as 1/8 or 3 mm thick dark brown smooth sided on one side and textured on the other, this is pretty useless unless its for simple backing boards in picture frames etc its just too soft for anything structural.

 

In Europe and the UK MDF is commonly available in 3 grades - light brown is a standard grade. Green  is moisture resistant, Pink is a fire resistant grade. All are very common in the joinery trade in the UK and subject to veneering and CNC processing.

 

Norman

Edited by normanh

Norman

 

 

Current build Trumpeter Arizona 1:200 with White Ensign PE and a Nautilus Wooden Deck.

Built Caldercraft Convulsion, HM Brig Badger and HMS Snake.

Awaiting - Zvelda HMS Dreadnought planning to get the Pontos Deck and PE Upgrades, Panart 1:23 Gun deck model and couple of the cannon kits Manatu - French siege mortar, and American coastal cannon.

Posted

Ah... indeed, two countries separated by a common language, Norman.  :D

Mark
"The shipwright is slow, but the wood is patient." - me

Current Build:                                                                                             
Past Builds:
 La Belle Poule 1765 - French Frigate from ANCRE plans - ON HOLD           Triton Cross-Section   

 NRG Hallf Hull Planking Kit                                                                            HMS Sphinx 1775 - Vanguard Models - 1:64               

 

Non-Ship Model:                                                                                         On hold, maybe forever:           

CH-53 Sikorsky - 1:48 - Revell - Completed                                                   Licorne - 1755 from Hahn Plans (Scratch) Version 2.0 (Abandoned)         

         

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

Posted

Particleboard by definition is chipboard - not much good in modelling 

 

 

Norman

Norman

 

 

Current build Trumpeter Arizona 1:200 with White Ensign PE and a Nautilus Wooden Deck.

Built Caldercraft Convulsion, HM Brig Badger and HMS Snake.

Awaiting - Zvelda HMS Dreadnought planning to get the Pontos Deck and PE Upgrades, Panart 1:23 Gun deck model and couple of the cannon kits Manatu - French siege mortar, and American coastal cannon.

  • 2 weeks later...

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