I’m working on a project that calls for a 1/4″ radius over the front edge of a panel. 3/4″ MDF panel with edge cut to be 1/4″ by cutting a rabbet, then the 1/4″ remaining is rounded over. Veneer is rift white oak. I plan on gluing on solid oak to the edge of the MDF panel, lay up the veneer on both sides, cut the front rabbet first, then round over the 1/4″ with a router.
How visible will the veneer seam be at the edge? The veneer seam would be on the curved portion and I worry about a visible line once everything is finished. Any tips to this process? Am I going about it the wrong way? Would hide glue give better results compared to regular PVA?
I do have a vacuum press.
Replies
It will be visible, you just said so, either you like that or you need to redesign, like maybe a wider edge.
Veneering on top of the solid wood and then rounding over through the veneer will mean rounding through the glue line, making it wider and more obvious. Less obvious is to veneer the panel before you cut the rabbet.... then make a nice grain match with the solid wood edge and plane it flush to the veneer before rounding it over. It can be almost invisible because you're only rounding over the solid wood.
Use a rift cut face on the edge so the glue line will be less obvious and blend with the straight vertical grain.
I see two options:
What MJ said; veneer first and add edging second.
Or, set the router depth a bit deeper, leaving a 1/16" or less vertical edge
("beading") so that the glue line is in that little edge and disappears. We have used that technique several times with shop made 1/8" veneer, with the bead edge being 1/8" tall. You wouldn't need 1/8".
I've done this quite a bit with a variety of woods. I much prefer the look over an edge applied to a veneered panel. Select the edging for best grain match to the veneer. The edge has to sit a day or two after gluing before planing it flush to the mdf. This needs to be as accurate as possible. I like to use a larger plane for this. I use Titebond glue. The more pressure, the better to get a thin glue line. A good glue line is invisible, and these are no exception.
This TV stand is birch veneered on mdf. The front edges of the partitions and shelves are bullnose moldings.