Should I just buy the cherry ply?

[drumpriest]

I'm working on a wine rack of sorts, and part of it is a cabinet suspended between legs. The project is in cherry, and I would like th cabinet to be dimensionally stable give the design.

I can get cherry ply at 104$ a sheet (3/4), or I could make my own veneers and use baltic or MDF. I've done this before, and there is some veneering work for this project, but it's time consuming...

I could also pick up some cherry veneer precut and apply it to a substrate, that'll be around 60$ in veneer alone.

I'd like to get this project out the door, so I'm torn, anyone with some advice?

[JR]

Sounds like a no-brainer, Keith. The veneer plus core is going to cost nearly as much as the cherry ply. Plus the time.

Get the cherry ply.

JR

[Uncle Cracker]

Ditto... Less work and predictable results...

[cgallery]

Pappy gets his cherry plywood free. That would be my first choice.

Barring that, I guess I'd buy some.

[crokett]

My rule is, if the money is nearly equal, do whatever saves you the most time.

[Jeffrey Schronce]

Ply without a doubt. You have already answered your question. You don't want to use MDF substrate and BB plus veneer is going to end up costing as much as ready to go ply.

The only time I create my own veneer is when I am working with a special piece of wood. Otherwise I am wasting too much time face jointing, edge jointing, resawing, planing, drum sanding, etc. Are you working with the most wonderful curly cherry ever? Assuming you are working with plan old FAS cherry then the ply is the way to go here.

[drumpriest]

Yeah, I typically only make my own veneer when I'm doing marquetry, and this project has some and I've made the veneer. I do have some nice curly cherry but I don't think I'd use it for this anyway, too distracting from the focal point which is the marquetry.

So, a cabinet shop near my parents (friends of ours) have some left over cherry veneer ply from a house they did that they are willing to sell on the cheap, I'm gonna snag it while the snagging is good.

Thanks all,