Man Made Boards Flashcards
Common Man made boards:
Plywood (including marine ply, flexi ply, aero ply and Hexaboard)
Medium Density Fibreboard (MDF), flexible MDF and Maplex
Hardboard
Block board
Chipboard
Stirling board
Plywood
Made by bonding together an odd number of veneers (either hardwood or softwood).
The grain of each veneer runs at 90’ to the one next to it.
The more veneers used, the stronger the plywood.
The type of wood and glue used alters the properties of the plywood
Flexi-ply
Made of 3 layers
Middle layer is very thin
Bends in one direction
Stiff and strong in the other direction
Aero-ply
Made of 3 very thin layers
High quality veneers used
Very light weight
Bends in one direction only
Can be used to create very tight curves.
MDF
Made from softwood fibres and urea formaldehyde resin.
Compressed and heated to solidify into a sheet.
Hard and dense due to the resin
Stable due to having no grain
Flexible MDF
Flexible MDF has a series of grooves cut into one side, so it can bend in one direction.
Maplex
Maplex is formed by mixing wood fibres with water then applying heat and pressure
Hardboard
Made from wood fibres.
No adhesive or resin used
Compressed and heated to solidify into a sheet.
Only available in thin sheets (up to 4mm).
One smooth, one texture side.
Low strength.
Blockboard
Made up of a core of softwood strips placed side by side and sandwiched between two veneers of hardwood.
The sandwich is glued under high pressure
Laminboard
Laminboard is very similar to blockboard, but made form thinner strips
Chipboard
Made from wood chips and urea formaldehyde resin.
Compressed and heated to solidify into a sheet.
Has a rough surface finish, so often covered with a veneer
Low cost
Very hard due to high resin content
Stirling board
Made from wood flakes and urea formaldehyde resin.
Flakes have their grains alternated throughout.
Compressed and heated to solidify into a sheet.
Has a rough surface finish
Low cost.
Very hard due to high resin content
Weather resistant due to high resin content.
