5/4 substrate material

[alindsey]

I've had a request to create two additional leaves for a cherry dining table. The existing table/leaf are veneered with cherry. Solid cherry wouldn't look right as the table and leaf are veneered with rotary-cut cherry. Here's my conundrum - what to use for the substrate for the veneer? The thickness of the substrate on the existing piece is 5/4. I can't tell for certain what was used, but I'm guessing from the age it was inexpensive solid wood.

If MDF or plywood is available in my area in a thickness greater than 3/4" I'm not aware of it. So I'm looking at either laminating 3/4" and 1/2" ply or MDF or using inexpensive 6/4 solid wood (red gum, in this case) planed down to 5/4". If I go the MDF/Plywood route my biggest concern is the strength on the edges where I need to drill in for the leaf alignment dowels and mating holes. If I go the solid wood route then my concern is, of course, wood movement. With commercially available veneer being so thin do I need to be that concerned about delamination or other wood movement-related concerns? Would I be better off going the man-made substrate route?

Getting the pieces laminated to the thickness I want isn't a big deal as I have a vacuum press, I'm more concerned about it being able to hold the pins for the leaf alignment well enough.

Any suggestions, my woody amigos?

[Vic]

Allen. I would get rotary cut Cherry door skins instead and build it like an exterior door. They have solid wood on the edges to enable hardware. I'm "pretty sure" that would work.

[kep1019]

For my 2 cents, I would edge the plywood on the alignment hole side(s) with a piece of solid like a hollow core door. I would go with Ply instead of MDF, just a personal preference.

[Vic]

For my 2 cents, I would edge the plywood on the alignment hole side(s) with a piece of solid like a hollow core door. I would go with Ply instead of MDF, just a personal preference.

Agreed on the ply. You could special order the light weight MDF in 5/4, but that gets expensive. Regular MDF os gonna be really heavy, even the size of a leaf.

[AMarshall]

I haven't done any veneering, but I would think the MDF would be a fine choice. The MDF will hold dowel pins just fine, it's plenty sturdy for that. Weight could be any issue, maybe consider where the leaves will be stored to determine if sag may come into play with the MDF.

[Beechwood Chip]

If the leaves will be stored where they might get damp, then I'd think MDF would be a bad choice. A lot of people keep the spare leaves in the basement.