Types of Furniture Grade Plywood

Plywood is more structurally stable than solid wood.

Building furniture out of plywood can avoid the problems with swelling and shrinkage that are so common with solid hardwood. Plywood is manufactured in a large number of sizes, grades and styles, ranging from sheets designed solely for strength to sheets that are veneered with fine hardwoods and designed to be used in high-quality furniture.

Structural

Because of the wide price difference between basic plywood and veneered plywood, it makes sense to use the less expensive kinds in the parts of furniture that can't be seen. This may include cabinet bottoms that are underneath drawers or the structural elements of built-in pieces. Structural plywood is just as strong and stable as more expensive kinds of plywood, but is made without the veneer of oak, cherry, birch or maple that is common on plywood that is designed for visible use.

Veneer

Veneer is made by turning a log on a large lathe and shearing the wood off of it in a circular motion. This creates a large amount of very thin veneer that is then glued to a substratum of less expensive material. The result is veneered plywood that is usually 3/4 inches thick, with the middle manufactured from inexpensive spruce or other softwood, and the surfaces veneered with a wide variety of cabinet-grade hardwoods. Veneer can also be made by cutting straight through the log, resulting in what is known as "flat cut" veneer. This type of veneer is more expensive, but has a more natural grain than the distorted grain that results from peeling the veneer off the circumference of the log.

Custom

Some mills and wood product manufacturers are able to create special kinds of custom plywood for their customers. This usually requires a fairly sizable minimum purchase, to make it cost-effective for the mill to do the customized setup. Some examples of custom plywood include plywood of unusual thickness, widths over 4 feet, lengths over 8 feet, or surfaces that are veneered with unusual woods.

Bendable

A specialty type of plywood known as "wiggle wood" is designed specifically for creating curved surfaces. This type of plywood is 1/4 inch thick, with a core of wood of very light density that you can bend around a form far more easily than normal plywood or hardwood. By gluing several layers of wiggle wood together on a form, a cabinetmaker can avoid the substantial work involved in steam bending or carving, two more traditional methods of creating bent wooden surfaces.

References

• Fine Woodworking: Plywood for Fine Furniture
• To Wood: Types of Plywood According to JPIC/JAS Standards