home depot birch wood

[audiofanaticz]

Resin wont make a box waterproof. Take a piece of MDF cover it in resin, let it cure and then let it sit in some stormy weather and watch it expand.

For that matter a bucket of water will do the same thing if you let it soak in there for a while.

Resin will also not add strength to the box unless your using chop mat or fiberglass cloth.

You can build a strong mdf box or birch without needing resin (but of coarse if you wanted your corners to be super strong fiberglass resin and fiberglass mat or cloth will help that).

Its going to come down to having straight cuts, proper bracing, good glue (titebond3 my choice), clamping which the glue dries (or if your using screws predrill and dont go screw crazy, anything more then a screw every 3inches is weakening the wood). You can use finishing nails with a nailgun, and no screws are not stronger, nails or screws are just there to hold the materials together until the glue is fully dried.

Silicon or caulk is not needed in a box, if you build it proper with straight square cuts and use enough glue it will be air tight.

A lot of people are obsessed with caulk because prefabs are alway normally caulked or silicon around the interior edges, they do that because that is ultimately holding the box together besides some tacks and the exterior carpet, there is no glued seems on the majority of prefabs.

[audiofanaticz]

resin buy itself is very very weak.

a simple test to prove it is mix up some resin poor a semi thin layer (lets say about 1/8 to 1/4inch thick) of resin on a piece of plastic like a garbage bag and let it fully cure.

Once cured try to break it in half and watch how simple it breaks.

[moredbs]

resin buy itself is very very weak.

a simple test to prove it is mix up some resin poor a semi thin layer (lets say about 1/8 to 1/4inch thick) of resin on a piece of plastic like a garbage bag and let it fully cure.

Once cured try to break it in half and watch how simple it breaks.

so if i really want the best results i should use resin and fiber glass mat on the outside of the box then body filler.i got a lot of work to do

[audiofanaticz]

Id use it on the inside of the box since it wont be seen and wont have to spend lots of time making it flush with the rest of the exterior edges of the box.

But unless you are fully needing as little weight as possible in a box which I dont think you are since your driving a truck with rims mdf will be more then fine and properly built it wont have any issues.

You can resin the outside of the box if you want, but id only do it if you where looking to paint it, and at that point be prepared to sand it smooth as a babies bottom.

[audiofanaticz]

Box is 2 layers thick in most spots 3 in many, and reinforced with a few layers on all seams with fiberglass and cloth. You can kinda see how I went about it in these pics.
13ply baltic birch was used and costed $74.XX a sheet. But any weight saved was needed since its in the trunk of a car with 2 heavy woofers 3 big batteries and 4 heavy amps.

[BigManAC]

Box is 2 layers thick in most spots 3 in many, and reinforced with a few layers on all seams with fiberglass and cloth. You can kinda see how I went about it in these pics.

13ply baltic birch was used and costed $74.XX a sheet. But any weight saved was needed since its in the trunk of a car with 2 heavy woofers 3 big batteries and 4 heavy amps.

On a side note, did you use fiberglass on the outside of the box overtop of trim pieces? Only reason I ask is bc I'm in the process of sealing mine off.

Sorry for the thread jack

[Soccerballzs]

You can purchase 1.5 to 2 inch thick mdf from cabinet makers supply house. Birch is poor grade from H.D. voids under top layer.

[moredbs]

You can purchase 1.5 to 2 inch thick mdf from cabinet makers supply house. Birch is poor grade from H.D. voids under top layer.

thanks, looks like good old mdf is the way to go. quality birch isn't worth the price difference imo

[n8skow]

Ditto what's been said.

The 'birch' ply from HD is just birch laminate, with white pine core. Has lots of voids and is a pretty soft wood = not good for woofer box...

[never knows best]

MDF all the way over their "birch".

But HomeDepots mdf isnt nothing note worthy either, its almost like particle board, huge chunks in it. at least the store by me.

Where do you get your MDF at? A local lumber yard? I've always heard that the big box stores carry poor quality MDF but I don't really know where else to get It from.

I use Canadian mdf from a store here that is really only in the midwest called Menards.

Unless a local cabinet shop has extra Trupan on hand and when thats the case they call me and buy it up asap and its normally sold in 5foot by 10foot sheets.

what density trupan have you used? can you get away with the lower densities?