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Favorite Wood For Jigs

fjimp

Saturday Morning during the Saw Dust Session I ask Drew and Nick what wood type the prefered for making jigs. Drew quipped "American Plywood," Nick suggested "Baltic Birch" then if I understood him correctly commented that this years crop was af questionable quality.

A search today netted me no Blatic Birch at all. Now I am wondering what other woods others would suggest for jig making.

On a related topic I have made several of the jigs Drew and Nick illustrate on Saturday mornings. Each time I do I find I both master new skills and secondly find additional jigs to make other projects easier to build. Thanks Nick and Drew your expertise is greatly appreciated. Jim

Nick

You're most welcome, Jim. When I was writing books for Rodale, the marketing folks asked me -- seriously -- if they could refer to me as the "Jigmeister" in their advertising copy. I politely told them, "Over my dead body."

Go to Google and type in "baltic birch plywood." You'll find plenty of sources.

With all good wishes,

paulmcohen

fjimp wrote A search today netted me no Blatic Birch at all. Now I am wondering what other woods others would suggest for jig making.

If you have a Rockler near by they sell it, they always stock 30x60 sheets and some 60x60 sheets in many sizes from 1/4" to 3/4". About every three months they run a 50% off sale or buy one get one free and I always stock up. This is what I use for my jigs and drawer sides and bottoms.

shydragon

The different pattern shops around the Portland area, that supply us with our patterns, used to use baltic birch among other materials. Over the last year, they have gone to something called "ApplePly" It was easier to get and just as stable. I was looking at a sheet at one of the shops, and along the edge it read, "appleply/maple"

From what I read on the web, It is still baltic birch, alder, maple veneers. I'll have to ask, when I go to one of the shops tomorrow.

fjimp

Thanks to all who responded. After Nicks message I googled and discovered two things fairly quicky. None available in Central Virginia. Rocklers does have the best prices for the sizes I need just now so I ordered a suppy to get me by until I move. Once in Denver Rockler will be close at hand. I also appreciated the other uses explained. Thanks again. Jim

Ed in Tampa

Interestingly the Fine WoodWorking did an article on Jig building material. They listed Phenolic Ply as the wood of choice. This is a baltic ply type ply with a plenolic laminate on both sides. WoodCraft and others sell this product in 2x4 sheets and you can buy it from Plywood suppliers. You will not likely find it in a big box store (HD Lowes, Menards etc.)

I have never used the stuff but from reading the article I may just invest in a small quantity and see what it offers.

Fine Woodworking claims it is make a super router table and aux fences.

The phenolic is colored but the article mentions that most suppliers only order or keep on hand one or at most two colors.

Ed

a1gutterman

Ed in Tampa wroteInterestingly the Fine WoodWorking did an article on Jig building material. They listed Phenolic Ply as the wood of choice. This is a baltic ply type ply with a plenolic laminate on both sides. WoodCraft and others sell this product in 2x4 sheets and you can buy it from Plywood suppliers. You will not likely find it in a big box store (HD Lowes, Menards etc.)

I have never used the stuff but from reading the article I may just invest in a small quantity and see what it offers.

Fine Woodworking claims it is make a super router table and aux fences.

The phenolic is colored but the article mentions that most suppliers only order or keep on hand one or at most two colors.

Ed

Thank you, Ed. That sounds like it may be the thing to use. Of course, the baltic ply works good, so if the phenolic ply is pricey, well.........Let us know how your trial works out!

friscomike

Howdy,

Speaking of baltic birch for jigs, how many plies do you use? I have a couple of 13 ply Russian plywood sheets and at this point, I am loath to use them for jigs :rolleyes:.

Best Regards,

mike

a1gutterman

friscomike wroteHowdy,

Speaking of baltic birch for jigs, how many plies do you use? I have a couple of 13 ply Russian plywood sheets and at this point, I am loath to use them for jigs :rolleyes:.

Best Regards,

mike

Hi Mike,

I can sure understand your reluctance to use wood that you feel is too valuable for jigs, but what is a jig if not a very valuable tool that you will want to use time and time again? One use only jigs may not justify quality materials, but any jig that you plan on using repeatably, IMHO, deserves to be made with only the best!

Now I have questions for you: What is the thickness of that 13 ply Russian board that you have? How thick are the 2 exposed plys (aka, veneers)?

friscomike

Howdy,

I agree on using good quality wood fr jigs, they are just like a tool. I was just wondering about using 13 ply for jigs. The wood is 3/4", but I'll need to go out to the shop and measure the veneer.

The stuff was $134 a 4X8 sheet. Since I haven't bought much plywood in a while, I was a bit shocked. I'll be using it to build a television and stereo insert for a large antique wardrobe we picked up in Belgium. It is in the bedroom facing the bed, so my wife will love it. (It is the second thing I will build with the new Shopsmith, the first beign her potting bench :D.)

Best Regards,

mike

a1gutterman

friscomike wroteHowdy,

I agree on using good quality wood fr jigs, they are just like a tool. I was just wondering about using 13 ply for jigs. The wood is 3/4", but I'll need to go out to the shop and measure the veneer.

The stuff was $134 a 4X8 sheet. Since I haven't bought much plywood in a while, I was a bit shocked. I'll be using it to build a television and stereo insert for a large antique wardrobe we picked up in Belgium. It is in the bedroom facing the bed, so my wife will love it. (It is the second thing I will build with the new Shopsmith, the first beign her potting bench :D.)

Best Regards,

mike

Hey Mike,

I am no expert on plywood, but I was under the impression that fewer thick plies are better then many thin ones. To me 13 plies making up 3/4" seems...well, close to being like the Chinese plywood in Nick's illustrations from another thread. Maybe Russian 3/4" plywood is good quality, but I wood at least expect the veneers to be thicker then a few sheets of paper. At any rate, it sounds like you have a couple of good projects in the works! Keep us posted, okay?

friscomike

EEEEK,

I was worried, so I did a bit of research and found an interesting discription of the wood I bought: http://www.woodworkingseminars.com/wp-content/s7334.pdf. It is recommended for jigs in the article...sooooo, away we go..gold plated jigs :D.

Thanks for the comments and info,

mike

a1gutterman

friscomike wroteEEEEK,

I was worried, so I did a bit of research and found an interesting discription of the wood I bought: http://www.woodworkingseminars.com/wp-content/s7334.pdf. It is recommended for jigs in the article...sooooo, away we go..gold plated jigs :D.

Thanks for the comments and info,

mike

Thanks for the link, Mike. Now I know a lot more about the baltic birch. It looks like 13 ply might even be standard for it. Well. project or jig, either way,a good choice!

Ed in Tampa

a1gutterman wroteHey Mike,

I am no expert on plywood, but I was under the impression that fewer thick plys are better then many thin ones. To me 13 plys making up 3/4" seems...well, close to being like the Chinese plywood in Nick's illustrations from another thread. Maybe Russian 3/4" plywood is good quality, but I wood at least expect the veneers to be thicker then a few sheets of paper. At any rate, it sounds like you have a couple of good projects in the works! Keep us posted, okay?

Tim

I think the number of plys actually increase the strength. Kind of like a bundle of sticks. There is probably a point of a trade off but I don't know where that point is.

Good baltic ply and this Phenolic ply has probably 12 plys give or take. I usually look more if the plys are uniform in thickness and for voids. I like ply wood that has plys around an 1/16" thick. While I never measured the actual plys, I'm guessing.

Ed

a1gutterman

Ed in Tampa wroteTim

I think the number of plys actually increase the strength. Kind of like a bundle of sticks. There is probably a point of a trade off but I don't know where that point is.

Good baltic ply and this Phenolic ply has probably 12 plys give or take. I usually look more if the plys are uniform in thickness and for voids. I like ply wood that has plys around an 1/16" thick. While I never measured the actual plys, I'm guessing.

Ed

Thanks, Ed. I can not say why I had the impression that fewer and thicker plies are better, I just had it. Learning something new on a daily basis is a good thing! BTW, most plywood have an odd number of plies, and for good reason]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plywood[/URL]

crousetrodomis

[font="Comic Sans MS"]I learned alot about plywood while building my baby's changing table. Baltic birch is the best to work with. I used 3/4" for the top, bottom and basically the entire case construction and 1/4" for outside panels with poplar rails and stiles. (not many people have 120lb changing tables but I figured my sons ass was worth it!!!)

I'm sold on baltic birch. 1/4" is great for templets, especially for repeatabiltiy. 3/4" is great for large/heavy use jigs and furniture. I've always understood that the more plys the better (I've not clicked on the PDF link yet though) I'd be interested about the apple ply and hearing more about it. Here in east central Indiana, baltic birch is about $78/ 4x8 sheet and from what i've seen lately, its not flat-but I believe thats a storage issue on the suppliers part. [/font]

james.miller

With Baltic Burch I think it is the quality of the ply's. The core is the same veneer wood as the sides with no voids or knots.

retcaptb

Here in Northern Calif. I found that I could not find phenolic plywood at wood suppliers without buying a unit of it. I did find it at a concrete/massonary supply house. They use it for making forms that can be reused again and again without delamination. I found 3/4" 12 Ply 4x8 sheets for 55.00 each. They had it in stock. Check your supply house for it. Here I found it at White Cap Construction Supply. They are all over the states. They are also on the web.:)

ldh

retcaptb wroteHere in Northern Calif. I found that I could not find phenolic plywood at wood suppliers without buying a unit of it. I did find it at a concrete/massonary supply house. They use it for making forms that can be reused again and again without delamination. I found 3/4" 12 Ply 4x8 sheets for 55.00 each. They had it in stock. Check your supply house for it. Here I found it at White Cap Construction Supply. They are all over the states. They are also on the web.:)

retcaptb,

What is the White Cap product number for the phenolic plywood?

Thanks

jmoore65

In reading about the White Cap plywood, all the reports I've read (5 or so) have said that this plywood is construction grade and not cabinet grade. Also, it's not easy to get ahold of, often requiring minimum order from White Cap if they don't have it in suppy. They've been able to use it for odds and ends, but all say it wasn't what they were expecting and were a bit disappointed.

For an indepth thread on the topic: http://www.forums.woodnet.net/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=&Board=UBB8&Number=3644510&Forum=,All_Forums,&Words=&Searchpage=0&Limit=25&Main=3615271&Search=true&where=&Name=&daterange=1&newerval=1&newertype=w&olderval=&oldertype=&bodyprev=

Jim