Wood choice for painted frame & panel doors?

[Jim Hill 2]

I'm building some built in cabinets for our laundry room. I am planning on using poplar for the doors unless you fine craftsmen have a better recommendation? I have used it for drawers and felt it was easy to work although not very attractive. Anything I should consider before purchasing? I do have the ability to joint and plane my own lumber. Thanks for the help.

Jim

[Chris Padilla]

Jim,

Poplar is a good choice for painting but also high on the list is birch. Since I can get birch ply all day at HD, I picked up some birch hardwood as well (for edging and such) and with its tight grain, it paints up nicely.

If you want that "Pottery Barn" painted look, you should try out some of the higher end water bourne paints like Target, CrystaLac (I use this one...like it a lot). I spray it on, sand it lightly 30 minutes later, and repeat until I get the depth of white my wife likes...kinda like Pottery Barn.

[Jim Hill 2]

Thanks Chris, I'll be making a trip to my local lumber yard tomorrow and will check it out. Thanks for the finishing tip too. Unfortunately my wife loves that Pottery barn catalog and I have had way too many of their pictures waved under my nose with the question "Could you make that for me?" She sure keeps me inspired. Thanks again!

Jim

[Chris Padilla]

I was also told that a shellac tinted towards white makes a great first coat and will avoid raising the grain...which all water bourne products do no matter what the can says!

[Jamie Buxton]

In my area, ash might be a better choice. It is harder than poplar, and therefore more ding-resistant. Furthermore, ash is now less expensive than poplar here. There's bug that's killing ash trees, so anybody who has trees is harvesting them and selling for whatever they can get.

[Jim Becker]

In my area, ash might be a better choice.

Would the prominent grain pattern in the ash bother you for a painted piece? It would require a lot of filling to get glassy-smooth, unless you wanted that grain to show through. Poplar, maple, alder, cherry with a lot of sapwood and other close grained woods "would" be a little less work!

Bummer about those bugs...it's a shame to be forced to harvest trees because of that.

[Chris Padilla]

In my area, ash might be a better choice. It is harder than poplar, and therefore more ding-resistant. Furthermore, ash is now less expensive than poplar here. There's bug that's killing ash trees, so anybody who has trees is harvesting them and selling for whatever they can get.

Interesting, Jamie. I hadn't heard anything but then again I live in a cave and on SMC so I am oblivious to such news. It is a pity. Is it like the blight that killed off most of the Chestnut in the Northeast? Elm also suffers from some bug. I did my undergrad work at Colorado State University (CSU) in Fort Collins and the main drive to the admin building used to have 25-30 beautiful, big, broad, proud elm streets lining the drive. Sadly, I think there are less than a quarter left.

Well, I might as well pick up some ash if the price is right. Perhaps if the ash is quarter-sawn, it might paint up more nicely?

[Jamie Buxton]

Chris ---
As I recall an article I read some time ago, the bug that's killing ash trees is a sharpshooter. (Here in Northern California, some other sharpshooter is attacking grape vines, so they're serious pests.) Sharpshooters are immigrants from overseas someplace, and our local ecosystems apparently don't have natural defenses against them.

And if you need another reason to try ash, it smells nice. It is slightly sweet.

Jim ---
You're right, ash does have middling-sized pores, so finishing it glass-smooth would take more work than getting a glass-smooth finish on something like maple. However, these are doors for a laundry room, so I'll bet they're not going to be glass-finish anyhow.

Furthermore, I really like the effect of paint over ash. Long before ash got so cheap, I built quite a few pieces with gloss paint over ash. You get to use colors Mom Nature doesn't make -- bright red, or yellow, or blue --- but still you have the feeling that it is real wood under the paint because you see the grain lines.

Jamie

[Jim Becker]

Furthermore, I really like the effect of paint over ash. Long before ash got so cheap, I built quite a few pieces with gloss paint over ash. You get to use colors Mom Nature doesn't make -- bright red, or yellow, or blue --- but still you have the feeling that it is real wood under the paint because you see the grain lines.

I do, too...ash is an excellent wood to work with for these kind of effects. I've been experimenting with this on some turnings, both with using color and burning, etc. The color imparts a certain athstetic yet it's still clear that the piece is made of wood. Someone recently posted a very nice ash turning on WoW that was dyed blue and had limed wax in the pores.

[Greg Heppeard]

Hmmmmm seems like maybe we need to import some Asian wood peckers....then what would we use to keep that population down?

[Bob_Hammond]

What are you going to use for the panels? You could make them out of MDF which will paint very well and it's cheap and easy.

Bob

[Jim Hill 2]

Chris I've been to Ft Collins twice for training at HP back in 95' and have never seen so many restaurants in one city. Beautiful place though and what a view to the west!

Bob, I was planning on using sandply for the pannels. I'm assuming it's pine. Do they make 1/4" mdf? This is my first experience with built in cabinets in the house. I'm replacing a single 6' wire rack that was all the storage put in this laundry room when the house was built. Should end up with 36 square foot of shelf space when I'm done. Since this is my first built-in, I'm leaning towards going with a glossy white finish. I may wait to experiment with the fancy ash look you guys have been describing later. I called the local lumber yard yesterday and found that poplar was about half the price of birch. I think the birch would make heavier more solid feeling doors but I think price is going to win out on this project. I will check out this Ash grain before buying the wood though to round out the learning experience.

Man I love this forum. Thank you all for your suggestions!

[Jim Becker]

They do make 1/4" MDF, but you may need to order it from your local full-service lumber yard. It's an excellent material for the panels. You do have the option of using 1/2" material and putting a rebate around the backside for a small reveal. This gives you a sturdier door with more weight...and is what I used for my kitchen project last year.

Don't worry about using poplar. It's not as "soft" as it's sometimes portrayed. I've been using it for cabinetry face frames, etc., for some time with great results. Yes, maple or birch is harder, but it's all relative...

[Greg Heppeard]

Commercial shops in my area use poplar or maple almost all of the time for the rails and stiles. 1/4" MDF is the choice for panel material, but I agree that 1/2" reverse raised panel would be a better choice. When closing the door there is a noticeable difference in the sound it makes from the 14" to the 1/2", the 1/2" just sounds a lot more solid.

[Jim Hill 2]

Thanks Jim and Greg,
I think I will take back the 1/4" ply I bought and upgrade it to some half inch mdf based on your recommendation. I'll post some picks when I have something to show for it.

Jim I like the new picture, shows a SIDE of you I haven't seen before.

Thanks again guys