BillFitzmaurice.info

Hmm, weird. My plans are 18 months old or so. Bill must update continually, I wonder why he'd put MDF in as an option though considering he's so against it for everything else.

it seemed od to me to when i first saw it. i haven't seen it mentioned elsewhere

greetz ketoet

ketoet wrote:my plans also mention MDF as an ( less durable) option . i wouldn't use it for any of bills design however.
it's gonna be a very heavy sub when built with MDF but it must be ok since bill mentions it in the plans.
i haven't seen it mentioned in the others plans however.

greetz ketoet

Minimal weight is paramount with pro speakers, as is moisture resistance. Two factors which disqualify mdf.

The THT is heavy with just plywood, I can only imagine what a nightmare it would be to move if it was mdf.

ecut1 wrote:In the plans it says: "You may also use MDF, but it’s not user friendly or as durable as plywood, and should only be used if you’re going to veneer the cab." Yes, I read them twice.

I've worked with MDF a lot in the past so I understand the drawbacks. The nice part about MDF is that it's perfectly straight and does not warp.

"The latest update of the TableTuba plans was made February 13, 2011" according to the sticky in the HT section.
Apologies, as it seems that a number of us have "current" plans, that don't include MDF as an option.

The main problem with MDF is getting the PL to make it stick together and seal, as I mentioned earlier.
I hate the stuff, I would never build any cab with it. Each to their own...

MDF is OK for in-house use since the cab rarely gets moved.....and that's the only reason.

All other cabs must be made with plywood.

The PL Premium is holding the MDF together very well (it is designed for pretty much every type of construction material). I have installed panels 1 and 2 so far. MDF is perfectly straight which makes clamping nice - no temporary braces to remove warp. I saved a little less than half from what BB would have cost. And as menitoned earlier... it'll get carried to my basement and probably stay in the same spot for years. The sub coming out of that location has been there since we moved in which was about 9 years ago.

Any home theater plan has the option of MDF as it is a suitably stable and void-free building material. The reasons to choose MDF are varied, usually that you already have a sheet laying around It doesn't affect the cab's performance, but it does make the building process slightly more difficult (I spin screws more often in MDF) and the overall cab heavier. Finishing options are also different, not necessarily worse.

It seems to be going quite well with the MDF - perfectly straight with no warp. I'm not using brad nails because MDF likes to bulge and split. I started with small finish nails which I pre-drilled. I didn't like the fact that I was tapping them in, I thought maybe this could break the PL loose. So I switched to using #6 wood screws and pre-drilling them (pre-drill and dry fit first).
I use a slightly smaller drill bit and drill a one inch deep hole for a 1 & 1/4" screw. I hand tighten the screws and listen to make sure the MDF is not cracking, etc. Then once the PL dries I'll remove the screws and fill the holes with PL. I installed three panels last night using this method and it worked very well. Almost well enough that I could have kept installing panels but I wanted to make sure those three are set before going any further.