Which veneer? Help!

Question:

I’m starting out on my first woodworking project, attempting to build a piece of entertainment furniture using particleboard. I would like to finish the project with veneer.

I guess I am at a crossroads on what type of veneer I should use. I certainly want the thinnest as I would like to fold over the edges (not sure if my line of thought is correct – but I have seen some veneer edge strips/rolls, and it certainly looks like, if done carefully, you can bend the veneer over edges).

For the reasons outlined above, I would like to use 10mil veneer (I’m assuming 10mil is the total thickness including the backing) and I’m not able to decide between 3M PSA or BFV.

Can anyone please help me in this regard? Specifically I would like to know:

1. Am I right in assuming that I can fold the veneer over the edges, if I use 10mil thick 3m PSA?

2. I would like to keep the process simple – so should I go with 3m PSA? That way I can avoid using glue.

Answer:

If you have sharp corners you will not be able to bend any veneer around them without fracturing the wood fiber. It will result in splintering and cracking. Some of the wood species will bend around a gently radiused edge but more so when the bend matches the grain rather than being perpendicular to it.

The thinnest veneer is the 10 mil so it offers the best bending characteristics. This would require using your own glueing method but we don’t suggest glueing 10 mil veneer with contact cement. You could consider the ironing method with PVA glue as described on our website. You can also use the PSA (pressure sensitive adhesive) veneering method we detail on our web site, but your substrate should be a sealed surface for best results. This veneer does not adhere well to raw wood or plywood.

For more technical advice and specific questions, please call our technical staff at Oakwood Veneer.

Oakwood Veneer Tech Support