Daddy Gloves wrote:
I have a 4'x 8' x 1 1/4" sheet of melamine coated MDF that will be used for some utility computer shelves, I plan on attaching some hard board (old paneling) edging to it.
Looks are semi important best way?
Or any ideas?
Glue and 16 or 18 gauge nails, or 1/4" crown staples
Needs to be relatively cheap as they will be free, a non-profit that refurbishes computers for low income families and other non-profits.
P.S. the sheet is so heavy I'm not taking it out of the van until it goes to where it will be installed.
Depending on how thick the edging will be, and what kind of wood, I would be very leery of using 18 gage pins to attach it.
If the piece is really thin, or if it's mahogany, it
might be okay...
BUT! If it's a thicker piece, with hard rings inside, I would be scared of the 18 gage pins following the grain and then coming out the face on the melamine. It's bad enough when it happens with plywood, but with melamine there will be no hope of fixing it.
I learned this the hard way, more than once...
If you must use a gun, I would use a finish nailer with heavier gage nails. Also, consider the beveled tip on the nails and orient your gun so that the tip will cut into the rings instead of glancing off them...
Sometimes the best solution is to just pre-drill and drive real nails by hand... but that all depends on how much time you're willing to spend on it.
I guess the simplest solution is to just get some "iron on" edging, but that's not as nice as real edging.
Good luck with it!