Poplar okay for building racks/desks?

[Myriad_Rocker]

As opposed to oak. It's cheaper. Even with oak, it seems you can build a nice 12U rack for cheaper than you can in buying a cheap one at about $129 or so. I figured up a 12U rack made of oak from Lowe's to be about $60. I imagine it would be even cheaper if done with poplar. But are there any drawbacks to poplar?

 

[Track Rat]

Any decent wood will work just fine. Where you get into a problem is if there's a lot of voids in the laminate.

 

[Zaphod B]

I don't see why not.

Poplar is a little softer, and not quite as strong as oak. But if you aren't planning on loading it up with a ton of weight it should be fine.

I love the way poplar stains and finishes out. The grain variation makes it very attractive.

 

[RICK FITZPATRICK]

But are there any drawbacks to poplar?

It depends on your design, and if you can get POPLAR PLYWOOD from Lowes. I've never seen it there OR at Home Depot type places. Although it IS available. Cheap too for the right product. Actually, I work in a custom cabinet/woodworking shop, and use a fantastic 3/4" Poplar Ply from China. $27(my price ) per 4x8 sheet. This stuff is ELEVEN PLY, with NO voids, great color variations on the face plys, with a very pale whitish overall color with streaks of burgandy/red through it. Unfortunately, this does not match solid American Poplar if you needed solid stock edgebanding or face frames. Although you could double bevel the ply or slice(rip) the face for edgebanding if so desired, but again, it depends on your design. Solid stock comes as a greenish color with streaks of brown to black through it. The green color will change though, if exposed to UV rays from sunlight. It turns it brown with even slight exposure. Even with a clear finish.
But if you are talking glueing up solid stock to form panels for the sides and or decks, you are looking at a ton of work leveling the panels, unless you have a widebelt stationary sander available. Takes lots of long clamps as well. We do this all the time for raised panel doors etc. And since Oak ply and solid stock is redily available, and isn't THAT expensive, I'd stick with the oak. Although one other thing is good about Poplar. Because it is a closed grain, it is the best wood for painting. Oh another thing about the ply. Because the Poplar ply I use has so many plys with no voids, I simply USE the exposed plywood edge. Looks great with a clear finish. You could do this with Oak ply as well. I do it all the time.

Where you get into a problem is if there's a lot of voids in the laminate

Cabinet grade ply has no or very small voids. You also can get it in ARMOR CORE too, which is plywood with an 1/8" ply of MDF under the face veneer which keeps it absolutely flat. Typical oak ply will telescope inconsitancys of the interior plys to the face veneer, such as knots, voids etc. Check the face for loose and or thin veneer and SAND THROUGHS from the factory. This veneer is typically only 1/42" thick

Oh, I forgot. Oak can be found as a veneer, and as a veneer on 3/4" MDF, although it is usually not as redily available to consumers as plywood is.

 

[punkin]

I'm wondering if he meant poplar ply or poplar solid lumber? Just thought I'd throw that out. I had a friend that tried to make a rack from some cheaper light weight pine boards...looked great, nice work and all but a few months later, it started shrinking and some of the joints pulled apart. He used those slotted bicuits.

I've got to think that multi ply type of wood is the way to go.

 

[RICK FITZPATRICK]

I'm wondering if he meant poplar ply or poplar solid lumber? Just thought I'd throw that out.

Isn't that what I just said?

 

[blazingstrings]

Yup! thats what you said.

I just built a side by side rack case(two twelve space racks with a drawer and a 2 space for patch bays and mics).

I built it out of Clear pine and Birch ply(pics soon as I'm done trimming it off).

In my design I made sure if I had any realy hevy stuff it was supported in an extra way(shelf or brackets). Pine is pretty soft and I had a few dings in the act of building and poplar will probably be the same deal.

Just think ahead before you build.

Later

-Blaze

 

[punkin]

Isn't that what I just said?

Oops...my bad...your knowledgable input regarding the solid vs ply simply didn't register into my tired brain. I had just come off a long hard day of traveling.

Yup...what you said

 

[daav]

I'm wondering if he meant poplar ply or poplar solid lumber? Just thought I'd throw that out. I had a friend that tried to make a rack from some cheaper light weight pine boards...looked great, nice work and all but a few months later, it started shrinking and some of the joints pulled apart. He used those slotted bicuits.

I've got to think that multi ply type of wood is the way to go.

Any wood that is not properly seasoned will be likely to move as it loses water (and to change with season thereafter) and you can run that kind of a risk, but built properly pine should be able to hold a joint ok, it jsut will never be as strong as a harder wood. The bisuits are generally used to line up joints more than hold them together.