MDF (Medium Density Fiberboard) for large art panels

[Sharon Knettell]

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[ReNae Stueve]

Thank you very much for the information Sharon. I'm wondering, I see MDF all of the time on BBC's "Changing Rooms". I've always assumed that Masonite was just an American trade name for the same thing. I have just today mounted my first piece of linen to an 1/8" Masonite board 16" x 20".

[Timothy C. Tyler]

I use MDF on small panels. I use it thick (3/4") because it is able to break - it's fairly brittle when compared to "masonite". Making braces for the back always makes me nervous. On other forums and in books I've read about a dozens methods of "the best way" to do it-all of which are different. My greatest fear in art is getting calls 20 years from now by clients that tell me their painting is showing patterns or any number of worries we can dream up as craftspeople.

[Timothy C. Tyler]

I agree that the heavy MDF is strong. It is also capable of water absorbtion and needs to be sealed well from all sides. Any thinner than 1/2" is weak. After I read books and forums, I do my own tests. MDF 1/4" thick fails a hammer thump test.

Over on the aluminum thread you said MDF was light. Is it heavy or light? For small stuff it certainly beats stretched linen for my tastes.

[John Zeissig]

Hello All,

I

[Timothy C. Tyler]

There are huge discussions on Wetcanvas, Cennini and Cowdisley. There are dozens of articles in books and magazines as well. As usual, I'm not making this stuff up. I don't even want to argue. I'm just afraid some artists that reads only this only get themselves into trouble.

As for the testing - it's very easy to do. Take 4' x 24' strips of all these materials and secure them over a span and start stacking bricks onto them. Take more standardized panels (all the same size) and paint them on one side. All the tests we can do have been done by hundreds of others before us. It's to their experiences and testing that I prefer to look. John is but one more of these.

[Linda Brandon]

Since I alternate between stretched linen and glued boards, I read everything I can about supports. I thank you all for your input.

Sharon, can you post a photo of your cradled boards? I've been cradling my glued linen boards but hiring somebody else to do them sounds like a terrific idea. It'd be nice to show a cabinetmaker a photo.

[John Zeissig]

Sharon, Tim, et. al.,

My family has a long history of cabinetmaking and fine woodworking. My uncle had a cabinet shop in my home town. In 1977 I co-founded a countertop and fixture manufacturing company in Oakland, CA which is still in business:

www.sullivancountertops.com

All the material on that website deals with solid-surface products, but about 25% of the actual billings are for laminated wood products, mostly for general contractors, etc. In 1991 I sold out my interest in the company to my business partner, but I continue to work there part-time as a kind of

[Chris Saper]

Hi Sharon,

Thanks so much for your nice comment over on the Unveilings section...I have indeed been following this thread (if anyone sees anything misspelled, I'm the culprit), and I might have to get off these lazy bones and try to make a board following your process.

To date, the approach I have used for large pastels is to have my Wallis paper (I buy it by the roll, which is 46" x 10 yards, so I've never needed anything wider than that!) and have it dry-mounted to 4-ply rag, and the 4-ply rag dry-mounted to 1/2" Foamcore. I've had little bit of warping on large pieces, but none to speak of in the sizes I most regularly work in (32" x 40" or smaller). In the future, I will have something mounted on the backside as well to minimize warping. With this approach, HUGE work is feather-weight.

Getting out of my comfort zone with materials is definitely a short suit of mine, but in this instance, I might just go for it.

Thanks to you, and all, for putting so much time into this very informative thread.

[Timothy C. Tyler]

panels