Birch Plywood

[captainphx]

My 2012 Raven has a water leak in the tank. I have removed the tank and am working on that repair (another thread). But the water that leaked caused a birch plywood panel to swell up. I have removed that panel, but does anyone know where you can get his stuff? It is the maple color.

 

[Casa Escarlata Robles Too]

My 2012 Raven has a water leak in the tank. I have removed the tank and am working on that repair (another thread). But the water that leaked caused a birch plywood panel to swell up. I have removed that panel, but does anyone know where you can get his stuff? It is the maple color.

Have you tried Lowes? Or Home Depot?
I think Lowes carries a better selection of different plywood.
Also you might ask Marty at ATC, where you might get what you need. Don't know how large of a piece you need might be hard/pricey to ship though.
Good luck.
Frank

 

[rando]

The birch plywood from lowes/home depot is pretty low quality. If there is a Rockler wood working near you, they sell smaller panels of pretty good quality baltic birch in various thicknesses:
http://www.rockler.com/baltic-birch-plywood-12-inch-x-30-inch

However, I am pretty sure the finish on the older wood grain FWC is a fake veneer, so if the piece of plywood is visible you may need to source the replacement would from FWC so it will match.

 

[Beach]

Most places refer to it as Russian Birch or Baltic Birch. It is not exterior grade(as you found out). So if in a high moisture/wet environment, seal it, face and edge grain.

 

[captainphx]

Have you tried Lowes? Or Home Depot?
I think Lowes carries a better selection of different plywood.
Also you might ask Marty at ATC, where you might get what you need. Don't know how large of a piece you need might be hard/pricey to ship though.
Good luck.
Frank

Yes, I called FWC. They are working on a price for me, but I had them ship a small piece that needed replacing a year or so ago and it was extremely expensive shipping. The piece is 47 inches by 18 inches. I haven't tried ATC though.

 

[captainphx]

The birch plywood from lowes/home depot is pretty low quality. If there is a Rockler wood working near you, they sell smaller panels of pretty good quality baltic birch in various thicknesses:
http://www.rockler.com/baltic-birch-plywood-12-inch-x-30-inch

However, I am pretty sure the finish on the older wood grain FWC is a fake veneer, so if the piece of plywood is visible you may need to source the replacement would from FWC so it will match.

There is a Rockler near me, thanks. It is a fake veneer.

 

[captainphx]

Most places refer to it as Russian Birch or Baltic Birch. It is not exterior grade(as you found out). So if in a high moisture/wet environment, seal it, face and edge grain.

Good idea!

 

[JaSAn]

I've had good results with Spar Varnish on outdoor exposed plywood: 3 coats on each face and 6 coats on edges.

jim

 

[Taku]

Check in with nearby cabinet makers. They might have something that works they will sell you cheap, or they might be willing to include something on their next order and the delivery cost will be lower.

 

[buckland]

Baltic Birch is what you want. pricey... but worth it. To get a nice stain, as it is very porous so blotching can occur ...I suggest on the back side (your test area) spray a very light coat of wax-less shellac (spray can). this is called a seal coat to meter the absorption of the stain. Then tape off a few strip areas and apply with a cloth a gel stain (from Minwax) wipe it dry. Try a few that might match the color. When you find one you like flip to the good side and again lightly spray the whole sheet. Apply the gel stain AND THEN IMMEDIATELY... spray another super light coat of shellac. This will nearly instantaneously dry the stain (magic). let set over night .... put as many top coats of urethane as you like. Spar would be fine.... going into real marine varnish is over the top for this...too expensive. (you might see a bit of the stain color rise to your brush when applying Spar ...that's okay)

 

[Advmoto18]

You might try some wood working forums.

But, I imagine there have to be specialty lumber yards/providers in the PHX area. We have two non-big-box lumber yards in Raleigh specializing in everything from exotic to regionally milled lumber.

Here's one in PHX. I know nothing about them; the site popped on Goggle. They stock the Baltic Birch.

Call Stan or Terry at FWC and inquire if they are staining the wood in the factory, and if so, if they will share the stain recipe with you.

 

[Lighthawk]

When I extended the settee seat, I just used a piece of five-ply birch and gave it a couple of coats of spar varnish. No stain. The finished color is a bit richer and darker than the factory photo-finish plywood, but it's not off by much.

 

[captainphx]

Geez, FWC called me yesterday and they are sending me a new panel free of charge along with a new water tank. Pretty impressive!

 

[Casa Escarlata Robles Too]

That's pretty impressive, yes.
Way to go.
Frank