What's the best way to finish MDF Edges?! I did 12 tests so you don't have to!

[@lordseitsemas3867]

I do alot of cabinet work here in NYC and I've always used watered down wood glue, leaning a bit watery, to soak into the edge. Works on rounded edges or any exposed mdf. After that, my filler primer covers up any mistakes or bumps. It's not a scientific method either, but I was curious to see these other tests. Also helps to do alot of sanding before using any edge sealer to get the mdf nice first

[@timmiee32]

The CA glue worked really well for me when I applied multiple (3-4) thin coats. It turned out really ugly when I tried to flood the edge. A "skin" formed as the thick coat of CA dried, resulting in a very wrinkly layer of squishy dried glue that peeled off in chunks upon sanding.

[@adamcoe]

Excellent video! I'm using MDF for my new bench top and I was thinking about how I wanted to take care of the edges so this saved me a lot of messing around. Thanks!

[@AtelierQube]

Thanks Adam! Glad these tests helped you. What option are you going for? (I’m always curious 😅)

[@Stu81]

Acrylic primer-undercoat by leyland has always been my go too for mdf, works the best in my opinion for machined edges, needs 2 coats the first coat i see as a sacrifical coat and gets knocked back with 600 grit then i repeat but i go a little lighter with the sanding and i get very smooth edges, it acts just like a primer-filler, can be brushed on or sprayed on, i dont know anyone that uses any other method. I use thin ca glue on corners that are prone to getting knocked and damaged before priming and it works very well at hardening the mdf.

[@MatSmithLondon]

I've used the Leyland acrylic primer undercoat (for both face undercoat and edge as well) and despite knocking back with 400 / 600 / whatever grit - still can't get it looking fabulous. I mean - it looks ok. Maybe just my crap technique?

[@Stu81]

@@MatSmithLondon is it the edges that's not as good as you want? When I give my pieces their first coat I start with all the edges then hit the faces then hit all edges again so essentially giving them two coats in one, that way I find it gives a good amount of build up to knock down without removing all colour, I also prep with 220 then 320 before I prime.

[@TheOldGuyPhil]

Laquer glaze / Glazing putty (Auto body finish material for over BONDO) and sand. Can topcoat with anything and drys very fast.

[@tseckwr3783]

thanks for taking the time to do this video

[@AtelierQube]

Thank you for taking the time to leave a positive comment. 😉 You’re welcome! I love doing deepdives likes this. It’s one of the best ways to learn new things.

[@zavest]

awesome, any update on the bonus 1 tape coming off and endurance test?

[@AtelierQube]

Fair is fair, I haven’t tested this on a real project (yet). But the test piece is still in my shop and looking a-okay. I was and still am surprised on how well the glue/tape held to the MDF. Even with the moist from the paint. Happy building! And feel free to share any info from your experience with the rest of us 😉

[@leighgray8537]

Try sanding sealer, You won't need to use as many coats as shellac & it dries a lot faster.

[@AtelierQube]

Thanks for the tip! Any good products you could recommend?

[@vemusicworks]

maybe i miised it, but how did the woodglue/water mixture end op doing? The masking tape was a real surprise.

[@AtelierQube]

The masking tape blew my mind as well to be honest :) Woodglue and water wasn't a great succes. Not worth the hassle ;) The result was still very rough and sanding took most of it right back of...

[@saritsotangkur2438]

They all look kinda different from the smooth surface of the mdf. Each method you showed is either an edge/fiber sealing process or an uneven surface filling process, but none of them excel at both. Could you try doing the sealing coats (wood glue, ca glue, shellac, primer) then after that’s dry and sanded, apply the filler coats (putty, wood putty, brush on putty)?

[@dieterpareyn1803]

This is the video's we need! I would give you a hundred thumbs up if I could...... was my initial reaction, but I think it's a shame you did all the effort to test them when you don't show all the results.... I was really curious about the results of the one you did with wood glue...

[@AtelierQube]

Hehe no worries! I had lost the footage from that one. That’s why it’s not in there. I was hoping the wood glue would have gone deeper into the fibres. But it didn’t perform as I hoped/thought. It sanded right back of to be honest. So I wouldn’t bet on that route. Thanks for watching and leaving a meaningful comment. If you have any questions feel free to contact me! Happy building!

[@dieterpareyn1803]

Hello, thanks for your response 👍! May I ask which ratio water/woodglue you would have used? I found on the internet a ratio of 10/1, so very deluted. On the forum mentioning this ratio, there where pretty positive results. I'm really fond of these kind of videos where people compare different methods. In most cases there are a lot of different videos on each of the different methods, and the creator of the video always finds his method the best one 😁. Rarely a video which makes the comparison and choosing the right/best method more difficult. Unfortunattly the system still doesn't alow more than one thumbs up🙂. I read my initial reaction again, I hope I didn't came off a little strong 😬. Grtz you find

[@AtelierQube]

@@dieterpareyn1803 no worries! I don’t mind remarks if they’re supported by some explanation 😉 To be honest I didn’t measure it. I followed my guts on that one. I wanted to make sure it still had some glue to it, but still watery enough to penetrate as good as possible. Without real succes on my end. Feel free to let us know if it works for you. I feel KZbin is a place where we all can learn 😉

[@CrizCriz-wz3iz]

So after watching this video I was building a mudroom. I primed, i send it once then I put "CULKIN" FOR A SMOOTH SURFACE. PERHAPS YOU CAN PUT CULKIN DIRECTLY, I HAVEN'T TRY THAT

[@daveloz1]

Great tests thank you..... I've just made under stairs rolling cabinets but I want a sort of rounded edge instead of sharp if you understand what I'm getting at.... Do you have any ideas to achieve this properly? Thank you.

[@dirface]

Epoxy the edges like in the video and then route off the edges. Epoxy gives the hardest edge wich is probably best for routing.

[@DavidLee-cw6ci]

Really useful. With the price of plywood being what it is now I was wondering if MDF could be used for French cleats with one of these edge hardening techniques. What do you think?

[@AtelierQube]

I’m pretty sure that would work. Although it’s messy to work with, it’s pretty strong and stable. Especially if you think about the things you’d normally hang on French cleats. I think it’s plenty strong 😊 Let us know if you try it! 😉 I’ll keep it in mind for a future video as well 🙃

[@DavidLee-cw6ci]

@@AtelierQube Thanks, I think I will give it a try, I'll update in the future

[@HawkFest]

Super utile, merci ! 👍

[@AtelierQube]

Avec plaisir! 😊

[@bobbrock41]

rainbowwood? That link does not work.

[@MrGlidn07]

Uv set fiberglass resin, put on let dry and finish.

[@JonasDieltiens]

Die rainbowwood zag ik aankomen! :D Goed gedaan, mooie montage!

[@AtelierQube]

Merci Jonas 😁 ja die regenboog, dat kon eigenlijk ook niet anders hè 😂 maar al bij al toch verassende resultaten gezien. Op naar de volgende! 😁🎉

[@jervainesimpson8918]

Jessie Pinkman

[@FourScales]

finally he went to his hobby

[@dieterpareyn1803]

😅