Posted by Matt on February 14, 2002 at 07:34:56:
In Reply to: Question about metal laminates posted by rmfx on February 14, 2002 at 01:15:40:
Yes the price of metal laminate is high dollar, I will admit to having used stainless steel on a job in the past on vending carts, we glued it on with contact glue, we did about 8 carts and never had a call back, so yes it can be done, you could also trim your aluminum off with a carbide bit, this is exceptable with carbide and done regularly when using aluminum (stainless is a diffrent story) bad thing with contact glue is you have one shot at putting it on, if its that thin and you get it sideways you'll have to use thinner (laqcuer) to remove it, I would also sugesst using some sort of outside corner on your cabinet if you do this (maybe aluminum channel??) since the metal edge (even metal laminate) is VERY sharp. since your doing a big piece, you could roll it into a roll and roll it onto your side, but get started straight and leave plenty of overhang and cut it with a bit, don't try and cut the aluminum to size and then put it on, thats really tough to do, and if your out of square even a fraction (the metal or side) you will have to end up trimming it with a bit anyways. Sounds like the start to a cool cabinet though! take Care Matt
: As described below, I'd like to laminate the sides of my cabinet with aluminum. I've checked into the stuff like Formica Decometal that is pre-laminated on phenolic backing, but it is very expensive (like $90 a sheet!)
: On the other hand, a big roll of aluminum sheeting (thicker than aluminum foil but thinner than soda cans) would be much cheaper and cover my entire cabinet. It comes with a brushed finish and can easily be embossed or brushed with patterns and graphic accents.
: Is there no reliable way to permanently mount this to my cabinet sides? I'm trying to finish this project without breaking the bank, and have already sunk a considerable amount just to get the main components in place.
: Thanks.