Posted by Munich on February 14, 2002 at 06:29:12:
In Reply to: Screwing into MDF on the edge posted by Jonathan the Red on February 13, 2002 at 17:53:57:
I screwed into the edge of MDF for my cocktail cab, and you can see the screws on the pics on my website (click to make them larger and look on the left edge), and had very good results.
I predrilled all of the holes to reduce splitting (don't recall drill bit size) and reinforced the seams with a generous bead of liguid nails.
In my cab, I used 5 screws per corner (edge) spaced evenly down the cab. For screws, I used "Simpson Strong Tie Connectors" from Home Depot. They are #8 x 1 1/4" screws and feature a low profile wafer head (not flush like wood screws), deep phillips drive, and a self drilling point. They have a very sharp tip as well. Originally I was going to paint first and leave the silver screws showing, but I accidentally cut my MDF in such a way that only one side of the cabinets would have the screws showing so I just painted over them. I was also going to use a corner piece to cover each edge of the cabinet, but since the screws did not screw flush, I could not. Overall, I'm very happy with the outcome, and once the bottom was screwed on, the cabinet is very durable.
: There's lots of great info from knowledgeable people in the materials thread. Two guys (Matt and RandyT), both of whom really sound what they're talking about, advise against driving screws into MDF on the edge.
: This concerns me a great deal because that's exactly what I was planning on doing for the fixed portion of my control panel. As you can see in this picture (warning: 330K jpg), I wanted to screw it into the edges of the boards that make up the sides of the control box.
: I definitely don't want to split the MDF (those particular pieces are just 1/2" thick), but I'm way past the point where I can disassemble the box. And the screw holes (in the proper places) are already drilled in both the fixed panel and the Lexan. Moving them isn't really feasible at this point either.
: The screws don't need to be particularly sturdy. They're just intended to hold the panel in place and they don't need to bear any load. Can anyone advise (especially Matt and/or Randy) about just how risky it'll be to drive those screws in? And if I choose to go for it, what's the best (and safest) way to predrill to minimize the risk?
: Thanks in advance.