Plywood

[Stanley]

Hi all,
i have been wandering if exterior grade plywood would be cheeper than water resistant MDF, and less lightly to rot at the edges?
i dont have much experience, and most people seem to use mdf?
sombody plese enlighten me
thx,
stan

[markh15]

Hi Stanley,
The choice is entirely up to you. Both materials have plus and minus points.

I built mine from 1/2" Brazilian ply (not recommended by Richard Shepherd, he prefers one good face Birch ply as in the book), and although it was only ?20 a sheet (B & Q Warehouse), I had to cover the outer surfaces with Car Body Filler to waterproof it and to get a really smooth surface for the paint.
The plus side is that you don't need pilot holes if you are screwing into the ply, but a pilot is needed if passing screws through it and into the battens.

MDF is a harder substance (due to it's construction of Glue and Wood fibre), so it's slightly harder to cut out, and needs pilot holes for all screws secured into it, or the surface 'Puckers' into a small mound. This separates the batten and the MDF, so the glue doesn't contact, weakening the joint.
The plus point is that the surface of MDF is smoother, so you only need to seal it (sealer is available at any good timber suppliers, inc B & Q) and give it a light sanding before painting, this eliminates the hassle of Body finishing the way I had to.

Personally, If I was to build another, I would use MDF for the outer panels which require a good finish (body sides, wing tops and fronts, back panel, etc), and Ply for the rest of the construction.
This would, in my opinion, give the best of both worlds.

Don't rush into things, ask more questions if you're not sure, after all, we all want you to produce the best car that you can, and everyone will try to help and guide you with their experiences I'm sure.

I don't want to be big-headed, but you might find my website useful, just click on the 'Globe' icon at the left of this post, and it will take you there. there's a build blog, pictures, and some line drawings of my build.

Keep Busy,
Regards,
Mark.

[Stanley]

thx, this helps alot:)
and i have seen your website:P
so, woulld you have to use thicker plywood than mdf?
thx

[markh15]

Hi Stanley,
I would think that 1/2" is suitable for both types of timber. The construction is  strong enough when Glued and Screwed together, very robust!

Keep Busy,
Regards,
Mark.

[multisync]

Hi stan
I used moisture resistant mdf and two sheets cost ?55 delivered, this was from a small local diy shop who had to get it in specially. A timber yard may have it available and cheaper. When glued and screwed together, the body shell is immensely strong, don't go thicker, you'll just add weight!
Walter

[jbeaton]

Having built a Tractor out of ply & a Toylander 2 out of MR MDF. I would recommend using MR MDF for a Toylander. Simply because there are several visual aspect sides on the Land Rover. So if you want a good paint job then use MDF as it is so much easier in preparartion for top coat.

[Stanley]

hi,
thanx, ive alredy bought my wood now, i got 2 sheets of MR MDF for ?43 inc. delivery from ebay,
thx, stan

[jimmyybob]

Just to add my two penneth, I'm having my tractor coated all over with glass fiber resin (without the fiber), a good friend of mine builds boats so with luck it wont cost anything and should be 100% moisture proof and it will also fill and small gaps and holes.

[brian]

And take a fair bit of rubbing down to Finish it off JBob.

But it will certainly be a good finish when done.

Brian.

[jimmyybob]

Its actualy a good finish when just resin is used,especialy on MDF.