work top finishing

Aug 11, 2006 8 Replies

Hi all


Bought worktop find that laminate does not go to ends



need full length of top it came with laminate for the ends



Best way to remove excess before fitting end strips?



Not enough to saw



Electric planer I think too aggressive and difficult to keep flat



thought about routing but how to prevent break out at roll edge?



Any better ideas



Also best adhesive option for ends?



Tony


If you turn the worktop over and clamp a guide to it to run a circular saw along you should be able to remove the tiniest amount. Cut from the front of the top towards the back.

Test this out on a scrap piece to find out the required spacing - on my saw the cut edge is 101mm from the face of the guide

How much you talking about?

I'd router it for a clean/flat cut,get a piece of wood and put it against the sloping edge,mark the slope on wood then profile out then clamp it to the worktop to save splintering or damage at the end.

The message from "TMC" contains these words:

Even with a circular saw running along a batten screwed (mind the screw length!) to the underside?

would evostik contact adhesive be the best for the end laminate bits?

Tony

The message from "TMC" contains these words:

Yes. I prefer to coat the sawn end with waterproof PVA several times first, but it's not vital.

I just had the same problem. I chopped the end off with a router. You can avoid wrecking the edge if you look at which way the cutting edge of the router rotates (clockwise from the top). You need to use it so that the cutting edge goes into the worktop edge that you want to save. Try it on an offcut if you like...if you look down on the router with the worktop the right way up, the good edge towards you, and you push the router away from you, you will see that the left hand side of the cut is OK while the right hand cut probably chipped the laminate edge. Always cut into the laminate edge; don't start and the other side. You can take a few goes, maybe taking a third of the thickness out each time.

Depending which end of the worktop you are cutting you may have to have the worktop upside down to achieve this.

Clamp something straight to the worktop to act as a guide for the router. Some routers have edge guides but usually these don't work this close to the edge. You will need to push the router quite hard against the guide. For best results the cutting action of the router should pull the router into the guide....there is more force on the cutting rather than the trailing edge. In the example above this would mean that the guide would be on the left of the router.

Do try it in a few bits of scrap anything to see what I mean. You should be able to get a perfect result.

As for the edges, use some kind if contact adhesive like Evostik.

norm

Cut with any old saw, then use a ling straight router bit along a clamped on straight edge. Take very fine cuts with new bit.

Normally just iron on. Evostik good, but leaves ugly lines. Best is epoxy and a clamp.

Block sand excess VERY carefully back to surface..a chamfer makes it a bit easier.

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