# Acclimating plywood



## FredIV (Nov 9, 2011)

Hi all. I'm getting ready to start building some bookcases. I'm going to use 3/4'' birch plywood from my hardwood supplier. Should I acclimate these sheets to my shop? If so, for how long?

Also, I will probably have my lumber yard cut the panels into managable dimensions for transportation purposes. Will this have any affect on me acclimating ?

Thanks,
Fred


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## huff (May 28, 2009)

Fred,

I've never had a problem with using sheets goods as soon as I got them to the shop. Your plywood will probably be either a 5 or 7 ply plywood, which means there will be 5 to 7 different layers of wood laminated together (each layer runs perpendicular to the other) This is what keeps your cabinet grade plywood stable. Usually the more ply's makes a better and more stable plywood. You can find 9 ply in some cases, but expensive, so most lumber yards don't carry it.

FYI; cabinet plywood is graded by its quality of the surface of each side. One side will be graded by letters and the other side will be grade by a number. A; being the best and 1; being the best for the other side. A1 would be the best and usually D4 is more of a shop grade or paint grade plywood. You may already know that, just thought I would pass it along.


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## nwbusa (Feb 21, 2012)

My only advice is to spend the money on high quality plywood. I've used cheap stuff in the past and it was a nightmare for many different reasons. I now use Baltic birch almost exclusively, although the 5' x 5' dimensions can be a limiting factor in some cases. I've heard that Appleply is also good stuff and it is sold in standard 8' x 4' sheets. If you're buying good quality plywood from a hardwood dealer then you should be in good shape.


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## FredIV (Nov 9, 2011)

Great thanks for the advice gents!


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