Two Kinds of Edge Banding for Panel Furniture

        Since beginning to work with composite wood such as plywood and particleboard, learning and practicing different kinds edge banding has been a key skill to conceal unsightly edges. Solid wood vs iron-on edge banding are two such applications that I detail below in how I have used them to make  furniture, as well how they compare to one another.

Solid Wood Edge Banding

        To make solid wood edge banding for a Credenza, I first milled up some cherry strips to be slightly thicker as well as longer than the Credenza's particleboard side components, leaving me room for error on my glue-up. To make the edge banding flush with my sides' thickness, there are a few ways to accomplish this. In the past, I've used a hand plane to remove the bulk of the material, then sand the last ~16th of an inch flush. For this project, we instead used a table-saw fence jig that allowed us to position the blade to cut away most of the edge banding excess material, while running our sides flat against an elevated fence.

 

Setup to cut sides. Hardwood strip
and masking tape used to prevent chip out

Trimming sides to length on the Altendorf Panel Saw

Trimming Excess Edge Banding Thickness from Sides

 To see pictures of the finished Credenza, click here

Iron-On Edge Banding

Finished Side Cabinet

        For my panel furniture exam, I made a side cabinet of cherry veneered particle board with iron-on edge banding on the sides. The edge banding is much less durable than the solid wood edge banding with respect to suffering chips and other breaks from being banged around. For load bearing components, such as shelves, it also will not add any strength (an advantage of the solid wood edge banding). 

        The main advantage, however, is that it's much quicker to apply, and can also create a seamless edge between face and edge of the component.

Ironing on the Edge Banding (Left), Removing Bulk Shavings with an Edge Trimmer (Middle), Filing Away the Last of the Excess (Right)