Liam V Posted May 10, 2019 Report Share Posted May 10, 2019 I'm looking to cut my own bats out, from either masonite or high pressure laminate. My only worry is that formaldehyde is used to manufacture these products and I don't know how I feel about having such materials constantly brushing against my hands. I've also noticed that some of the commercial batting systems use masonite. Does anyone have any experience or opinion with this? Is there a material that doesn't use formaldehyde and makes a good bat? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
liambesaw Posted May 10, 2019 Report Share Posted May 10, 2019 Formaldehyde resin is used to bond wood particles in SOME particle board. It isn't used in Masonite though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liam V Posted May 10, 2019 Author Report Share Posted May 10, 2019 My bad, confused MDF with masonite! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnnyK Posted May 10, 2019 Report Share Posted May 10, 2019 While formaldehyde may be used in the manufacturing process, the final product is not subject to outgassing. Hence, you shouldn't be concerned with handling on a regular basis. If you cut your bats from a piece of countertop where the laminate is fastened to particleboard, you should consider sealing the edges as well as the bottom of the bat with a couple of coats of spar urethane to waterproof the bat and prevent any possible outgassing... JohnnyK Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted May 10, 2019 Report Share Posted May 10, 2019 Masonite is not very durable. If you're just using it as a ware board, it'll do okay, but if you're repeatedly throwing on the bats, where they get saturated over and over, they don't last very long. They delaminate and warp. A better wood product is Medex, which is an exterior grade MDF. It would probably have to be special ordered at your local hardware store, though. I've got a few dozen Medex bats that I've been using for 15 years. The nice thing about Medex is that it is absorbent, so the bottoms of your pots dry a little more evenly, but they're much lighter and more durable than plaster. I think they're the perfect compromise between plastic and plaster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Russ Posted May 10, 2019 Report Share Posted May 10, 2019 I have some home made bats that Icut from Medex almost 30 years ago that are still in service! Its more expensive but its for exterior use which means its quite tough. From what Ive been told the highway department uses it for their road signs. Good stuff medex. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark C. Posted May 10, 2019 Report Share Posted May 10, 2019 If you want wood bats Medex is best hyrotex marine mohogony plywood is the Cadalac of all wood bats as it never warps but makes me medex seem cheap I use it for doors that need to stay flat or exterior weather flat wood like my self dump trailer Or a untility box cover to keep your electrical service dry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldlady Posted May 10, 2019 Report Share Posted May 10, 2019 i believe the bats sold as masonite are actually made of a better product named Duron which was sold be the 4x8 sheet years ago. i had so many round bats made of that sheet, 48 12 inch rounds that i used for years. it was very hard to find a sheet when i wanted to make the 5 inch square ones to fit into a Duron bat that i had cut to hold the 5 inch ones. tons of bats that i still have and use when i throw. i have never soaked Duron but someone put 6 or7 of them into the bucket in the sink and did not tell me. the corners did slightly separate but when they dried, they were fine. it is now difficult to find sheet Duron since several changes in management of the manufacturing company. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liam V Posted May 11, 2019 Author Report Share Posted May 11, 2019 Medex seems like the most popular opinion here, we've got this at bunnings https://www.bunnings.com.au/9mm-standard-mdf-900mm-x-600mm_p0590030 Would this suffice or is medex better? MDF definitely contains formaldehyde; would it be a good idea to seal it with this https://www.bunnings.com.au/feast-watson-500ml-spar-marine-varnish_p1561089 For those of you using medex/MDF bats, do you find it necessary to seal or use as is once youve cut it to size? Edit: I've just discovered medex is actually formaldehyde free, but I don't think I can get it in Australia, which sucks. 18 hours ago, neilestrick said: Masonite is not very durable. If you're just using it as a ware board, it'll do okay, but if you're repeatedly throwing on the bats, where they get saturated over and over, they don't last very long. They delaminate and warp. A better wood product is Medex, which is an exterior grade MDF. It would probably have to be special ordered at your local hardware store, though. I've got a few dozen Medex bats that I've been using for 15 years. The nice thing about Medex is that it is absorbent, so the bottoms of your pots dry a little more evenly, but they're much lighter and more durable than plaster. I think they're the perfect compromise between plastic and plaster. 19 hours ago, JohnnyK said: While formaldehyde may be used in the manufacturing process, the final product is not subject to outgassing. Hence, you shouldn't be concerned with handling on a regular basis. If you cut your bats from a piece of countertop where the laminate is fastened to particleboard, you should consider sealing the edges as well as the bottom of the bat with a couple of coats of spar urethane to waterproof the bat and prevent any possible outgassing... JohnnyK Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted May 11, 2019 Report Share Posted May 11, 2019 3 hours ago, Liam V said: Medex seems like the most popular opinion here, we've got this at bunnings https://www.bunnings.com.au/9mm-standard-mdf-900mm-x-600mm_p0590030 That looks to be regular old MDF. You could use it, but you'd have to seal it, in which case is would no longer be absorbent. Ask them if they can get you an exterior grade MDF. They might be able to order something in. You could also check with local sign shops to see if they have something like that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Min Posted May 11, 2019 Report Share Posted May 11, 2019 Looks like the product called Medite, exterior grade MDF, available in Australia through a company called Gunnersen. Google search for Medite Tricoya shows it's formaldehyde free. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dhPotter Posted May 13, 2019 Report Share Posted May 13, 2019 What thickness of Medex are y'all using for the batt? I see it available as 1/4" to 1 1/4" thick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted May 13, 2019 Report Share Posted May 13, 2019 2 hours ago, dhPotter said: What thickness of Medex are y'all using for the batt? I see it available as 1/4" to 1 1/4" thick. Mine measure out to just a little over 3/8". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I.K. Posted September 20, 2020 Report Share Posted September 20, 2020 On 5/10/2019 at 4:40 PM, neilestrick said: Masonite is not very durable. If you're just using it as a ware board, it'll do okay, but if you're repeatedly throwing on the bats, where they get saturated over and over, they don't last very long. They delaminate and warp. A better wood product is Medex, which is an exterior grade MDF. It would probably have to be special ordered at your local hardware store, though. I've got a few dozen Medex bats that I've been using for 15 years. The nice thing about Medex is that it is absorbent, so the bottoms of your pots dry a little more evenly, but they're much lighter and more durable than plaster. I think they're the perfect compromise between plastic and plaster. Hi Neil, could you please help me out with something? I am looking for new ware boards and batts and went to a local wood wholesaler. They suggested 3 different kinds of boards to me. I have no idea which one will be best, meaning good bottom drying and ability to wedge on but won't warp or splinter over time. Any idea about these? 1) Tricoya MDF FSC mix 70% 18 mm 2) Okoume multiplex 12 mm WBP komo 3) MDF board 18 mm V313. Many thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted September 20, 2020 Report Share Posted September 20, 2020 4 hours ago, Ipek Kotan said: Hi Neil, could you please help me out with something? I am looking for new ware boards and batts and went to a local wood wholesaler. They suggested 3 different kinds of boards to me. I have no idea which one will be best, meaning good bottom drying and ability to wedge on but won't warp or splinter over time. Any idea about these? 1) Tricoya MDF FSC mix 70% 18 mm 2) Okoume multiplex 12 mm WBP komo 3) MDF board 18 mm V313. Many thanks! I honestly have no idea, but if any of them are exterior grade then they should work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark C. Posted September 21, 2020 Report Share Posted September 21, 2020 11 hours ago, Ipek Kotan said: Hi Neil, could you please help me out with something? I am looking for new ware boards and batts and went to a local wood wholesaler. They suggested 3 different kinds of boards to me. I have no idea which one will be best, meaning good bottom drying and ability to wedge on but won't warp or splinter over time. Any idea about these? 1) Tricoya MDF FSC mix 70% 18 mm 2) Okoume multiplex 12 mm WBP komo 3) MDF board 18 mm V313. Many thanks! I would get medex its just over 3/8th thick for bats- ware boards are whatever you like and can handle My guess is all these others will not work as well for bats.Medex is proven for bats MDF needs to be sealed for bats and the flakes on the edges will get rough over time. Medex has none of those issues-Just have them order up a few sheets ware boards for me are solid wood or plywood. No mdf -its to heavy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hulk Posted September 21, 2020 Report Share Posted September 21, 2020 That Tricoya looks interesting (https://tricoya.com/performance/); I'd stay away from Okoume (plywood). Medex looks like a Roseburg product (West coast, USA), suggest looking at Medite (https://mdfosb.com/en/medite/products/medite-tricoya-extreme) - available in Europe. I have some powderboard bats, 1/2 and 3/4" thick; they're holding up ok. I applied as much oil stain as they would take, allowed them to dry thoroughly, then put 'em to work. That said, next set, if any will be Medex or something similar... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Kielb Posted September 21, 2020 Report Share Posted September 21, 2020 8 hours ago, Ipek Kotan said: I am looking for new ware boards A simple cfold or paper towel placed under your wares even on a completely non absorbent ware board helps the bottom dry out about as quickly as the sides as water is wicked away constantly. They also allow your ware to slide while drying and help prevent distortion. It’s a quick easy and economical method for folks who use non absorbent ware boards. On the plus side, impervious ware boards last forever and recycled paper towels are reasonably available. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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