I'd like to dress up the kitchen cabinets with veneer. It's a small kitchen, so I want to do the work on my own. I also know a good supplier of bird's eye maple. I want to know the right way to cut it without ruining any pieces. A carpenter friend said I should use his variable speed rotary saw. I thought you can cut cabinet pieces with a utility knife.
Stan J. ~ Kansas City, Missouri
This is kind of a tricky question to answer without seeing your cabinets. Yes you can cut veneer with a razor knife. The trick here is to get a perfect fit on the cabinet with this thin floppy veneer and getting it glued in place as well. This is how I have done this kind of job in this past, I hope this helps. Cut the veneer a little bit bigger than you need for the panel you are covering. Use contact cement for the glue. Use a bunch of little strips of cardboard to separate the veneer from the surface it is going to be glued to (this works best on flat surfaces) orient the veneer how you want, and then remove the strips one by one allowing the glue to stick. Once the veneer is well attached, then use a laminate router (rotary saw) with a very sharp laminate/veneer bit to trim the veneer. Some veneers will want to splinter so a very straight and accurate score line can help the splintering from the router. Plan your veneer joints carefully and try to hide them behind a door or make then as small as possible. When a router is not an option a sharp razor should do the trick, just take your time. Good Luck!
