Why not cardboard?

[OCtoolguy]

I know I throw away a lot of good flat cardboard boxes. Amazon and Chewy come to mind. Why not cut the good flat sides from these boxes and use them for backer boards when cutting BB plywood? I would think it might work well and save a lot of good wood for other things. I myself don't do that many projects like that but I do have one coming up soon where I will be stack-cutting some 1/8 in pieces. It would be such a shame to waste some good wood as backers. What say you all?

 

Edited February 13 by OCtoolguy

[rjweb]

Ray, sounds like a good idea, I have never tried that though. Tonight quaifying to see who's on the front row, RJ

[OCtoolguy]

3 hours ago, rjweb said:

Ray, sounds like a good idea, I have never tried that though. Tonight quaifying to see who's on the front row, RJ

I can at least pull for Martin Truex one more time.

[Roberta Moreton]

Cardboard will show ridges.  I tried it. Didn’t like it.  You want it to look smooth. 

[dgman]

39 minutes ago, OCtoolguy said:

I can at least pull for Martin Truex one more time.

Well, he’s made it into the race!

 

[OCtoolguy]

39 minutes ago, Roberta Moreton said:
Cardboard will show ridges.  I tried it. Didn’t like it.  You want it to look smooth. 
I'm not sure what you mean. Can you elaborate? I'm only thinking of using it to back up the underside while cutting. Not for a backer for the finished product.

[kmmcrafts]

I read that as being a backer like many paint or use as a contrasting color wood to enhance the piece..

As for a sacrificial piece that'll be cut as a sort of support for the actual wood panel it might work well but I think it'd depend on the type of cardboard you use.. I don't think you'd want to use the corrugated? like a shipping box as I feel like the bottom would fray and be catching and ripping on the edges of the saw table.. Now the type that say a cereal box or case of your beverages come in type of cardboard might work well for this.. I use the old cereal boxes to do test runs on the laser or to make a outline mark for say ornaments that are already made but I need to line it up to engrave a name or? on them so I know where to place the ornament to get it straight etc.    

[rjweb]

Ray, look at it this way the #19, got the pole, RJ

[Scrappile]

I have not used cardboard from boxes.   I have used flat black poster board as a backer on many pictures I have cut.  Have never had a problem.

 

[Denny Knappen]

I use mat boards as a backer.  As a framer, I have access to many different colors.  My next project is the Heron on the front cover of SWWC.  I will use a mat board on that project.

[Bill WIlson]

20 hours ago, OCtoolguy said:

I know I throw away a lot of good flat cardboard boxes. Amazon and Chewy come to mind. Why not cut the good flat sides from these boxes and use them for backer boards when cutting BB plywood? I would think it might work well and save a lot of good wood for other things. I myself don't do that many projects like that but I do have one coming up soon where I will be stack-cutting some 1/8 in pieces. It would be such a shame to waste some good wood as backers. What say you all?

 

Looking forward to a full report as to how it worked.   

[OCtoolguy]

1 hour ago, Bill WIlson said:

Looking forward to a full report as to how it worked.   

Please understand that this was just a question/suggestion thing. I've never tried it but will give it a go on my next project. I don't do the type of work that generally requires a sacrificial piece of wood. So, the idea of something cheap came to mind and I thought I'd toss the idea out there. I think my wife has a Chewy order out there so if the box is in good condition, that will be my supply of cardboard. Fingers crossed. Another thing that came to mind is card stock. I had some patterns printed on card stock at FedEx and it seems like it would hold up well so that might work out too. Anything that saves on the cost of goods.

[Bill WIlson]

I get it, I was just razzin' ya a little Ray.  

[sydknee]

5 hours ago, Denny Knappen said:

I use mat boards as a backer.  As a framer, I have access to many different colors.  My next project is the Heron on the front cover of SWWC.  I will use a mat board on that project.

I also often use mat boards with success.  Luckily I have a friend who recently retired and gifted me a whole heap of it.

[Dan]

Most of my corrugated boxes are used to squeeze paint out of brushes and rollers. I've used over a dozen for that over the last 8 months. The rest either go covering table tops when the grandkids want to paint or to the wife for shipping boxes (she sells a lot on eBay). I've never used a backer for cutting. If I'm using thin wood I'll just make a stack 1/2" thick or more and cut extras. 

[Roberta Moreton]

I am curious to see how it works for support while cutting fretwork.  I currently use a second sheet of 1/8” ply for that but, I usually end up with two good pieces when I am finished. Sometimes they are not identical, nobody usually notices. 

It might be good when I want to cut something small out of a piece of 1/8” that really only needs one. Or something really small out of something. 

Edited February 14 by Roberta Moreton

[Rolf]

I would not use cardboard as a backer, it just wouldn't look right to me. That said I did use a piece of Matt board for the backer on the Heron in the spring issue of SSWWC . It had the exact color I was looking for. 

What I have used as backers is resawn logs that I cut to about 3/16" then run them through my drum sander to about 1/8".  Free wood with some beautiful grain. 

I also get a lot of boxes between Amazon and Chewy. I cut many of them up and use the pieces for when I spray paint stuff. Also the Chewy can trays are perfect for keeping works in progress pieces together. 

Edited February 14 by Rolf

[kmmcrafts]

I think we've got two different conversations going here.. 

One is actual backers for finished products to complement the cutting

The other is a backer that you put on the back as a sacrificial piece to help from tearout etc.. when cutting thin fretwork stock that you only need one finished piece and rather than using another piece of wood that you could use for other projects why not cut something that you would be throwing out anyway such as cardboard... I think this is what Ray is asking about?

I personally have always stack cut anyway as usually I'm in production mode and usually find a buyer for 1,2,3 or 4 more anyway..

As for backers to complete the project with a contrasting piece to enhance the details of the cutting I've used all sorts of things from colored paper, foam sheets, poster board, plywood of another species of wood, hardboard, mirror, and gosh dang near anything that I can fasten to the back and looks good.. 

[wombatie]

If it was used as a throw away backer it should work and it would save money and sometimes good ply. 

Marg

[NC Scroller]

Ray I like your creativity but I don’t think packaging cardboard, corrugated, will work as a cutting backer due to the ridges and voids.  It would be like cutting quarter sawn wood.  You would get resistance at the ridges and then jump ahead in the voids. It would make it very difficult to control especially in delicate areas and where you have to make tight turns.  

[OCtoolguy]

7 hours ago, NC Scroller said:

Ray I like your creativity but I don’t think packaging cardboard, corrugated, will work as a cutting backer due to the ridges and voids.  It would be like cutting quarter sawn wood.  You would get resistance at the ridges and then jump ahead in the voids. It would make it very difficult to control especially in delicate areas and where you have to make tight turns.  

I will have to give it a try. I don't see it being any kind of influence on the blade. I might be wrong but it's worth a try. 

[Scrappile]

Help me out @OCtoolguy,  Like Kevin writes. What backer are you asking about?   I assumed the one backing the picture to enhance the picture, not the one to reduce fuzzies as you cut.  I use the poster board to enhance the picture, once it has been cut.  To completely different uses. 

[OCtoolguy]

3 hours ago, Scrappile said:

Help me out @OCtoolguy,  Like Kevin writes. What backer are you asking about?   I assumed the one backing the picture to enhance the picture, not the one to reduce fuzzies as you cut.  I use the poster board to enhance the picture, once it has been cut.  To completely different uses. 

Paul, I am talking about the board used to slow down the fuzzies. A sacrificial backing to replace using thin cheap plywood. It was just an idea that popped into my head. I do not do this type of scrolling but a project that I'm going to undertake will require using a sacrificial piece so I just thought about what might work that isn't wasteful. I'm a cheapskate.

[Scrappile]

Ignore my response about Poster board.

[OCtoolguy]

1 hour ago, Scrappile said:

Ignore my response about Poster board.

Too late!