Plywood Strength Parallel with Plies

Biologyben · Feb 20, 2017

I have a 3 commercial desktops and would like to make a c-leg style bases for workstations. If I use plywood, I'm thinking about a design like this.

NOTE: I'd radius the inside corners as well to provide a bit of gusseting. Where the front skirt and top attachment pieces join to the plywood, I would drill holes to screw into dowels.

My concern is if the plywood would have the strength to support someone sitting on the open edge of the desk. None of the strength tables showed plywood being used in this capacity - they were all for typical sheathing applications with strength perpendicular to the plies.

Thoughts?

hotbyte · Feb 20, 2017

Never used plywood in that manner but my first thought is that it would not hold up to forces along length of desk with legs that are 3/4", i.e. someone leaning against end. Perhaps you could add a piece along back of legs to form an L???

rwe2156 · Feb 20, 2017

If you laminate 3 layers of ply together and alternate plys I think it will be ok.
I would also make the top support wider.

MrRon · Feb 20, 2017

How about something like this?

jerryminer · Feb 20, 2017

I think your design would probably work. For a definitive answer, there is no substitute for a prototype!

(you could scale it down 2/3 and prototype with 1/4 ply and load-test at little cost)

Let us know what you learn.

Plywood Strength Parallel with Plies

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