Should I hide the MDF of Veneered Keepsake Box?

Hide it. MDF is never pretty.

-- The hump with the stump and the pump!

Line it with felt.

-- Live to tell the stories, they sound better that way.

Line it with felt.

- woodbutcherbynight

-- Andy - Seattle USA

Glue on a solid wood rim cut through middle to separate top. Do this to the panels before assembly.

Or, glue on a strip of veneer.

That said, I made a prototype once, sanded the mdf real good and painted black. Didn’t look as bad as Imthou.get it would …..but don’t do that!

-- Everything is a prototype thats why its one of a kind!!

Oops, Robert beat me to posting solution.

Instead of solid mdf panel, make panel(s) with 1/2×1/2 strip of walnut on the cut line.
Cut and veneer outside like normal.
Once ~1/8” is removed, separating the halves, a 3/16 wide walnut strip is visible on each half of cut, and not MDF.

Inside can be contrasting wood panels, veneer, felt, or flock coated to hide the natural edge/MDF.

Have used up to 1/2” natural wood edges on couple of veneered Classic Core (MDF faced plywood core) table tops, instead of veneer edges. Needed to support milling an edge radius. Have never used this technique on a box, but expect it work same?

YMMV

-- If it wasn't for bad luck, I wouldn't have no luck at all, - Albert King - Born Under a Bad Sign released 1967

Glue on a solid wood rim cut through middle to separate top. Do this to the panels before assembly.
- Robert

Instead of solid mdf panel, make panel(s) with 1/2×1/2 strip of walnut on the cut line.
Cut and veneer outside like normal.
- CaptainKlutz

Many thanks for the helpful suggestions. Since I have a highly figured burl veneer, I was trying to hide the cut line as much as possible (red line in sketch) to maintain the continuity of the burl across the cut line. It thought about using a v-groove routing bit to inlay a piece of wood on the cut face and then sand down any piece that sits proud of the surface, but that would require an extreme level of precision. I think I may just go with a thin piece of veneer on the cut face and simply treat that line as a design detail.