Plywood
Use MARINE-GRADE lauan plywood (sometimes called 'Phillipine mahogany' but there is no such thing-- it's all lauan). Specify 'cabinet grade' (A-A with no voids in the laminates). The 'marine grade' ensures seawater-worthy glue. You can specify laminated veneers from a myriad of choices-- teak, mahogany, anything. This is the industry standard. (Note: Home Depot DOES NOT carry this. Call lumber places specialising in boatbuilding woods-- they are on the Web and in the back of magazines.) Cabinets can be of 3/8" if you are careful. Some fronts can be 1/4". Bulkheads and bunk tops are generally 3/4"; I prefer 1/2" where you can get away with it. Err on the light side-- the weight will add up!!! Birch plywood is dimensionally very stable but extremely heavy. You can achieve comparable results using lauan-- but be ABSOLUTELY POSITIVE to PROPERLY treat BOTH sides and ESPECIALLY THE EDGES with appropriate sealant first. Bare wood has absolutely NO place on a boat AT ALL-- it will only curse you in the end, even in cabinets. I would recommend WEST-system epoxy-- and use UV-barrier paint or varnish over it (i.e. Z-Spar Captain's Varnish). In fact some people have got away with cheap fir or lauan plywood (NOT marine grade) in thin thicknesses by saturating the h*ll out of it with epoxy. I don't recommend this for anything structural but it's a viable way to cheat on other stuff. For the Formica counters, consider using 1/2" marine plywood with the white laminate already on it. This is a standard throughout the whole marine trade. Formica is only really necessary when you have hot pots and pans regularly being set down on the counter. You can set in a cutting-board or trim out tiles or even a patch of Formica just for this purpose instead. Remember once you put the Formica sheet against the glue it's done-- you will never move it again. Get it wrong and it's all over (been there, done that). In any case seal up the plywood first-- Formica glue is like rubber and can soak up water. The wood will rot before the Formica and you won't see it till it gets soft. Hope some of this meandering drivel helps. JC 2.
