Well, it's an education! I say that because I just went to a professional woodworkers forum I know of (Woodweb) to see what they had to say on rift-sawn oak before I responded. A cabinetmaker had written in to say that his customers wanted quarter-sawn, which was more difficult to obtain than the rift-sawn and wanted to know what he could do to talk his customer into the wood he could more easily obtain. One response was: "The customer is always right. If they want quarter-sawn oak, why would you give them something else? If you aren't going to give them that, why not just use poplar and paint it? I know this is extreme, but you are doing the same thing by not giving them what they want! Use the quarter-sawn oak. Plane it down and charge them for it." As a cabinetmaker and blogger I can tell you that (1) I would not recommend MDF under any circumstances and (2) there are better ideas floating around to get the job done. I have written a number of blogs on solid wood tubs, which is an idea that intrigues heck out of me because of the obvious dangers. The link at the bottom of this will take you to one of them, if you're interested. But the point I want to make is that you can waterproof wood. One of the products that is most often used in this country is Waterlox, and I have seen it used on countertops and sinks. I also came across a product in England (the name escapes me at the momentÂmust be age!) that was said to be so good that one guy tested it by putting it on a wooden bowl and then running it through several cycles in his dishwasher! So, that's the waterproofing issue. It can be done. But the other side of the coin is that you really do have to think in terms of "what happens if, for whatever reason, this product fails?" If you have veneer over MDF, the water will seep under and quickly ruin it. If you have solid wood, you WILL be able to refinish it unless you're one of those who would see an obvious problem developing and then ignore it for five years or so. Rift-sawn oak DOES exist as solid wood. If your cabinet guy can'tÂor won'tÂfind it for you, find another cabinet guy. Here is a link that might be useful: Cabinet & Furniture Trends & Information

i was being pressured by our cabinet maker to go with MDF for our laundry room (it was cheaper for him to build and would have been cheaper for me to buy) but i feel it pays to be very particular about the type of materials we select for our home. first off, i feel wood will maintain a stronger resale value. do you ever hear about about a home boasting mdf or particle board construction? secondly and most important: mdf contains formaldehyde. i don't expect to have that stuff pumped into me when i'm dead. forget about while i'm still living. there is off gassing associated with these products and the thought of my kids inhaling those types of fumes don't really appeal to me.

Bolection doors. They are cut from a solid MDF panel with a router and the sharp inside corners are done by hand. Here is a link that might be useful: Bolection doors

Thanks GN Bulders, I going to use the solid core door for the top piece only! The Entertainment Center will be very heavy if I use all MDF! LOL! I will get a two 12" X 2" and place them side by side for the bottom piece with dows to attach them in place and wood glue and clamps. The middle level wil be the 1" wood boards from scrape pieces sectioned off into 20" wide . I looking at maybe using the scrap 4" X 4" for legs. All will be screw together and use framing L braces that are rated at 5,000 lbs. Have not decided if I want to have it a close box or just open yet! I can get components like glass shelves from my two entertaiment systems that I going to junk!