Best screws for plywood?

[alkemyst]

My 'shelves' get critized here but they are nothing but 12" white pine with butt joints attached with wood screws or coarse drywall. I NEVER have had a drywall screw break in this application and I have probably made 100 of these over the years for myself and others.

If you span more than 36" or so you want to but a backing board on each shelf and screw that to the wall if possible or they will warp.

For 12" shelves I use three screws. You have to be the most careful at the top and bottom as splitting can occur, you can minimize this by predrilling (you should always predrill for screws anyway) and not over torquing them).

For my garage I am going to build a 2x4 frame work and use OSX/Plywood for 18-24" deep shelves.

 

[natto fire]

Originally posted by: HeroOfPellinor
Wow you guys are all wrong. LOL. You don't come to a bunch of socially-repressed nerds for woodworking advice.

The answers are definitely all over the place as far as correct and incorrect ways to do this. Is woodworking such a closely guarded secret that you are not allowed to give the correct way and just tell everyone else they are wrong?

I would go with the glue as well. I made some storage cubes with just glue and it is true that the bonding strength is much more than people realize. I also made some tables and just glued the tops on. After it set, I could pick up the 180+ pound tables by the tops alone (I had to do this as a test because my friend convinced me to use the glue, I wanted to use screws.)

 

[Squisher]

Originally posted by: Captain Howdy

Originally posted by: HeroOfPellinor
Wow you guys are all wrong. LOL. You don't come to a bunch of socially-repressed nerds for woodworking advice.

The answers are definitely all over the place as far as correct and incorrect ways to do this. Is woodworking such a closely guarded secret that you are not allowed to give the correct way and just tell everyone else they are wrong?

I would go with the glue as well. I made some storage cubes with just glue and it is true that the bonding strength is much more than people realize. I also made some tables and just glued the tops on. After it set, I could pick up the 180+ pound tables by the tops alone (I had to do this as a test because my friend convinced me to use the glue, I wanted to use screws.)

Yeah, I thought his post amounted to nothing more than trolling. I am far from an expert woodworker and I would like to know where my post was "all wrong" and would like to know what an expert like HeroOfPellinor would do.

 

[HeroOfPellinor]

Originally posted by: Squisher

Originally posted by: Captain Howdy

Originally posted by: HeroOfPellinor
Wow you guys are all wrong. LOL. You don't come to a bunch of socially-repressed nerds for woodworking advice.

The answers are definitely all over the place as far as correct and incorrect ways to do this. Is woodworking such a closely guarded secret that you are not allowed to give the correct way and just tell everyone else they are wrong?

I would go with the glue as well. I made some storage cubes with just glue and it is true that the bonding strength is much more than people realize. I also made some tables and just glued the tops on. After it set, I could pick up the 180+ pound tables by the tops alone (I had to do this as a test because my friend convinced me to use the glue, I wanted to use screws.)

Yeah, I thought his post amounted to nothing more than trolling. I am far from an expert woodworker and I would like to know where my post was "all wrong" and would like to know what an expert like HeroOfPellinor would do.

Sorry for being an ass. Yes, the best option presented so far is the wood glue option. You're going to want to use some clamps or brad nails or something to keep pressure on it as it dries.

The actual answer to the question, though, is confirmat screws or pocket hole screws, both requiring a cheap jig or stepped drill bit, but either will hold plywood with incredible strength without splitting the layers. Confirmats will also work in MDF which makes the minimal investment in the bit totally worth it, though, again, wood glue and brads will work perfectly for most applications.

As far as using regular screws, you're going to need to use course thread screws and a drill bit perfectly sized to accomodate it. Too small or big and you're going to compromise the piece.