Formica uses

Thread Starter

MaxHeadRoom

Joined Jul 18, 2013
28,618
This may sound trivial and many here may be already taking advantage of it, but if you need some very rigid, thin, hard insulation for an odd application Formica can be a useful substitute.
When ever I am in H.D. I pick up one or two of the samples, they come in very useful for varied projects.
It is made of a plastic laminate of paper or fabric with melamine resin.
It was originally made for an electrical insulation to replace Mica.
Something to add to the junk drawer.:cool:
Max.
 

wayneh

Joined Sep 9, 2010
17,496
It's great for woodworking also. I made myself a router table and I used laminate to cover the wood. The laminate is much harder and resists scratches, dents and wear. It's also more slippery for sliding wood over. I got a nice scrap piece from a local kitchen counter installer.
 

boatsman

Joined Jan 17, 2008
187
In the past I laminated kitchen cupboards with formica. Could be a bit messy at times with the contact glue but after trimming off excess laminate with a router I had a lovely finish.
 

jpanhalt

Joined Jan 18, 2008
11,087
Another use is for "rotary drive" systems in models in which the entire mechanism is hidden within the structure and no control horn visible. That gives a more scale appearance, can be easier to install in very thin wings (e.g., high-performance sailplanes) , and contributes slightly lower drag. Basicaly, a bent wire is rotated by the servo and slides in a pocket in the control surface. That pocket is often lined with melamine/formica .

Here's a YouTube demonstration, but construction details are not shown very clearly:

John
 

atferrari

Joined Jan 6, 2004
4,764
Another use is for "rotary drive" systems in models in which the entire mechanism is hidden within the structure and no control horn visible. That gives a more scale appearance, can be easier to install in very thin wings (e.g., high-performance sailplanes) , and contributes slightly lower drag. Basicaly, a bent wire is rotated by the servo and slides in a pocket in the control surface. That pocket is often lined with melamine/formica .

Here's a YouTube demonstration, but construction details are not shown very clearly:

John
Hola John,

I see what it does but not precisely how. Could you elaborate briefly? The wire (the bent end) is working on/against what?
 

RichardO

Joined May 4, 2013
2,270
This may sound trivial and many here may be already taking advantage of it, but if you need some very rigid, thin, hard insulation for an odd application Formica can be a useful substitute.
When ever I am in H.D. I pick up one or two of the samples, they come in very useful for varied projects.
It is made of a plastic laminate of paper or fabric with melamine resin.
It was originally made for an electrical insulation to replace Mica.
Something to add to the junk drawer.:cool:
Max.
Thanks for the information. It looks like Formica might be a good alternative to fish paper on occasion. I wonder if Formica can be Laser-cut.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fishpaper
 

RichardO

Joined May 4, 2013
2,270
Maybe, although Formica does not bend well as Fish paper might.
Max.
Which is good. :)

p.s. I have Laser-cut fish paper. When the Laser is set properly, it does a very clean cut.

I have speculated that Laser-cut fish paper might make a very cheap stencil for applying solder paste. I have never had a chance to try it on order to find out how well this would work and how long the stencil would last. Too many projects -- too little time.
 

#12

Joined Nov 30, 2010
18,224
A Formica table is great for playing Bridge because you can write the score on the table with a pencil and it comes off instantly when you wipe it with 409 or Crud Cutter. A little slower for a kitchen type of detergent.:p
 
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