Bob Hodge wrote concerning shelves for his old roll cabinet.  He noted
that 1/4" Luan underlayment is a poor choice for a shelf.  That's
because the underlayment is three plies and the face veneer is quite
thin.  It is expected to do all the work.  The core veneer is poor and
is going the wrong direction.  Additionally, Luan is a pretty soft,
weak wood.

You can buy 1/4" birch or similar hardwood underlayment at the Home
Depot which might be worth a try.  The shelves in my cabinets appear to
be of solid tulip poplar wood.  They appear to be thinner than 1/4" and
of course any thickness simply takes away from the available capacity
of the cabinet.

I plan to build roll cabinets and get rid of the antiques.  I'm still
worrying about the shelf material but I am leaning toward making my own
plywood using three lamina of 1/16" mahogany veneer.  I have a small
stash bought for boat repair so I hate to waste it for surfaces which
are seen only at the edge.  I would place the middle veneer at only a
slight angle to the face veneers.  I've made many small pieces of
plywood for the boat; it's not that difficult.

Douglas Heckrotte

 [ Moulding a custom plywood thwart for a Flying Dutchman
 [ http://www.mmdigest.com/Attachments/14/06/25/140625_102526_2008-09-10%20Thwart%20002.jpg 

 [ The raw piece of plywood
 [ http://www.mmdigest.com/Attachments/14/06/25/140625_102526_2008-09-10%20Thwart%20004r.jpg 

 [ The finished thwart
 [ http://www.mmdigest.com/Attachments/14/06/25/140625_102526_2011-10-28%20009-r.jpg