menards with cut list or dayton boxes?

[clearwaterms]

I apologize for cluttering the board with what must appear to be such horribly noob like questions. But I must thank everybody in advance for all of the answers.

Okay, I am getting ready to start construction on my Modula MT's. The boxes are available at PE for $63 a box. THat comes to be about $190 for three boxes.

The driver and cross over materials should cost me about $330 for all three speakers (Left, Center, Right)

My question is if am i better to bring a cut list to menards / home depot or would I be better to just buy the boxes?

I don't mind putting in the effort to glue / route / finish the boxes if I were to buy. Thats half the fun right? getting to make MDF saw dust.

so here is my list of questions.

#1, approx what does Menards / Home depot charge to slice up a few pieces of MDF? what level of quality can I expect form such a store?
#2, how many sheets of MDF will I need? and does somebody have a cut list for a modula MT?
#3, can I just bring a grocery list of the required sizes to them? like I need 3 pieces at this size, and 3 pieces at this size, etc.? and if so can I trust that I will actually get that?
#4, is it really worth it to build the boxes? I am reading alot online that people state you get a quality box from dayton and by the time you do all the prep work, it's not worth it.

anybody have any suggestions?

[---k---]

Menards will not cut plywood.

Home Depot has teenagers that are satisfied with getting +- 1/2 inch. This is not good enough.

Building your own boxes is fun, but Jon designed using the PE boxes for a reason.


Edit:
You're in West Chester, wonder over to Owl Hardwood in Villa Park on St. Charles road. They have an awsome selection of Birch Plywood. They also have guys that will make the cuts you need and are extremely accurate. They charge, but I don't think it will be too much. I was a little shocked when I was in there a couple of weeks ago. I wanted them to cut a 5x5 sheet of Birch Ply down into 3 ~20" strips. I didn't care about the width, as I planned to trim it at home on my table saw. But they quickly pointed out to me that because of the width of the saw blade, three 20" strips wasn't possible and asked if I wanted three equal strips or two 20" and the left over. And then they said it would be a little bit less because they typically square the edges first. Cuts were beautiful.

[Chris7]

You won't likely save any money by building the boxes yourself unless you already own all the finishing supplies and have a sheet of veneer laying around. The little things add up (Bondo for filling, glue, etc.), and it's difficult to get a finish of the same level of quality as the PE cabinets, especially if you haven't done this before (e.g. MDF will expand along seams unless dried and then fully sealed, and this telegraphs through the finish). If lowest cost is your aim, I'd buy the PE cabinets, unless you do a decent amount of working with MDF or intend to do a really simple finish like spraying the entire cabinet with truck bedliner. If you want to do something creative, of course, building the cabinets can be fun.

[Mazeroth]

Buy the cabinets. Even at full price without free shipping they're a good option. On sale and free shipping = no brainer :T

[clearwaterms]

Menards will not cut plywood.

Home Depot has teenagers that are satisfied with getting +- 1/2 inch. This is not good enough.

Building your own boxes is fun, but Jon designed using the PE boxes for a reason.


Edit:
You're in West Chester, wonder over to Owl Hardwood in Villa Park on St. Charles road. They have an awsome selection of Birch Plywood. They also have guys that will make the cuts you need and are extremely accurate. They charge, but I don't think it will be too much. I was a little shocked when I was in there a couple of weeks ago. I wanted them to cut a 5x5 sheet of Birch Ply down into 3 ~20" strips. I didn't care about the width, as I planned to trim it at home on my table saw. But they quickly pointed out to me that because of the width of the saw blade, three 20" strips wasn't possible and asked if I wanted three equal strips or two 20" and the left over. And then they said it would be a little bit less because they typically square the edges first. Cuts were beautiful.

thanks, I have seen owl hardwood, the building always makes me think it's a bowling alley. I actually thought about going over there, but am now thinking of just ordering the boxes as complete boxes from dayton...

[WillyD]

Order the Dayton boxes. Sale+free shipping+nice finish+good build quality = no brainer.