Thread: Balsa ply availability

For Australian hardwood ply try Brim's Ply, out Penrith way - they have a lot of exotic ply, both local & improted face veneer.

Otherwise I think you are looking for Aircraft grade ply - the only stuff I know of is imported Birch veneer ply. There was a discussion on these boards earlier this year IIRC. Try the search facility.

Balsa Ply - never seen it offered in Australia, but I think it is being manufactured in New Guinea - seems Balsa plantations are the new cash cow there. Try Google-ing for Balsa & New Guinea.

The dimensions you have listed are pretty small - 200x500x6 - that's 8x20x1/4 inches in Imperial speak. If you look at Hobby Co, or any of the R/C flying model shops around, they stock small sheets of Birch ply for model aircraft, not CAA certified. Or Lee Valley also sell Birch Ply in microscopically thin sheets - 1/16 up to 1/4, 600x600 bits.

I've never seen balsa ply, but in that dimension you can laminate it up yourself as balsa, up to 150 mm wide in 1/1.5/2/2.5/3/3.5/4/5/6 mm in sheets 90 mm long are available in model aircraft hobby shops.

They also carry hardwood veneered ply in 1.5 mm and thicker. Expensive though.

Ave a good weekend

Thanks for the tip.

I have seen the Balsa plys sold at hobby stores but always found the width too small. So I was thinking of putting two together. Wood laminating sounds complicated, but something worth investigating I think.