Installing new kitchen countertop

[Iain]

GEM auctions in Springvale had granite (or marble) countertops, for memory they were about $300 for a standard 600mm by 3 metres.
Cost more to get the holes cut out though and as heavy as buggery.
I've cheated and just bought 7 metres of laminated 'green' MDF tops for $748, including edging and joiners for the corners, this included cutting the ends so they marry up at the join.
Saved me a lot of trouble.
I haven't decided how to fix them to the cupboards yet but will probably use a L bracket to allow for any movement.
For soild redgum, there is a place in Apsley (near Naracoorte on the Vic side) that sell kiln dried slabs.
He claims they are stable and won't move as they are dried for three months.
Nice little drive from Adelaide, but don't forget the roof rack

[ndru]

Came across this tool (what a great tool name!!!). Looks like a useful and inexpensive aid in fitting of benchtops to uneven walls. Its available from Mik International.

Looks like an ingeniously simple and effective tool, especially compared to a compass in a shaky hand. Has anyone had any experience with it?

[George]

The scribing tool looks good, but there are only 3 wheel sizes. The smallest is nearly 2 inches in diameter. The scrible line would therefore be nearly 1 inch from the wheel edge. I would have thought you'd be scribing for a smaller gap than 1 inch most times. You would finish up taking a fair bit off the back of your benchtop wouldn't you??

George

[ndru]

I agree - an inch is a lot to cut off a bench. I think the tool may be more useful for marking out a template first using cheap plywood rather than scribing directly onto the bench. I agree with earlier advice on making a sacrificial template using cheap plywood first - I've seen what happens in the construction of a bench when walls are assumed to be at 90 degrees but actually aren't!

I was thinking that the Perfect Butt may serve double duty in fitting built-in cabinets against a wall but it looks like its limitation is in the wheel widths. If the greatest distance between the cabinet's back vertical edge and the wall is mostly less than than 2cm then a 2 inch wheel would scribe a very inefficient line, and any gap larger than 4.5cm (a lot but not impossible) would be beyond the Perfect Butt's capability. Think I might stick to a scribing compass for built-ins...

[gazbee65]

ceasarstone is great to look at and reasonably easy to work with. the use of templates is a must however as when it comes to joining the stone together you only have minutes before the special adhesive goes off. to make the joints acurate you need to make a template of all pieces, scribing to walls etc.
i use 3mm mdf its cheap and easy to plane.
you can cut the stone with a power saw, plane it, sand it (with a special stone, the supplier should give a bit) and polish it up with a bit of 360 wet and dry and when done right looks a million bucks. although natural granite is the best.
if your going to install your sink below the granit top use marine grade ply as your substrate fix your sink as you normally would and fit your top over it making sure the correct recess has been allowd for.

with painted back glass for your splash back its as easy as making a template!!!! dont be put off by the cost as you paint it yourself. simply was the glass with meths and apply an enamel paint easy!!! careful not to scratch the paint when dry though as it will peel off oh and use neutral cure silicone to fix it with as acidic cure will eat the paint.

[Gumby]

hey gaz. I think the job might be done by now.