Solid surface is an excellent choice for marine applications. It’s much lighter than stone, its higher tensile strength withstands pounding waves, and unlike most stones, it can be backlit. I recently built and installed this Avonite Ocean Breeze top, a new color in 2016, in the Sabrage, a 63-foot commercial party boat.
Since this material has “movement” and that movement must continue around the 4” deep front edge and the 2” rear, it is imperative to keep the pieces marked for subsequent realignment at glue-up. This is a 3-sheet job so each sheet got its own mark. Here it’s blue masking tape with a squiggly red marker line. I used pencil and black marker on the tape on the other sheets to avoid confusion between rips.
Since I don’t have a CNC machine, I’m going to have to use my table saw with a sled to make the 20” diameter circle needed for the bearing guide for the 10” radius top corners. I’ve roughed out the circle and screwed it to the sled, then pushed it toward the sawblade and spun the template simultaneously. Take too big a bite and you’ll bind the blade. Once you’re past the blade, your circle is CNC perfect.
Because this is a “U” shaped top and has movement, the corners with radii must be mitered. I’ve cut the miter, assembled the rough top, cut the radius, disassembled the rough top, and with a bearing bit on a router, cut a rabbit to accept the sequential drop edges. This is polyester, not acrylic like Corian, so I’ve kerfed the material for quicker and easier thermoforming. I filled the kerfs later.
This is why you tape and squiggle. You’ll be searching all over for your match otherwise.
A rabbit looks every bit as good as a mitered edge, has more adhesive surface, but has no delicate and razor sharp edges during fabrication and is much easier to clamp.
