So much for solid wood cabinet doors. MDF on my 2023 Newmar New Aire cabinet doors.

[MarkMaxPayne]

Curious, what about the other doors in the coach? Did you pull any to double check if they are solid wood? Just wondering if they made that door MDF to deal with the "heat" in that cabinet

As in the OP all appear to be MDF. Here is another pic of even the tiniest of small doors above the theatre seats. You can see the mdf the holes for the hinges exposes.

 

[Kevin D Pem]

Maybe the use of wood product would be less confusing. Cardboard (that's the word I use for it), is real wood product. It is worth defending because finish is applied and not a product of quality craftsmanship. And yes it cheapens any product made from it. I sometimes used it back in the day for router templates, never something I would sell.

But I am a lone wolf in this day of cheap products.

 

[d23haynes57]

A few years ago we re-did the kitchen downstairs. I was amazed to find that high end cabinet suppliers use MDF cores or laminated Plywood and veneers. This approach does offer some finish options and i was educated as to how some of these done right are extremely durable. We ended up going with WEN. So far the stuff is durable, east to clean and we don't worry about it getting wet. In my motorhome finish damage from splash water in the kitchen and bath is evident. For my house down if Florida I became the king of Pergo for flooring and are even doing some walls in laminate. My motorhome is still carpet in the bedroom. The ugliest carpet you can imagine. Considering Pergo Premium with the foam cushion. As much as us older purists think only real wood will do there are some advantages to something else.
For my career I managed an automated warehouse. Every pallet was on a custom plywood carrier board. 46 X 54 X 1.25"thick. We had about 38,000 of these boards. My first intro to replacing them learn how specialized plywood products can be. Wat back then Rutland Plywood was suppler. They also made plywood for use as gun stocks.

 

[Holdmybeer]

A few years ago we re-did the kitchen downstairs. I was amazed to find that high end cabinet suppliers use MDF cores or laminated Plywood and veneers. This approach does offer some finish options and i was educated as to how some of these done right are extremely durable. We ended up going with WEN. So far the stuff is durable, east to clean and we don't worry about it getting wet. In my motorhome finish damage from splash water in the kitchen and bath is evident. For my house down if Florida I became the king of Pergo for flooring and are even doing some walls in laminate. My motorhome is still carpet in the bedroom. The ugliest carpet you can imagine. Considering Pergo Premium with the foam cushion. As much as us older purists think only real wood will do there are some advantages to something else.
For my career I managed an automated warehouse. Every pallet was on a custom plywood carrier board. 46 X 54 X 1.25"thick. We had about 38,000 of these boards. My first intro to replacing them learn how specialized plywood products can be. Wat back then Rutland Plywood was suppler. They also made plywood for use as gun stocks.

MDF has its uses, but one of its major limitations is use in any application involving articulation, hinges of any kind and fasteners. That’s an IKEA recipe for failure.

 

[Kevin D Pem]

MDF has its uses, but one of its major limitations is use in any application involving articulation, hinges of any kind and fasteners.

For moving vehicles there is another downside! Weight!

 

[d23haynes57]

MDF has its uses, but one of its major limitations is use in any application involving articulation, hinges of any kind and fasteners.

There of course is quality differences in material and there are fastening methods, mostly inserts that can get past that. All in the engineering.

 

[mreev90]

For those doors, solid wood would not be stable enough to not warp with the heat and humidity. MDF is stable and will not warp. So its not a question of cutting corners. Those doors cost as much or more to manufacture the the standard raised panel doors.
The building I did had condos ranging from 2.5 mil to 65 mil and they used the same type of wrapped doors. MDF is incredible stable.

That is actually not accurate. As far as stability, Solid plank lumber such as Oak, Maple, Cherry, Mahogany and others are just fine for paneled cabinet doors (solid rails and stiles with glued and routed panels or furniture grade plywood panels). They are also fine for draw fronts. If they are kiln dried properly, they should handle the heat just fine. Moisture is actually the biggest problem and not the heat specifically. The heat certainly affects how dry the wood can become, whereas humidity affects the moisture content and warping. As far as cost, the North American average today is: Solid oak plank lumber typically costs $5.00 to $14.00+ per board foot, furniture-grade plywood runs $2.50 to $5.00 per board foot equivalent, and MDF is the most economical at $1.30 to $2.50 per board foot equivalent.

Have you ever seen a solid exterior door to a home or building made from MDF? Of course not. The extreme elements of sun, heat, cold and water would destroy MDF in shor order.

So as you can see, the comparisons are not even close. While MDF is certainly stable when not subjected to moisture, it is by all measures an inferior building material.

 

[Underboss]

That is actually not accurate. As far as stability, Solid plank lumber such as Oak, Maple, Cherry, Mahogany and others are just fine for paneled cabinet doors (solid rails and stiles with glued and routed panels or furniture grade plywood panels). They are also fine for draw fronts. If they are kiln dried properly, they should handle the heat just fine. Moisture is actually the biggest problem and not the heat specifically. The heat certainly affects how dry the wood can become, whereas humidity affects the moisture content and warping. As far as cost, the North American average today is: Solid oak plank lumber typically costs $5.00 to $14.00+ per board foot, furniture-grade plywood runs $2.50 to $5.00 per board foot equivalent, and MDF is the most economical at $1.30 to $2.50 per board foot equivalent.

Have you ever seen a solid exterior door to a home or building made from MDF? Of course not. The extreme elements of sun, heat, cold and water would destroy MDF in shor order.

So as you can see, the comparisons are not even close. While MDF is certainly stable when not subjected to moisture, it is by all measures an inferior building material.

You can have your opinion. But factually many solid core exterior doors are skinned MDF or chip board. Cut one down more then the 2" top or bottom inserted solid wood and you will see it.
Show me a solid plank oak , maple etc door thats 12" x 36"

you posted "Cherry, Mahogany and others are just fine for paneled cabinet doors (solid rails and stiles with glued and routed panels or furniture grade plywood panels)."
We are talking slab doors, not what you are talking about.
I specifcally said heat AND humidity.
As for pricing of a board foot of lumber, again, thats not what I was talking about. I was talking about veneered and wrapped MDF.
I hope this clears up what you misread.