while at the home depot i was looking at marterial to build my trunk with. i picked it the MDF board, and it was really heavy. Then i saw 5/8 inch particle board. Can i use this?

 

if your not going to use MDF, then use a good high quality plywood (like birch). particle board is a no no.

 

even though it seemed just as strong as the MDF

 

yeah, even if. what kind of sub are you going to go with?? MDF is really heavy, but that's because it's really dense, which makes it stiff. with a sub box you don't want any flexing of the sides. i guess you can use particle board if you really want, but you'll have to brace it a lot.

also, with particle board, make sure it does not get wet, or it will fall apart.

let me know what kind of sub.

 

oh no, i think you misunderstood me ... i have a box already, i'm doing the floor of my trunk .. but either way i have 2 pioneer impp subs 600 watts max each, and a rockford fosgate 700 s amp

 

It will probably work, but it is not ideal. The real bad thing about particle board is the way it swells with moisture. Unless you live in the desert you are better off with ply.

 

And you gotta love the wood smell after it's al done. Mine smelled like a forest for 3 weeks after my trunk was done. Now it smells like leather, much better. My trunk is made of mdf, not as thick as the parts of the box that're wood, but it works nice

 

oh, my fault. didn't quite pick that up when i read your post.

but yeah, particle board is fine, if you put a seal on it. otherwise, like they said particle board will swell and fall apart. go with some plywood. MDF is not necessary.

 

particle board & plywood will bend after a while and will look cheap,
i would suggest thinner MDF, maybe 1/4 inch? should be strong enough for simple weight...

 

Any half *** plywood is stiffer than MDF of equal thickness. And for the person who said MDF's density makes it stiff, WTFDYGT? Density and stiffness are completely different properties. Consider items like titamium, carbon fiber, lead, and clay. Which one's would you use to make something that needs to not bend? Now consider which ones you would use in a car that you want to still have better than 1 mpg?

The other key to stiff parts like boards is the braceing technique.