I like using shallow dados for cabinets where possible, only 1/16 or so deep. I am not looking for more glueing area, just an easy way to assemble the cabinets. On the last large cabinet I did I used butt joints, however, but added biscuits which did much the same thing in aligning the pieces. I used pocket screws and glue as the actual joint and the biscuits worked well to stop the pocket screws from mis-aligning the pieces as the screw is tightened.
The plusses of MDF are its price, flatness, it doesn't warp, and the nice smooth surface. The minusess are its dust is absolutely terrible, it won't hold a screw worth a darn, it sags badly even when not loaded, I drinks up large quantities of glue and finish and it is VERY heavy. As you can tell, I do not like it and use very little of it. For shop cabinets I use lower grade plywood. I've also used waferboard for shop cabinets and would rate it several steps above MDF. But I only use it with the edge covered, the edge of waferboard looks very bad. And you can paint it but it will look like painted waferboard, not very nice. My shop walls are painted waferboard but I skim coated it with drywall compound which considerably improved the appearance but it still looks like painted waferboard.
If you butt joint the cabinets, be sure you have a way to hold the pieces in alignment during assembly. I've used little picture frame clamps for this successfully before. But I prefer to have a biscuit or a shallow dado to help align things.
The plusses of MDF are its price, flatness, it doesn't warp, and the nice smooth surface. The minusess are its dust is absolutely terrible, it won't hold a screw worth a darn, it sags badly even when not loaded, I drinks up large quantities of glue and finish and it is VERY heavy. As you can tell, I do not like it and use very little of it. For shop cabinets I use lower grade plywood. I've also used waferboard for shop cabinets and would rate it several steps above MDF. But I only use it with the edge covered, the edge of waferboard looks very bad. And you can paint it but it will look like painted waferboard, not very nice. My shop walls are painted waferboard but I skim coated it with drywall compound which considerably improved the appearance but it still looks like painted waferboard.
If you butt joint the cabinets, be sure you have a way to hold the pieces in alignment during assembly. I've used little picture frame clamps for this successfully before. But I prefer to have a biscuit or a shallow dado to help align things.
