Large drawer material ?

[Rob Cooper]

I am building a chest of drawers/dresser for my daughter. There will be 5 drawers all 43" wide by 20" deep. The heights will vary from 10" to 5". I have never made drawers this large and with inset fronts I am worried about sag and material stabilty. Is this a situation that calls for 5/8 or 3/4 ply drawer bodies?

Any suggesstions welcome.

[Craig D Peltier]

I once made draws 40 wide by about 20 deep with 1/2 baltic birch sides. The front was 3/4 beech. Draw was heavy. The issue with wide draws is the draw twisting one way or the other while closing causing it to bind a bit. I would consider putting a third slide on the flat on the underside in the middle to prevent this as best as it can.
I have no problem with sagging. Some glue an nails it held together fine.
I did use a 1/2 inch bottom.
I shy away from draws 30 wide or over now.

[Joe Scharle]

When I make wide drawers, I use a center runner that splits the bottoms and rides on the center of the web frame. 5/8" maple or poplar is what I use for the sides and 1/4" birch or oak bottoms. 3/4" or 7/8" front/rear.

http://www.ncwoodworker.net/pp/data/632/Child_s_Dresser_002.jpg

http://www.ncwoodworker.net/pp/data/632/A_008.jpg

[Steve Rozmiarek]

Rob, I like solid wood better than ply for drawers for weight reasons. I'd also use a thicker floor, 3/8" at least, poplar maybe. Just account for seasonal movement. Are you using slides? If so, choose a quality set. I just used Blum Tandems on a dresser, and they work well. Their under drawer design keeps everything aligned better then the side mount. They do take up a lot of space under the drawers though. A good slide will keep everything straight. Of you are not using slides, some sort of center guide is in order, a the other guys mentioned

[Brian Peters]

1/2" maple will work fine, I tend to go with 1/2" bottoms for larger drawers because they make it a lot stronger and people tend to store heavier items in the larger drawers anyways.