Mission Impossible, Vanity Scribing Edition.

[David Eisan]

[que music]

Dum de dum dum, dum dum dum, dum de dum dum (etc.)

[booming anouncer type voice]

David, your job, should you be stupif enough to take it, will be to build a one piece cabinet that has to be scribed to fit between two walls. This message will self destruct in 10 seconds.

[cut to David scratching his head for a long time]

Okay, I built the cabinet and left 1/4" on either side to scribe to the wall. One wall comes out several feet on one side of the cabinet, and only 3/4" on the other. Before I built the cabinet, I thought I knew how to do this. I could push it almost all the way in to scribe the left side, then twist the cabinet to scribe the right side.

When I went to install it today, it didn't work out quite the way I was hoping. The cabinet wouldn't twist enough to let me scribe the right side. Hmmmm. I had my SO stare at it with me to see if it would install itself, but to no avail. I had devised a way in my head to over come the problem, but I asked K if she had any ideas. Unfortunately her idea was the same as mine, and not what I wanted to have to do.

Anywho, here is the master bath vanity installed.

How would you have scribed both sides? There has to be an easier way than how I did it. I will explain how I did it later.

Thanks for looking,

David.

[David DeCristoforo]

You make a template for each side out of 1/4" plywood. Scribe the plywood, transfer the lines to your stiles and go.....

[frank shic]

david has the right answer. make the template smaller than the width of the opening. mark a center mark on the top and the bottom of the template to correspond with center marks that you place on the cabinet. have a friend or your wife hold the template in place at the approximate distance from the back of the wall to the front of the cabinet. use small block of wood and slide it down the wall while drawing a line with a pencil beside the block to mark the template. do the same for the other side. put the template on top of the cabinet. use the block to follow the lines that you drew on the template and draw a line on the other side of the block all the way down the face frame of the cabinet. wish i had pictures because i know the explanation isn't the easiest to follow! nice job with the beaded inset cabinet btw.

[Todd Pretty]

I agree with the above posters, that is usually the way that I would tackle something like that, though usually I use flat cardboard, or hardboard that I have laying around at the sites.

However, the other method that I've had to use is to take the actual face frame, before it is attached to the boxes, and scribe that in place, then simply attach the two when the scribe is finished.

[Larry Edgerton]

However, the other method that I've had to use is to take the actual face frame, before it is attached to the boxes, and scribe that in place, then simply attach the two when the scribe is finished.

I use Davids method as well, but I am usually doing this on my jobsites so this works well for me.

Also I have felt padded 2x4s about two foot long that I place on both walls with a kicker/spreader cut to go between and I gently push the walls apart, just a touch. When the piece is in place I let them back. That way I don't mess with the paint and can still have a tight fit at the plaster.

[Thomas S Stockton]

No one method works all the time but my favorite if I can make it work is to have one of the stiles removable. Scribe one end and attach cabinet to the wall and the scribe the loose stile. To attach I've used a couple of different techniques, if it is paint grade and will be finished in place I just nail it in place or for finished work a couple of hidden pocket screw work well especially if they can be hidden by drawers. For real visible stuff I use biscuts and figure a way to clamp or use tape to hold it on.
Tom

[David DeCristoforo]

Removable stiles work well but they are a PITA with beaded face frames. I also use separate scribe faces at wall ends when I install "frameless" cabinets which makes the whole thing much easier. Larry's padded 2X4... Brilliant!

[Thomas S Stockton]

I don't think I would even try a emovable stile with beaded face frames, looked at the question and not at the pictures.
Tom

[Andrew Joiner]

I use Davids method as well, but I am usually doing this on my jobsites so this works well for me.

Also I have felt padded 2x4s about two foot long that I place on both walls with a kicker/spreader cut to go between and I gently push the walls apart, just a touch. When the piece is in place I let them back. That way I don't mess with the paint and can still have a tight fit at the plaster.

Larry, as usual, you rock!

[Brian Peters]

Removable stile with a beaded faceframe that is shop finished is a nightmare, I wouldn't even try it. I scribe with 1/4" MDF too, esp on stain grade jobs. Sometimes I cut back the stiles on an angle 22.5 or so and it makes scribing a lot easier as its less meat to cut out. (sometimes) :D

[Larry Edgerton]

Odd that this should come up just now, I have two built ins between walls to deliver and install tomorrow, so it was what I was working on when this came up.

I keep a old router around with a champher bit in it to take the back off of the side styles as Brian mentioned. I leave just an 1/4" that is flat. I love hand planes, but I am still basically lazy......:)

[Todd Pretty]

Also I have felt padded 2x4s about two foot long that I place on both walls with a kicker/spreader cut to go between and I gently push the walls apart, just a touch. When the piece is in place I let them back. That way I don't mess with the paint and can still have a tight fit at the plaster.


lol... that is awesome, I've never thought about that... and with a nice back bevel, the edges would lightly dig into the drywall, making it a very tight scribe. I'll have to try that one day.

[Brian Peters]

I'de like to see pics of the contraption/jig :cool:

[Howard Miller]

I am building a vanity, and don't know what "scribe to wall" means.

Please educate me on this.

Thanks!

[Rod Sheridan]

Hi Howard, hopefully your vanity will be square.

When you install it, you'll have to level it, and you'll need to scribe it to the walls and/or floor.

Built ins often have extra wide stiles on the front, so that the profile of the not so straight wall can be transferred to it, and then trimmed to fit without gaps.

Same for countertops, they often have side splashes that are esentially hollow so that they can be scribed to the walls.

For example, you shim your cabinet level and there is a gap at one point along the floor.

You use a compass, set to the same dimension as the gap, and you lay the compass down on the pivot arm, with the pencil arm above it.

Now you run along the bottom of the cabinet and the compass will transfer the curvature of the floor to the kick plate. Now you can cut the kick plate with a coping saw (with a bit of a back angle) along your "scribed" line.

The cabinet will now sit level, without any gaps.

Regards, Rod.

[Howard Miller]

Rod,
Thanks for the detailed explanation. My vanity has wall on one side, open on the other. After is is leveled, I was going to put a piece of trim at the vanity/wall junction. In doing this, I guess I don't need to scribe the side on vanity against the wall?

[frank shic]

howard, that's correct. some people don't like the extra trim piece that's obviously been placed there to hide the irregularity between the cabinet and wall.

[David Werkheiser]

David, very nice work with the beaded f/f and furniture toe kick base.
When I have to scribe between two walls I leave the face frame loose, which makes it easy to twist the frame into the opening. I also do a loose f/f when building a long run of cabinet boxes. I use biscuits, glue and a few pockets holes where they can't be seen. I like to spray everything flat to limit finish runs, so a loose f/f works well.
David Werkheiser