How can I make these doors?

[Matt Campbell]

I'm trying to figure out the most efficient/productive way to build the doors pictured here.


http://i167.photobucket.com/albums/u126/bluesmanmatt/kraftmaiddoors.jpg


I'm putting in a bid on a job that will require 20+ of these doors. So how do I make them?

Here's a few of my assumptions so far:

1) The curved mullions are 1/4" thick.

2) They are coped where they intersect each other and also where they meet the door frame.

3) This is not as hard as it looks.

What think ye? What's the best way to make these doors?

[Neil Bosdet]

Does the curved detail reside on the front of the glass or behind? My first thought is to do a lap joint where the mullions intersect and cope the ends. You'd end up with 2 hoops that would naturally want to stay in place. Cut them, paint, assemble and slide them home with glue and pin nails.

[Mark Boyette]

The stips look thicker than 1/4" or me but hard to tell from the photo. I'm guessing a half lap joint where they intersect which will be at an angle. Time consuming part is that the various size doors will make for various angles on the half lap. Other than that it looks like nice project.

[Peter Scoma]

I'm trying to figure out the most efficient/productive way to build the doors pictured here.


http://i167.photobucket.com/albums/u126/bluesmanmatt/kraftmaiddoors.jpg


I'm putting in a bid on a job that will require 20+ of these doors. So how do I make them?



I dunno but I think they are quite ugly IMHO.

Curious as to how you will make the curved pieces. Anything bent will likely fracture at the point of intersection where the material is reduced no? Cutting the curve of of solid stock would be to labor intensive. Multiple, thin bent laminations????

ps

[Jamie Buxton]

If you make them with real curved mullions and separate panes of glass, you have challenges in both the wood and the glass work. If you make them as an overlay in front of a single piece of glass, it'll be much less expensive. The door will also be much sturdier. The mullions can be cut out of sheet goods -- MDF or the like. A CNC router would make short work of them.

[Brian Peters]

I've done a lot of intricate divided light and scroll worked glass doors like the ones in the photo. First with something that intricate its usually one pane of glass which simplifies everything 10 fold. If they are individual its a huge amount of work. Next whats the cope and stick profile of the doors like? Sounds like you will need more info before getting started. There are a lot of ways to do it. If its a shaker style with no profile and those curved pieces are flat I would just do some bent lamination and make the thickness the width of those mullions and do it with a wider board, glue it up in a form then rip it to width with a table saw or bandsaw. You will have to baby these until the glass is in though!

While this isn't hard and doesn't require much work if they are all the same height and width make sure you account for the extra time. What ever you would charge to do this as a glass door without the curved mullions add on what you think it will take to do one door. After the first one or two the rest will get faster with each one.

[Ray Frederick]

I hate how ridiculously wasteful this sounds, but in the event you make all of the doors the same size could you not make a template out of 1/2" ply and route the whole thing out of MDF pieces sized to the door blank? Just using a router with a pattern bit and then a little hand work to clean up the intersections seems like it might work.

[Paul Murphy]

If they are ¼” thick overlaying the glass, I would consider making the curved pieces by slicing pieces from a bent lamination glue-up. Get or make a trammel to make your elliptical form out of MDF or something similar. I would use a male & female form with the gap between set at whatever thickness you decide on, I’m guessing ¾”. Nine ¾” layers would give you a 6-3/4 tall ellipse which you could saw ¼” thick parts from. I would use 1/6” veneer glued with urea formaldehyde

Using the same trammel on a door-sized MDF blank, cut two properly intersecting ellipse cutouts at full thickness, probably 1/4”. Leave the trammel attached (carpet tape) at the second cut, reset depth to half thickness (1/8”?) and rout your half lap with the part held in the intersecting ellipse.

Give some thought to the ends of the ellipse, because you can then terminate it at a right angle and extend the rest as a straight “tenon” of whatever length you want... Decide on that before you build your form.

You could also make a template and pattern rout the pieces from thin stock, but parts made this way might have to be glued to the glass to keep them flat. Depends on how thin you go, which is one more factor in how you chose to build the rest of the door.

As was already mentioned, you could also pattern or CNC mill the parts from mdf or some similar sheet stock.

[David DeCristoforo]

Have to agree that these are... well let's just say this is not my "favorite" design. So my first line of attack would be to try and talk the clients out of it! But, failing that, there is no way you are going to make those as "true divided light" doors. Not unless the curved elements are quite a bit more substantial than those shown in the pics. That leaves an overlaid grid. The ones in the pics are probably no more than 1/4" thick and I would bet they are cut from 1/4" thick MDF or HDF on a CNC machine. As much as I dislike MDF, that would be my approach if I had a choice between making these doors or being thrown off a cliff. 1/4" MDF, router and guide collar and template. Also, while I have rarely laid out cabinets around the doors, in this case I would make an exception and insure that all the doors were the same size. Otherwise you will need a different layout for each different size.