Euro Cab system?

[Jay Yoder]

I was reading the "Building shop cabinets" article in my latest woodcraft mag and it mentions a metric shelf hole drilling jig and the 32 mm euro system. Do the euro hinges actually go in the same holes that the shelf pins do? Is that the big advantage to the euro system?

[David DeCristoforo]

The holes are called a "line bore" and, yes, in a "true" 32mm cabinet the shelving, hinge plates and drawer glides all mount using these holes. That is one of the "advantages" of the 32mm system. But it is a complete "system" of cutting, edge banding, and assembly that is designed to A) produce a large amount of casework quickly and without the need for a lot of skilled craftsmen and B) create modular cabinetry that can be easily disassembled and moved from one location to another. In most of Europe, cabinets are treated like furniture in that when people move, they take their cabinets with them.

A true 32mm shop will have at least
A panel saw
An edge bander
A line drilling machine
A second drilling machine for drilling 8mm construction holes
A case clamp
A hinge boring machine

[Bill Neely]

They're also more space efficient than a face frame cabinet and can be quite high end depending on the materials used, choice of doors and drawers, solid edgebanding, etc.

I'm never building another face frame cabinet (as long as I can get flat plywood :)) just because the frameless are so much more flexible.

[frank shic]

jay, another advantage is that you can hang the hinges and drawer slides BEFORE assembling the cabinet and you don't have to shim out or deal with various drawer slide positioning jig like you do with face frame cabinets. it is possible to build them without all the expensive equipment that david mentioned but it does take a little bit more time to edgeband and drill the holes which not only have to be accurately spaced apart from each other but also have to be precisely referenced consistently from either the top or bottom edge of the panels which also need to be cut to exact millimeter dimensions. metal drawer boxes and cabinet hanging hardware speed construction and installation even more but require a jig from blum to bore accurately.

what's the payoff in real time? i spent over 2 weeks building and finishing 11 face frame kitchen cabinets and several days installing them whereas it took me only about 5 days to build and install 24 euro style shop cabinets. hanging euro cabs was ridiculously simple once the hanging brackets were installed and the the rail positioned on the wall.

[Dan Clark]

Jay,

As David mentioned, True 32 is a complete, well thought out system for making frameless cabinets. This includes documentation, processes, tools, standards, and all the other components of the system.

Some good resources for True 32 cabinet making:
http://32mm.dalrun.com/
http://www.true32.com/

I especially like the "True32 Ten Commandments: http://32mm.dalrun.com/System/168.html. While it's writting in tongue-in-cheek "Thou Shall..." style, it's a good, concise summary of the key "rules" of the True32 system.

Also, here's a thread on True32: http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=92917. In that thread they mention this document: http://www.cabsystems.com/KISSII/KIIrivDe-mail.pdf

True32 is a very nice system that works well for low to medium-volume cabinet making shops and for amateurs wanting to build their own cabinets. Higher volume shops will probably have CNC machines which allow them to build to any spec.

For pro shops, line drilling machines, panel saws, etc. may be the way to go. For those of us of more modest means and space, there are some other options...

There are a variety of jigs to accurately drill holes. The one that I've been looking at is the Festool LR32 (right side of this page: http://www.festoolusa.com/products/guide-rails) Here's a description of the LR32 which ties in pretty well with True32 System information: http://www.festoolusa.com/media/pdf/32mm_system_and_the_festool_hole_guide.pdf

I saw the LR32 being demoed at Festool Training. It took the instructor only a few minutes to set it up, align it, and drill a precisely spaced line of holes. Although the technology was nice, what really impressed me was its speed, simplicity, and precision.

One of the best tutorials I've read for using the LR32 is Brice Burrell's:
http://www.festoolusa.com/media/pdf/lr32_tutorial.pdf. On his website, Brice created a VERY clear, animated drawing of the process of using the LR32: http://www.burrellcustomcarpentry.com/subpage13.html.

Another, slightly older LR32 reference doc: http://www.festoolusa.com/media/pdf/routing_adjustable_shelf_pin_holes_with_the_of_100 0_e_router.pdf.

A caveat though...

I already own a Festool saw, rail guides, router, MFT, and dust collector. So the LR32 is a natural for me. If you're thinking of getting into Festool tools, the LR32 should work nicely for you. If not, other non-Festool tools and jigs may be a better solution.

Regards,

Dan.

[james mcgrew]

we long ago butchered the 32mm system and do not use the holes for door and drawer alignment, we had too many cases where someone would scratch a door and in the subsequent call back return to the job without hinge plates ot a part which would in turn cause another call back thereby losing more money!! so we switched to the blum inserta hinge with the full overlay face plates that are used on face frames and alas less mone lost a little more spent on hardware, we have always used the frameless system. linebore is used for shelves only

bob buckley of true 32 visited my shop recently and i was highly impressed with his methods.

jim

www.mcgrewwoodwork.com (http://www.mcgrewwoodwork.com)

[jack duren]

They're also more space efficient than a face frame cabinet and can be quite high end depending on the materials used, choice of doors and drawers, solid edgebanding, etc.

I'm never building another face frame cabinet (as long as I can get flat plywood :)) just because the frameless are so much more flexible.

Framed and frameless both have advantages and disadvantages. I run a commercial millwork shop(frameless) in Kansas City and run my residential(framed) cabinet shop nights and weekends. There are situations where I cant stand either one....Jack

[frank shic]

love that true32 book - a little sparse on color and pictures and almost $50 for a softcover book but the information is priceless. even though buckley is a major proponent of frameless cabinetry and outsourcing the doors and drawer fronts, he's got some great sections on the ideal flow for building both traditional face frame cabinets and doors and drawer fronts. his forum is a source of many pearls of frameless wisdom as well if you have the patience to sift through the older posts.