Cabinet top attachment?

[Dave Cav]

I'm building a large sapele (african mahogany) china cabinet. It's roughly 45" wide by 84" tall (below). The sides and lower horizontal dividers are 1 1/4" solid stock, with the ends of the horizontal dividers let into the vertical sides with sliding dovetails. There is also a short vertical divider in the lower section that has long tenons on the ends of the divider which go in rabbets in the horizontal dividers (not shown in the picture). I'm looking for suggestions on how to attach the top. In the picture the top is shown in rough form, not trimmed to length yet and just sitting on the sides. It will overhang about 1/2" or so around the sides. I had considered more sliding dovetails, but cutting the tails on the ends of the long sides would be a challenge to say the least (the tails on the ends of the horizontal dividers were bad enough). I'm probably not going with a tenon on the ends of the verticals either, for the same reason. I thought about screwing cleats to the top of the ends and then screwing through them to the top, but that would be going across the grain and wouldn't accommodate seasonal movement of the sides and top. I even thoujght about drilling through the top into the ends and using long screws (covered with plugs in the top) but that seems rather inelegant. Right now I'm considering dowels. Krenov used dowels to attach his cabinet tops and it seemed to work ok for him, but I'm open to other suggestions.

Thanks

http://i163.photobucket.com/albums/t317/sunshinenight/Projects/DSCF0980.jpg

[keith micinski]

I know what you mean about the screws threw the top being "Inelegant" but you may be over thinking this. Screws through the top won't ever be seen and will also be easy to do but they will also be just as strong as about any other joinery and will get the job done. Why go through all of the trouble of doweling it when you are basically doing the same thing with the screws.

[Dave Cav]

I know what you mean about the screws threw the top being "Inelegant" but you may be over thinking this. Screws through the top won't ever be seen and will also be easy to do but they will also be just as strong as about any other joinery and will get the job done. Why go through all of the trouble of doweling it when you are basically doing the same thing with the screws.

Thanks for the reply. I am starting to think the same. I am still considering cutting tenons on the top ends of the sides and then letting them into rabbets in the top, and maybe then putting a couple of screws in through the top. I could cut tenons in the ends without too much trouble with a handheld router and fence, and plow stopped rabbets in the underside of the top the same way as I cut the sliding dadoes in the side; it just wouldn't be as fussy to fit as a sliding dovetail. At least I have all week to think about it.

[Sam Blanchard]

Hey Dave:
Sorry to get off topic here, but I just couldn't help but wonder when I was looking at the picture of your cab..."do the lights go out in Snohomish like every other day, or does this guy collect Coleman lanterns???" ;)

[Joe Shinall]

Hey Dave:
Sorry to get off topic here, but I just couldn't help but wonder when I was looking at the picture of your cab..."do the lights go out in Snohomish like every other day, or does this guy collect Coleman lanterns???" ;)

Hah! I was thinking the same thing about the nail guns.

[Dave Cav]

Hey Dave:
Sorry to get off topic here, but I just couldn't help but wonder when I was looking at the picture of your cab..."do the lights go out in Snohomish like every other day, or does this guy collect Coleman lanterns???" ;)

Oh, THOSE are just the ones in the queue... the GOOD ones are in the display case in the garage...because my wife won't let me keep them in the house.

Some people think I only do woodworking so I can build display cases and shelves for Coleman lanterns.

Dave in Snohomish
where it is sometimes known to be dark.

[Dave Cav]

Hah! I was thinking the same thing about the nail guns.

Doesn't everyone buy a new nailer every time Harbor Freight puts them on sale?

Nail Gun Dave
who has way too many H.F. 20% off coupons

(my REAL nail gun is a Hitachi...)

[glenn bradley]

I agree that screws would never be seen but, . . . they're screws :rolleyes:. I would use floating tenons. This is a great place for sliding DT's for strength and all that but, the trickiness of the tails on those long pieces would make me prefer tenons. This preference may come from my comfort level with the joint. I am sure other methods would work equally well. JMHO.

[Dave Cav]

I agree that screws would never be seen but, . . . they're screws :rolleyes:. I would use floating tenons. This is a great place for sliding DT's for strength and all that but, the trickiness of the tails on those long pieces would make me prefer tenons. This preference may come from my comfort level with the joint. I am sure other methods would work equally well. JMHO.

Yeah. I don't want to put any screws in this. Ok, not many.

I agree the sliding dovetail to connect the top would be the best, and on a smaller, lighter piece I might have done it. However, the sides are 1 1/4" thick, 15" wide, and 84 inches long, and heavy as hell. The only way I could see cut the tails on the ends would be with a handheld router...not. I then considered tenons on the ends of the sides and long rabbets in the top to let the tenons into. I could cut the tenons with a router and a rabbetting bit or even a straight bit and guide while the sides were laying flat on the assembly table. That would be a lot easier than trying to cut tails on the ends. I dunno about floating tenons...I suppose I could use a piloted rabbeting bit to cut the grooves in the ends of the sides. I'll consider that a bit more, but....

What I think I'll do, after discussing it with the other shop teacher at school this morning, is put a recessed cross piece, essentially a stile, width-wise across the front and back top of the cabinet. The stiles will be recessed back from the edges of the sides about the thickness of the (inset) doors in the front, and the thickness of the back (probably shiplap stock) in the rear. The stiles will drop down into short sliding dovetails routed vertically into the sides. This will be pretty easy to cut, will tie the sides together at the top, and then I can run screws (!!!) up through the bottom of the stiles into the top. I can also probably come up with some way to inlet the front stile into the vertical center rail I plan to install between the doors, and it will provide a positive stop for the doors, too.

[Dave Cav]

I would use floating tenons. .


BTW, I did use floating tenons in the vertical center divider in the lower section. I routed the grooves/rabbets (what's the difference in a rabbet and a groove, anyway?) in the top of the bottom piece and the bottom of the top piece, then cut the center divider and cut regular tenons on the ends to go into the grooves. But there was an...er...well.. a mistake, yeah, that's it, in the tennons, and they ended up getting trimmed of, and a groove was routed in the ends of the divider to match the groove in the top and bottom pieces. A couple of long 3/8" x 1" sliding/floating tennons were milled and shoved into the slots, and now no one will ever know...