Dovetail Question

[Johnnyy Johnson]

I have a friend that is re facing his kitchen cabinets and doing doors. He wanted me to ask if Baltic Birch works good when using dovetails on the drawers. He is not doing it for looks, but wants them to be very sound.

Thanks
Johnny

[Philip Rodriquez]

Yes, they work very well for the application. Just be sure to use some good quality sheet goods.

[Frank Drew]

I agree with Philip; dovetailed baltic birch drawers was my standard on high end built-ins, just as hand dovetailed is on freestanding furniture.

It's hard to avoid chipout -- climb cutting can help here -- but the chipped out portions are inside the joint so are hidden once it's assembled; even so, I'd occasionally glue a chip back in place when I saw where it landed.

[Lee Schierer]

your biggest problem will be chip out. The grade of Baltic birch will be a real factor determining how bad the chip out is. By climb cutting you can avoid much of the chip out in plywood. Personally I like using poplar for my drawer sides due to its relative low cost and easy working characteristics (fewer router related issues). I believe it will be as strong as Baltic birch in the dovetailed areas.

[Fred Voorhees]

I agree with Lee. I always try to use poplar for my drawer carcasses.

[Jeff Monson]

I buy high quality 1/2" baltic birch in 5x5 sheets for drawers, it is very flat and stable, I do climbcut for the dovetails, but as mentioned good quality is a factor on tearout. I will usually run a strip of masking tape for added insurance. I roundover the tops of the drawers also as it looks nice and elimintates splintering. I personally like the looks of dovetailed baltic birch drawers.