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richard gaudet
01-01-2005, 10:03 AM
i'm designing a gun cabinet for at least 16 long guns, with glass doors. i'm thinking the cabinet should be aronud 70" wide and 55" tall(where the rifles sit). i would rather use two doors, instead of three.

my question is would a wood framed glass door 50" tall by 33" wide be to big?
i havn't desided on coped rail & stile (router) or mortice and tenon.
the glass would be 1/8" thick.

thank you
richard:confused:

Jamie Buxton
01-01-2005, 11:07 AM
That is a pretty big door, but it can certainly be built. After all, you've seen hinged house doors big enough for people to walk through. I'd use framing wood which is perhaps 1 1/4 x 4, and real mortises at the corners. Those joints at the corners are the only thing holding the weight of the glass, and glass is darn heavy. I wouldn't trust cope-and-stick joints, which have very little glue area.

Another design possibility would be sliding doors. Then you don't have great big doors you have to duck when you open the cabinet. You also get door support across the entire bottom of the door, not just at the hinges. Therefore, you could make the door frame with smaller wood. Heck, you could even dispense with the frame entirely.

Mark Singer
01-01-2005, 11:42 AM
It should be fine. Either loose tenons or large dowels in the corner joints. 6/4 material. Rabbet and stop.

James Stokes
01-01-2005, 1:20 PM
For a door that size I would use 3/16 glass.

John Weber
01-01-2005, 1:50 PM
Check with your glass supplier, my guess is you should upgrade to double strenght glass (just a little thicker). You should be able to easily build your frame strong enough.

John

Steve Clardy
01-01-2005, 5:52 PM
You will also probably need to use about 4 hinges per door, if using euro cabinet style hinges.