Plane or Belt Sander to trim drawer??

[John Fieldstadt]

Without going into too much detail, I just completed my first "true" woodworking project this weekend: A closet organizer for my daughter. All in all I'm very pleased with the results but I ran into a problem with the drawers.

I built two drawers out of 1/2" (15/32") plywood using pocket holes. Again I am very pleased with the drawers themselves but I made the clearance for the drawer openings too tight. My question is should I use a plane (hand or power) or belt sander across the tops of the the drawer panels to trim it down? Any other suggestions?

Any suggestions/advice is as always greatly appreciated!! Thank you.

John

[Rick Cicciarelli]

If it wasn't plywood I would say use a hand plane....my experience with plywood is limited. I wonder how a power plane would hand the edge of plywood?
I guess if it were ME...and the project was finished....I would probably test out the results on the edge of some scrap plywood first and see which does
the least amount of damage.

[John Fieldstadt]

I hear ya. I'm afraid that either plane would tear up the edges. When I was putting it in on location with limited tools I tried taking it down with a ROS but that process was painfully slow, that's why I thought something like the small Porter Cable 371 would do the trick.

[Ellen Benkin]

Depending on how much is "too big" you may have to rebuild the drawers. If you do, try dry fitting them before you glue them up. My experience is that all drawers need to be "adjusted" no matter how carefful your measurements. Consider it a learning experience and be glad it is only two drawers.

[Rod Sheridan]

Can you rip them on the table saw?

Avoid the screws of course.:D

regards, Rod.

[Dave Houseal]

+1 on Rod's table saw idea. You just roll it over and do each of the four sides.

I've never taken a belt sander to anything I've built without disastrous consequences. And I've tried it many more times than it should have taken me to learn not to get the belt sander out! LOL

[John Sanford]

You can use a handplane on the plywood, which I would recommend, rather than a belt sander. It is possible to do fine, very controlled work with a belt sander, just like it's possible to carve with (and juggle) chainsaws, but the learning curver is pretty steep, and risks pretty high.

To use the handplane, make sure it's sharp, and use a marking knife/marking gauge to score the "crossgrain" fibers to prevent tearout. It's a good idea to put down some painters tape also to help prevent tearout. Take light cuts, and when you're done, you can just sand the edge and you'll be good to go. This is what I've done frequently with Baltic Birch, it may not work as well with a lower grade of plywood.

[Stephen Cherry]

+2 on the rip with the table saw.

[glenn bradley]

+3 on the tablesaw if the design is such that you can do this. If there is a problem with that and the amount to be removed is not too much; stick some sheet sandpaper to a flat surface like a piece of melamine or MDF lying on your bench. Set the box on it and sand away. I do this on a much smaller scale for small boxes to even up sides and corners.

[Alan Lightstone]

+4 on the table saw. I do this all the time.

[Jaromir Svoboda]

+5 on the table saw.

[Brian Kent]

I always assume I need to plane a little, including plywood.

[John Fieldstadt]

Thanks for all of the suggestions. I won't be back there to work on if for a few weeks but I wanted to plan my attack now. The table saw suggestion would work on the design but the amount of material that needs to be removed is at most the thickness of the saw blade and I won't have access to a table saw there anyway.

John, thanks for the instructions on using a hand plane. I think that's the route I'm going to take. I'm ashamed to say that I don't own any planes yet but have wanted to get some. Could you please tell me which would be best for this application? Thanks.

[John Sanford]

Thanks for all of the suggestions. I won't be back there to work on if for a few weeks but I wanted to plan my attack now. The table saw suggestion would work on the design but the amount of material that needs to be removed is at most the thickness of the saw blade and I won't have access to a table saw there anyway.

John, thanks for the instructions on using a hand plane. I think that's the route I'm going to take. I'm ashamed to say that I don't own any planes yet but have wanted to get some. Could you please tell me which would be best for this application? Thanks.

Either a #4 Smoother or a block plane, preferably a Low Angle block plane. I've used my L-N LA Block plane on BB sides just this past weekend. I highly recommend it, or the Veritas LA block plane available from Lee Valley. You can also go for a nice vintage plane, or possibly one of the new Sweetheart's from Stanley or the Woodriver LA. While they are more expensive, the advantage of the L-N or Veritas is they'll give you an idea of what a great plane is like, and their quality control is topnotch.

[Chip Lindley]

...I built two drawers out of 1/2" (15/32") plywood using pocket holes.
John

I have to deduce you made the drawers too wide to fit the opening. IF height was the only problem, they could be run through the table saw to trim 1/16" off.

Pocket screw joints can be disassembled. Did you glue everything too? If not, take the drawers apart and cut fronts and backs a tad shorter. Only you know how much.

[Tim Sproul]

For a belt sander, a stationary sander will be much more controllable than a hand-held belt sander. But a hand plane is really fantastic for fitting drawers. With a hand plane, you can even match a bowed case opening so that you have an even amount of reveal around the entire drawer. One possible drawback to using a hand plane is the blowout you can experience at the ends of the cut. To help avoid/control this, bevel the edges of the drawers first and then hand plane the drawer front to fit. Watch the amount of bevel remaining as you plane the drawer front edge. Add more bevel as needed.

[Rich Engelhardt]

The table saw suggestion would work on the design but the amount of material that needs to be removed is at most the thickness of the saw blade and I won't have access to a table saw there anyway.



That's ~ two passes across each top w/this:

http://www.amazon.com/Dremel-PL400-XPR-Planer-Attachment/dp/product-description/B0002QZ1PQ

Fantastic little attachment for a Dremel 400. I can't begin to tell you how often I use mine.

[John Fieldstadt]

Thanks John. I'm looking at low angle block planes. I knew they were a lot but I'm still choking on the prices....they definitely weren't in the budget for this project! I know they'll be worth it in the long run though so I'll see what I can manage.

Chip, that would probably work for me but my table saw will be 220 miles away when I fix this!

Tim, I like your thoughts on the hand plane, the reveal and the bowed case (how'd you know I had an issue with a bowed panel?? :-)

Rich, thanks for the link. I was totally unaware of that attachment, looks very interesting. I'm going to look into that too.

Another 3 wks until I head back down there so I've got time to prepare. I'm very thankful for everyone's suggestions!