Oak Sideboard

[Troy Sherman]

Hello, I'm new to this forum, been reading it for a while, but this is my first time posting. I've seen some very nice projects on here and you guys seem to be experts at this, so I figure you will know what I am doing wrong.

I am working on a design for a mission-style sideboard that I plan on making using red oak. I'm designing in sketchup and the picture shows what I have so far for the carcass. It is my intention to use Solid Oak, and also Oak-veneer plywood (3/4), which is the more yellow color in the picture. I will be using mortise and tennon joints for the mission style parts on the bottom, and I will likely use pocket screws on parts that will not be visible from the outside :eek:.

The question I have is, how would I attach the plywood to the solid wood frames? I'm worried about the expansion/contraction of the solid wood pieces. They are 1x3s. Legs I plan on using 2x2s. Length of the sideboard is about 50". The second picture is what I'm roughly trying to duplicate. Is there a different way I should be making the ends? I've only made one real piece of mission stile furniture, but it was an end table and had no plywood.

Thanks for any advice!

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[Jerry Miner]

The question I have is, how would I attach the plywood to the solid wood frames?

There are several ways this can be successfully done. My personal favorite is to use 1/2" material--not 3/4-- and cut a groove in the stiles/rails and a rabbet in the panel, like this:

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You don't need to worry about expansion/contraction of the stiles/rails here because:
1. They are narrow, so they don't move enough to cause a problem
2. They are not constrained by the plywood---they can expand to the "outside" without issue.

If you were using solid wood panels, you would want them to be able to "float" and expand/contract independently of the stiles/rails. Since you are using plywood, which doesn't move like solid wood, you can glue the panels into their grooves.

[glenn bradley]

I do as Jerry shows although I don't use plywood for my show panels. As to pocket holes, they were in use long ago and were and still are a good joinery method for some situations. I find them particularly handy if I want to add an additional non-show stretcher(s) for strength or in preparation for shipping.

[Troy Sherman]

Ok, I think I get it. Is there a general rule of thumb for how wide a piece would be when you start worrying about the wood movement? For instance if I wanted to add a 1x6 stretcher as a bottom shelf, would that be wide enough that I would not be able to simply put 3 or 4 pocket screws on each end?

[Jerry Miner]

I don't know of any generally accepted "rule of thumb," but for me, 6" and above is where I start to be concerned. You can probably get away with a 6" board. Beyond that, I start to worry. Remember that a "quarter sawn" board will move about half as much as a "flat sawn" board, so for safety, a QS board would be preferable here (or as close to QS as is available---many FS boards have near-QS grain at their edges).

[gary Zimmel]

Here is a QSWO sideboard I make a few years ago that has solid panels which as others have said float.
The plan, I believe, came from wood magazine.

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Looks pretty close to what you are trying to replicate.
Welcome to the Creek and have fun with your build.

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