Drawer construction

[Kent E. Matthew]

With dovetails how do you go about constructing drawers? From start to finish. I have a project held up because for some reason I can't seem to get past building drawers. I'd like to finish up with half blind dovetails where the front part of the drawer is stained darker to really bring out the dovetails.

[Robert LaPlaca]

Kent, I build 18th century reproductions, so I build really tradition dovetailed drawer boxes...

The drawer fronts are the primary species, the drawer sides, back and bottom are secondary species. The drawer front gets half blind dovetails, the back through dovetails..

The thickness of the secondary box stock is typically 1/3 thickness of the drawer front, this can be adjusted up or down depending on the size of the drawer. Depth of the half bind dovetails is typically 2/3 thickness of drawer front..

I build solid drawer bottoms, long grain running left to right, the back extends out the back of the drawer secured with a slotted screw or two to accomidate expansion and contraction, the drawer bottom is secured in a 1/4" dado in the drawer front and sides, the drawer bottom is typically a raised panel..

[Jim Dwight]

I will present a somewhat different perspective. After buying one dovetail jig, building one, and then buying another I am settled on a HF (Harbor Freight) jig, with a Grizzly template guide (7/16 spacing) on a stand of Baltic birch plywood. The stand also has edge guides for the drawer pieces so you are not dependant on the tiny little guides of the dovetail fixture. I use a PC 690 router with a 7/16 template guide and a dovetail bit - 1/2 diameter with 1/4 shank (be careful and get a good one, I've had inexpensive ones break where the cutter transitions to the shank). Next you need instructions. The HF ones are lousy. The Rockler ones are available on-line and look OK. You might also want to look for a you tube. It's a bit tricky to get everything dialed in the first time but after that it's easy. I keep little set up jigs in the drawer of my stand for the jig.

[John Lankers]

If you really want to highlight the dovetails and are planning to build inset drawers you could cut through dovetails and trim out the front of the drawer to cover the tails like what was done on this drawer.

[Bill Stephenson]

I have been going through the same issues you are and this is how I ended up. A keller 1500 jig for through dovetails at the back of the drawer. This is the most simple jig to use, once set up and you make a few dovetails with it you will never have to do back and read the book again. Peach Tree sells a similar unit and you can check out the unit on U-Tube. I also use a Porter Cable jig (a 1242 I think) just for Half blind dovetails. Once I set up the jig & router I dedicate the router to the jig with the bit set at the proper depth and leave the jig settings where they are. I keep my wood thickness always the same. If I don't do this with the Porter Cable I have to drag out the book and start trial & error cuts again until it's right. I do not make dovetails that often so this process keeps it simple. At times I will use the Keller on all four corners of the drawer and the put a false front on the drawer because the Keller is so easy & simple to use. Robert has given you good advise but his expertise is far beyond mine.
PS - With the Keller jig all the saw dust is thrown away from you and not at as with the PC. Hope I have helped.

[Jim Matthews]

Most endgrain (the part showing on the side of the drawer in John's post) will appear darker with just finish applied.

I like White Oak for drawer fronts, mostly because it works well and isn't prone to fracture at the pins.
I like (horrors) 1/2" baltic birch plywood for the side back and bottoms of drawers.

My drawers all run on 'slips' which hold the drawer bottom and ride on the drawer divider frames.

The exposed plies can be covered with veneer if you like.

Traditionally, Poplar makes a good secondary wood but I find it's expensive and rarely
straight enough to get flat, stable piece at the nominal 'height' of the drawer.

Getting good plywood is pretty easy - and works out to lower cost, better finish, fit, etc.

Just remember to use a backing board when working with plywood either by hand or with a router bit.


Lifted from a FWW comment section regarding the same topic, this summary of Ian Kirby's method
is close to the one I follow from his text - which has made fitting drawers possible for me (if not simple, yet)

I quote the following -

There is an articles by Ian Kirby and others that describe drawer fitting as you ask. I can't remeber the specific Taunton "joinery" publications they are in. I'll post that information later when I get home.

The technique does involve making the carcass larger at the back than the front. Kirby recommends 1/32" difference (1/64" at each side). That, and careful planing of the, initially, oversized drawer to fit the opening.

Kirby's "method" of making dovetail joints usually seems different than "standard" techniques, but is perfectly logical and "correct" when you understand it. Dovetailed drawer parts are typically measured and marked (knifed for depth of pin and tail) so that when dry-fitted, the pins of the front and back pieces stand slightly proud of the outsides of the side pieces. The tails stand proud of the outer surfaces of the front and back pieces. The pins and tails are then planed or sanded flush with their respective surfaces.

Kirby asserts that constructing the joint in that way (and using the necessary "castellated" clamping blocks that are needed to engage all those raised pins and tails) indicates a basic misunderstanding of the joint and fitting of the drawer.

He fits the drawer front to the opening so that it is a very tight fit, width and height. Then, setting his knife gauge slightly less than the thickness of the drawer side, he knifes around the end of the drawer fronts, establishing the depth of the pins. This setting results in pins that are slightly less "tall" than the thickness of the sides.

When fit together, the outer surfaces of the sides are proud of the ends of the pins of the front and back pieces. The ends of the pins are the reference measurements of the width of the drawer. "All that is needed then," he says, is to bring the entire outer surface of the sides down to the pins, and then one or two further passes at a very fine setting of the plane.

The grain of the sides must be oriented so that planing can take place front to back both on the outer surfaces and the tops of the sides.

The tops of the front and sides are planed in one continuous sweep starting about the midpoint of the top surface of the front piece, sweeping onto a right side piece or left side piece all the way off the top back of the side piece.

The drawer is planed in this way until it just fits into the opening. The action then is the piston-like feeling you describe, with a sensation of greatest air resistance just as the drawer is pulled all the way out and the back of the drawer fills the opening.

Rich

Note that this method differs from most, in that the sides are planed inward toward the faces of the exposed pins.
This makes for sides that are less thick than when you start out, and require planning to get to the final dimensions.

http://www.woodworkersjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/ian_kirby_dovetail.pdf

[Frank Drew]

Kent,

For furniture I'm with Robert's hand-cut method and work flow. For cabinetry such as built-ins, I'm ok with machine-cut dovetails using one of the commercial jigs and drawer sides and backs out of a multi-ply such as baltic birch.

You can get plenty of contrast for your dovetails by using different face and secondary woods (which you'd probably do anyway); in other words, staining certainly isn't necessary. Well-cut dovetails are a nice embellishment, but IMO they're a construction method and not the highlight of a piece. 99% of non-woodworkers will never open a drawer to inspect your dovetails.

[Kent A Bathurst]

TO: Kent
FR: Kent

What Robert said above, in terms of wood dimensions, orientation, bottom assembly, etc. He is much smarter than I am on this, so I am not providing validation for anything Robert would say - just saying for a prole, that all makes sense to me.

I did not know the 1/3 - 2/3 rule....dunno that I am ready to go that far, since my fronts are usually 13/16 which puts the sides at 1/4+.

I had a PC DT jig. I used it once for a box with 12" sides and top - DT all 4 corners. Worked fine.

However, by the time I was done dialing in the jig and the damn router [twice] I decided that it could not possibly be any more difficult to learn to hand cut the suckers.

So I did that on a half-dozen drawers [after numerous learning exercises on scrap wood] - each one better than the last. Sold the jig. Soldier on by hand, warts and all...........

And - for those 12" exposed joints - I gotta be honest - the std spacing on the jig was the definition of boring, in terms of appearance. And - there was absolutely no way I was going to jump down the Leigh rabbit hole..........

[Robert LaPlaca]

Kent, I build 18th century reproductions, so I build really tradition dovetailed drawer boxes...


The thickness of the secondary box stock is typically 1/3 thickness of the drawer front, this can be adjusted up or down depending on the size of the drawer. Depth of the half bind dovetails is typically 2/3 thickness of drawer front..



Ah fudge, I meant to say the thickness of the drawer box material can be anywhere from 2/3 to 1/3 the drawer front thickness, depending on the size of the drawer. For a large four drawer chest 1/2" to 9/16" is pretty typical.. 313802

For instance the Mahogany drawer front is 7/8", the Poplar drawer box stock is 1/2" thick and the half blind dovetails are 5/8" deep

[Robert LaPlaca]

TO: Kent
FR: Kent

What Robert said above, in terms of wood dimensions, orientation, bottom assembly, etc. He is much smarter than I am on this, so I am not providing validation for anything Robert would say - just saying for a prole, that all makes sense to me.

I did not know the 1/3 - 2/3 rule....dunno that I am ready to go that far, since my fronts are usually 13/16 which puts the sides at 1/4+.

I had a PC DT jig. I used it once for a box with 12" sides and top - DT all 4 corners. Worked fine.

However, by the time I was done dialing in the jig and the damn router [twice] I decided that it could not possibly be any more difficult to learn to hand cut the suckers.

So I did that on a half-dozen drawers [after numerous learning exercises on scrap wood] - each one better than the last. Sold the jig. Soldier on by hand, warts and all...........

And - for those 12" exposed joints - I gotta be honest - the std spacing on the jig was the definition of boring, in terms of appearance. And - there was absolutely no way I was going to jump down the Leigh rabbit hole..........

Kent, I had a boo boo in my rule of thumb for the drawer box stock thickness, 2/3 to 1/3 is the typical range..

I cut all the drawer dovetails by hand for a few reasons, after one futzes with one of those crazy dovetails jigs the drawers would done by hand already, hand cut dovetails is kind of an expected feature of a 18th century reproduction and most importantly I am too thrifty to buy on of those crazy dovetail jigs. Although I have to say I built 24 drawer boxes for a kitchen and the jig was starting to look like a better investment to me..

[Jim Dwight]

Another important consideration is drawer height. With a jig like I use, the drawer height needs to be multiples of 7/8 inch. 1 3/4, 2 5/8, 3 1/2, 4 3/8, 5 1/4, 6 1/8, 7, 7 7/8, 8 3/4, 9 5/8, 10 1/2, 11 3/8. There are also 1/2 inch spacing templates available for drawers an even inch in height.

[Kent A Bathurst]

Kent, I had a boo boo in my rule of thumb for the drawer box stock thickness, 2/3 to 1/3 is the typical range..

I cut all the drawer dovetails by hand for a few reasons, after one futzes with one of those crazy dovetails jigs the drawers would done by hand already, hand cut dovetails is kind of an expected feature of a 18th century reproduction and most importantly I am too thrifty to buy on of those crazy dovetail jigs. Although I have to say I built 24 drawer boxes for a kitchen and the jig was starting to look like a better investment to me..

I'm in. The 1/3 was a head-scratcher. THnx.

I agree on observations re: production doors. But - how often does that happen? And - to be honest - I did one kitchen in our previous house. Never again. But - I if I am wrong, which happens - I can guaran-gol-darn-tee you I am buying the drawer boxes from one of those outfits that specialize in exactly that thing, and using false fronts.

Its a lousy kitchen , fer cryin' out loud......... :D

[Cody Colston]

I don't build 18th century reproductions but I do build furniture with period elements and I do similar to what Robert does...hand-cut half-blinds at the front (both inset and rabbeted), thru DT's at the rear, groove in the sides and front for the drawer bottom which is a solid raised panel, oriented with the grain side to side.

For something like kitchen cabinet drawers, I use a Leigh DT jig for HB's at the front but the rear sets in a dado ala Norm and the bottom is 1/4" or 3/8" plywood, depending on drawer size.

BTW, I know women who are not woodworkers but when looking at furniture, they will open any drawers to see if they are dovetailed. ;)

[scott vroom]

If you really want to highlight the dovetails and are planning to build inset drawers you could cut through dovetails and trim out the front of the drawer to cover the tails like what was done on this drawer.

Or you could do half blinds on the drawer front and get the same effect without having to add the trim.

[scott vroom]

Stickley made machine cut dovetails in his factories with an A. Dodd, similar to this 1920 model: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l5V88M16MlE

[Scott DelPorte]

I don't build 18th century reproductions but I do build furniture with period elements and I do similar to what Robert does...hand-cut half-blinds at the front (both inset and rabbeted), thru DT's at the rear, groove in the sides and front for the drawer bottom which is a solid raised panel, oriented with the grain side to side.

For something like kitchen cabinet drawers, I use a Leigh DT jig for HB's at the front but the rear sets in a dado ala Norm and the bottom is 1/4" or 3/8" plywood, depending on drawer size.

BTW, I know women who are not woodworkers but when looking at furniture, they will open any drawers to see if they are dovetailed. ;)

Hi Cody, how much room for seasonal expansion do you give your drawer bottoms?
Thanks
Scott

[Kent A Bathurst]

Stickley made machine cut dovetails in his factories with an A. Dodd, similar to this 1920 model: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l5V88M16MlE

Vroom Dude [tm] -


No foolin'. He was not about to get carried away with dinking around hand-crafting joinery.....don't pay.

[Robert LaPlaca]

Hi Cody, how much room for seasonal expansion do you give your drawer bottoms?
Thanks
Scott

Scott, you don't need to leave room at the drawer front or the two sides for seasonal expansion, all the seasonal expansion is accounted for at the back of the drawer.. How this happens is the drawer back doesn't have the dado like the other parts of the drawer, in fact the drawer back is ripped to width exactly where the dado would have been.. The drawer bottom is a touch deeper (1/8-3/16) than the depth of the drawer, the drawer bottom gets a slot or two depending on the size, the bottom is secured to the drawer back with a screw in the centered in drawer bottom slot(s)..

[Mark Blatter]

I learned how to hand cut dovetails and while it is an important skill to have, I have no issues using a jig. In fact, I decided about ten years ago to make large cedar chests for my girls. Since I have four girls, and the cedar chests were basically 24" (t) x 20" (d) x 44" (l), as I recall, and I was doing dovetails on all four corners, plus the bottom drawer in each one, that is a lot of dovetails to cut by hand. I bought a Leigh 24" side jig and it worked out great. I cut the drawers by hand.

Over the years now, I have made many BB drawers and that jig has been great to use. It has a definite learning curve and the more you use it, the quicker you get with it.

[Cody Colston]

Hi Cody, how much room for seasonal expansion do you give your drawer bottoms?
Thanks
Scott

Robert gave you the answer. Since the solid drawer bottoms are oriented with the grain running side-to-side, any seasonal movement is from front to back...across the grain. The back of the drawer is the width of the sides less the thickness of the drawer bottom. A screw in a back, bottom slotted hole lets the bottom move.

[Kent A Bathurst]

Robert gave you the answer. Since the solid drawer bottoms are oriented with the grain running side-to-side, any seasonal movement is from front to back...across the grain. The back of the drawer is the width of the sides less the thickness of the drawer bottom. A screw in a back, bottom slotted hole lets the bottom move.

Summit like this -

First photo- you can see the bottom sitting on the drawer back. Then - slots waiting for brass pan-head screw w/ washer. Notice the grain going east-to-west. Bottom glued in the front, and floats in the sides, so it expands/contracts at the back.

The bottoms in these were rabbeted, so they are like raised panels, with the plane of the bottom close to flush to the drawer front and sides. Hence, the recessed slot, so the screw will clear the case rails as it opens and closes.

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