Drawer Assembly: Step Sequence

[Doug Hobkirk]

I am building 4 drawers from reclaimed oak (sides, 3/4'), RECLAIMED plywood (bottom, pre-finished, just needs cutting), and new Blum undermount slides.
The oak has been cut 5" for height, 19" for depth, and 20" for width. Those numbers are slightly simplified. I have cut the .25" dado .5" up from the bottom. So I have a pile of 16 pieces of Oak ready for more work.

What would be the best sequence for the remaining tasks? I think I've worked this out, but from past experience I know there's an excellent chance someone will say "the wood will tear out more if you..." Or whatever.



Plane to 5/8" (very light on inside)
Cut dovetails? (I have a PC 4112 - i.e., NOT the 4212 or Omnijig)

I built a very nice project box/jig for it many years ago, but I've never used it!
I experimented last night with some Oak cutoffs, and I am pretty sure it will work fine. But I want to do my final dialing in using some oak after it's been planed.


Round-over the top edges?

It seems to me I should do this AFTER the dovetails since the square edges will make alignment easier.
Do on all 4 excluding the front outer edge? Or just on the sides and front?
Chamfer the rest of the edges?


Cut the notches and drill the holes for the Blum slides.
Sand

I will use my 6" Festool ROS - Is only going to 120 grit good?


Finish with shellac before assembly? Wiping on so I can avoid getting it into the dovetails?
Glue up the dovetails, clamp, and square everything?


Thanks, as always.

[lowell holmes]

If there is enough wood, you might make a practice joint to see how the wood works. Just a small dovetailed piece would suffice. :)

[Doug Hobkirk]

If there is enough wood, you might make a practice joint to see how the wood works. Just a small dovetailed piece would suffice. :)
That's already done. That was my experiment. But that was with 3/4" wood, so I will run some scraps through the planer also and experiment with the thinner wood.
Thanks

[Michael Zerance]

At the point you're at now, my normal process would be:



sand all the interior faces to 150 or 180 grit (including the bottom).
cut dovetails; I cut right to left to avoid tear out on the last pin/tail.
glue and assemble.
sand outside faces, and top and bottom edges.
route an 1/8" roundover on the top edges, inside and out.
hand sand the interior corners of the top edge where the bit doesn't get to and quickly break all the other edges.
set up a dado stack to notch for undermount slides; you have to lift the front edge of the box over the blade to cut the notch for the left slide.
spray a finish.


I don't have a jig for the rear hole. I have attempted to measure and mark it or create a template but, what works best and quickest for me is to install everything, slide the box in place (centered) and push it back into the pins. Pull it out and drill at the indentation.

If you route the roundover prior to assembly, the front's and backs should be cut at least an 1/8" higher so that the joint doesn't look like a "v" groove. That's the way a lot of the production cabinet companies do it but I think it looks silly.


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[Doug Hobkirk]

At the point you're at now, my normal process would be:



sand all the interior faces to 150 or 180 grit (including the bottom).
cut dovetails; I cut right to left to avoid tear out on the last pin/tail. (My PC jig says R to L)
glue and assemble.
sand outside faces, and top and bottom edges.
route an 1/8" roundover on the top edges, inside and out.
hand sand the interior corners of the top edge where the bit doesn't get to and quickly break all the other edges. Nice
set up a dado stack to notch for undermount slides; you have to lift the front edge of the box over the blade to cut the notch for the left slide.
spray a finish.


I don't have a jig for the rear hole. I have attempted to measure and mark it or create a template but, what works best and quickest for me is to install everything, slide the box in place (centered) and push it back into the pins. Pull it out and drill at the indentation.

If you route the roundover prior to assembly, the front's and backs should be cut at least an 1/8" higher so that the joint doesn't look like a "v" groove. That's the way a lot of the production cabinet companies do it but I think it looks silly.


327719 327720 327718
Spot on! The bold items were especially useful. And nice looking drawers.
Thank you!

[Michael Zerance]

I'm glad you found it useful. Let us know how it turns out.

[John TenEyck]

Yes, sand the inside surfaces before cutting joinery, or at least before glue up. Tape the insides of the sides at the base of the pins and tails so any glue squeeze out doesn't get on the wood. Sand the outside surfaces after glue up. Finish last. I spray, but you can wipe on shellac very easily, too.

John