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Michael Taylor
11-19-2003, 2:51 PM
I've been working on a walnut bedroom dresser and have recently cut the false drawer fronts in a half overlay style. This is the first time I've attemped this drawer-front style and am concerned about the clearance of the rabbit cut vs. the drawer opening. I held a false front in the drawer opening before attaching it to the drawer and could move the flase front about 1/16 to 1/8 of an inch top to bottom and side to side. This should be enough clearance to account for any wood movement, right?

Here's a really stupid question but please humor me: does a certain amount of humidity in the fall/winter cause the same wood movement as the same amount of humidity in the summer? I know humidity is humidity, and 85% is 85%, but does the piece of wood know and swell the same amount no matter the time of year?

Thanks for any comments.


Michael

Todd Burch
12-03-2003, 7:25 PM
Hi Michael. I hope this reply finds you still interested in an answer.

I would allow more than 1/16" clearance for side-to-side or top-to-bottom "slop". That's only 1/32" on each side. For top-to-bottom, that's not enough, unless that's your hot humid summer day clearance.

Either way, it's pretty tight tolerance, and unless there is very little play in the runners or slides, expect the drawer front to knock the face frame, possibly chipping or crushing wood fibers.

If you think about it, what would be the point in a precision fit for that particular application? Give yourself some room. I would concentrate on getting the lipped part of the drawer - that part that shows, to fit nice and even all the way around on the face frame.

As for humidity and wood movement, it's a factor of temperature and humidity. I don't know enough about the science to be able to say whether wood movement (call it expansion) at 85% MC and 85° is different than 85% MC and 35°.

Todd.