How would you fix this?

[Bob DiGiacomo]

I made this desk about 4 years ago and the problem is that I did not leave enough room for the inset walnut drawer faces to expand and contract. Now the faces of the drawers scrape a little bit on the frame. My question is how can I fix this without messing up the finish of the drawer face. I am thinking about running a block plane around all the sides, but I don't want to chip out the end grain. I thought about using a belt sander but I don't want to make the drawer uneven. There has to be an easy way. Right? Please help.

[Jude Kingery]

Bob, not sure if this will help, but I'd try an easy fix first, something like wax on your runners, see if this will allow an easier slide and fit even with expansion/contraction. Hopefully you'll have lots of good suggestions better than mine, but couldn't hurt to try it maybe. Best wishes. Jude

[Bob DiGiacomo]

The good news is the the drawer slides operate really smoothly, so I could try some wax on the face edges, but I know that it won't work for all of them. Anyone know how much space I should have left between the drawer face and the face plate for clearance? Maybe 1/8" all the way around? But that seems like a big gap.

[Matt Bickford]

Due to wood expansion, you probably don't need to worry about blowout becuase you will only need to plane the long grain (top/bottom or the face). But if you do need to plane all four edges, attack the endgrain first (there won't be a problem with blowout while planing the long grain). To prevent possible blowouts on the corners while planing the endgrain, clamp scrap flush to the edge you will finish your stroke on. This should prevent blowout. If you're still concerned, start your stroke on the top of the drawer and finish on the bottom. You will have to refinish these edges, of course.

[Bob DiGiacomo]

Matt,
Do you think with a block plane, portable electric plane, or jointer? Remember I have 8 drawers to do?

[David Duke]

Bob you didn't say, are the drawers dragging on all sides or just the top and or bottoms? I wouldn't think that they would expand to much length wise (with the grain), if they are are only hitting on the top or bottom just remove stock from the bottom and adjust the drawer to the opening. Of course this depends on how the drawer face is attached and what kind of slide/runners you used.

[Mike McCann]

Not sure if this will work but instead of sanding the draw panels and have to worry about the endd grain just sand the face frame.

[Al Killian]

If it where me, I would cover the faces with something and sand the edges on my belt sander. This way you wont have a problem with chip out and you can off in tmall amounts.

[glenn bradley]

The good news is the the drawer slides operate really smoothly, so I could try some wax on the face edges, but I know that it won't work for all of them. Anyone know how much space I should have left between the drawer face and the face plate for clearance? Maybe 1/8" all the way around? But that seems like a big gap.

I leave 1/16th and that has been adequate for wood movement here in SoCal. For shop cabinets I leave a bit more as drawers tend to get overloaded and abused. For rolling cabinets in the shop I leave about an 1/8th as garage floors aren't flat and I need some shift room.

To correct I would not use power equipment as it could get too aggressive too fast to notice. A plane, sandpaper or if appropriate, a cabinet scraper could all do the job if we are talking about drawers that used to close but now don't simply due to wood movement. There shouldn't have been noticable movement down the length of the grain so your end grain edges probably do not require any work(?).

[Bob DiGiacomo]

After looking again I can see that most of the problem is coming from the bottoms and tops of the drawers. At this point, I am probably going to just use hand planes and sandpaper, and just take my time fitting one drawer at a time. Thanks for the advice, I will keep an eye to see if there are any other suggestions. Thanks Bob

[Ron Dunn]

Is one column of drawers worse than the other? I notice that you've got the desk right in front of a ducted heating outlet. That can't be good.

[Matt Bickford]

I would use a block plane. No question. This is absolutely NOT a job for a belt sander or jointer if you have a block plane in the shop. It would be hard to screw up and would probably not take too long at all. You will get better and quicker results with a plane and without the possibility of causing severe damage due to a shakey hand or overly aggressive setup.

[Bert Johansen]

I like inset drawer fronts, and have made lots of them. My trick, taught by a mentor who was in his eighties when I met him, was to use a pair of dimes (one on each side) to set the gap. I've never had a problem with wood movement using this "tool," even with large drawers.

[Bill Wyko]

Maby you could find someone with a jointer that has a shelix blade. I don't think you'll have a problem using a system like that. BTW That's one heck of a beautiful desk you have there.

[Bob DiGiacomo]

Well a lot of good advise so far and thanks.

There is no real difference created by the heat vent by the left side.

I like the dime trick, in fact I remember using thin strips of sheet metal rather than dimes when I put the drawer fronts on. Next time I will use dimes.

It looks like I will be trying the hand block plane to take it down about 1/16" on the top and bottom.

If the sides (end-grain) needs some tweeking, will use the block plane working in towards the middle and then touch up with a sanding block.

[Chuck Tringo]

Ditto on the block plane. If you did have to do the end grain, which it doesnt look like you do, I would use a Low angle block plane but stop just short of the edges to avoid the blowout, then sand the corners flush with a hard sanding block.

[Joe Chritz]

Indeed a very sharp desk

A block plane, as suggested will do a fine job on the long grain. I assume you can't take the face off the drawer so you are probably stuck with hand tools.

3 mm (.118") is standard for cabinet doors in euro cabs. A dime is 1.35 mm (.053").

Here is a calc for figuring wood movement. A dime is more than enough for any drawer front.

http://www.woodbin.com/calcs/shrinkulator.htm

Joe

[Bob Feeser]

Since wood expands across it's width as compared to it's length, you noted that you are having problems on the top and bottoms. Since that is not the end grain you reduce the possiblity of creating tear out on the ends. I would still exercise caution when dressing the ends. Work from the outside toward the center, then finish with a form fit by pushing the drawer in to get the center finally even. That way you are mating it up to the actual opening.
Unless you are very experienced at using hand planes, I would keep it in the sandpaper kingdom. It is all too easy to take off too much material in one spot by mistake, or by catching a weak adhering, even along the side grain. The challenge with a sandpaper block is not allowing it to lean to one side or the other.
I would be looking to take a gradual approach, taking away only the minimum amount of material. If you shoot for a 1/8" gap on a redo, you could wind up with a 1/8th gap everywhere except where the oops happens. You can always take away more, but putting some back on is something altogether different. Plus I am assuming you have a very close tolerance all the way around the face, so a minimum removal on the top and bottom, and you may have a perfect match without having to take anything off of the sides, thereby eliminating any problems having to work with the end grain. Hope this helps.

[Pat Moy]

I would do the following: clamp a straight board onto your draw front to mark what you need to take off, then use a flush-trim router bit against this board to remove material on the draw front. This will work on end grains as well. I've used this technique to remove as little as 1/32" when fitting inset cabinet doors and drawers. It's especially handy when the opening is not exactly rectangular, and you have to trim at a slight angle to get an even gap.

[Bob Feeser]

I would like to add that you should start on the lower edge first. That way you can get the proper fit allowing for any possible settling the drawer has.
The reason why sanding is preferable in my mind is that

With very little care you virtually eliminate any risk of tear out.
You can adjust the paper grit very easily to adjust precisely how much you are taking off.
You can do the entire job with the drawer installed, checking as you go. With a hand plane, you need to remove the drawer, and reinstall it every time you want to check it.
You can draw a line to take a certain amount off, but how do you determine what that line will be. Once the drawer settles without the face panel raising it off the rail by rubbing. Plus you need to be able to compensate for any possible unevenness in the rail surface as a result of finish sanding. With sandpaper you can tweak a little, simply push it back in, check it, and take off a little more. Using a sanding block is essential, and keep it on an even flat plane.

[Bob DiGiacomo]

I will be using a block plane. Thanks for the insightful suggestions. Well that goes to show there really is more than one way to skin a cat. I will post how it goes once it is complete. Thanks again. Bob

[Jim Solomon]

Well a lot of good advise so far and thanks.

It looks like I will be trying the hand block plane to take it down about 1/16" on the top and bottom.

If the sides (end-grain) needs some tweeking, will use the block plane working in towards the middle and then touch up with a sanding block.


Bob, I think that is your best choice for a good outcome. As mentioned, when dealing with 16th's a power tool is very unforgiveing. It won't take as long using the plane, at least not as long as making a new part due to the power tool hogging off too much;) Make sure your plane is sharp, and practice on a few scraps first. I think your problem is only related to the long grain so you should be set. If you have to do the sides, then do as mentioned, back them up with scrap. Or you could start the plane on both ends working toward the center;but if your like me and not a master at using planes the scrap backup is probably the way to go.
Dimes work great, as do the countless credit cards that come in the mail, or a doubled up business card. Not hard to find something to use.
Jim

[Andrew Shaber]

you might put a slight chamfer on the back edge of the drawer fronts (with your chosen tool) If the drawers do touch a little, that will help it to still close.

[Bob DiGiacomo]

All I did was take the block plane about 8 passes on the top and bottom edge. I also waxed the tracks which are wood and it is good as new.:) Thanks for the help. Bob

[Corey Wilcox]

On a different note, that's a nice looking desk Bob.

[Jim Solomon]

All I did was take the block plane about 8 passes on the top and bottom edge. I also waxed the tracks which are wood and it is good as new.:) Thanks for the help. Bob

Thats great to hear Bob. I knew it would not have taken as long as it seemed with a good block plane. It would have been a shame to have used a power tool and make a mistake on such a fine looking desk! Glad it worked out well for you.
Jim