want suggestions for drawer stock?

[tim harris]

Hello all!
I was looking for suggestions for kitchen and bath drawer stock?
I was thinking about 1/2 poplar as that is the material of choice for the faceframes and doors. But I have also seen glossy finished ply( birch or norwegian foxwood ;), or something like that)., about 3/8" or so.

Any suggestions? @ of the drawers will be deep, 12 inches, but won't have to hold a lot of weight.

Any and all answers would be appreciated!!!:D
Thanks Tim

[Jim Becker]

I typically use 1/2" poplar 'cause I have a lot of poplar. Alternatively, I'd use soft maple. (what the drawer boxes are that I typically buy from a fabricator for larger projects) But realistically, you can use pretty much any species you like and have available, either hardwood or even clear pine.

BTW, I like to resaw my own stock so I have more flexibility in thickness, especially for larger drawers. Sometimes 9/16" or 5/8" is a better choice there, both for strength and for proportions.

[Dave Falkenstein]

Poplar is a good choice. I also use 1/2" Baltic birch for drawer boxes.

[tim harris]

Thanks for the advice Jim and Dave. I will look up a local baltic birch supplier. ( assuming larger sheets are available, does it have a grade that I should look out for? That would let me cut the larger sizes to a more exact fit. I don't have bandsaw resaw capibility yet, but may in the future:rolleyes:.

Thanks again!

[Richard M. Wolfe]

Half inch Baltic Birch is the material most cabinet shops use. It is typically sold in 5'x5' sheets. The price has fluctuated quite a bit....supply and demand. The last I priced was about $25 a sheet.

If you want to use solid stock the most widely used is probably poplar.

[Amy Leigh Baker]

I typically use 1/2" poplar

Do you mean 1/2 inch poplar plywood or solid stock? If you use ply won't the edge grain be on the top edges of the drawer?

And I assume this goes for bedroom drawers as well, not just kitchen and bath?

I am about to start building drawers on an oak table and had been leaning toward poplar for the drawers just because of availability and price.

[Sam Yerardi]

I use poplar, maple and pine.

[Dave Falkenstein]

Do you mean 1/2 inch poplar plywood or solid stock? If you use ply won't the edge grain be on the top edges of the drawer?

And I assume this goes for bedroom drawers as well, not just kitchen and bath?

I am about to start building drawers on an oak table and had been leaning toward poplar for the drawers just because of availability and price.

By poplar I mean 1/2" solid poplar, not ply. I suspect Jim is referring to solid poplar as well.

Baltic birch ply has more layers than typical plywood along with no voids. The edges can be rounded over with a router, and it looks just fine. A little sanding and the edges will not snag. As Richard said, it comes in 5'X5' sheets. I have to pay more than $25 for a sheet in my area, but a sheet builds a bunch of drawers. I use 1/4" white MDF for the bottoms.

[Amy Leigh Baker]

If I was going to use plyood for the carcass (which will be visible under the table) what size ply could I use? Keep in mind, the thicker the ply the more space that is taken up, and space is a premium in this situation. And weight won't really be an issue... only lightweight things will be in these drawers.

Last question here, so as to not hijack the thread :o

[Dave Falkenstein]

If I was going to use plyood for the carcass (which will be visible under the table) what size ply could I use? Keep in mind, the thicker the ply the more space that is taken up, and space is a premium in this situation. And weight won't really be an issue... only lightweight things will be in these drawers.

Last question here, so as to not hijack the thread :o

By "carcass" I assume you are referring to the drawer boxes. I don't recall seeing Baltic birch ply smaller than 1/2". On small drawers with minimal weight in the drawers, you could get by with 1/4" material, but I'd use solid wood and box joints. You can buy 1/4" solid material at Home Depot, but they charge a premium price. For a few drawers, the price is not a big factor. Maybe you would like 1/4" oak drawer boxes to match the rest of the piece?

[Jim Becker]

Do you mean 1/2 inch poplar plywood or solid stock? If you use ply won't the edge grain be on the top edges of the drawer?

Solid stock. I pretty much never use plywood for drawer sides.


I don't recall seeing Baltic birch ply smaller than 1/2".

It's available in many thicknesses...and "thinnesses"...my local supplier had some 1/4" the last time I was there.

[Joe Chritz]

Mostly I use 1/2 baltic birch and it looks good when 1/2 blind dovetailed and a rounded top edge.

Solid stock is poplar or soft maple.

Joe

[Alan Turner]

Baltic birch is available in thicknesses of: 3mm, 6mm, 9mm, 12mm, 15mm, 18mm, and something they call 1", which I think is 24mm.
I generally will not use it for drawer boxes as it is not flat. One way to flatten it is to take two of the sheets, concave sides facing each other, and laminate it. It is a PITA, but it does work.

[Gary Ratajczak]

Awesome info from everyone on drawer box material - how about finishing?

If I choose poplar or maple, dou you finish before assembly, afer assembly?

Brush or spray?

Finish of choice?

Thanks in advance!!

[Jim Becker]

Gary, if I choose to finish, it's either shellac or water borne. And yes, I spray, typically after assembly if it's dovetailed as sanding and fitting is required before finishing. (Pre-finishing carcass components is easier to pull of than pre-finishing drawer components)

[Dave Falkenstein]

Baltic birch is available in thicknesses of: 3mm, 6mm, 9mm, 12mm, 15mm, 18mm, and something they call 1", which I think is 24mm.
I generally will not use it for drawer boxes as it is not flat. One way to flatten it is to take two of the sheets, concave sides facing each other, and laminate it. It is a PITA, but it does work.

Thank you for the information on Baltic birch thicknesses. I guess I'll have to look harder next time.

As for Baltic birch not being flat, it must be a lot flatter in the Arizona desert than in Philadelphia (my home town). Not much of a problem here. :)

[Hank Knight]

Gary, if I choose to finish, it's either shellac or water borne. And yes, I spray, typically after assembly if it's dovetailed as sanding and fitting is required before finishing. (Pre-finishing carcass components is easier to pull of than pre-finishing drawer components)

Gary,

To elaborate a little on what Jim said, don't use an oil based finish on drawers or any closed container. The odor from an oil based finish doesn't go away and will permeate whatever you store in the container. Well, maybe not silverware and such, but getting a whiff of stale oil every time you open the drawer quickly becomes distasteful. With shellac, the alcohol solvent gasses off completely leaving no odor behind. Same with water borne finishes - no lingering odor. As an alternative, many people leave drawer sides and interiors unfinished.

Hank

[John Thompson]

I mainly use solid poplar as I don't do ply on anything. This carcass will get 5/8" for proportion and strenght as the drawers will be 8" -7 1/2" and 7" from bottom to top and around 21" wide. 1/2" is OK for kitchen and bath as I see it.

If I seal them.. as mentioned by Jim B. I use shellac.. definitely no oils as mentioned also.

Sarge..

[Bill White]

!/2" ply edgebanded. Loose drawer fronts applied after boxes are finished.
Bill

[tim harris]

If I was going to use plyood for the carcass (which will be visible under the table) what size ply could I use? Keep in mind, the thicker the ply the more space that is taken up, and space is a premium in this situation. And weight won't really be an issue... only lightweight things will be in these drawers.

Last question here, so as to not hijack the thread :o

Thanks for your input Amy. I don't mind at all when the topic heads in slightly different directions. I always look forward to learning something a little different. :)

I also am getting a quote from a local lumber yard to supply 1/2" poplar s4s stock. If the price is right, I will probably use 1/4 inch birch as the bottom to match. The local BORG has 1/4 inch oak, but its all twisted as they don't seem to know that its used as woodworking material and not "slap it up" home construction. ( They use 4 bottom supports, 4" wide and it bends every piece.:eek:)

I also can get the baltic birch in 5' x 5' from a local Dayton supplier, that for you trivia buff's, supplied the wood for some of the Wright Brothers airplane spars and wings! (Thank you national park service for telling me that too!)
But I have wondered about the selection process as they have to order it.:(

Thanks for all the input!!

[jim mckee]

If you go ply- 1/2" nice, 3/4 sides for heavy use drawers, finger joints are easy and a good bang for your laborbuck, clear coat all the drawer (I like water based, Hood products)

Solid wood can be most any woods, allot more labor/time, but you do get the payback of looks like solidwood.

Love those metal drawer slides.

jim

[BOB OLINGER]

I just completed building new drawer carcasses for all of our kitchen cabinets as new granite counter top was coming. I reused the oak raised panel drawer fronts. I used No. 2 white pine for sides and backs, just being careful to cut around major large or loose knots. The top side of sides and back were rounded over with my router. I used 1/2" plywood type material purchased from Lowes for bottoms (I don't recall exact name, but it had a harder than normal semi finish on at least one side). Sides were rabbited to accept the bottoms. The main point is to sand the carcass well, brush on a coat of polyurthane, sand again lightly, tack cloth, and apply second coat of poyurthane. The result is carcasses as good or better than any in pre-made cabinets. Then, DON'T SKIMP ON QUALITY DRAWER HARDWARE. My economizing on the carcasses allowed my buget to spend for the best slides that Lowes had. Bottom line, we are very well pleased.