Drawer pull with no access to back.

[Greg Cuetara]

I am in the process of making a few TEA chests for christmas gifts. The top will swing up and I would like to use a sort of drawer pull but I will have no access to put a bolt in through the back.

Here is a similar chest I am following for inspiration.


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Is there a way to use a regular drawer pull or do they make special pulls for this type of application.

Thanks for any help.
Greg

[Paul Girouard]

How about a knob , they do sell a wood screw thread on one end and a 8/32 machine thread on the other.

A more elegant solution would be a "carved" / shaped pull out of a disimilar piece of wood glued to / laminated to , and / or carved out of the lead edge piece. A graceful curved line / shape , sort of Krenov-ian style pull. Made as one piece out of the lead edge piece of your cabinet.

[Bruce Page]

If you have some depth behind where you want to mount the handle you could drill holes into the lid the same diameter as the bolt. Screw the bolts into the handle, cut the heads off, drop some CA glue into the previously drilled holes and push in the handle.

[Dewey Torres]

I would bet if you opened the chest in the pick you would find that they did have access to attach that hardware.

Have you already made this box and are stuck with the pull or do you have flexibility to make it how you want?

The easiest would be to design it so that you don't have this problem but you are also going with a slim top...

You could make the top as a frame with the contrasting wood top (finished separately) epoxied into a rabbet lastly.

That would give you a chance to get a screwdriver in there before the assembly.

Good challenge!

I can't wait to see what the other Creekers post.

[Robyn Horton]

Woodcraft has some screws that might work. They are called breadboard screws , item # 130242 8 X 32 and 7/8 long.

[Dewey Torres]

Paul Gave me an idea on the custom made ones....

Check this out:

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/articles/9/

[Greg Cuetara]

Paul, not sure that I want to go with just a knob on the front. I like the look of a pull.

Bruce, I like your idea there. Just cut off the head of the machine screw and then epoxy it into place. I think that may work well for this situation.

Dewey, I am including another picture of the inside.


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I am not sure exactly how the pull is attached. It could have been attached prior to the final assembly but thinking about what Bruce says it probably was glued in after the fact. I also like the tutorial in the link you provided. Very interesting.

Thanks for the advice. First few days I have gotten in the shop in a very long time. Trying to finish up some christmas gifts prior to christmas. Of course I have 2 MIL and one Mother so that makes 3 of everything.

Greg

[Jamie Buxton]

Make a wood pull. Glue it into mortises cut into the front. Making good wooden pulls requires a little more thinking than just buying a metal one, but it can be done, and it adds another note of individuality to your box.

[Dewey Torres]

Thanks Jamie... once again fro your excellent tutorial!

[Chip Lindley]

We are not redesigning Greg's tea chests, only attaching pulls to them.

Bruce Page has a straightforward idea in using the screws that came with the pull. Drill matching holes for the screws into the lid, clip off the screw heads, and attach with a bit of epoxy. (fills gaps and absorbs less into wood than cyano). A rigid attach and hidden!

If you choose to make wood handles of your own design, attach the same way with headless screws. These handles only open the lid, at a right angle to the axis of attachment, no serious weight or stress bearing on them, as in the linear attachment to an *in/out* drawer.

[Dewey Torres]

We are not redesigning Greg's tea chests, only attaching pulls to them.



Chip,
With the above quote I think you are referring to my initial solution. When I am wrong I own it and your signature days it all. Thanks for keeping me in line.

[Paul Girouard]

We are not redesigning Greg's tea chests, only attaching pulls to them.



Greg's last line " Thanks for any help." IMO , allows for wiggle room on design as well.

Store purchased pull can leave a piece "cold", the tea chest begs for that something extra.

[Jamie Buxton]

Here's how I'd make that pull from wood. One pic shows the assembled pull. The other shows the exploded view. Notice several things... The grain direction in the posts is front-to-back, so you can pull on them or lever on them without fear of breaking them. The curved parts could be made with bent lamination to assure no short-grain issues, but probably will be okay if you just saw them; the stresses on them are not big. There are tenons on the rear of the post that glue into matching mortises in the cabinet. The curved parts are assembled to the posts with glue. I added the little pyramid on the front of the posts, just because.

It really is pretty straightforward. Give it a try!

[Dewey Torres]

Here's how I'd make ...

It really is pretty straightforward. Give it a try!


Jamie,
Did you just now bust this out on sketchup:eek: If so WOW

I think I am coming to you next time I have a drawer pull dilemma;)

[Jamie Buxton]

Jamie,
Did you just now bust this out on sketchup :eek: If so WOW

I think I am coming to you next time I have a drawer pull dilemma;)


Sketchup is pretty cool, isn't it? I couldn't in a million years describe how to make those pulls with just a text interface, but a few minutes with SU explains my point.

[Dewey Torres]

Jamie,
Where did you learn SU?

I took the class by Gary Katz but find it hard to find SU tutorials geared for WW.

[Greg Cuetara]

Guys. Thanks for all the replies and ideas. Like they say when you are brainstorming ANY idea is valid. Some may suit the purpose and some may not.

I think if I get into a bind, time wise, which I am almost there I will buy some pulls and attach them with epoxy...If i have the time in the shop, with a 1 year old that is kinda hard, I will attempt to make them. I kinda like Jamie's Idea. I wish I were only that creative but alas I am an engineer.

Thanks again.
Greg

[Jamie Buxton]

Dewey, I learned SU on my own. When I first acquired it, there was not even a manual for it. @Last published a tutorial, and that was it. Now that Google owns the company, there are books and classes and such. I think that using it is kinda like using any other woodworking tool: practice makes you better. You're probably better now with a handplace or a tablesaw than when you first used one. SU is just another tool.

Greg, don't sell yourself short. Engineers can be creative. I know, because had a 25 year career as an electrical engineer.