stile and rail sizing

[Jim Dunn]

Is there a relationship between the width of stiles and rails and the size of the panel they hold? I'm just wondering as I'm about to do a beam in my house in a raised panel that will be 12"+ tall and 10' wide. Thinking about 2 1/2" stile and rail with a 6X6 raised panel.

[Angie Orfanedes]

All the cabinets in my house (built by a custom cabinet shop 10 years ago) have 2-1/2 inch rails and stiles.

[Jim Dunn]

Thanks Angie.

[Hal Flynt]

I am trying to visualize this. 2 1/2 rails and stiles with 6x6 panels in my math would be 11 inches minus any inset within the grooves. (Any way I always build raised panel doors with a heavier base rail. Say the profile on the rails and stiles is 3/8" then my flat area would be 2 1/8 for the stiles and top rail, then I might make the bottom rail 3"- 3.5 depending on the scale of the project.) If I made the beam with raised panels, I would probably make the end stile the full 12" and then a continuous set of rails, in this situation, the same size of 2 1/2". Then I would make the interoior stiles coped on the top and bottom and profiled on both edges so the interior stiles would be sized to fit between the rails (flat to flat) and 2 1/2 inches wide plus the procile width so that all the flats were the same. For panels, I think I would make retangles in the 6 x 9 or some pleasing pattern. If 10 feet minus the end stiles is too long, then I would make a 3rd full height stile, for the mid point, with the width double profiled like the other interior ones. If you are planning to put a small crown or bed molding at the top you may want to have a thicker top rail to compensate. Pardon me if I have missed the whole point of your question.