attaching stiles to bookcases. how to fasten???? HELP!

[NICK BARBOZA]

hi all,
I am building bookcases for my boss, they have doors on the lower section and are open on the upper. this has kinda been a job for some of the guys to work on in the winter low in Maine construction. that being said, we have piece mealed it a little.

anyways, carcases' are all installed and now it is time to wrap them with the stiles.

no face nails allowed, so other than biscuits, how can i fasten them? (it it 1x4 poplar stiles attaching to plywood carcasses...)

thanks!
Nick

[Craig D Peltier]

Depends how much overlap of stiles, you may be able to do pocket screws from back. Dowels or biscuits will work fine. Use glue on all of these. If your pieces arent flat and you use biscuits or dowels etc you will need clamps until the glue dries.
I would still nail it and fill holes. Use 18 gauge nails its a small hole from a air gun.

[Stephen Edwards]

Are you going to attach the stiles piece by piece or are you going to build the stiles as a unit(s) and then attach the finished stiles to the carcass?

[Richard M. Wolfe]

If the carcases are installed it sounds like your options are limited. To dowell or biscuit you need to be able to clamp -- I don't know if you can get clamps on in your situation. Pocket screws will let you pull stiles down but once again you may be limited by installed carcases as to what you can do.

[Dave Burris]

Also is this a paint grade piece or will it be stained? If painted then you could just use glue and 18g brads (or 23g if available) to place the faceframe then fill and sand the brad holes.

[Frank Drew]

Renegociate the no-nails clause. (With poplar, I'd prefer painting to clear finish in any case, but, whatever...)

If the case sides aren't flush to walls, or if you can pull the boxes out to give you access, you can probably glue and clamp the face frame members on, with or without other mechanical fasteners such as biscuits.

[Peter Quinn]

I would face nail and fill the holes for poplar, which I assume is paint grade, possibly using biscuits for alignment. Thick trim glue may help control drips. The holes will be invisible when finished. #6 trim screws counter sunk and plugged might also be an option.

My preferred option would be to remove the carcasses and attach the face frames with pocket screws from the blind side or with glue and biscuits. If the carcasses are installed with screws it should be a simple affair to detach them and finish them in the shop. If the backs are removable I'd take those off too to get clamps in the middle for center styles. You might do a dry fit before removing the boxes or at least create an accurate story pole.

Can't think of any invisible ways to attach face frames in the field with finished carcasses installed, except possibly building a temporary wall in front of the cabs and using spreader clamps to apply pressure to the face frames by pushing off that wall, but that would be a highly unusual scenario.

[NICK BARBOZA]

its being stained (not my coice....) it is very dark stain so the ugly grain really doesnt show through. carcasses are installed and i will be installing piece by piece. i only have 1/2" overlap on the stiles so i think i could do a little creative clamping to keep pressure on em. good ideas so far

thanks
Nick

[Jim Becker]

Glue with a few biscuits or dowels for alignment. If you can't clamp traditionally (as in a built-in) a few 23 gage headless pins shot at slight angles will keep things together while the glue cures and will be virtually invisible. This is exactly how I did the face frames for my recent wet bar project in the addition and unless you really go looking, you're not going to see those pins.

[Paul Girouard]

3 way clamps ,




G8098 2-1/2" 3-way Clamp 4 pc. Set
$21.95

[J. Z. Guest]

I'd dowel them or screw them on with face grain plugs.

You could also pocket screw them and use the pocket hole plugs.

[Mike Heaney]

is to use nails or brads, but keep them completely out of sight. Not sure where I picked this up, but i have used it on face frames on a couple of bookcases with success:

First, you shoot some brads into the edge of the case where the stile is going to sit. Set your gun/hammer so that you leave a good 1/4 inch or more proud (ie. DO NOT set the brad home).

Next, use a file to take off the head of the brads and sharpen them to a point

Apply glue to stile and case and push the stile onto the sharpened brads. Seat it all properly and clamp creatively.

hope this helps!

Mike

[Matt Meiser]

I used Dominos on the one I just did. No reason biscuits couldn't have been used the same way. The glue is really what is holding it on.

[Jim Becker]

is to use nails or brads, but keep them completely out of sight. Not sure where I picked this up, but i have used it on face frames on a couple of bookcases with success:

First, you shoot some brads into the edge of the case where the stile is going to sit. Set your gun/hammer so that you leave a good 1/4 inch or more proud (ie. DO NOT set the brad home).

Next, use a file to take off the head of the brads and sharpen them to a point

Apply glue to stile and case and push the stile onto the sharpened brads. Seat it all properly and clamp creatively.

This is actually a very interesting and creative idea, Mike! Thanks for sharing it.

[Rob Wright]

I think that I remember a thread from Steve Clardy that said that he attaches face frames to cabinets by shooting a brad in from the INSIDE of the cabinet, through the sides into the face frame at an angle. He said that the holes were almost invisible and hard to find unless you actually stuck your head into the cabinet and looked back out into the room.


Maybe he will chime in with his technique.

- Rob