Building Drawers

[tony.latham]

If you've never built drawers, the thought is probably intimidating.



I build mine out of 1/2" Baltic birch and 1/4" plywood for the bases. I use Rockler Clamp It Clips (4 for $10) to hold them in place during assembly.

Here's Jay Bates explaining the method:



Easy-peasy.

Tony

[Ottsville]

Nice, Tony. Building drawers can be intimidating but it's really not that hard to build a nice drawer that is strong and will last.

[bdosborn]

I used a Harbor Freight Tools Dovetail jig to make mine. It takes a bit of fiddling to get the jig setup but then you can rock:


It's cuts a half blind dovetail so you definitely need a drawer front:


I think they came out pretty nice:


Bruce

[lfhoward]

Wow those dovetails are great! Beautiful drawers!

I used a Kreg pocket hole jig like the original post to make just about everything on my trailer and a tool drawer for my Jeep. It'a an amazing DIY tool.

[bdosborn]

I think the drawers were the only thing I didn't use pocket screws on.
Bruce

[noseoil]

I just use a simple rabbet joint for drawers & a dado slotted in for the bottoms. It's usually a 1/4" X 1/2" cut for the 1/2" Baltic birch plywood I use & 1/8" bottoms for the small drawers in our teardrop. Just some 1" pins from the pin-tacker & glue will hold it forever once the glue sets. On larger drawers, I would use 1/4" bottoms, but the galley drawers are only about 10" deep (front to back) so there really isn't much weight in them.

When I started as a cabinetmaker, the guy who trained me (RIP Bill Altenhoff) only used D-select white pine for drawer sides. We bought it at a local lumber yard (RIP Grant Road Lumber Company in Tucson) as 1X12 X 3/4" stock, then we planed it down to 1/2" to build the drawers. Nothing like sweet clear pine for a drawer, they were simple, clean & elegant.

Here's a drawer in the galley, without the drawer head in place yet.



If you're using side mounted drawer guides which require 1/2" of clearance per side, remember to leave about 1 1/16" of clearance between the sides of the cabinet & the drawer body (that's really only 1/32" per side). That 1/16" doesn't seem like much, but leaving just a 1" difference for a 1" drawer slide set is a tight fit. Leave the 1/16" of extra "slop" & the drawer will track correctly, not bind & work as it was designed, smoothly & effortlessly!

P.S. I don't own a pocket screw jig, never found a use for it...

[Tom&Shelly]

Since Shelly and I are in the thinking/planning stage for our galley build, just wanted to say thank you for the ideas! We are really appreciating this thread.

Tom

[bdosborn]

If you're using side mounted drawer guides which require 1/2" of clearance per side, remember to leave about 1 1/16" of clearance between the sides of the cabinet & the drawer body (that's really only 1/32" per side). That 1/16" doesn't seem like much, but leaving just a 1" difference for a 1" drawer slide set is a tight fit. Leave the 1/16" of extra "slop" & the drawer will track correctly, not bind & work as it was designed, smoothly & effortlessly!

Good tip, getting the drawer slides to work smoothly was the hardest part of making drawers for me.
Bruce

[twisted lines]

Tony needs to look into cnc router's

[aggie79]

I used perhaps the easiest method of drawer construction. I purchased RTA, dove-tail, Baltic birch, drawer boxes and glued and assembled them at home.

[Tom&Shelly]

I used perhaps the easiest method of drawer construction. I purchased RTA, dove-tail, Baltic birch, drawer boxes and glued and assembled them at home.

CHEATER!!!!

Actually, that's an idea I hadn't thought of. Thank you!

Tom

[tony.latham]

...remember to leave about 1 1/16" of clearance between the sides of the cabinet & the drawer body (that's really only 1/32" per side).

Tim: Great tip!

Tony

[tony.latham]

I purchased RTA, dove-tail, Baltic birch, drawer boxes...

Aggie: Where the heck do you find those?

Tony

[Tom&Shelly]

I purchased RTA, dove-tail, Baltic birch, drawer boxes...

Aggie: Where the heck do you find those?

Tony

Not quite the same company (I think), but:

https://cabinetdoor.store/drawer-boxes/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI9u7n3rXF6gIVMBitBh1MOgwpEAQYASABEgJO4_D_BwE

I Googled on Aggie's phrase "RTA, dove-tail, Baltic birch, drawer boxes"

Thanks again, Aggie. We may only need one drawer of that type, for our galley, and the price ain't bad!

Tom

[tony.latham]

Not quite the same company (I think), but:

Interesting, but I just through in a 10" wide, 22" deep and 10" drawer and it was $48 unassembled. Ouch.

Tony