The part of vacation that I really enjoyed was something I did as a shop improvement. I've had a clutter issue on the work bench that I've wanted to address for quite a while. This was the perfect opportunity, because it was snowing during most of this year's spring vacation. The snow made any outdoor activities - such as limbing and burning fallen trees - unattractive.
So I worked in the shop. Here was the issue: Clutter in this corner of the work bench.
I decided to make upper cabinets to contain this mess. I wanted to build a corner cabinet with a 45 degree face, and two side cabinets adjacent to it, each 6 ft long. The only problem with what I wanted was this: I had never made a cabinet before, let alone design and build a custom cabinet...
Why let a little thing like inexperience and ignorance stop me? I started the project anyway!
UPDATE 24 October 2022 - I recently spotted the original drawings and took a picture before throwing them out. Pics of those below.
I started with the two side cabinets, because they are straightforward boxes, and easier to figure out.
I used 3/4" Oak plywood for this project. This is much too expensive a grade of wood for use in a dirty shop. I probably should have used generic plywood with good veneer on one side, and melamine-sided particle board for the bottoms (with greasy/oily stuff sitting in the cabinets).
Below: Both of the side cabinet tops and bottoms have been cut to length and width (6ft x 1ft)
Below the sides are cut (20" tall by 12" wide). I cut a dado slot at the bottom (left side of the panel) for the bottom of the cabinet to fit into. This is to better support the bottom and keep it from falling out. Next I cut a rabbett (right) for the cabinet top to fit into. That way the top and bottom pieces of the cabinet can be the same length (6ft). To make the rabett and dado cuts, I clamped a board to the panel and ran a router up against the board and across the panel to make the grooves.
Below is a diagram of how to make these cuts with nothing more than a clamp, straight-edge, and a router.
Next, I used a piece of pegboard to mark the locations for adjustable shelf pins. Pegboard is nice for this, because the holes are 1/4", same as the shelf pins.
Holes are done on this panel. The ragged cuts I took care of later with a palm sander.
The side panels at the left have the grooves cut into them. At the right are the two internal center panels. These don't need grooves because they butt to the top and bottom panels. They are shorter in height than the end panels. Their height is the distance between the grooves in the side panels.
Below: The first cabinet is assembled, with the top and bottom pieces glued and screwed into the side panel slots.
Below, the same cabinet with the center panel installed.
I decided to make these cabinets a "face frame" style. This means that the opening has a picture frame around it. A face frame does three things: It makes the cabinet more robust, it hides the end-grain of the plywood sheets, and it makes the face more attractive. A far less expensive alternative would have been to glue a thin strip of oak trim to the edge of the plywood. Once again, for a shop, this less expensive route would have been more practical. These 1-3/4" oak boards were quite expensive and completely unnecessary.
Below, test-fitting the solid oak face frame pieces to the assembled cabinets.
For the cabinet doors, I decided to attempt bridle corner joints. Here is the jig I used to get the correct depth and make safe end cuts to the rails and columns of the doors. Keep in mind I had to stand sticks of oak hardwood on end and cut them accurately with this jig.
Below: Some of the columns after cutting the grooves of the bridle joints in them.
Below, one of the door panels, test-fitted together. The bridle joint frame parts for the other doors are to the right. The center panel of the door is 1/4" birch plywood. I notched a 1/4" groove into one side of each frame piece for the center panel to fit into.
Below, I test-fitted all the doors together to see roughly how things would look when it finally was assembled. Not too shabby for a beginner! The side cabinets are 6ft across, 20" tall, and 12" deep.
I built the corner cabinet last, because it was by far the most complicated. I wanted (needed!!!) the experience of building the easier rectangular cabinets before attempting the complex five-sided one. It had to be installed first, however, because the side cabinets both align with it.
Below is one of the side cabinets, with the face frame installed and stained. I stapled a sheet of 1/4" plywood to the back to keep it square. Next, I installed a 4" strip of 3/4" plywood at the rear top of the cabinet, to provide some structure to mount the cabinets. The 1/4" plywood would not hold the weight of the cabinet and contents, so this added piece was necessary.
Below, the right cabinet is up. It more or less mates to the corner cabinet. Note the upright 2x6 at the right. I had to install ledger rails behind the cabinet to bring it out from the wall by that depth. My initial measurement was off quite a bit, and I had to compensate by moving the corner cabinet and right cabinet forward from the wall by 2". It was a fail, but not a major one.
Below: The second cabinet is nearly in position.
Below: I maneuvered the cabinet into position using a floor jack and some spare 2x4 cribbing. This is a nice way to set it in place - particularly if you have a heavy/bulky cabinet, and you are working solo.
By this point, I was pretty tired of cutting wood to exacting size and making it look good. For the shelves, I just bought them and cut them to size.
Most importantly, re-connected the stereo again! That part of the job where the old cabinets and stereo were removed was not as enjoyable as the rest of the project. Next I began organizing the things to be stored. I relocated the chainsaw sharpener out of the way. (It's behind the upright post).
Below: Several doors still need to be sanded, stained and glued together, then trimmed of excess at the corners. Then I will need to learn how to properly measure and install a hinge.
I stained the frame for one of the doors, and really like the contrast between the stained oak frame and the natural birch panel. I may just put a coat of wax on the birch and call it a day - I still haven't decided yet if that isn't too much contrast.
I installed LED under-cabinet lighting (Below). It was more expensive than I would have liked. I used four 18" lamps - one centered under each side cabinet section, and a 12" lamp under the corner section. They connect in series with special connectors, and you can run up to 30 of these in one string. Wow! I have not yet hidden the connector wires up under the cabinets in this picture.
The cellphone is really handy for music in this application. A touch-screen is perfect to pause music or switch songs, because my hands are frequently dirty, or covered with stain, grease, or glue - depending on the project at hand. It's also a pretty robust hybrid system for a very dusty environment, especially compared to using a PC or a CD changer.
The previous cellphone mount was just a quick screw-together thing. I slapped it together in about 10 minutes with plywood scrap. You can see the ugly plywood edges just left of the phone.
On whole, although I did not get this project completely finished while on "vacation", I enjoyed the process of learning to build cabinets. I also managed to accomplish a bit of de-cluttering. The project, although very time-consuming, was also incredibly rewarding. Part 2, where I complete this project is here:
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