European oak sideboard

[Davon]

Hi, I thought I'd post some pics of the sideboard I've been working on and now I come to upload them........I can't find half of them however here are the pics I have found. When it came to biscuit jointing the top I laid it flat in situ and clamped it to the carcass to keep it flat. I would like to know though, if you had one tip to give in the construction/fitting of drawers what would it be ?
because I've struggled on this but I got there in the end ( plenty of swearing)
I still have some sanding and oiling to do.
Thanks
Davon

 

[stoatyboy]

Hi - looks good - very tidy - got a 'clean' feel to it not too fussy I like it

Don't think i'm of a standard to offer help on the drawers - they look nice though so you must be doing something right!

cheers

 

[cerdeira]

Hi.

Is that all solid wood? (except the back which i reckon is plywood). must be pretty heavy.

Regarding the drawers (if they havent rebated fronts which are much easier to fit because they allow for bigger tolerances) I always start by cutting the fronts a little oversize and adjust them to fit in the places they're going to be in the end. this allow me to cope with slightly out of square frames and other nuisances.
Then I build the rest of the drawer. I've found out that the back can be a tad shorter than the front. This wont give you a prefect squared drawer but makes it is easier to fit and avoids binding if you work to very small tolerances.

 

[Mcluma]

Very nice, like said before nice clean look to it

However to make it look lighter, i would have gone for SS hinges and knobs

 

[Davon]

Thanks for the replies, macluma..I would have gone for a " lighter" look
but I did want the solid look , black & oak seems to be the theme in my house, Cerdeira, it is solid oak and as you say the back is ply, I pondered oak back but decided against because of the weight, interesting about the back of the drawer being made slightly narrower than the front.

Davon

 

[OPJ]

Nice work. From these photos, it looks as though you don't need much advice at all! :wink:

I'd always check and make sure everything goes together square, when making drawers - and that includes creating the openings as you're gluing the sideboard together.

It does looks as though you've used pine for the drawer sides...? That's a little disappointing, given that it's such a soft wood - usually, you'd want your sides to be as 'hard' as the fronts, if not more so. Just make sure you put plenty of beeswax on them.

Drawers can be tricky to fit at the best of times but, in the winter, you could be faced with more problems later on if you're fitting them in a workshop that's short of heat and insulation... In that kind of environment, the timber will probably take on a small amount of moisture. Once you then bring the piece in to a home with central-heating, there's a risk that some of the wood could shrink, leaving you with slightly larger gaps around each drawer... Some timbers (oak) are inherently more stable than others (pine). Some would say that's better than the opposite scenario in the summer, where humidity could cause the drawers to swell, stick and jam!

I do agree with your decision to go with a lighter species for the sides though, to contrast against the darker pins on the fronts. However, for future reference, you might want to look for some maple or sycamore (relatively inexpensive).

I hope that none of the above sounds critical.

What are you going to finish it with? Look forward to seeing it complete.

 

[Davon]

Opj, I posted the pictures to get an honest opinion from members and I agree with everything you have said, I thank you for your input.

To be totally honest I used pine because it was to hand so to speak, however I have decided to re-make the drawers ( I've never been happy with them) I reckon I can chisel out the old and then in with the new( I like maple) I will be finishing it with Chestnut finishing oil to match the table and chairs I made

Thanks again
Davon

 

[woodbloke]

Then I build the rest of the drawer. I've found out that the back can be a tad shorter than the front. This wont give you a prefect squared drawer but makes it is easier to fit and avoids binding if you work to very small tolerances.

Whenever I see this it makes me blanche...making the back smaller than the front isn't the recommended way to go about it. It's an easier way for sure, but not the right way.
The front and back should be the same length (ie shot into the opening) and if it can be arranged the rear of the carcase can be made a fraction wider that the front. This means that if the drawer is made square it will always fit correctly (provided you do everything else correctly)...making the back shorter than the front means that the drawer will not be square (it'll be trapezoidal) and as it's withdrawn the fit will become sloppier the further out it comes - Rob

 

[MickCheese]

Looks really good.

Not keen on the black ironmongery but that is just a matter of taste I like the overall look and it looks professional.

Well done.

Mick

 

[Davon]

Rob, Thanks for the feedback I take on board what you say, Mick I appreciate it's not to everyone's taste but as I said on a previous post, I have a black and oak theme going on, thanks for your comments.

Davon

 

[Benchwayze]

Davon,

My tip for help in making drawers would be:

Find a copy of Cabinetmaking for Beginners by Charles H Hayward.

Read and digest the chapter on drawer making and practice on some reclaimed timber until you lose your fears!

Abebooks.co.uk
eBay
Amazon.co.uk (Marketplace)
Alibris.com
All good places to source the book.
If you can't learn from CHH, I don't know what else to suggest.

Best of luck

John

 

[maltrout512]

Nice work. Reff the draws, I can't see why you should have a problem if the carcase is square and the draw is square everything should fit.
When you come to angles then it is a little harder.

 

[Davon]

Thanks John, Malcolm, I think I may be being trying to be too precise with the drawer fit. I suppose with practice and experience I will get better

Davon

 

[Benchwayze]

My pleasure Davon,

There are copies of that book at

http://www.abebooks.co.uk/servlet/Searc ... +beginners

The later editions don't vary a lot from the earliest.

I have used Hayward's methods most of my woodworking life, and they are sound.At the prices abebooks advertise you can't go wrong. I also have Rob Cosman's DVD on dovetailing if you'd like to borrow it.

That is worth its price too.

Regards
John

 

[Davon]

That's very good of you John I would be very interested in watching that, I will p.m you with my address and refund the postage when I return it if that's ok

Thanks
Davon

 

[cerdeira]

Whenever I see this it makes me blanche...making the back smaller than the front isn't the recommended way to go about it. It's an easier way for sure, but not the right way.

The rationale for making the back a little shorter, is that the drawer starts easily but progressively binds giving a kind of spring effect.
Then, when in place, the drawer wont move sideways and the gaps all around can be made equal.

I didn't want to "hijack" the thread, but I've used that technique when making these drawers:

The drawer sides have grooves that fit on the runners:

Even with a shorter back, the drawer is still tight on the runner, because the frame was not exactly (by engineering standards) square:

BTW another heretic trick to adjust the drawer sides angles, if they happen to be misfit, is to use the bottom to force the drawer to twist in the right direction

 

[woodbloke]

[
The rationale for making the back a little shorter, is that the drawer starts easily but progressively binds giving a kind of spring effect.

I can't see the pics at the moment but will have a gander tonite.
Agreed the drawer will start easily when going in, but will get sloppier as it's removed. If you make the back bigger by a mm or less it will slide easily both ways (provided everything else has been done correctly)
I've yet to see a ref in a text book of any sort where it's recommended that the back of drawer is made shorter than the front - Rob

 

[Davon]

Finished

Davon