MDF alcove cupboard WIP - my first attempt (at anything...)

[FishChipsAndBeans]

Hello, I thought I'd share my first attempt at making some fitted furniture - a TV cupboard in the alcove next to our chimney.

As mentioned in a previous thread, I had the timber supplier (Howarth Timber in Derby) cut the larger pieces to size. I was pleased with how accurate they were. I made the smaller cuts using my jigsaw and a straight edge. I did the odd bit of electric planing, which worked out well (mainly through luck rather than judgement).

I made a design in Sketchup (after watching a few videos to work out how to use Sketchup)

Here is the 'workspace' - the cupboard is going where the existing TV cupboard is. The Amazon box in the middle contains my new Kreg pocket hole jig + screws + clamp.

Putting the carcase together. Pretty sure I'd have got the edges to line up better if I had a flat workbench on which to assemble...

Carcase in position.

Cutting out the hole in the back plate for the plug sockets.

The hole is just about in the right position...

The plinth, made from PAR 5 by 2.

Pinning the back on and doing my best to make the carcase square...

Shelf added - not on the original plan but I realised that I didn't want to have to open the doors in order to use the remote controls.

Starting to fix everything in place. Note the large bag of wedges - needed because a) the 5 by 2 wasn't quite as high as the (square-edged) skirting; and b) some elements weren't quite.... er, square.

 

[FishChipsAndBeans]

Fitted the face plate (is that the right term) on the right hand side, returning into the chimney breast.

Also, I fitted strips of timber to pack out the hinges, so that the bits on the side would look wider. Oh how I wish I knew the right terms...

I seem to have jumped a couple of steps (got excited; took no photos). Here the doors are fitted (obviously) - fitting hidden hinges is something I've had quite a lot of practice at, since we (I) made MDF doors for our (Howdens carcase) kitchen. 'Face plate (?)' on the left is also in place, scribed to the (outward sloping) wall.

Then a bit of jiggering around with the hinges to line up the doors.

So that's where I've got to.

Now, a QUESTION. I have a piece of MDF for the top. What is the best way to cut it to size, given that all three sides that touch wall/chimney are not exactly square/straight? Should I be making some sort of template?

Finally, and this is a bit late - say I have a reasonably thin strip of MDF (or whatever), say 100mm and I want to cut off 50mm but in a straight line, how do I that?

For a wider piece, I'd either use a straight-edge jig for a circular saw or clamp a straight edge 40mm inside the cut line and run my jigsaw along that (the distance from the edge of the jigsaws footplate to the blade is 40mm. But for a piece of wood that's already narrow, I haven't worked out a way to clamp the piece being cut so that everything is stable.

Is this just something that someone would use a table saw for ?

Many thanks
Andrew

 

[mseries]

I'd make a template for the top from some scraps or cardboard. Essentially you need to get enough information to enable you to reproduce the shape on your workpiece. Stick a few pieces of card or board together in the alcove to make the finished shape, don't forget you may need to scribe the actual shape if they walls are not straight. Cutting down the 100mm strip, maybe you can stick a straightedge to it using double sided tape so as not to foul the movement of your saw ?

 

[MatthewRedStars]

Also, when scribing, you can quite aggressively undercut on the hidden sides so the top piece can be dropped into place.