WW cl@ss - fliptop cabinet part 5: Installing the drawer, casters and supports

[Bas]

Fliptop cabinet part 1
Fliptop cabinet part 2
Fliptop cabinet part 3
Fliptop cabinet part 4

Nothing complicated in this part, basically finishing up the drawer and supports to get ready for trimming the edges.

Installing the drawer
Installing a single drawer is not that difficult with a few key measurements. I installed the slides in the center of the drawer sides, but some advocate putting them on the bottom of the side. I’m not sure which is better. If you go with mounting them on the bottom, make sure you adjust the position. As always, consult the instructions that come with your slides. Also, I suggest you refer back to the videos from part 4.

Measure 3” from the top of the left drawer side in two places, and connect the marks. This line is the center line. Remove the drawer part from the slide, you usually have to press a clip for this. Align the drawer part of the slide on the center of the drawer, by making sure the line is in the center of the screw holes. The front of the slide should be set 1/8” back from the front of the drawer. Drive in three screws (front, center, back) in the vertical screw slots. These slots will allow you to make some up/ down adjustments. Repeat for the right hand side.

The drawer front is 6 ¾” tall. Half of that is 3 3/8. Allowing for a 1/8” reveal along the top, the center of the cabinet slide should be 3½” from the top. Cut a scrap piece of wood to this length, and use that to mark two points on the inside of each cabinet side panel. Connect the marks to make a line.

Next, calculate the inset. The drawer front is 7/8” thick. Adding a 1/8” reveal, it means the cabinet slide should be set back 1” from the front. Mark this point. I trimmed the plywood edges with ¼” strips of beech, if you plan to do something similar make sure you set the drawer back only ¾”. The inset will be a full inch after you add the trim.

Put the cabinet down on the left side, and align the center of the cabinet slide on the line. Just make sure the line is in the center of the screw holes. Align the front with the mark.
Drive in three screws (front, center, back) into the horizontal screw slots. These slots will allows you to make some left/ right adjustments. You may want to drill pilot holes first. Don’t drill too deep! Repeat for the right hand side.

Try sliding the drawer into the opening. Align the two parts of the slide, and push it all the way in so it “catches”. Now pull the drawer out. If the action is not smooth, one or both sides may not have caught. If the drawer parts aren’t connecting into the cabinet parts (drawer too narrow), you may want to use some painter’s tape as a shim underneath the two slides mounted to the drawer.

Now check the drawer fit left/ right. You should be able to fit a 1/8” shim snugly on either side. Next, check the reveal on the top. If it’s not even, loosen the screws on the slides on the drawer and move the slide down to raise the front, up to lower it. The depth of the drawer face will be adjusted after the edges have been trimmed. Don’t worry about the bottom edge of the drawer front, again the trimming will take care of that.

Installing the casters
If you have the kind that attaches with four wood screws, this is a pretty simple installation. Place the casters as far in as possible, but still allow you to easily operate the lock with your foot. Secure them with screws. If you have the threaded kind, there’s a little more work involved.

Determine where you want the casters to be located (make sure you can get to the lock), and mark where the bolt will go. Next, use a large Forstner- or spade bit to drill the recess for the fixed nut on the caster. I don’t recall exactly what size I used, but measure the fixed nut and make it ~1/8” larger than the nut itself. Otherwise, you can’t put a socket over it. After drilling the big hole for the nut, drill the through hole for the bolt using a ½” bit. Note that the casters are metric, so get metric nuts to go with it! Make sure you use a ½” washer underneath the (loose) nut, or you’ll crush the plywood when you tighten it.

Important: Make sure you drill the large hole before the small one. You can adjust the dept of the large hole later, but if you do it in reverse order, you’ll never get the larger hole centered on the smaller one.

Attaching the hardwood supports
The supports on the top will be used to attach the extension wings. Before cutting the wood to size, plane it down to match your plywood in thickness. Depending on the plywood, this usually means it’s 1/32” to 1/16” thinner than ¾”. Next, cut biscuit slots to match the holes cut in the top of the panel, or make rabbet cuts as shown in part 2.
Apply yellow glue to the biscuit slots, biscuits and the top of the cabinet sides, and join the pieces. Clamp the hardwood supports to the cabinet using parallel- or pipe clamps. Make sure the support goes on straight, it has a tendency to “sag” towards the outside. A square block of wood (wrapped with plastic tape so the glue won’t stick to it) underneath will help keep things in alignment (use small bar clamps or quick clamps to hold these blocks in place).

[WoodWrangler]

When's the book come out?

[Bas]

Originally Posted by WoodWrangler

When's the book come out?

Six months after the movie Not sure who should star in it though. For some reason, Steve Buscemi seems like he'd look really amusing explaining power tool safety.

[Travis Porter]

Where are the WIP pictures?

[NC Scroller]

Hey wait a second. I helped you attach some nuts and bolts. I should get some credit .

I have seen it up close and it is a slick setup. Good job.

[Bas]

Originally Posted by Travis Porter

Where are the WIP pictures?

(Note to self: No matter what you're building, take lots of pictures along the way.) This writeup was more of an afterthought, I only took a couple of pictures since I didn't think anyone would be interested.....

[Bas]

Originally Posted by NC Scroller

Hey wait a second. I helped you attach some nuts and bolts. I should get some credit

Yup, but not until part 7