Woodworker's Journal 2008-32-3, страница 44

Simple Doors and European Hinges

Cut edge slots with the joiner and workpiece flat on the work surface. Brace the work against a stop so it won't move as you cut.

Use a piece of plywood as a base for slotting the bottom. Rest the shoulder of the rabbet on the base and brace the work against the rip fence. Set the joiner on the base and make the slots.

shoulder of the rabbet. Reclamp the template and drill just the shelf-pin holes. Unclamp and remove the template. Now you're ready to work the mating cabinet side.

Lay out and cut the biscuit slots next. Refer to the Drawings. Slots are cut into the inside faces of the sides, top and bottom, the ends of

the top, bottom and mounting cleats, and the edges of the cleats.

Be consistent in your slotting technique so mating parts align properly. As a practical matter, it's impossible to cut the slots dead-center on the edge of plywood that's 23/32" thick. What works for me is to always work on a flat surface — such as the table saw — and to always use the base of the biscuit joiner as the reference (not the fence). And always orient the workpiece surfaces that must be flush when assembled down on the work surface. This way the slots will be the same distance from the reference surface in both parts.

If, on the other hand, you reference the edge slots with the joiner's fence and the face slots with the joiner's base, the slot alignment may be off by a 1/32" or so.

Assuming the cabinet's sides will be exposed — partially or entirely — lay out and bore pockets for assembly screws in the top, bottom and cleats. At this point, you can also band the edges that will be exposed in the assembled box. These include the front edges of the sides, top and bottom, and shelves, as well as one edge on each cleat. This is a good time to apply finish to the exposed edges and faces.

The case parts are ready to assemble. But unless you are prepared to hang the cabinet, there's no reason to do that. Instead, turn to the doors.

Build the Doors

The doors on the cabinet are uncomplicated — hardwood frames assembled with groove-and-stub-tenon joints around 1/4" plywood panels. The panels won't expand and contract the way solid wood panels do, so they can be glued in place, strengthening the assemblies.

The door dimensions are derived from the case dimensions. The case is 30" square. The doors overlay the case edges with a 1/16" reveal on either side, a 1/4" reveal at the top and 1/8" at the bottom and a 1/8" gap between the doors. Thus each door is 14⁷/s" x 28%".

Rather than driving assembly screws through the face of the sides, locate them in pockets drilled in the outer face of the top and bottom.

Cup hinges mount the doors to the case. To install the door, you clip the hinges, which are screwed to the door, to plates screwed to the case. The placement of both the hinges and the plates is critical. The fact that the hinges, being European, are dimensioned in millimeters only seems like a complication. Standardization leads to success.

Each hinge is located by boring a 35mm stopped hole into the door. Buy a 35mm Forstner bit for this job and use a jig (or make one yourself) to set the drill press fence to the offset directed in the packaging. Set the tool's depth stop and you are ready to roll. All that remains is to mark the fence 4" to the left and right of the bit axis.

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June 2008 Woodworker's Journal