Replies

1. 
   JeffHeath | Nov 08, 2008 05:29pm | #1

   I'm not sure I understand your question.  A face frame attached to the front for the purpose of hanging doors would be fine.  Why would you want to have a raised panel front to a tool box?  Doesn't the front need to have doors that can open and close to have access to the toolbox?

   My toolbox, similar in design to the one you speak of, is made of solid cherry sides, top and bottom.  They're all dovetailed together.  The back is 3/4" cherry ply.  The doors on the front are solid cherry frame and raised panel, very similar to Andy Rae's toolbox.  The doors are hung on hinges, and thus create no cross grain issue at all to deal with.  The sides move in depth, all together, but not along their long grain, thus not creating any issues of movement for the back. 

   If you have a different question then the one I'm answering, then post it back with a clarification.

   I'm going out to the shop to work now, so I'll answer it later.

   Jeff

1. 
   Manchineel | Nov 08, 2008 07:44pm | #2

   Jeff,Thanks for your response. To be more specific, I wanted a solid wood face for my Tool Cabinet and was looking for help on the detail for this. It appears to me that the construction of this cabinet starts with a large dove-tailed box. The front doors of this box are then formed by sawing some portion of the front of this box off (i.e. separating the sides, top, and bottom into two pieces - the body of the cabinet and the extra deep doors). So... my question was dealing with creating a solid wood front for that portion of the front that is sawed from the sides, top, and bottom. It would seem there are two options for this: First - simply create a dado just inside the front of the sides, top, and bottom to receive a panel of some sort(solid or ply). The second way would be to attach a "face frame" with a panel inset into it to the that portion of the sides, top, and bottom cut away from the main box which will ultimately become the extra-deep front doors. Let me say, I am a beginner - so what may be obvious to you may not necessarily be obvious to me. I have also been using the article Quick-to-Make Tool Cabinet by Jan Zoltowski from Tools and Shop 2007 as another point of reference in a way to construct this. I think it is also a nice looking cabinet, however I wanted this project to provide me with some experience in traditional cabinet construction as well as provide me a well designed place to house my growing tool collection. Hence my reason for leaning more with the Becksvoort design. I have not seen Andy's, although I have always been impressed by his work as well and will check that out. Thanks again!Rick

1. 
   MKenney | Nov 08, 2008 09:52pm | #3

   Rick,I made the type of doors you're talking about for my tool cabinet. Take a look a the pictures below (apologies for the poor picture quality). You can see more photos in the new gallery here at FWW online. I made mine by making a frame and panel door to begin with. I then made a dovetailed "box" and glued it to the frame. There are no wood movement concerns here, because the rails/stiles on the frame have the same grain direction as the sides of the box. The panel is left to float in the frame, so it won't effect the box.I would not make this like you might make a small box. In other words, don't treat the doors like a box top that you cut off after glue-up at the bandsaw or tablesaw. It's too big. Make the box, then make your doors to match.If you want more details about how to do that, let me know.By the way, I made my doors this way so I could hang saws on them and still close the doors. Why do you want to do them this way? I ask out of curiosity.MattThis is my personal signature.

   Edited 11/8/2008 1:58 pm ET by MKenney

   
1. 
   Manchineel | Nov 09, 2008 07:14am | #5

   Thanks for your input. I wanted to build a "box door" so that I could house various tools, mainly chisels and various other hand tools in them. I was also looking for a more traditional look and challenge.

2. 
   JeffHeath | Nov 09, 2008 01:21am | #4

   OK.  Now I understand.  You do not want to use a solid wood front, unless it is done so in a frame and panel door.  You would be dealing with cross grain situations with the top and bottom of the part of the sides that gets cut off from the sides/top/bottom (is that confusing, or do you understand me?)

   If you do not wish to have a frame and panel door, then you should use plywood veneered with your wood species of choice, inset into a rabbet.

   Good luck.

   Jeff

1. 
   Manchineel | Nov 09, 2008 07:16am | #6

   Yep. I understand. That is pretty much what I thought - but just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing something. Thanks for your time...Rick