Replies

1. 
   BG | Oct 24, 2009 01:04am | #1

   bmyyou,

   Usually I rip and crosscut and re-glue the front apron with everything tight. Then I pop out the drawer fronts and make my drawers. After the dovetails have been sanded, etc. I usually have about the thickness of a card scraper on each side of the drawer front and double that for the top and bottom.

2. 
   matt calnen | Oct 24, 2009 04:26am | #2

   What type of undermount slides are you useing? I use Blum tandom and the size of the drawer is in relation to the Inside of the sides of the drawer box, not the out side. I don't know about you but I try to build my drawers close to finish size and just plane off enough to clean up the sides. 

3. 
   dmdnk | Oct 24, 2009 04:33am | #3

   For dovetailed fronts I ususally make the box side to final thickness before assembly and make my pins a hair long- like 1/64"- then sand or plane them flush.

   For concealed undermount slides I make a drawer box with an seperate front.  The dimensions of the drawer box would depend on the slide you are using.  If it is a concealed slide with a cabinet member that mounts to the cabinet side,  you must build the drawer box to the specifications of the slide.  The concealed slides I've used require that the inside dimension of the box is 1 5/8" smaller than the cabinet opening.  If the drawer box sides are 1/2" thick, that leaves a 5/16" gap between the side of the drawer and the side of the cabinet.  That's a huge gap if you are making the drawer box and front as one piece.

   If these are the type of slides you are using, you should consider making dovetailed boxes with attached fronts.

   David

1. 
   bmyyou | Oct 24, 2009 05:30am | #4

   Yes, the drawer boxes will be mounted using undermount slides. I have the spec sheets for the Blum and the KV undermount slides and understand there are specifics for a given drawer opening, however I'm really asking about how much I need to oversize the box itself to compensate for the fit up and planing of the tails and pins?
   I'm concerned that if I cut the parts to the widths and lengths needed (and defined in the specs) and then machine the dovetails and fit them up, they will not be the right resulting inside width because I didn't add 1/16" or 1/8" to the lengths of the pieces to account for the protrusion of the tails on the ends. Does this make sense or should I just cut the pieces to the inside dimensions specified by the drawer instructions and plane the tails and pins?

1. 
   ring | Oct 24, 2009 08:39am | #5

   The only dimension that is critical for fitting the Blum undermounts is the inside width between the drawer sides. The outside measurement can be whatever it turns out to be (up to the point that it doesn't fit in the space). I've made hundreds of these and it's usually not a problem to get that inside dimension correct. However, like anything else, if you get it a bit wrong there are ways to fix it afterwards:-An oversize width can be narrowed by glueing strips of veneer or thin wood to the drawer sides, on the area under the bottom dado.
   -An undersize width can be opened up by judicial trim on the tablesaw, router, or handplane, also only under the dado.David Ring

   http://www.touchwood.co.il/?lang=e&id=1

2. 
   dmdnk | Oct 27, 2009 06:53am | #6

   Since the inside dimension is the critical one, make sure that after you cut your pins that you have the proper distance between the sides of the box.  Material you remove from the outside of the box won't affect the function of the slide.