Replies

1. 
   Senomozi | Sep 26, 2009 11:16pm | #1

   From a functional point of view both types will do the job so in my opinion it becomes a choice based on aesthetics, materials cost, time and desire to learn a technique if you have never used it before. Plywood doors with iron-on edge banding would be quicker to make and cheaper. If you used a solid wood edging you could rout a profile around the perimeter of the doors to make them look a little nicer. Frame and panel would cost more and take longer to make but would look better. Frame and panel is also more time consuming to paint because of all the different surfaces. A flat plywood door can be painted really quickly with a foam paint roller. If you have never built frame and panel doors before then this project would be a great one for learning the technique. I would suggest using poplar for the wood because it is fairly cheap (around where I live at least) and takes paint really well. I built my workshop storage unit (16 drawers) with poplar face frames and drawer faces and I am very happy with the painted finish.

1. 
   dougwg | Sep 28, 2009 01:58am | #2

   Thanks, You provided some good input. I have not built frame and panel doors before, and this would be a good project to learn how. I need to build 27 doors so I will be fairly well experenced by the time I am finished.

   Thanks again, the learning and experinece factor did it.

1. 
   Buster2000 | Sep 28, 2009 09:54pm | #5

   27 doors!  That's a lot of practice!

   I think it depends on what your goals are and what your time is like.  I've been following a guy hand cutting dovetail for some shop cabinets.  The results look great, and I'm sure he can cut dovetails really well... But it's taken a long time.  A real long time.

   In my shop I used Melamine doors.  I didn't even have to finish them.  I just edge banded them and put them up.  I built 9 large cabinets (2' wide, 2' deep, 6' tall with shelving), and I was building each one from start to finish in 2 hours.  One cabinet per night, including loading them up.

   Edited 9/28/2009 3:05 pm by Buster2000

1. 
   philip_r | Sep 28, 2009 10:33pm | #6

   Just OSB in my shop.  Saves money and time.  IMHO, make one or two nice "show" cabinets for the soccer moms and use OSB or MDF for the rest.

2. 
   JohnWW | Sep 28, 2009 03:33pm | #3

   If you make the doors out of plywood, you will have to buy fairly expensive (probably $75.00 to $100.00 a sheet) good quality plywood from a wholesaler that supplies cabinet shops. Almost any plywood from Home Depot type places will not stay flat.

   Because you will be painting the doors you can get utility or shop grade faces which have minor flaws and discoloration but will be cheaper.

   John White
   Shop Manager for FWW Magazine, 1998 to 2007
3. 
   Moksha | Sep 28, 2009 04:11pm | #4

   These cabinets in my garage have frame and panel doors.. The frames are maple with mdf raised panels. They are painted and have held up for five years with no problems.

   Moksha

   
4. 
   cowtown | Sep 30, 2009 07:42am | #7

   Face frame construction loses valuable storage space, complicates door measurements and generally adds compexity to a simple objective, making cabinets look good.

    

   If you go to drawer banks in face-frame style, it is not uncommon to lose 20% of available cubic fotage storage space due to the face frames, and as tha prime utilitrarian space suffers from this annoyance, it really begs the question as why go to the trubble of making a face frame only to complicate door and drawer construction, only to end up with a net loss in available strorage,

    

   European type boxes and doors with european hinges are cleaner in appearance, simpler in construction and simpler to  produce, but they require that the base be level to achieve a nice appearance. Yer garage floor is (hopefully) not level, so the kicks may take a tad of levelling to give you a solid sould and level basis.

    

   All that being said, they are also easier to adjust than face frame doors, a notable feature if you siuffer form OCD. Doors, should they get damaged are moreover cheaper and easier to replace than face frame doors..

   Go Euro.

    

   Just my thoughts.

    

   Eric in Cowtown

    

    

5. 
   Buster2000 | Sep 30, 2009 09:20pm | #8

   Just wanted to pass on another idea.  As I said I used melamine doors, which works... but if I had to do it over I would actually build the doors as usefull storage space.  Make the a box as well, use a big piano hinge and you'll be able to store tools on the inside of the door.  It's a great use of storage space.

6. 
   RalphBarker | Oct 03, 2009 06:48pm | #9

   As others have mentioned, it's really a matter of aesthetics and whether you want to use the project to learn new skills. Painting the doors (and, cabinets) white will add reflected light to the area, but may not be as visually pleasing as stained and varnished.

   I'd also point out that it's not absolutely necessary to make all of the doors in the same style. You might, for example, choose to do pairs of doors in different styles/designs to make the most of the learning potential. Once the cabinets are mounted on the walls, the shelves are functional even without doors. So, taking your time isn't really an issue.