Looking for suggestions for a Gun cabinet (solid panels or Frame and Panel)
cedarduck
| Posted in General Discussion on
One of my customers at work asked if I could glue up some larger walnut panels he ordered from Home Depot(I work at Lowes btw lol ) for a gun cabinet and I told him sure thing. Well he brings the wood over and he decided its to big of a project for him and asked if I would be willing to make it. We agree on a price and he is wanting solid wood panels all around. The cabinet is going to be about 6 foot tall 4 foot wide and 12” deep. If it was mine I would do frame and panel all around. Besides being heavy as hell I am a little concerned with wood movement on such large panels. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Replies
I assume that the grain of the sides will be up and down and the top will be side to side. As such, the 12" depth of the cabinet and the design will not cause great concern with cross-grain movement. You should provide for it where necessary, but you won't need anything drastic. Without knowing the details of your design, I believe the only cross-grain issues you might have are the base and top trim pieces along the sides if you will have them. These will be easy to deal with.
Having said that, I like frame and panel for several reasons. The main one is that there are almost no concerns with movement (assuming your panels are allowed to float) other than fastening the top down.
The 12 inch sides can be solid. But solid wood for the back is going to cost. I'd consider buying a sheet of walnut ply for the back.
Pre-agreed price will dictate time you can spend on joinery, dovetails being top and drywall screws the bottom., A solid wood case will have no movement issues with grain running continuously 'round in the same direction... Shiplap back in thinner stock would be the "traditional" approach. Open face or glass doors per your client's desires. Sounds like a fun project.
It's all going to depend on your local climate. Up here in the great white north, not native hardwood tends to crack and fissure extensively on large panels in our winter summer cycles.
Curious about your use of the term walnut "panels" he bought at HD? You do mean solid wood boards not plywood panels I assume? I can only imagine how much he overpaid to get Walnut from Home Depot, last I checked they were selling poplar for more than I pay for 4/4 walnut, but I digress. As mentioned by others there is no wood movement issues in such a case other than the back which can either be a plywood panel or a floating solid wood panel using either loose fitting T&G or more commonly shiplap joints. If you want to control the movement somewhat, the individual boards could be pin nailed in the center splitting the amount of movement in half to either side of the Brad which will insure even gaps between individual boards regardless of the season .
I will add that a 4 foot span is pushing the limit for unsupported spans and I would be more concerned about door warpage than anything else. I also would suggest 1/4" tempered glass in the doors for a number of reasons, if glass doors are indeed in the plans.
By the way, it's important where are you live or going to do cabinet? The tree affects the climate differently (heat and cold). This should be taken into account.
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