Hi,
I am trying to figure out the best method to use to build replacement cupboards. I blame the warping on the way they were constructed. If I want to use tongue and groove panels but I don’t think a plywood back is going to prevent the boards from warping. What is the best way to construct a cupboard using 1/2″ tongue and groove panel board. (like the ones you see in the photos)?
I realize wood has to be able to move or else it might crack/split. I have to allow for seasonal wood movement.
wanda
Replies
frame & panel
I agree with Dusty - frames with v-grooved panels (and enough room in the frames for the panel to move) would be a better alternative. Plus, the frames would probably augment the rustic look.
Hi guys,
Yes, a frame and panel would solve the problem. ICan you safely make large Frame and panels using the a table saw? Not sure of the exact measurements but I'd say the cupboard doors are at least 2ft in length. I'd have to make a TALL auxillary fence for my TS. Or I could buy one of those vertical panel router bits and make the panels on the router table. Might be easier on the table saw though.
I have never build a Frame and panel before but there's always a first time for everything. I'll give it a try.
wanda
frame and panel
I believe you are thinking in terms of raised panels, Wanda. Panels needn't be raised, but rather simply glued-up, relatively thin boards, perhaps with a thinner edge that is easier to slip into a slot in the frame. Shaker furniture, for example, typically uses flat panels for cupboards. Or, the panels can be simply 1/4" plywood. Many alternatives exist, some similar to the doors you are replacing.
If you go the raised panel route, a router table or shaper is probably much safer than trying to do the panels on a table saw.
Sort of like what you want
Wanda,
Here is a photo of some planked panel doors I made over thirty years ago and they have not warped. They are simple to build with simple tools. I'll post instructions if you are interested.
I've built plank t & g doors like the one in your photos but you have to use perpendicular straps front and back only screwed together near the center. The straps should have opposing crowns for flatness. If you do it like this only a small percentage will warp. With the plywood on one side (like in your photos) you have an unbalanced panel which is guaranteed to warp. Instructions for these available upon request also.
Bret
planked panel doors
Hi Bret,
I've been so busy I haven't had a chance to check the forum.. Yes, I would love some instructions on how to build those doors.
wanda
Sorry, I haven't checked here lately
Wanda,
Just read your request but am on the way out the door. I'll send you those instruction later today.
Bret
A classic piece of poor design.
Wanda,
The doors are warping because the solid wood T+G, which expands and contracts with changes in humidity has been ridgidly attached to the plywood which doesn't move when the weather changes. A classic piece of well intentioned poor design that creates stresses that warp the door.
There are several ways, I can think of four or five at least, to build doors that will look the same but not warp. Unfortunately a full explanation of the approaches would need a chapter in a book, short explanations posted here just won't be adequate.
building cupboard doors to match the origionals
Hi John,
I understand why the cupboard doors are warping and I would love to build doors that would look the same but without the warp. Can you direct me towards a sourse.. book/mag that might explain how to build cupboards like the pictures I posted since it would require a lengthy discussion/instructions.
You can think of 4 or 5 ways to build doors like mine... I'd really like to know the secrets behind buidling those doors.
wanda
hey wanda,
what you are asking for consists of very basic cabinetmaking, requires some tools and is not difficult to learn. an online search of frame and panel cabinet door construction should yield some good information. the stiles are the verticle members of the frame and the rails are it's horizontal parts. for kitchen cabs i make the stiles and top rail 2 1/4" wide and the bottom rail 3". one needs to cut a groove into the inside edge of the frame parts. 1/4"x1/4" is good but one can go with 1/2" deep as well. this groove or plough can be cut at the table saw or with a router and it is intended to house what ever type of panel one wants. stiles and rails can be joined with simple dowels, drilled out using a hand-held jig. this doweled, butt joint is plenty strong for kitchen/bathroom cab doors, although there are more complex, sturdier ways of doing.
eef
Briefly...
Wanda,
I wish I could recommend a book on the subject, and somebody must have written one, but I simply don't know of it.
The simplest way to build the doors is to make two battens that go crosswise on the back face of the doors and attach them solidly, with a lapped joint, to just the two outermost vertical boards. Basically you are just making a frame with the two horizontal pieces hidden. All of the remaining vertical boards that fill in between the outer pieces are attached to each batten along one vertical line only, so that the filler boards can expand and contract without resistance. All of the vertical boards are T&G so they interlock to stay aligned but can move without opening up gaps between them.
The two battens, and the two outermost boards affixed to them, should be quarter sawn stock to minimize any chance of their warping. The two battens and the two outer boards should be 2 to 3 inches wide, as a good compromise between strength and wood movement, the filler boards can be wider,
Two elegant ways to build the doors would be to dovetail the battens into the backs of the verticals or to use hidden horizontal splines that are run through mortises in each vertical. Both of those techniques are used in Europe but I have never seen them described in magazine article or a how-to book.
I will recommend one book, that shows some very elegant European design techniques. It was originally published in Germany, but translated and republished in the US years ago by Taunton Press. You can probably find a used copy online: "Solid-Wood Cabinet Construction by Franz Karg". Don't mistakenly buy another similarly titled book by the same author called "Cabinet Construction in Solid Wood", it isn't nearly as useful. The book is all photos and detail drawings only, there is virtually no text, but if you study the drawings carefully you can learn a lot about some of the finest ways ever developed to design and build furniture.
Hi John,
Thank you for the valuable info. I will see if I can find a copy of that book by Franz Karg.
wanda
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