Adding Drawers to an Enclosed Machine Base

Drawers look great, but it would drive my type-A personality bonkers that the drawer pulls don't match on those two cabinets.... :peek:

well done glenn,, and handles are just to open drawers so looks arent always important:)

Its funny, the yellow pine cabinet with the (non-matching) horizontal pulls is the first drawer unit I made using a webframe format; its horrible but I keep it around as a point of reference. Made from scrap, bad ply and leftovers it speaks volumes as to what I did then versus what I do now. Many lessons learned from experience but, many lessons also learned here from our members sharing their experiences as well. Maybe the drawer organizers will up my type-A rating :rofl:.

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I really could have just made the drawers piston-fit and let them ride on the plywood sides greased with paraffin and these would have lasted a lifetime. I wanted to try the guide method with sheet goods just for my own curiosity. Hardwood drawers work well with this method since it is easy to make small adjustments with a block plane. You can sand ply to adjust but, if the adjustment is too much you rapidly run out of veneer :D. At any rate, explaining this runner method takes longer than installing them:

I leave a 1/2" between the bottom panel dado and the bottom of the side (for other methods I only leave 1/4" - 5/16" on light duty drawers) to provide a decent side bearing surface.

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The guides are just strips of hardwood with two counter-bores and through-holes. Ignore the finish on the runners; these things happen when you build from scraps :). Both holes are oversized to allow adjustment. For the plywood drawers I added some UHMW tape to avoid wearing through the bottom panel over time. I must think I am going to live to 120 :rolleyes:.

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The drawer rides on top of the runners and is held side-to-side by them as well. I leave the thickness of a piece of masking tape worth of "slop" so they are controlled enough to travel smoothly but, not loose enough to bind. The drawer front is an overlay but, I use the runners as a stop as well to distribute the force when a drawer is shut less than delicately.

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The runners center the drawer in the opening like so:

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A little more fuss than shop drawers deserve but, this method works so well on solid wood drawers, I wanted to try it out. The verdict? Not a good solution for plywood drawers. Glad I could take one for the team :thumb:.

Glenn the whole setup looks perfect for shop draws.....where do you experience a problem with the ply version that has you giving a negative verdict on them.
I gotta say you had me sold on them until you said "not a good solution"

I got a few questions...if u dont mind.

Are the draws entirely pocket hole assembled. Could not quiet work out front attachment to sides of draws.

The frame u insert for the draws to slide on .....how is it attached to cabinet sides. Is the a dado it glides into or is it just pocket holed to side.

What did u use for draw bottoms? Looks like ply but how thick? Thats what carries the weight in the draw when it runs on the runners correct???

So i guess draw carrying weight needs to be considered but for the specific machine u using them for sanding consumables dont weigh much.

Funny thing is quiet a few years ago i refurbed some wooden draws in a tool cabinet my grandfather had made and the draws just run on the flat wood divide and no lubrication at all.

Thanks for sharing your build.


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Glenn the whole setup looks perfect for shop draws.....where do you experience a problem with the ply version that has you giving a negative verdict on them.
I gotta say you had me sold on them until you said "not a good solution"

- After a bit of fettling, I can see a way that would make this quite workable. The drawer bottoms ride on the runners. With hardwood bottoms I just sand to 400 grit and rub with paraffin and all is well. The ply would sand smooth and ride OK but, I am not confident about length of service. I think a coat of sealer and then sanding to 400 grit on the bottom where they ride the runners would do well.

- The webframes act as supports for the drawer resting on them and as the kicker for the drawer below. Again, the ply does not smooth out like hardwood to allow a good service surface. If I had made the frames out of maple or something like that, I would feel better about it.
I got a few questions...if u dont mind.

Are the draws entirely pocket hole assembled. Could not quiet work out front attachment to sides of draws.

- The fronts are attached with screws from the side; through the sides and into the rabbeted edge - same rabbet that makes the drawer front overlay.

The frame u insert for the draws to slide on .....how is it attached to cabinet sides. Is the a dado it glides into or is it just pocket holed to side.

- it is actually a full frame (rectangle, not a U) and it is simply pocket-holed into the 1/2" BB ply sides. These drawers are only about 13" x 15" and carry pretty light loads. For the same basic format with a heavier expectation I would dado them into 3/4" sides. For furniture (as opposed to shop cabinets) I dado or dado/sliding dovetail them to impart a level of quality (or maybe just to be showy ;-)

What did u use for draw bottoms? Looks like ply but how thick? Thats what carries the weight in the draw when it runs on the runners correct???
- 1/4" BB ply and yes, this is the bearing surface that rids the runners. Again, for the small drawers and light load this seems OK. It is the smoothness one can achieve and the length of service that concerns me.

So i guess draw carrying weight needs to be considered but for the specific machine u using them for sanding consumables dont weigh much.

- Bingo ;)

Funny thing is quiet a few years ago i refurbed some wooden draws in a tool cabinet my grandfather had made and the draws just run on the flat wood divide and no lubrication at all.

- Many drawers have run that way for longer periods than we would think possible. LOML has a dresser that was her grandmothers. Half inch soft maple sides riding directly on soft maple webframes. Still doing daily service for the third generation.

Overall this sort of drawer system is great when you don't want the guides to show but, don't want to go to metal undermounts or . . . if you just want to take one for the team.
 
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Thanks Glenn, BTW saw this stuff today at LV and thought of you...

wonder if anyone has tried the stuff.

I have not but, folks whom I respect say it works and for the cost it would go many times farther than the UHMW tape. If it would have been on hand I would have used it. Th tape was on hand as someone had a great sale on it about a year ago and I picked up 4 rolls for the cost of one ;-)
 
I've been following this thread Glen and was wondering why you thought this style of guide isn't suited for a plywood drawer box?
 
I've been following this thread Glen and was wondering why you thought this style of guide isn't suited for a plywood drawer box?

In post #26, my response to Rob, I noted that with a bit of fiddling, I came to feel that this would work out OK. My concern was on the load-bearing surface. The plywood bottom rests on the runners so, I felt that excessive weight or rough use might make this method ill suited to long life. After percolating on it a bit, I realize that my dad has a set of heavy cabinets that have 1/2" plywood drawer sides that run on the 1/2" edges and have done so, under load, for about 40 years :thumb:. Modern plywood has a face veneer that is sometimes so thin I can read the glue pattern through it :D. Careful selection of the drawer bottom material and a little love should make this workable.

My version of "a little love" was to seal the runner area of the plywood bottoms with shellac, sand to 400 and rub with paraffin. That combined with UHMW tape ion top of the runners has things moving well. Another problem area was using plywood for the webframes. This makes a rough surface for the kicker. Using something like soft maple would solve this but, I had already built the thing :eek:. So, again I sealed the ply, sanded smooth and waxed it. I also put little drawer bumpers on the top of the drawer box sides at the rear where they sometimes connect with the kickers (not the sticky bumpers like you might use for box feet, these are made for drawers and made to slip). I have been using the drawers over the last few days with no complaints. If it all go south somewhere down the line, I'll report in but, for now I think it is very workable.

I should repeat that I use this method with much success on hallway tables, sofa tables, even tableware drawers on buffets. In those builds I use a hardwood drawer bottom and so have become a bit prejudice towards that. I now think the ply will work out. ;)
 
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