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Easily set up, retailer and transport all of your small woodworking equipment with this intelligent cupboard and cheap plastic deal with containers – as an alternative of drawers.
One of my favourite issues to do when I’ve free time is to tinker round my store, organizing my small stuff. I truly take pleasure in sorting by nails, bits and staples; and a pile of in a different way sized screws all thrown collectively drives me loopy. For this motive, I’ve turn out to be keen on Plano’s plastic utility containers. I’ve about 100 of them.
This might sound extreme, however I additionally use the containers to prepare and retailer fishing lures. In truth, these containers usually are marketed as miniature deal with containers.
Any woodworker or angler is aware of that the quantity of screws, nails, bits and lures one owns tends to develop exponentially, leading to plenty of little stuff. (After sorting by my fishing lures just lately I noticed I personal virtually 1,000.) Plano’s containers have dividers to maintain all the things organized they usually’re straightforward to hold across the store, to a job website or on a ship. However, 100 unfastened containers is a bit like a pile of in a different way sized screws. I wanted a field to prepare my containers. The cupboard you see right here is the outcome.
This undertaking is straightforward and fast to construct – as a store undertaking must be. The plastic containers merely slide out and in on items of Masonite which are slipped into dados lower on the within of every facet piece and either side of the cupboard’s heart divider. The cope-and-stick doorways are solely optionally available.
While any miniature deal with field will work, this cupboard suits Plano’s 3700-series utility containers. For extra data, see “About Plano Utility Boxes” at backside.
Rows of Dados
Cut the poplar prime, backside, sides, divider, plywood again and Masonite cabinets to dimension, as said within the chopping checklist. Now it’s time to chop the dados. Install your dado stack in your desk noticed. The dados are 1⁄4” broad by 1⁄4” deep so that you want solely the skin cutters. There’s no must mess with chippers or shims.
I spaced my dados 21⁄4” aside. You want to chop every dado on the within of every facet piece and on either side of the middle divider. Cut the primary dado within the 4 locations required, regulate your fence after which lower the subsequent one. You’re chopping 11 dados on each bit, which quantities to 44 dados. This technique ensures you progress your fence as little as potential.
With the dados full, lower a 1⁄4” x 1⁄4” rabbet on the rear fringe of the facet items that may maintain the 1⁄4“-thick plywood again.
Assembling the Cabinet
Once the dados are lower, spherical over the sides of the highest and backside items utilizing your router and a 1⁄2“-radius roundover bit. Sand all of the case items to #180 grit.
Lay out the place the edges and divider will go on the highest and backside, as proven within the illustration at proper. Use these structure traces to drill your clearance holes, then screw the edges, prime and backside (however not the divider) along with #eight x 2″ screws.
You want two screw strips to hold the cupboard on the wall – one on the highest and one on the underside, as proven within the drawing. While the screw strips match between either side piece, you have to first notch the middle divider to make it work. Using your band noticed, lower a 3⁄4” -wide by 11⁄2“-long notch on the prime and backside of the again facet of the divider. Screw the divider in place after which nail the screw strips in place as effectively, as proven above.
If you probably did all the things appropriately, the 1⁄4“-thick plywood again ought to match snugly between either side piece and flat in opposition to every screw strip. Basically, it suits right into a 1⁄4“-deep rabbet you created when assembling the cupboard. Cut your again to dimension, sand it easy and, utilizing your brad nailer, nail it in place.
Cope-and-stick Doors
Two screw strips, one on the highest and one on the underside, let you screw your cupboard to your store wall. Notice the notch lower into the divider to permit the screw strip to suit.
The doorways are optionally available. In a store, they’ll maintain the containers from getting dusty. Plus, they showcase your craftsmanship. If and the way you make them is as much as you.
I made my two doorways utilizing stile-and-rail cutters on my router desk. I used my desk noticed to boost the panel. First, lower all of your door components to dimension. Then, utilizing your rail bit (generally known as the cope-cutting bit), lower the tenon on the 4 rails. Then lower the beaded moulding profile and groove in your 4 stiles with the stile bit out of your stile-and-rail bit set.
It’s at all times a good suggestion to do take a look at cuts when utilizing stile-and-rail bits. If you need further instruction on utilizing stile-and-rail bits, try my “Frame & Panel Dresser” story within the February 2005 problem.
To elevate the panel, head to your desk noticed and bevel the blade to 7°. Adjust the rip fence to depart a shoulder on the panel on the prime of the blade and a thin-enough edge to suit into the grooves you simply lower in your stiles and rails. Again, chopping a take a look at piece first is a good suggestion to make sure a comfortable match.
Sand the panels to #180 grit earlier than gluing them up within the frame-and-panel assemblies. Don’t sand the within edges of the rail-and-stile items on the level the place they mate to kind the joints. You may simply create an unpleasant hole.
Glue up the door assemblies. It’s a loose-panel meeting, so don’t glue the frames’ grooves. As the seasons change, you need your panel to increase and contract.
I used 4 Amerock partial wrap-around hinges to connect the doorways to the cupboard and two magnetic catches to maintain them shut. Don’t neglect the wood knobs.
Initially I painted my cupboard yellow, which is the colour proven right here. But I made a decision I didn’t just like the yellow, so later I painted it black after which distressed the end. There’s no want to complete the Masonite cabinets. Simply lower them to completed dimension and slide them into place.
This cupboard is the right answer for my woodworking and fishing storage wants. Whenever folks go to my store they touch upon its ingenuity. It’s so easy! There’s just one downside: I didn’t construct this cupboard sufficiently big. I’m at present engaged on a chimney cupboard design to resolve this problem.
A Practical Shop Cabinet Cut List
About Plano Utility Boxes
I constructed this cupboard to carry any of the plastic utility containers in Plano’s 3700 series [Amazon]. I’ve been utilizing Plano utility containers for years they usually work nice. The 3750 [Amazon] has an excellent, stable latch and the 3770 [Bass Pro Shops] is ideal for storing a mixture of woodworking and fishing equipment. Most are cheap and could be discovered at any giant sporting-goods retailer. – TS
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