Aff Wood: cabinet

Showing posts with label cabinet. Show all posts

Tuesday, March 4, 2014

Build a rustic wine cabinet using free pallet wood Great upcycling project

In case I ever become a grape farmer and bottle my own wine, my son Wyatt designed this hipster bottle label that will work out perfectly. ("Its so exclusive, youve probably never heard of it.")

Over the years I have had a number of people ask me to build a wine rack or cabinet. Oddly enough, I live near the heart of Californias Wine Country, but am not a wine drinker myself which probably accounts for why it has taken me this long to make one.

I decided to make a display cabinet for those of us who like to keep a few bottles on hand for special occasions or guests. I designed it to resemble a wooden crate, possibly one that has been taken apart and hobbled together for a new purpose. I also wanted the bottle labels to show, making the entire unit a decorative piece: I like the juxtaposition of the rustic assembly with fine wine. The shelves tilt to the side to keep the corks from drying out.

Monetize your woodworking

Rustic projects using recycled wood are very trendy at the moment. This project would sell well at craft fairs. (Probably starting at around $80 - $100.) It is simple to make and if you use free pallet wood the profit margin is huge. Buyers like to feel they are part of an effort to reduce waste, and expensive wine displayed in a unique cabinet is a great conversation starter.

Free plans:

WWMM Rustic wine cabinet (pdf)
SketchUp file

*****

Thursday, February 13, 2014

Cabinet install

This weeks cabinet install is at Sandpiper Apartments. Here is a picture of the finished product...

Tuesday, February 11, 2014

Door Hinges on the Bastard Wall Cabinet

The Bastard Cabinet: Now with Hinges!

It’s been far too long since I’ve worked (or blogged about) the Bastard Wall Cabinet. To be honest, nothings been done on the cabinet since my last post about it on March 22, 2011. That is, nothing until today. Keeping my head down and finishing my work homework on Saturday afternoon meant that I was actually able to steal a whole hour in the shop on Sunday.

I’m up to fabricating and installing the cabinet doors. As they will be relatively dimensioned, just like every other cabinet component, I decided to install the hinges first so that I can exactly mark the size of the doors.

I’m using Rockler Partial Wrap Slotted Piano Hinges. Though the brass platting breaks my usual chrome and brushed nickle aesthetic, these hinges are wonderful for doors made of sheet goods. The partial wrap means that on the door I’ll be screwing into both face and end grain so there’s no worry about screw holding power as there would be if I was only attaching to the end grain.

The hinges clamped in place, ready for marking.

I began by laying the hinges against the cabinet sides where they will be installed and marking them (I marked them on blue tape to make the pencil line easier to see). I used a try square to mark perpendicular to the hinge barrel. Then I took the hinges over to my bench, clamped them down and went to work with a fresh hack saw blade. That sized them right. A few quick passes with a file and the cut ends were nice and smooth.

Using relative dimensioning to position the hinges.

To install the hinges I began by fitting a scrap of ¾” baltic birch plywood (my door material) into the hing and setting it so that the scrap was flush with the end of the side panel as the final door should be. I then slid a temporary fence against the inside edge of the hinge and clamped the fence on. Once I removed the scrap door spacer, opened and clamped the hinge against the temporary fence, I was ready to install. I used a centering bit to pre-drill and then used an extra long bit in my screw gun to prevent the body of the screw gun from hitting the fence. I set the torque nice and low and each screw went in without a fuss.

In testing, the hinges seem to be working fine. Next I’ll re-mount the plane shelf (I forgot to account for door & hinge clearance when installing it) and then it’s on to doors. Hopefully this cabinet will be up on the wall soon.

Have you stolen and shop time lately?

Other Bastard Wall Cabinet Posts
Winter Wall Cabinet Wonderland
The Bastard Wall Cabinet (for tools!)
Trudging Towards Tool Storage
Cutting the Cabinet Carcass (in relative terms)
A Home For My Planes
Continued Wall Cabinet Assembly
Whats a Bastard Wall Cabinet without Shelves?

Boxing in the Bastard Tool Cabinet

Plane Cabinet

When I did my workbench I enclosed a shelf for most utilized planes. The shelf became full rapidly and several planes had not a dedicate place.
The solution was building a new cabinet for hand planes, a good way for keeping them in order and ready to use.

I used the frame and panel technique, with panels inserted in grooves cut in the frame inner edge.

on the bottom are the long planes boxes


The loop screw engages a chain for keeping the mobile shelf

the cabinet is anchored to the wall for avoid its tipping

For a better use of available space, the long planes are held in vertical position in the back side of cabinet

The smaller planes are on a mobile shelf; this rotates, permitting the access to the back.

Long planes are available after the shelf is tilted forward

The wood was mainly recycled Douglas, coming from old windows and some piece of silver fir.

By utilizing recycled wood, well have to accept some defects it will show, if we want to avoid of discarding too much wood.
In this case the wood was varnished and exposed to sun (windows) during some decades; this caused tone differences you can see mainly in lateral panels.However this is a shop cabinet and I think some defect is acceptable.

The building details are shown in the video in the previous post.

Thursday, February 6, 2014

Media Cabinet is COMPLETE!

Project finished! My favorite part of a long build. I havent posted much in regards to the progress because all I have been doing is applying the finish and hardware; had a week vacation in there too where no work was done. Anyways, here is a shot of the cabinet in the shop all finished.

From MediaCabinet

Here is a shot with all the doors open.

From MediaCabinet

And here is a shot of it in its final "resting place".

From MediaCabinet

Overall, this was a fun project. If I had to do it again there are a few things I would change, but overall I am happy with the way it came out.

My next project is going to be another coffee table, just like the other mahogany one I did last year; this is a commissioned piece though so I will get some money, which is always good!

Be Safe!

Sunday, January 26, 2014

Upper pull out cabinet project Part I

I have been contracted to make a kitchen cabinet that will sit in an opening previously occupied by a larger cabinet that no longer fits. My customer bought a refrigerator that is taller than the original unit, and had to take out the upper cabinet to make the fridge work.
Our solution was to make a pull out cabinet with low sides, similar to a pull out tray. We decided its best to match the surrounding cabinets profiles on the face, and also match the color. Each presents its own challenges. Trying to match profiles requires having the right router knives. Ive had to buy a bit that will match the raised panel. As far as matching the color, I have found a match, and it will be close, but not exact. The existing kitchen is nearly 25 years old, so with oils, proteins, etc., from cooking all those years, as well as fading from nearby light sources, an exact match cannot be guaranteed, but it will be very close!
Here are some pictures of the space to fill, and also of the tray and door assembly. I have used a combination of box joinery and rabbit joinery on the tray. I also have a match on the three different profiles on the door, and have a sample door to compare it to. After the glue sets, I can stain, finish, and install this piece! The front "door" will be stained and finished, while the tray itself will be clear coated (similar to the surrounding cabinets).