Face frame units

[joiner1970]

Just started this project for a customer. Two full height built in units all in MDF with beech fluted face frames.

Cut up about 9 sheets of moisture resistant MDF for the carcases today and yesterday. Using my version of an mft speeds up crosscutting all the shelves. Using 3 bench dogs and a block clamped to my bench as a length stop I can cut loads of shelves in no time. Shelf offcuts drop off straight into a gorilla tub, very tidy , I need to be in my small workshop.

A few photos of the progress so far. Nothing like a stack of perfectly square , identical shelves .

10 sides and 37 shelves done.

I don't think I will be doing a full on WIP but I will try to take a few more pics as I go.

 

[jimbouk]

Like it. Nice one mate. Pleased you got the job. How are you finishing them? Hand painting or spraying?

 

[joiner1970]

Cheers, I've got a good Decorator who will hand paint it all when I'm done.

 

[Doug S]

I must get myself one of those MFT style tops and dogs, such a simple but effective set up.

I don't envy you dealing with all that MDF, soon gets heavy when dragging it around. Hope you got some support going under the shelves, I always worry about MDF sagging.

Doug

 

[joiner1970]

Don't worry Doug all the shelves are having 20 x 44 beech edging so I can't see that sagging.

Oh and yeah that MDF weighs a ton, not good as my backs dodgy at the moment. Got my boy to give me a hand carrying them down the workshop. It's all moisture resistant as I pretty much only use that these days. Probably overkill but for the price difference I don't use standard MDF now.

 

[Doug S]

Sounds like you have the sagging thing covered, thought you would but was just checking  [unsure]

I only use moisture resistant MDF, the standard stuff seems so fluffy in comparison, or birch ply when budget allows, a bit kinder on the back.

Doug

 

[jimbouk]

Did you make the mft top with a template guide? How square is it?!

 

[joiner1970]

I made up a 6mm template with 2 rows of 30mm holes. I then used a 30 guide bush in my of1010 and a 20mm cutter to plunge one row. Then just moved the jig and dropped two 20mm pins into the last row to align. Just kept doing that until the end.

I see theres a guy selling the jigs on eBay now, don't know if he saw my idea or maybe someone else did it too.

 

[joiner1970]

Today's little job was to cut all the rails and stiles for the doors oh and to trim every single shelf as I found out my ts55 was slightly off square grrrrr!!!

At least I found out before I cut today's stuff. I made up a quick jig using the metal dogs again. This made it simple to rip loads of 90mm material for the doors.

 

[peter halle]

You are rolling!  Can't wait to see more images.

Peter

 

[joiner1970]

I'd be rolling faster if I had checked my ts55 for square before I'd cut everything .
It wasn't miles out but enough for me to re trim a tiny bit of all 4 sides of every shelf. Think I've got OCD lol.

All done now apart from 10 side panels that I will check and trim if needed.

Might set up the router table and machine up all the door bits tomorrow, if I can be bothered ,well it is Sunday after all .

 

[jimbouk]

Nice shop setup you have going mate. Most important thing is the white board. Better than doing drawings multiple times

Domino's on the shaker doors?

 

[joiner1970]

Nice shop setup you have going mate. Most important thing is the white board. Better than doing drawings multiple times

Domino's on the shaker doors?

Cheers yeah you have to be organised in a 3.5m x 4m workshop. I don't use it all the time just when I get built in jobs.

No, doors will just be built using a t&g set in my router table. I will use domino's on the carcass and might use them for attaching the face frames. That's the tricky part , I'm gonna have to fit the face frames section by section on site. Glue , domino's and a brad here and there I hope.

 

[Doug S]

Did exactly the same myself 2 weeks ago with ts55 on some cupboards I built. I had been using saw to take leading edge off some doors I was fitting and didn't reset bevel to zero. Took it out next day and started cutting some shelves to size, had cut most of them before I realised  [scared], the units ended up about 10mm narrower then planned, it didn't really matter though and only I knew  [wink]

 

[tjbnwi]

Nice shop setup you have going mate. Most important thing is the white board. Better than doing drawings multiple times

Domino's on the shaker doors?

Cheers yeah you have to be organised in a 3.5m x 4m workshop. I don't use it all the time just when I get built in jobs.

No, doors will just be built using a t&g set in my router table. I will use domino's on the carcass and might use them for attaching the face frames. That's the tricky part , I'm gonna have to fit the face frames section by section on site. Glue , domino's and a brad here and there I hope.

Make some brackets so you can clamp off the shelf pin holes. Piece of wood with a few 5mm holes @ 32mm to match the case, straight pins in the bracket, insert bracket pins into holes in the side of the carcass, clamp face frame in place.

I T&G my face frames.

Tom

 

[joiner1970]

Nice shop setup you have going mate. Most important thing is the white board. Better than doing drawings multiple times

Domino's on the shaker doors?

Cheers yeah you have to be organised in a 3.5m x 4m workshop. I don't use it all the time just when I get built in jobs.

No, doors will just be built using a t&g set in my router table. I will use domino's on the carcass and might use them for attaching the face frames. That's the tricky part , I'm gonna have to fit the face frames section by section on site. Glue , domino's and a brad here and there I hope.

Make some brackets so you can clamp off the shelf pin holes. Piece of wood with a few 5mm holes @ 32mm to match the case, straight pins in the bracket, insert bracket pins into holes in the side of the carcass, clamp face frame in place.

I T&G my face frames.

Tom

Clever idea Tom but the shelves are fixed only a few pin holes in the door sections. It's all being painted so I will just glue and pin the frames. The doors will hang off the carcases on Blum inset hinges so no weight on the face frames.

 

[joiner1970]

Routed all the 6mm slots in my rails and stiles today. Took no time at all on my little bench top router table I built from scratch a few years ago.

I've got a t&g set but to be honest I might not bother swapping to the cutter that does the tongue. I might just use 6mm loose tongue's. I normally do 22mm doors but as I had a lot of spare 18mm from the carcases I just used that. For such small doors it will be fine.

Gonna have to knock up a clamping jig for the 16 doors to speed things up.

 

[AofD]

Nice progress reports!  Keep them coming.

 

[joiner1970]

Trying to get it all made, fitted and painted for Christmas. My painter can't start until the 18th hopefully he'll get it done.

It's all having led strip lighting behind each shelf front. Should look good.

 

[tom46]

Great progress reports, good to see the different steps along the way.

Where do you get your MR MDF from, just out of curiosity?