mdf or plywood drawer carcass

[cabinetman]

I would choose BB over MDF anytime. I would not consider using pocket screws for drawers. The amount of material to hold the screw is just the thickness of the drawer. A rabbet can be machined as fast as the set of pocket screws as in this picture already posted.
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[footprintsinconc]

for the size of drawers that you will be making, i would go with the BB ply as recommended by CM. mine are small, so mdf will probably work out fine.

[BigguyZ]

I would choose BB over MDF anytime. I would not consider using pocket screws for drawers. The amount of material to hold the screw is just the thickness of the drawer. A rabbet can be machined as fast as the set of pocket screws as in this picture already posted.
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*sigh* Yeah, I figured BB would be better. It's just 4x more $$. What can I say- I'm cheap. A far as using rabbets over pocket screws, I like the idea of the pocket screws because I've found the screws don't need clamps and will pretty much square the joint up by itself... So I'll go with the BB for the drawers, but I sill may not be sold on the rabbets.

Maybe I should finally set up my PC4212? Though some say you can't do that with plywood either. Maybe poplar? instead?

[JimD]

You can dovetail good plywood like baltic birch. If you are a beginner at dovetails, I don't know if you should start with plywood drawer sides, however. The problem is it tends to split. It does it really bad if you don't use BB but BB will still split off. When my technique is good, I get good results. I get usable results consistently - sometimes I loose the interior part of a tail but it does not show and the rest of the tails is enough to make a strong joint. If you have not done it before, you should leave the pieces a couple inches long as you make the first joint.

My other cautionary comment is I think you need a jig that will allow you to adjust how deep into the drawer front you cut. My HF has a bar that adjusts for that. It makes it harder to get the jig set up initially but jigs without this feature do not work well with material that is even a little less than 1/2 thick - like BB plywood. I am not familar enough with the PC 4212 to know if it has this ability.

Jim

[drumpriest]

Like I said, the pocket screwed drawers with slides can last a good long time (glue'd too, of course), but dovetails are better. BB is definitely better than MDF, but maple is even better yet, so it's really about the money and time invested vs the expected life of the drawer. I personally don't spend that kind of time for shop furniture, as it's going to get banged up anyway, but for stuff that goes into the house, that's a different story.

BTW, Cabinetman, pocket holes can be machined mighty fast with the right equipment, which is what my friend uses, pneumatic pocket hole drilling system.