Bookcase

[jackellis]

I have a bunch of rough black walnut I bought from a local fellow last summer for $2/bd ft. LOML wants two bookcases and I'm tempted to make them out of this stuff, especially since I can probably buy more pretty soon when he hauls another 2000 bd ft load back from his annual trip to Arkansas.

The boards are about 8" wide and fairly flat so I could use solid wood and not feel bad about it but I'm wondering whether I'd be asking for trouble. These would have to be ripped and glued up into 10' wide boards for the sides and shelves. I'll probably adapt plans from the Complete Book of Woodworking to make this 42" wide and somewhere between 72 and 80" tall.

I know I could use walnut-faced plywood but a) it's probably more expensive than the cost of replacing the walnut I have, b) I'd have to rent a truck to get plywood home, c) I don't have a good shop layout for working with large sheet stock.

Any advice or suggestions would be welcome.

[gwyneth]

Having made what seems like dozens of book-cases, I think that they are one project where solid wood is always better than plywood.

Why do you think you're asking for trouble?

My current favorite way to keep the shelves up are plain dadoes, no glue, no hardware. Sometimes I put a small cleat under the shelves.

I've never had any movement problems--if I make them with a back, I run grooves about 1/4" from the back for thin plywood, which I do not glue in.

The experts should probably pipe up here with tips--but IMO, bookshelves are a lot less problematic than, say, tabletops.

[cabinetman]

There are many points to consider in your choice. At $2.00/bd ft, the cost is close to 3/4" walnut plywood. The pros and cons on the choices are that as you stated your working conditions are more suited for the lumber versus sheet stock. But with sheet stock you have no glue ups or surfacing to do. As for stability, you can't beat the plywood for consistency, but you only have a veneer face to work with. With the plywood or the solid stock you'll have a choice to face frame, or edgeband the ply with either solid stock or veneer tape.

In both choices I'd recommend a full back in 1/4" plywood. It would be an overkill to do a back of solid wood, and the cabinet would be very heavy. So, you'll have to figure out a way of getting a sheet of that home. It may be a very instructional endeavor to do it in the solid wood if for no other reason to experiment with the fabrication details. I would do the glue ups as panels, and figure your assembly as if it were a plywood cabinet. The ends could be rabbeted to accept the top and bottom, dadoes for the fixed shelves, and a rabbeted back edge of the carcass to accept the back.

[jackellis]

I'm new to woodworking and I still can't cut straight

Movement is exactly what I'm worried about. I know Cabinetman will weigh in at some point but if you don't mind, a couple of questions since you seem to have some good practical experience.

Did you make the sides out of single pieces or did you use glue-ups?

Why is solid wood better in this instance than plywood? I like solid wood better myself and I know plywood is as susceptible to warping as solid wood can be but I'd still be interested in the reason(s).

I will probably use two fixed shelves (middle and bottom) to strengthen the case and prevent racking. Perhaps the middle one should not be glued?

One design element I will wrestle with until I'm finished is shelf strength. My other half isn't happy until every cubic inch of space is occupied and I'm not sure I can make shelves that are strong enough to show minimal sag. She's already essentially wrecked one store bought bookcase.

[gwyneth]

I'm new to woodworking and I still can't cut straight

Movement is exactly what I'm worried about. I know Cabinetman will weigh in at some point but if you don't mind, a couple of questions since you seem to have some good practical experience.

Did you make the sides out of single pieces or did you use glue-ups?

Why is solid wood better in this instance than plywood? I like solid wood better myself and I know plywood is as susceptible to warping as solid wood can be but I'd still be interested in the reason(s).

I will probably use two fixed shelves (middle and bottom) to strengthen the case and prevent racking. Perhaps the middle one should not be glued?

One design element I will wrestle with until I'm finished is shelf strength. My other half isn't happy until every cubic inch of space is occupied and I'm not sure I can make shelves that are strong enough to show minimal sag. She's already essentially wrecked one store bought bookcase.

Cabinetman's last couple of sentences are exactly how I've been making bookcases for the last couple of years. After years of not using a back, I was stunned by the difference when I finally started.

(Before you groan, C-man, remember you're a professional and I just had a lot of books...it was actually bookcases and sewing stuff shelves that got me started with wood.)

I've done both glueups and single boards.

I, too have had the "can't cut straight" ailment. It's better now, due to both the All-in-one clamp setup with the circular saw and practice with the BT Craftsman twin.

Sagging shelfs are one of the two big reasons I think solid wood is better than plywood (the other being ease--no edgebanding, no face frame, etc.)

For the dados in which the shelves slide, I put both sides together, clamp them at each end and route both in one pass. Presto! No measuring, no futzing, and they're in perfect alignment.

The reason I have started making all shelves dadoed and not glued is infinite adjustability. This is probably not up to Cabinetman's aesthetic standards, which are very high, but I've got a LOT of books and other stuff to go on the shelves.

With the 1/4" plywood backs, I no longer need a fixed shelf for stability, although on the next set of tall ones I build I will probably glue one or two shelves into the dadoes just to be sure.

BTW, somebody else must have come up with my E-Z method for utility shelves, but I've never seen it (and I've got dozens of wood project books, many concerning various shelf and storage suggestions).

Gwen's E-Z shelfs are inexpensive, sturdy, easily knocked down, and there are ways to make them look much better than their cost.

For each set, you need four 2 x 4s, as straight and clear as possible, and as many one by pine shelves as you want or need. The width is up to you--I've done 8", 10", and 12". The height is also up to you--I've done these at various heights between three and eight feet.

Clamp the four 2 x 4s together, narrow sides together, wide sides exposed with a bar clamp at each end. Route 1/4" to 3/8" deep dadoes across the four (usually a 3/4" bit works but check out the width on a test piece to make sure your shelf stock fits snugly but not too snugly). Make one groove for each shelf.

You're done, except for finishing and assembly. White gloss paint looks nice; black uprights with red glossy shelves looks far eastern high tech; or if you have really clear studs and shelves you can poly them. For laundry room or garage use, you can leave them unfinished.

There are several ways to assemble, depending on how straight the uprights are, how tall it will all be, and whether you're doing it by yourself. The basic idea is that two uprights are at the narrow end of each shelf with the grooves facing in, as my crude diagram shows.

I put two of the uprights on the floor, groove up, and fit each shelf in. Then the other two uprights go on the other side, groove down.

You may need a rubber mallet, but the worst case I ever encountered was an 8 ft. high set with slightly warped uprights, and I still was able to do it myself (much easier with a helper).

Presto, no glue, no hardware.

Sorry to ramble...this is obviously not how you'll treat those nice walnut boards, but it's a great way to make shelves for a paperback collection that isn't going to be displayed.

[cabinetman]

For the dados in which the shelves slide, I put both sides together, clamp them at each end and route both in one pass. Presto! No measuring, no futzing, and they're in perfect alignment.

Clamp the four 2 x 4s together, narrow sides together, wide sides exposed with a bar clamp at each end. Route 1/4" to 3/8" deep dadoes across the four (usually a 3/4" bit works but check out the width on a test piece to make sure your shelf stock fits snugly but not too snugly). Make one groove for each shelf.

I'm right with you on this project. I've done them the exact way you described. It is very easy and accurate. To do those dadoes, you can make your own jig very easily for a no measure, perfect 90 deg dado. Here is a previous thread to show you how.

For a little more detail, this sketch may help:
.

.
The body of the jig can be one piece eliminating the top cross piece, as seen in the photo.

[jackellis]

I was planning on using a back, especially after seeing what they did for some inexpensive melamine garage cabinets I put up several years ago. The box, some 7' tall and 3' wide, was wobbly with just screwed and glued butt joints. After tacking the back on, it was nice and solid. We use the same idea out here to make sure our homes don't fall down in an earthquake (shear wall).

I'm thinking all of the shelves will be adjustable but it's one of the items on a list of design choices for my wife to decide. We need an extra bookcase in our bedroom as well (we have lots of books too) so I might make that one out of plywood with pine or poplar edgebanding as a prototype and then paint it. Ideally we need two nice bookcases and I've already sent a note to one of my walnut suppliers telling him I'm ready to buy more.

BTW, for anyone who lives within about 100 miles of San Jose there's a fellow down in Watsonville who is selling very nice walnut from a tree he had taken down. I bought three of four slabs that were 7' long, up to 2' wide and 2" thick. Nice, clear, chocolate colored stuff. He still apparently has plenty more taking up space in a hangar for his small airplane.

[cabinetman]

I was planning on using a back, especially after seeing what they did for some inexpensive melamine garage cabinets I put up several years ago. The box, some 7' tall and 3' wide, was wobbly with just screwed and glued butt joints. After tacking the back on, it was nice and solid. We use the same idea out here to make sure our homes don't fall down in an earthquake (shear wall).

If you rabbet the back edge of the carcass components, a 1/4" back, nicely fitted makes a big difference. Make sure you square the cabinet before tacking in the back.

[gwyneth]

Now that I have the All-in-one router plate, I use the All-in-one clamp instead of Cabinetman's excellent jig (his is foolproof, but the All-in-one is idiot-proof.)

IMO bookcases/shelves are a great way to start woodworking...their complexity can grow with the beginner's skills, it's almost impossible to ruin a project to the point it can't be fixed, and if you believe in the "acquire a tool as you need it for a task" school (probably the best way for a woodworker to evolve) bookcases will take you from first drill through to ?????.

Plus, their functionality is a great motivation.

[Sawduster]

Shelf sag is always an issue. Whether you're using ply or solid, a face piece added like in the pic below (much easier than trying to describe with words) adds significant strength to the shelf.