Taking Just A Leeeeeetle Bit Off..

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  • Jim Frye
    Veteran Member
    • Dec 2002
    • 1051
    • Maumee, OH, USA.
    • Ryobi BT3000 & BT3100

    Taking Just A Leeeeeetle Bit Off..

    One thing I haven't gotten figured out yet is building drawers to fit between full extension slides. The latest drawer is all assembled and it came out a tiny bit wide. I can force it in place, but it's too tight for proper operation. I will likely spend a few hours with sanders on the sides doing trial fits (and throwing fits) until I get the thing to fit properly. It's really tempting to run it through the old BT3K and skim off a few thous., but that may be an extreme move.
    Jim Frye
    The Nut in the Cellar.
    ”Sawdust Is Man Glitter”
  • mpc
    Senior Member
    • Feb 2005
    • 979
    • Cypress, CA, USA.
    • BT3000 orig 13amp model

    #2
    With the drawer slide parts removed from the drawer, hold the drawer in its opening, pushed against one side of the opening. Since most drawer slides want 0.5 inches clearance, ideally you have a 1.0 inch gap on the other side of the opening. Tight drawer = less than 1 inch. How much less? If the error is fairly small (and it likely is if you can force the drawer to work)... what I've done in the past is use a router to cut shallow grooves, half of the error, in the drawer sides so the slide part is slightly recessed. This is quicker than sanding the whole bloody drawer sides. If the drawer front gets in the way... I do as much as I can with the powered router and finish with chisels and/or my router hand plane.

    More frequently I end up with a drawer that is slightly too narrow. Shims behind drawer slide parts, or even simple washers, have been my go-to fixes.

    mpc

    Comment

    • capncarl
      Veteran Member
      • Jan 2007
      • 3564
      • Leesburg Georgia USA
      • SawStop CTS

      #3
      I’ve done exactly as you mentioned to reduce the size of a drawer, tun it through the table saw. Like MPC said, slip it in the opening and measure, do some math then cut. I usually set the rip fence to take off a whisper of wood with blade set about 1” high, do both sides of drawer so I can test to see if it is enough.

      Comment

      • leehljp
        Just me
        • Dec 2002
        • 8429
        • Tunica, MS
        • BT3000/3100

        #4
        I have a regular consistency to cut and make things too precise for easy fit and have to do just that.
        Hank Lee

        Experience is what you get when you don't get what you wanted!

        Comment

        • Jim Frye
          Veteran Member
          • Dec 2002
          • 1051
          • Maumee, OH, USA.
          • Ryobi BT3000 & BT3100

          #5
          Well, that wasn't as bad as I was expecting. I briefly considered using the jointer to shave the sides of the drawer assembly, but remembered it doesn't trim evenly at the ends. Probably the reason I quit using it years ago and rely on the BT3K for jointing. Anyway, I stuck an 80 grit disk on the ROS and ran it at half speed to reduce the width of the drawer assembly. It took about an hour, checking with a steel straightedge, to get the width down to where I could insert and remove the drawer without moving the slides. After that, I used the orbital sander to work the grits down to 220 grit. Couple of applications of poly and I can mount the slides. On to making the drawer front.
          Jim Frye
          The Nut in the Cellar.
          ”Sawdust Is Man Glitter”

          Comment

          • capncarl
            Veteran Member
            • Jan 2007
            • 3564
            • Leesburg Georgia USA
            • SawStop CTS

            #6
            I thought about making the saw cut along the sides a regular thing on my drawer building, cutting in about 1/8” on each side, to precisely position the slide and give extra support. Building cabinets with drawers is definable a test of how precise you are building. The least little bobble can mess up your good intentions.

            Comment

            • dbhost
              Slow and steady
              • Apr 2008
              • 9209
              • League City, Texas
              • Ryobi BT3100

              #7
              Sorry about the late reply, but you ended up with the approach I took with my miter saw cabinet slides, except I didn't care one bit about pretty, it just had to work. And it does, REALLY well... I literaly just scribed off where I needed the drawer sides to go, and cut a notch the whole way with my 1.25" chisel. I went and put a fresh belt on the belt sander and went to town on it on low speed, 40 grit on a belt sander removes material FAST if you let it run full speed. I sanded just barely through the outer layer of the plywood and insured it was even side to side. It was. Installed the sides, face, and back panel of the drawers and called it good.

              Not the prettiest approach, but it was what made sense for my application.
              Please like and subscribe to my YouTube channel. Please check out and subscribe to my Workshop Blog.

              Comment

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