How To Repair Craftsman Tool Box Drawers

I'm sharing my comprehensive guide with y'all here on how to build drawers for cabinets and furniture in this mail!

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I know I'm in the minority here, but I love to build drawers.  It never gets old and I honey adding them to the article of furniture I build whenever I can.  Simply, I know for many, drawer making seems intimidating and frustrating.

I'm detailing EVERYTHING—from how to summate your drawer size, to what holes on the slides to put your screws in.  EVERYTHING.  I'm showing you EXACTLY how I do it every unmarried time.  So if you're set to start making drawers, let's get to it.   Be warned, this is a long post, but it's Full of info.

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As a full general note, I volition exist talking almost ball bearing, side mountain drawer slides only in this post.  That'due south the only kind I use in my projects.  I've plant all others to be extremely frustrating. PS, if you like the desk and dresser I show in this post, be certain to check those posts out here: DIY Desk and DIY Dresser.

Also, I make all my drawers using ¾" plywood for the box and ¼" plywood for the bottom.  A whole lot of making, installing and edifice drawers is making sure things are lined upward and square.  I like to apply plywood to build my drawers considering then I don't accept to worry about twisted or warped boards causing me issues with alignment.

Also, information technology looks SUPER CLEAN and considering plywood doesn't move nigh as much as solid wood with seasonal changes, it's less likely to cause whatsoever stress pulling or pushing on slides, etc.

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The following is the verbal procedure I use to make, mensurate, and install drawer boxes.  It's non necessarily right or wrong…it'south but what works for me.  If yous'd like a printable version, y'all can grab one here:

Jump to:

• Step 1: Decide Drawer Forepart Heights
• Step 2: Mount Drawer Slides
• Step 3: Build Drawer Boxes
• Step 4: Install the Drawer Box Into Slides
• Footstep 5: Attach Drawer Fronts

Step one: Decide Drawer Front Heights

Types of Drawer Fronts

Before we can figure out drawer front sizes, we need to embrace the unlike scenarios for drawer fronts.  Start, yous demand to determine whether your drawer fronts will exist inset or overlay.  (See this post for information on inset vs. overlay) And so, you need to make up one's mind whether y'all have framed or a frameless drawers.

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Here are a few examples:

The elevation drawer of this desk is inset with a frame (notice it is surrounded on all sides by a frame).  Discover the drawers are inset because they set inside the front of the chiffonier. The lesser drawers are inset without a frame (detect that the cabinet DOES have a confront frame, but the private drawers are not individually framed).

Then we have full overlay drawers that are not framed in this instance. Find the drawers hang OVER the sides of the cabinet and are not individually framed.

How to Determine Drawer Front Size?

Part of this involves math, just function of information technology involves personal preference.  I'll show you two examples to assist give y'all an idea how to calculate sizes.

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Measurements for Inset Framed Drawers

Inset framed drawers are past far the easiest to effigy.  Simply measure the opening of the frame and subtract ¼" from both superlative and width to find your drawer front size.  Basically, the rule of pollex is assuasive ⅛" infinite effectually all sides between the drawer front end and the frame.

Measurements for Frameless Drawers

Yet, if the drawers are not individually framed you have options.  And options complicate things.

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Let's expect at this kitchen cabinet as an example.  I want iii drawers, so I demand three drawer fronts.  I desire the ii lesser ones equal size and the height one smaller.  I also desire these drawer fronts full overlay (meet this mail for details on overlay/inset options).

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Since these are full overlay, my drawer fronts will cover the entire front of the cabinet EXCEPT ⅛" on all sides (see this post for details).  At that place should also be ⅛" gap Betwixt the drawer fronts as well.

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And so my cabinet peak is 31", and I subtract the ⅛" top gap, ⅛" bottom gap, and two ⅛" gaps between drawer fronts and I have thirty ½" total in drawer front coverage.  If I want two fronts to be 12" tall, and so thirty ½" – 12" – 12" = 6 ½" left for the top drawer forepart.

If yous are doing inset drawer fronts, the thought is exactly the same except all your drawers would have to fit INSIDE the opening and not cover the sides…like on the bottom of this dresser shown hither.

If I wanted those drawers to all be equal, I would have 30 ½" and divide by 3 to get all the fronts demand to exist ten ⅙"—so I'd probably circular down to 10 ⅛" since that'southward the closest number on my tape measure out haha.

Stride ii: Mountain Drawer Slides

At present that I take my drawer front sizes figured out, I can effigy out where to mount my slides. I use ball bearing slides for all my furniture and cabinets.  They are easy to use and like shooting fish in a barrel to adjust.  So that's what I'll be showing in this mail service.  FYI you can purchase these from Domicile Depot, or online from Amazon, Rockler, tons of other retailers.

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Ball begetting slides come up in many sizes—usually in 2" increments, so, 10", 12", 14" and and so on usually up to almost 24" long.  You can purchase these with or without soft close mechanisms.  You can choose whatever size slide you want as long as it's the same length or shorter than the depth of whatever yous are installing information technology into.

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If your drawer front will exist inset into your cabinet, you too have to accept into consideration that that volition push your slide back the thickness of your drawer front end.  So in that case, if I have a chiffonier 22" deep and I have a ¾" thick inset drawer front, I can't use a 22" slide anymore.  I have to go with a twenty" or shorter slide.

How and Where Do I Install the Drawer Slides?

I become a lot of questions well-nigh jigs to mount the slides.  I don't employ any.  When at all possible, I turn my cabinets or furniture on its side to install my slides instead of doing it while the piece is standing. It'south much easier to measure and install that mode without anything moving while driving the screws.

I lay the cabinet over, measure, marking, and then use a foursquare to draw a line at that mark square to the front of the cabinet.  And so, I line the slide up with the marker and screw in place.

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I always commencement at the lesser and work my way upwardly.  I mount the first slide all the way at the bottom of the cabinet. OR if it's got a frame, I mountain the slide so that the bottom is flush with the lesser opening of the frame.

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Since I already know my drawer forepart height, I can figure out where to mount the slides pretty piece of cake.  Let'southward expect again at this cabinet example.  I've greyed out the drawer fronts to give you a visual here.

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My bottom drawer front is 12".  To make things piece of cake and give me plenty of wiggle room, I measure up from the bottom of the cabinet about 1" higher than that drawer forepart—so xiii".  That'southward where I mount the next slide.

Then I do the aforementioned for the next slide in a higher place it, just add together the two fronts below it plus an extra inch—and then 12" + 12" +1" = 25".  As long as you clear the drawer front below information technology, it's non critical where yous place your slide as long equally it's the same on both sides of the cabinet.

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If this was for inset drawers, the same applies, just measure from the INSIDE of the opening vs the OUTSIDE of the cabinet.

Inset vs. Overlay Mounting

If you are using overlay drawer fronts, install your slides flush with the front of your chiffonier.

But, if you lot are using inset drawer fronts, install them the thickness of your front INSET from the front end of your cabinet.  Typically, your front volition be ¾" thick, so install information technology ¾" from the front edge of the cabinet.

Typically, these ball bearing drawer slides have horizontally slotted holes on the piece that mounts to the cabinet and vertically slotted holes that mount to the drawer box.

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This offers you the power to adjust the drawer box in both directions as needed.  I've never used the horizontal slots to adjust, and so when I install these into the cabinet, I utilize the circular holes to keep it held in identify.

Just extend the slide, and use ⅝" wood screws to attach the slides into the cabinet in at to the lowest degree three places.

Do I need spacer blocks?

Everything prior to this causeless frameless cabinets or that the inside of the cabinet was flush.

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Simply, if a cabinet or slice of furniture has a face frame that covers a portion of the within of the cabinet like shown below on this storage desk, y'all'll demand to install a spacer block so that you can mount the drawer slide flush with the opening in the frame so information technology tin slide in and out.

Yous'll mount the spacer blocks at the measurements discussed above, then mount the slides on top of them like shown.

Step 3: Build Drawer Boxes

So now that the slides are in place, now it's time to actually build drawers.

Drawer Box Height

Over again, just similar with the drawer front end sizes, there are two principal options that you may run across.  You either have a frame around the drawer or you don't.  In this example with this desk-bound, notice that the bottom cabinet drawers don't have frames only the pinnacle ones do.

For Framed Drawers: If my drawers have frames, I make sure that the top of my drawer box is at least ane"shorter than the tiptop of my opening to make sure it's got plenty of room to open up and shut.

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For Unframed Drawers: If my drawers don't have frames, I make them about 2-three" shorter than my drawer front.  This isn't a "dominion," it's just what I've establish to work well for me.

Drawer Box Length & Widths

In order to figure the lengths to cut all the pieces to make a drawer, y'all only need two measurements.

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You need the length of your slides (ex. If yous're using 16" slides, the length is 16"…pretty straightforward), and the width of the opening in which you plan to put your drawer.  That gives yous the LENGTHS to cut your pieces.

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Frameless Cabinets

So, let'south take this example over again.  This is a frameless kitchen cabinet that I'm putting three drawers into.  I'm using 22" drawer slides, and the width of the opening is X (remember X from algebra form??).

My overall drawer box width should exist 1" LESS than my opening—this allows room for the drawer slides.

Now, the drawer pieces should be cutting as follows.  The sides are ¾" plywood and the bottom is ¼" plywood.  The ¼" plywood goes into dadoes cutting into the drawers similar shown one time it's assembled with pocket holes.  I'll evidence that in particular later.

Face Frame Cabinets

I mentioned calculation spacer blocks earlier into cabinets or article of furniture with confront frames. This same affair applies in the case when you have spacer blocks for your slides, you just need to make sure you measure between the spacer blocks instead of the within of the cabinet.

How to Build Drawers

I assemble my drawers using ¼" plywood in dadoes on the drawer box sides.  If you don't want to cut dadoes, you tin also, just glue and staple ¼" plywood into the bottom of the drawer box, HOWEVER, you need to keep in heed that that will add ¼" to the drawer box height, so you may need to conform appropriately.

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I institute the dado method to be clean looking and strong, then I prefer that.  I arrange the height of my table saw blade ¼" and cut this dado ½" from the lesser side of the drawer box pieces.

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Yous can make multiple passes with a regular saw blade on the table saw to become the ¼" thickness, or use a ¼" dado blade and make i laissez passer or utilise a router and ¼" straight bit.

I assemble the side pieces using ¾" pocket holes and 1 ¼" wood screws like shown.  You lot can bank check out any of my YouTube video tutorials (similar this desk or this dresser) where I build something with a drawer to come across the process. One time I have three pieces together, I slide the ¼" plywood slice in place and adhere the last piece.

Yous can employ a corner clench or square to concord pieces square when assembling them.  Merely, the best style to help ensure the drawer is square is to make sure the ¼" plywood bottom is square earlier putting information technology in.  It should be a pretty tight fit and should hold the pieces square if information technology is square, too.

Pace 4: Install the Drawer Box Into Slides

In that location are plenty of ways to install the drawer boxes, but this is quick and works well.  I always showtime at the bottom and install the lesser drawer get-go.  I identify ¼" plywood scraps underneath the drawer box and slightly extend the drawer box and the slides on both sides.

I extend the slide and drawer box so that the front end edge of the slide is FLUSH forth the front end edge of the drawer box and put one ⅝" wood screw on each side in a vertical slotted hole.

So, keeping the drawer pushed down on the ¼" plywood scraps, I extend the drawer and add another screw on each side into a round hole.

Then, I remove the drawer from the slide and add together another screw onto the back of the slide.  To remove the drawer, extend information technology fully and there will be ii tabs on each slide.  One will push up and one volition push downwards.  Simultaneously push these tabs and pull the drawer straight out.

Then add together a screw into the finish either in a round or slotted pigsty.

Then, slide the drawer dorsum in place and adjust equally needed using the screws in the vertically slotted holes.  Usually it won't need any adjustments, but if it does, that'southward why the screw holes are slotted—but loosen the screw, adjust, then tighten again.

To add the next drawer, I employ scrap wood blocks stacked on top of the box beneath and follow this same procedure.  I stack the spacer blocks until the bottom of the drawer is college than where the drawer front beneath it volition be–basically the drawer box just has to articulate the drawer front end beneath it.

Step 5: Attach Drawer Fronts

There are a lot of methods for centering and attaching drawer fronts. Just, I don't employ whatsoever of them (I know…I'g weird).

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I've found the easiest way to adhere drawer fronts is to lay the piece on it'southward back, and ready the fronts in identify letting gravity hold them where you want them and so y'all tin can become them centered.

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Yet, if that'due south not feasible, the side by side easiest way is to leave the top of the piece off and then you lot tin can access the inside of the drawers like shown below.

I hold my drawer fronts on, and eyeball the gaps effectually the edges trying to get them every bit even as possible–it should exist most ⅛″ on all sides.

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If I'g painting the slice, I'll brad nail the drawers in identify, so use a couple of 1 ¼″ wood screws to securely adhere the fronts from the inside of the drawer box. I tin putty over the nail holes and no ane will know.

However, if I'm not painting, I avoid the brad nails and find a way to either hold the forepart in place or clamp it in identify while I screw it from the inside. This is why information technology's best to leave the tiptop off when possible until afterwards the drawers are finished.

And that's how to measure for, install, and build drawers. I've tried to cram everything I've learned from feel in four years into ane behemothic blog post tutorial. Whew…that's a lot.

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I'll be 100% honest with y'all, though…this isn't a science. Your measurements don't have to be exactly what I showed you. In some of my images, you'll even discover that I used to place my slides higher than I do now. And that worked fine! This postal service is meant to be a guide, but not the dominion book 🙂

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The best way to get comfy with drawers is to try them!! Literally everything I've told you in this mail service, I learned on my own just by doing information technology. So I hope it's been helpful, but now you lot've got to USE it and get comfortable with it. You can do this…I promise!

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So if you lot enjoyed this mail and want to relieve it for after, be sure to pin it!

Until next time, friends, happy building 🙂

Source: https://www.woodshopdiaries.com/theres-no-wrong-way-to-make-a-drawer/

Posted by: pantojalaire1961.blogspot.com

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