Renamed: Router Table Renovation

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LeftyTom

Tom
Corporate Member
I am in the process of re-purposing a cabinet for use as a router table. I have the frame built, and have 8 pieces of maple for the drawer sides: 6" wide by 1/2" thick by 5ft long. The pieces have a 1/4"wide by 1/4" deep dadoes, 1/4" from the edges.

My digital caliper has gone kaput. I swapped in 2 different batteries: with the 1st the caliper wouldn't power up, with the 2nd, the caliper only read .96 (would not power off or "zero"). So the measurements are taken with a combination square.

I have 1/4" Baltic Birch plywood that has gone unused for a while, so I am using this for the drawer bottoms. It does measure 1/4" thick with the combination square.

The rub, or lack thereof, is I cannot get the BB ply in the dado. I have tried different section of the maple sides and different sides of the test piece of BB ply. Even a few taps with ym wooden mallet does not persuade the play into the dado. I tried easing the BB ply in from the end of a drawer side, and directly into the drawer side.

Should I try easing the edges of the BB ply, making it a hundredth or so thinner, or should I widen the dado in the sides a bit?
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Canuck

Wayne
Corporate Member
Re: Fitting 1/4" Ply Drawer Bottoms In 1/4" Dadoes

If you are that close, Tom; I think that I would try lightly sanding the edges of the plywood. Having experienced the same thing in the past, I have slightly rounded the plywood edge and removed a few thousandths. (The BB may have expanded a wee bit above 1/4".

Wayne
 

Roy G

Roy
Senior User
Re: Fitting 1/4" Ply Drawer Bottoms In 1/4" Dadoes

I would ease the edges of the plywood.

Roy G
 

FredP

Fred
Corporate Member
Re: Fitting 1/4" Ply Drawer Bottoms In 1/4" Dadoes

widen the dado. the drawer bottom should float.
 

Bill Clemmons

Bill
Corporate Member
Re: Fitting 1/4" Ply Drawer Bottoms In 1/4" Dadoes

For a plywood bottom, I would slightly bevel the under side of the plywood edge until it just slides into the dado. I do this w/ either sandpaper on a wood block, or a file/rasp.

Fred's point is especially true if you are using real wood for the bottom instead of plywood.
 

LeftyTom

Tom
Corporate Member
Re: Fitting 1/4" Ply Drawer Bottoms In 1/4" Dadoes

Tanks for the helpful replies.

Closer inspection reveals that the dado in the drawer sides taper from 1/4" at the top to 3/16" at the bottom. The top of the dado (towards the inside of the drawer) is straight (same plane as the drawer bottom).

The bottom of the dado curves up toward the drawer bottom, effectively having a 1/4" width for only 1/8" depth.

On the plus side, the drawer sides cost me nothing.
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Fishbucket

Joe
Senior User
Re: Fitting 1/4" Ply Drawer Bottoms In 1/4" Dadoes

Pick cutting the drawer side dados square or tapering the ply with a few licks with a plane.
End result, same.
 

Bas

Recovering tool addict
Bas
Corporate Member
Re: Fitting 1/4" Ply Drawer Bottoms In 1/4" Dadoes

What sort of blade did you use? Flat top tooth (rip blade) works best.
 

LeftyTom

Tom
Corporate Member

TENdriver

New User
TENdriver
Re: Fitting 1/4" Ply Drawer Bottoms In 1/4" Dadoes

Tom, I’m not sure if Bas was alluding to what I would do, but I’d use my table saw rip blade (teeth flat on tops) to square up the dado so BB would slide fully into the groove.

I haven’t seen a groove cut in that pattern, but it does look like the shape of a traditional solid wood drawer bottom where the edge of the bottom is cut similar to a raised panel.


Though I’d just use the table saw, this is the tool I’d want to use:

http://www.leevalley.com/us/Wood/page.aspx?p=75620&cat=1,41182
 

Skymaster

New User
Jack
Re: Fitting 1/4" Ply Drawer Bottoms In 1/4" Dadoes

Tom 5/32 bit in a router is fastest, easiest solution, ts with dado blade second
 

JimD

Jim
Senior User
Re: Fitting 1/4" Ply Drawer Bottoms In 1/4" Dadoes

I hardly ever set up a dado to make a 1/4 groove. That is only two passes with the normal table saw blade which for me is a Freud 50 tooth with 10 flat top teeth. If I was really cutting 1/4 I guess it would be three passes but normally I am using Luan and it is two. For a few dados, it is far faster to just make the extra passes.
 

tdukes

New User
Eddie
Re: Fitting 1/4" Ply Drawer Bottoms In 1/4" Dadoes

Tanks for the helpful replies.

Closer inspection reveals that the dado in the drawer sides taper from 1/4" at the top to 3/16" at the bottom. The top of the dado (towards the inside of the drawer) is straight (same plane as the drawer bottom).

The bottom of the dado curves up toward the drawer bottom, effectively having a 1/4" width for only 1/8" depth.

On the plus side, the drawer sides cost me nothing.
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I'd re-run them thru the table saw and adjusting the fence.
 

petebucy4638

Pete
Corporate Member
Re: Fitting 1/4" Ply Drawer Bottoms In 1/4" Dadoes

just my two cents, but I'd run them through one pass on the table saw too. Not that I have anything against cool-looking $400 hand planes.

Pete

I'd re-run them thru the table saw and adjusting the fence.
 

LeftyTom

Tom
Corporate Member
Re: Fitting 1/4" Ply Drawer Bottoms In 1/4" Dadoes

One pass over the table saw blade, and the dado is the right size and depth.

I cut the drawer sides and ends and built the first drawer. I need to trim 1/8" off the width,and that should be a good model for 5 of the 7 drawers. The remaining 2 will require mee to trim about 1 1/8" off the height of the drawer sides.
 

TENdriver

New User
TENdriver
Re: Fitting 1/4" Ply Drawer Bottoms In 1/4" Dadoes

Pete, While I would’ve used the table saw, I could really use that Veritas combination plane. LOML, is concerned about dust (cough, cough) getting into my lungs.


What’s a guy to do? I really need to get some good hand tools.



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McRabbet

Rob
Corporate Member
Re: Fitting 1/4" Ply Drawer Bottoms In 1/4" Dadoes

Boy, and I thought I had a serious Veritas habit... Nice collection, TENdriver!
 
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