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Old 08-15-2017, 09:06 AM   #1
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DIY cabinet approaches

I'm finishing up the wiring on my build and want to start on the interior cabinets within a week. I've got my layout pretty well planned out, the thing i'm having trouble deciding on is how to approach building the cabinets/kitchen area.

I've seen plenty of write ups on how people do it, but there doesnt seem to be much of an agreed best way to go about it. everyone seems to do it a little different. and having very little woodworking experience, I'm just looking for what's the most effective approach.

Ive pretty much seen two ways of doing it. Building a frame out of 1x2's or similar first and then adding the panels/doors over it.
Or using plywood sheets where the plywood is your frame as well as the panels. so your plywood sheets make up the walls then you add shelving/dividers with plywood and thats your stucture.

I'll be doing a bit of offroading so something that can stand up to the twisting of the body and some jarring is important.

I'm leaning towards going with the plywood frame approach, it seems simpler, easier to visualize as you build, and possibly stronger? the only thing is I bought some nice looking 1/2" x 4" lumber that i want to use up, originally I wanted to build the whole interior cabinetry with it (using the 1x2 frame technique) but if i go with the plywood technique I'll probably be limited to using it on my countertop, cupboard doors, etc..

thoughts?

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Old 08-15-2017, 10:18 AM   #2
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I used 1/2" plywood for the top and sides of the cabinet boxes with 3/4" on the bottom. The sides were screwed to the bottom with 1-1/2" long deck screws for strength. Not sure I would use 1/2" again because of the trouble finding hardware to fit it.

The cabinets were bolted to the floor using the factory seat mounting locations. Also used angle brackets to attach them to the body just below the window line. Then screwed the adjoining cabinets together. They are rock solid on the back roads with no sqeeking of movement that I could see or hear.

A word of caution, be sure to cut the plywood as square as possible.
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Old 08-15-2017, 11:02 AM   #3
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I used the plywood (high quality baltic birch) method covered with vinyl, fabric, etc. This build method is simple and robust especially if you dado/rabbit all the joints and use glue/screws........and, as Larrie said....cut the panels square.
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Old 08-15-2017, 11:23 AM   #4
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what do you mean by cut the panels square? as in dont form fit/scribe it to the shape of the van wall?

Also, yes i've heard baltic birch is good, any other kinds that might give it a little more of a nice grain look? I've got some stain/finishing techniques that i want to try but would look much better on something with a bit more grain pattern.
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Old 08-15-2017, 12:49 PM   #5
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...scribe away when conforming to van walls, etc.....it's amazing how few parallel edges there are on the Econoline...

If your table saw/miter saw doesn't cut square you will be rapidly digging a hole that will be obvious when you start the assembly process. Things compound quickly.

All saws can be adjusted to cut square; sometimes it's a tedious process.
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Old 08-15-2017, 12:58 PM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by boywonder View Post
...scribe away when conforming to van walls, etc.....it's amazing how few parallel edges there are on the Econoline...

If your table saw/miter saw doesn't cut square you will be rapidly digging a hole that will be obvious when you start the assembly process. Things compound quickly.

All saws can be adjusted to cut square; sometimes it's a tedious process.
Oh square as in perfectly 90 degree cuts. got it
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Old 08-15-2017, 01:18 PM   #7
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For simplicity I have always mimicked Sportsmobile's idea of putting plywood cabinets together with lots and lots of angle brackets (L brackets). My first couple of cabinet attempts were squeaky and not solid. One thing good about SMB cabinets is that they do stay together and don't squeak, however they use particle board which eventually turns to dust and is very susceptible to bloating from water damage. I use 3/4 Birch, not baltic usually, just the American birch in 3/4" 4x8' sheets from Lowe's or Home Depot. Baltic birch is too hard for me to get here.
I do know enough about carpentry to know this is a fairly cheap way to build cabinets, but what I like about it is repairs and upgrades are much simpler with angle bracket cabinets. You can remove any panel for any reason and in my experience they go back together solid even after being a part a few times. Lots of examples of this in my gallery.

Being new at this I can offer you one very important tip. Don't be mad when you ruin some wood. It's going to happen. Wood projects are incredibly rewarding, creative work but plan to buy more than you need. You'll ruin some and have some nice kindling for the campfire.

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Old 08-15-2017, 02:18 PM   #8
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I used Baltic birch as well. Then was in Lows and found some nice maple venier plywood that I used in some locations. Cabinets boxes with shelves can be cut and put together fairly quickly. Drawers are much more complex and can take a long time to complete and get right.

86 Scotty is right about buying extra material. I started with one extra sheet and then bought more as needed.

To reduce the amount of plywood scrap pieces that will be left over be sure to layout your cuts on paper or computer first. I was able to reduce the number of plywood sheets needed for the cabinets by two using this method. Just kept moving the pieces around until they took up all or most of the sheet. It was time consuming but worth the savings. Just remember to allow about 1/8" thickness for each saw cut.

The other trick is to keep as many dimensions of the cabinet pieces the same as possible. This reduces setup time helps with assembly,
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Old 08-15-2017, 04:22 PM   #9
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There are a few websites out there that let you layout pieces for maximum stock efficiency. Also, NEVER trust Lowes or HD to cut your stock for you if it matters. I had Lowes cut some nice 3/4 oak ply on the panel saw for me, thinking it would be a better cut than my table saw. Got home and found they were totally out of square :-(
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Old 08-16-2017, 07:00 PM   #10
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Couple other questions.. would it be possible to make a sheet with my 4" wide tongue and groove planks, as in assemble the planks as you would for a floor, glue it together, whatever, but that would be my "plywood" sheet that I could cut out the shape of my cabinet walls with? Maybe I wouldn't do it everywhere, but just for the face of my cabinets.
Not sure if that ideas even a thing..

My other question.. would it make any sense to assemble all my cabinetry, bed, etc. attached to the subfloor. And then put in my top layer flooring (probably will be click in or tongue and groove engineered wood) around the cabinetry? So the cabinets are sitting "in" the floor. Might help keep cabinets secure on the floor, or introduce more problems.. Just a thought I had today as I realized I need to get my floor in before I start attaching cabinets.
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