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Nancy's Chest-Bureau

This was a case of "looking for my next project".  We didn't have a need for this piece, but we did have a place to put it.  The measurements of this piece was based on the space available.  It now sits next to the wall that separates the living room and the refrigerator in the kitchen.  To its right are the stairs to the basement.  The picture to the right below shows the space remaining open to the left of the chest.  Again, it wasn't needed, but it fit.

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Notes on the Build

This piece is a chest-on-chest design.  I like the look of this design.  Seems to me to have more character to it than just a big box.  Also, chest-on-chest is how Uncle Bill built his chests, and I think he got it right.  Below I refer to the upper chest as the drawer frame and how the top is attached to the drawer frame.  The picture above left will give you an idea of what I'm talking about when you get down to the procedure below.

I built this chest out of Brazilian Cherry (Jatoba Wood) which runs between $5 and $7 per square foot at LL Flooring.  Considering the high quality of the wood, it's worth it to me to pay that price, but it doesn't mean I'm willing to waste very much of it.

I was up against the problem of having enough wood to do the job, but not having more than enough wood to do the job.  I had to pick the pieces I used carefully to get the job done, and, as I was progressing with the work, I realized that I didn't have enough pieces that were long enough or wide enough or both to get the job done.  New plan required!

I as I work thru jobs, I keep all my scrap pieces.  Even thin strips of wood can be used as shims, small, flat pieces can be used with clamps to prevent denting, little pieces can be used to reinforce legs, etc..  So, as long as I have space to keep the scraps, I keep the scraps.  Besides, I have a fire pit.

I felt that if I treated the use of my small and scrap pieces as part of an intentional design technique, that I could get away with not having to buy another bundle of wood.  I applied my newfound technique to the top and the doors of the chest.

It was both fun and frustrating to match the pieces in a manner such that they were both random and color balanced at the same time.  I'm not sure I got it right, but Nancy liked it.  So, all good!
 
 




Another technique that I've gotten in the habit of using is making a double thickness top.  I do this because I think it looks better, but also for assembly reasons.  When I connect pieces of wood, I try to do it in a manner that hides the connecting device (dowel or biscuit).  To do that on a top piece like the one shown to the right, the use of two layers makes this possible.

I'll be referring to the top and bottom of the double top during this procedure as the upper and lower parts of the top.  The upper top is a continuous piece 15" x 34".  The lower top is same outside dimension as the upper, but it's only a 2.5" wide frame with a cross piece at the middle for support of the upper and drawer frame.  
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The procedure goes like this and please don't glue anything together yet.  Gluing is way down the road.

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  1. Make the upper part of the chest that holds the drawers.  The lower frame of the top rests on this section.

  2. Make the upper top 15" x 34" section and the lower 15" x 34" frame.  I dressed both the upper and lower top edges with a 1/4" round router bit with a recess at this point.  Don't add the top rail that runs around the back and part of the sides of the top.  This comes later.

  3. Center the lower frame of the top on the drawer frame section.  I built the top and the frame holding the drawers so the top overhangs the drawer frame by 3/4" on the front and sides and 1/4" in back.  Once centered correctly, clamp it in place, and recheck that it is still centered properly on the drawer frame.  Draw a pencil line on the bottom frame where it meets the drawer frame.  You now know the where the outside edge of the drawer frame mates with the lower frame of the top.

  4. This step is the first in drilling holes for the dowels that will affix the lower frame to the drawer frame. 

    1. The sides of the drawer frame are 5/8" thick and you need to center the drill hole in the center.  To do this, cut a small piece of wood 5/16" wide that you can use to measure from the pencil line you drew in the last step to the point where you want to mark the drill hole.  It will be 5/16' inside the pencil line. 

    2. Turn the lower frame over and, using a punch sharpened to a point and the 5/16" measuring tool you built, mark the spots to drill 1/8" holes in the lower frame.  I try to put a hole every 7" or 8" and a hole about 2" from each corner on each side.  Being exact doesn't matter here in fact it helps.  If the holes are not exact, you can't put the front on the back in the later steps.

    3. Making sure that the drill bit is perpendicular to the lower frame, drill a 1/8" hole at each mark.  This hole goes all the way thru the 5/8" lower frame.

  5. The next step is to drill the guide holes in the drawer frame.

    1. Turn the lower frame back over and center it back on the drawer frame where it was when you marked it with the pencil line above.  Clamp it down and recheck that it's properly centered.

    2. Using the holes you drilled in the previous step as a guide, drill 1/8" diameter holes, 5/8' deep in the drawer frame sides.   See below this procedure a way to mark the drill bit to ensure you drill the correct depth.

  6. Next step is to enlarge the 1/8" holes to 1/4" holes for the 1/4" dowels. 

    1. NOTE:  Again, you have to put some kind of collar on the 1/4" bit so that the depth of the drill is 1.25".  Drill out each hole again, this time with the 1/4" bit. 

    2. You may be wondering why I just didn't go with the 1/4" drill in the last step.  It's much easier for the 1/8" bit to stay perpendicular if you use the 1/8" hole for a guide when you drill into the drawer frame sides.  With the 1/8" hole now twice as long, keeping the 1/4" bit perpendicular is much easier. 

    3. Remove the clamps from the lower frame.

  7. Now the upper and lower top pieces are drilled for 1/4" dowels

    1. Carefully clean the mating sides of the upper and lower to pieces so that they fit together with no gaps.  Clamp the lower frame of the top to the upper top piece so that the bottom of the lower frame is facing up (the side that you have the pencil line on.  Mark the spots where you plan to drill with the sharpened punch.  Use roughly the same spacing as before 7" to 8" apart and about 3" (not 2" from each corner).  Arrange the marks so that you don't drill within 1" of the holes drilled in the lower frame in the previous steps. 

    2. You're going to drill 1.0" deep 1/8" diameter holes 5/8" thru the lower frame and 3/8" into the bottom side of the upper top.  Set up your 1/8" bit again with the poly tubing sleeve to make the drill depth 1.0" (AND NO LONGER - You don't want hole in the top!)  Drill these holes about 3/8" on the inside of the pencil line.  That will assure that they won't be seen on the outside. 

    3. Enlarge the holes just drilled to 1/4" diameter.  Set up your drill with a collar to a drill depth of 1.0".  If you can't be perfect, make the error less than 1.0", not more.

    4. Take off the clamps so the top is in two pieces.

  8. Drill the dowel holes for the top rail.

    1.  Build the top rail so that it will be about a 1/4" from the back and side edges. 

    2. Clamp it to the top of the upper section and draw a pencil line on the upper top at the outer edge of the rail.  With the upper top still facing up, remove the clamps and put the rail aside.   Make drill spots 5/16" inside the pencil line using the sharpened punch with same spacing as before.

    3.  Drill 1/8" holes at the marked spots thru the upper top from the top down.  Clean up the drill holes to ensure a clean mating between the upper top and the rail.

    4. This step is a little tricky.  The rail has to be clamped back onto the top of the upper top, but clamps have to allow for upper top to be placed facing down.  The drilling is from the bottom up thru the upper top into the rail.

    5. Set the 1/8" bit up to a depth of 1.125" and drill the holes at the marked spots.

    6. Redrill the holes using a  1/4" bit set to a depth of 1.125".

  9. Put the upper and lower top, the top rail, and the drawer frame together with dowels to check that all the holes line up properly and are big and deep enough.  You have to know that everything fits before you get anywhere near it with glue.

  10. Make sure you've done everything you can before gluing the top together. ​

    1. ​Complete the doweling required for mating piece between the upper and lower chests.

    2. I installed and tested the drawer rails with the top off.  It's much easier that way.

    3. I did as much sanding and polying as possible before the top was glued on.  I also sanded and put a coat of poly on the underside of the top before I glued the top on.​

NOTE:  In step 5.2 above, the drill bit has to go thru the 5/8" hole in the lower frame and then drill 5/8" into the drawer frame; a total of 1.25".  I've put electrical tape around the bit 1.25" up from the point to get the depth right, but the tape will eventually bulge, and the measurement will increase.  I' found a better way to do it.

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The picture to the right shows the 1/8" drill bit with a piece of 1/4" OD poly tubing on it.  The nice thing about 1/4" poly is that it has a 1/8" ID and fits snuggly on the drill bit.  Cut the piece of poly just a tad longer that the desired length, then slide the poly on the bit until the end is 1.25" from the point of the bit.  Then put the bit in the drill up to the other edge of the poly.

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