Using the knowledge from the installation of the drawer fronts on the main bathroom upstairs, I only routed a 1/4” deep rabbet on the drawer fronts. When I tried to go with a 3/8” deep rabbet, I could not close the drawers completely. The drawers “bottomed out.” Actually, with the additional depth of the new drawer fronts, the back of the drawer front hit the front rollers of the drawer slide. The gap was about a 1/16” and the felt bumpers would make up the distant.
The change gave the drawer a larger reveal of 1/2”. Nobody would notice, except me and everyone I would tell. (DIYers just cannot keep a secret of their work, good or bad.) In fact, I liked the “chunkier” look and wished I did it on the doors. However, that would create all kinds of issues with the hinges…
Utilizing the same method I used before for attaching the drawer fronts, there were not any problems. Nonetheless, I would have issues with (1) the drawer pulls and (2) a drawer that refused to close all the way.
Issue #1: I used the same holes for the drawer pulls that were on the door before. Drilling from the holes in the back of the drawer front, I drilled through the new drawer fronts. I installed the drawer pulls on all 5 drawers. As I stepped back to look at my work, two of the drawer pulls were crooked. Either the old pulls were installed wrong, or I did not drill straight. They were so bad, there was no way, I could say, close enough, because they were not. Using a larger drill, I redrilled both holes on the two drawers so I could adjust for “levelness.” (Levelness is an actual word!)
Issue #2: The middle drawer of the desk would not go completely in unless you jammed it in forcibly. Opening the drawer was just as hard. Deciding that was not the best way to close or open a drawer, I removed the drawer to investigate the problem. Thinking it was the new drawer front as the problem, I was pleased to see that a staple for the drawer slide was sticking up. Without the new fronts, the drawer did not hit the staple. Since I did not have any room to smack it back in place with a hammer, I used my Sears-Craftman® adjustable pliers, (channel locks, as they are known). Unfortunately, I only bent it over. I put the drawer back, opened and closed the drawer, and it…worked.
I was done with this part of the kitchen project. No Zen moment for me. The project had too many problems. The poly finish still was not great. However, the desk drawers with their new brown bronze handles looked great. I will hang my hat on that.
Using the knowledge from the installation of the drawer fronts on the main bathroom upstairs, I only routed a 1/4” deep rabbet on the drawer fronts. When I tried to go with a 3/8” deep rabbet, I could not close the drawers completely. The drawers “bottomed out.” Actually, with the additional depth of the new drawer fronts, the back of the drawer front hit the front rollers of the drawer slide. The gap was about a 1/16” and the felt bumpers would make up the distant.
The change gave the drawer a larger reveal of 1/2”. Nobody would notice, except me and everyone I would tell. (DIYers just cannot keep a secret of their work, good or bad.) In fact, I liked the “chunkier” look and wished I did it on the doors. However, that would create all kinds of issues with the hinges…
Utilizing the same method I used before for attaching the drawer fronts, there were not any problems. Nonetheless, I would have issues with (1) the drawer pulls and (2) a drawer that refused to close all the way.
Issue #1: I used the same holes for the drawer pulls that were on the door before. Drilling from the holes in the back of the drawer front, I drilled through the new drawer fronts. I installed the drawer pulls on all 5 drawers. As I stepped back to look at my work, two of the drawer pulls were crooked. Either the old pulls were installed wrong, or I did not drill straight. They were so bad, there was no way, I could say, close enough, because they were not. Using a larger drill, I redrilled both holes on the two drawers so I could adjust for “levelness.” (Levelness is an actual word!)
Issue #2: The middle drawer of the desk would not go completely in unless you jammed it in forcibly. Opening the drawer was just as hard. Deciding that was not the best way to close or open a drawer, I remove the drawer to investigate the problem. Thinking it was the new drawer front as the problem, I was pleased to see that a staple for the drawer slide was sticking up. Without the new fronts, the drawer did not hit the staple. Since I did not have any room to smack it back in place with a hammer, I used my Sears-Craftman® adjustable pliers, (channel locks, as they are known). Unfortunately, I only bent it over. I put the drawer back, opened and closed the drawer, and it…worked.
I was done with this part of the kitchen project. No Zen moment for me. The project had too many problems. The poly finish still was not great. However, the desk drawers with their new brown bronze handles looked great. I will hang my hat on that.
