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Kitchen island shaker panels

25K views 20 replies 5 participants last post by  Toolman50 
#1 ·
Freshly married, the wife and I just purchased our first home. I'm getting into woodworking and general handyman type things and loving it so far.
I went out on a limb and purchased two used base cabinets from a local cabinet store. I fastened them together and put a plywood top on them. The backs and sides have been sitting bare for a month or so now while we decided what style surround we wanted on them. We decided to go with a shaker style, mainly because I thought it would be easy enough for a novice like me to perfect.

I got the back on, then the sides. Everything looks beautiful. I spent last night and today filling with wood filler, sanding, and repeating. As I'm sitting there tonight admiring my handy work I noticed that I've made a pretty big mistake and I'm near heartbroken...

The face of the cabinets stick out about 5mm further than the sides of the cabinets. This actually worked out perfectly for me (I thought) because the plywood I'm using to make the panels is 5mm thick and fit snugly and flush up against the lip created from the face of the cabinets.

However, while sitting back and looking at the sides today, I noticed that now the piece of trim butted against this lip is now wider than it's pair because the lip is adding width to the trim.

Does that make any sense? If not, see pic:



The right vertical trim is now 3/4" wider than the left vertical. Do I have to remove the left vertical trim and rip 3/4" off of it? I've already tacked it down and completely filled and sanded it. If there is another option other than ripping it off I'd love to hear it. The only thing I can think of is to add some sort of trim to that lip but I think that would probably make it look uneven and result in the same look.
If anyone has any advice it would be much appreciated!

Thanks guys.
 
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#4 ·
Looks to me like you need to rip a narrow piece and add it to the board that is the narrowest. Sand fill any cracks and you should be good to go.

Are you going to change out the doors and drawer fronts to shaker style also?

Like these? This is a kitchen we remodeled with all new doors and drawer fronts and the "L" shape was wrapped in poplar just like you did.
 

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#5 ·
Generally, you make the stile that butts against the face frame 3/4" narrower, so they look even when you put the panel on.

In this case, I think you should leave it. Very few people will notice beyond woodworkers and cabinet makers.

I think you said the back is already on? If not, you could make the back's right stile wide enough so that it would also add 3/4" to the side panel's left stile.
 
#9 ·
Wood Novice,
It seems you've resolved your initial concerns.
Here's something else to consider.
Look at imbalance on the molding on the bottom. Note how the molding is shorter on the right side because it stops at the toe cutout. In an effort to balance this out, I like to use about a 4" X 4" block. (A square the size of your toe-kick on each end of the cabinet. This lets you wrap your molding around the corners.
Just a suggestion to keep in mind for next time.
Good job overall. Well done.
 
#10 ·
Thanks :)

I've been wondering about that as well. I had intended to wrap the support box frame as it currently sits, recessed 4 or so inches. I know you would really be able to ever see the trim under the cabinets but wasn't sure how else to really handle it.

Are you proposing that I simply wrap a 4x4 with trim on either side with nothing in between them at all?

Attached is a pic from tonight after two coats of primer. The seams are as invisible as I had hoped. I should have used varying grits of sandpaper to feather the edges on the filler a bit more I suspect. I feel dumb for being impatient and only using 80 grit.

Is there a preferred wood filler that is better than the typical elmers type?
 

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#15 ·
The only dumb question is the one not asked- Dad
Congrats to the newlyweds. Many years of happiness to you. My wife and I will be looking at 45 years this June.
My complements on tackling these projects. One is very satisfied when you see the results of the time and effort used to make something for the home. It makes it a bit more personal than buying something and putting it in the house.Thanks for the pictures!
Thought- there is a big difference between a house and a home.
 
#18 · (Edited)
On your miter saw is it the motor that gets in the way of cutting them flat against the fence? I have the same issue with my 10" saw and tall baseboards.

Use only the left side of your miter saw. Try to cut the baseboards 1" long while they are laying flat. Then you should be able to stand them up and cut the 45° end. You'll have to cut the right side of the miter with the face of the baseboard against the fence, and the saw turned to the left 45 mark.

Learn how to cope your inside corners. It's much easier than inside miters.

As far as the saw not tilting far enough, there are two things. 1- Don't trust that the built in bevel is accurate. 2-You can adjust the stop on the saw so it does tilt to an accurate 45°. You'll see a little bolt on the base of the saw on the left side of the hinge. It's the 45°stop, and it stops your saw from tilting past 45°. It should be just like the one in your picture, which is the 90°stop. Set them both with an accurate combination square set on the deck and touching the blade; try to avoid touching the teeth.
 
#19 ·
Ok, I figured it out.

It seems like it was just a manufacturer's defect in the bevel scale. When completely upright the scale was past the 0° mark so naturally when it should have been on 45° it was actually a bit less. After cutting at this angel and then measuring with an angle finder we are dead on 45°. :D

 
#21 ·
When cutting large moldings with my old 10" Miter Saw, the blade guard will hit the top of my molding before a clean complete cut is made. This is when I wish I had a new 12" sliding Compound Miter Saw, but I don't. So I have to finish the cut with my handsaw. The deep kerf made with Miter Saw makes it fairly easy to complete but it still slows the process. If you run into this same proble, a sharp fine toothed Handsaw is what you need to complete these cuts.
 
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