How to dissassemble a frame and panel cabinet door?

[Benjimin Young]

I have two kitchen cabinet doors that need to be cut shorter by several inches to accommodate the new microwave. The doors appear to be typical mass production with a router frame joint, I don’t know what this kind of joint is called, see attached pictures.

The problem is how do I disassemble the frame glue joint without destroying the door?

[Matt Meiser]

Its a cope and stick joint which makes for a very strong glue joint. Further, how sure are you that the panel is actually wood? I removed the panels in a couple doors in the original kitchen in our house (circa 1991) and replaced with glass. My plan was to drill a hole and cut out the panel with a jig saw then use a chisel to remove what was left. It tuned out to be veneered particle board which made my job a LOT easier.

Your best bet is probably having new matching doors made. I was happy with this place for doors and drawers for our new kitchen: http://midmichiganwood.com/

[Mel Fulks]

You could also take the cut off piece ,carefully cut off stiles right at front joint and reuse old rails ,mitreing by hand without cope and stick joint .Glue back together and put one long screw in each side. Panel will be saved ,re raised . It's been done many times. Only area needing new finish would be panel raise. Now you have TWO unpleasant options! Good luck.

[Brad Cambell]

Is there a solvent that will soften the glue?

[Jeff Duncan]

If your willing to re-make them if necessary it's a lot easier. I've done this twice and both times it worked, but again, I was willing to re-make them if needed. I simply took the door and stood it on the top edge on a solid surface. Then I used a dead blow hammer on the bottom rail, (obviously the one I wanted to remove) and it popped fairly cleanly at the glue joint. Well one set of doors popped perfectly cleanly, the other set had some slight splintering, but nothing that couldn't be fixed up.

good luck,
JeffD

[Benjimin Young]

I suspect I will end up trying Jeff's or Mel's technique. The doors don't belong to me so I want to be careful even though my friend said give it my best shot and don't worry if it does not work... no pressure here ;-). He also gave me another door that I can butcher so I get one chance to "practice". To Brad's point, I was hoping someone might know a trick to weaken the glue, I'v head several rumors such as vinegar, cirix acid, heated water, but I tend to trust the knowledge base on this forum.

[glenn bradley]

Do you have any clamps that reverse to become spreaders? if so a bit of this and a gentle spread. If it were me (since you are going to have to shorten the stiles anyway) I would cut off a rail, remove, shorten and re-raise the panel, shorten the other parts, re-route the profiles and re-assemble. If I didn't have a good match on the cope and stick profile, I would use a spline or floating tenon. the likelihood of someone noticing that the cope and stick profile is missing on one outside corner of one door should be slim(?).

[Mark Wooden]

A heat gun might soften the glue some, but you'll also burn the finish. Jeff's method will probably work best.

[David Werkheiser]

If the amount needed to be removed is more than the width of the rails, cross cut the door to the finished height .Pull the panel out of the now 3 sided frame, carefully split the stile cutoffs out of the loose rail copes. Slide the cleaned up rail into position and measure the panel groove for panel length, less 1/4".
David

[lowell holmes]

You might try soaking the glue joints with hot white vinegar to soften the glue. I would drill into the glue joint from the back side and squirt the vinegar in with a syringe.

[John A langley]

I'm sitting here thinking how to explain how to do it then I read Dave's post, exactly how I would do it . Jeff way would be my second choice The mass-produced doors usually don't have a lot of glue on them

[Matt Meiser]

Thinking some more about this...I wonder if you couldn't do some kind of half-lap joint? Cut it apart just below the rail as suggested above. Keep the face on the cutoff people You'd have an odd visible line on the inside but I think it could be done. I'd take the excess off the TOP of the door instead of the bottom. Further away from your eye, and the newly cut edge on the panel will face up making any finish mismatch hard to see.

Still, if you can match the profiles, a couple new doors won't cost a ton.

Further, depending on what's going to be left of that cabinet after installing any duct work, consider a whole new cabinet with no doors and a false back. You can see what I did in this thread: http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthre...ccomplishments I did one for the existing kitchen several years earlier and we liked it so much I built another for the new kitchen.

[Lee Schierer]

If the amount needed to be removed is more than the width of the rails, cross cut the door to the finished height .Pull the panel out of the now 3 sided frame, carefully split the stile cutoffs out of the loose rail copes. Slide the cleaned up rail into position and measure the panel groove for panel length, less 1/4".
David

You can avoid the splitting part by reassembling the doors with a lap joint. Cut the lap on the back of the stiles (vertical parts) and on the front of the rail (horizontal part). You will need to notch out the radiused portion of the stiles where the rail will join in. From the front the door will look exactly the same.