Proulx Kitchen Cabinet Book Question

[Mark Hulette]

Just wondering if anyone has read Danny Proulx's book on kitchen cabinets? I think it's called "Building Your Own Kitchen Cabinets".

I might be getting into this project in the near future and wanted some feedback on this and any other books you'd recommend.

Thanks a bunch!

[David Giles]

Mark, I found the book very helpful and informative. It seems as though there are a dozen ways to build cabinets. I've tried several methods and have come back to using his techniques as the easiest way for me. One of the his "radical" ideas is to put the cabinet floor inside of the walls instead of putting the walls on top of the floor. He uses the floor to set the cabinet dimension and squareness. I also like putting the cabinet walls flush with the face frame. It makes installing drawer slides so much easier. And his approach to individual boxes on plastic adjustable legs works pretty well. I like to put a header board along the back wall and legs on the front. Make one or two his way, then adapt what you like to your own style.

[Mark Hulette]

Mark, I found the book very helpful and informative. It seems as though there are a dozen ways to build cabinets. I've tried several methods and have come back to using his techniques as the easiest way for me. One of the his "radical" ideas is to put the cabinet floor inside of the walls instead of putting the walls on top of the floor. He uses the floor to set the cabinet dimension and squareness. I also like putting the cabinet walls flush with the face frame. It makes installing drawer slides so much easier. And his approach to individual boxes on plastic adjustable legs works pretty well. I like to put a header board along the back wall and legs on the front. Make one or two his way, then adapt what you like to your own style.

Thanks David!

Was there a section on lay out and planning? I went to a bookstore that deals strictly in WWing books and they were out of stock for this book and I'd like to find out as much as possible.

Thanks again!

[Rod Upfold]

You can order Danny's books here...

http://www.cabinetmaking.com/index.html

Amazon also..


Rod

[David Giles]

Tolpin's book "Building Traditional Kitchen Cabinets" does better job of discussing project layout, design alternatives and different ways to work. Proulx basically lays out his method in detail including cut list for different cabinet sizes. Both are a worthwhile read.

[Mike Goetzke]

I have the seen the two books above but I really like the book Building Kitchen Cabinets (Paperback)
by Udo Schmidt best. This book not only gives you design ideas but the nuts/bolts of constructing them.

Mike

[Homer Faucett]

I like Danny Proulx's book, but I also think that Jim Tolpin's book is a definite must read along with it. I am just about finished with installing cabinet carcasses in my kitchen after reading these two books. If you are interested, send me a PM, as I do not need them any longer.

[Larry Fox]

Mark, I have just about completed a kitchen cabinet project and I used Udo Schmidt's book and found it to be pretty good. I am within about a week or so of the point where I won't need it for a while so if you would like to check it out I can mail it to you. PM me with your address if you are interested.

One thing they don't do a very good job of convering in any of the books I have looked at is the amount of time required for a hobbiest to do the job.

[Mark Hulette]

Mark, I have just about completed a kitchen cabinet project and I used Udo Schmidt's book and found it to be pretty good. I am within about a week or so of the point where I won't need it for a while so if you would like to check it out I can mail it to you. PM me with your address if you are interested.

One thing they don't do a very good job of convering in any of the books I have looked at is the amount of time required for a hobbiest to do the job.

Thanks for the offers, guys! I really appreciate that - nowhere but the Creek! I'm not that far enough along yet.

Larry- I don't really go by anyone else's timeline estimates as I'd only have to double it!! I don't get a lot of time to do my woodworking and that would definitely be a 'have-to' kind of gig!

Thanks for the other suggestions, too. I'll have to check out Schmidt's and Tolpin's offerings!

[frank shic]

Mark, all three books previously mentioned have something to offer.

Udo schmidt's cabinets were my favorite and I built an entire set of kitchen cabinets based on his design. He gives excellent instruction on how to build arched glass cabinet doors with false mullions as well as using pocket screw joinery to build the face frames and attach them to the carcase. He even details how to use a dovetail jig (the katie jig) to produce through dovetail drawers. I don't like building a separate toe kick box, however.

Danny Proulx's book is still my favorite because he actually gives the cutlists to allow a beginner to more easily build their own cabinets. The pictures in the earlier editions were ugly since he used a lot of shop grade plywood for slab doors but the rest of his advice is golden especially on using adjustable leg levelers which will save you a lot of time when it comes time to installation (which is not an easy walk in the park BTW!!!). I also prefer pocket screwing the face frames from the sides rather than nailing them and puttying them afterwards.

Jim Tolpin's book has recently been updated with color pictures and covers details like milling solid wood stock, cutting sheet goods efficienctly, hardware installation and even how to build your own appliance garage.

One of the most recent entries is the one by Rogert Lang titled the complete kitchen cabinetmaker which covers 32mm cabinetry, modular design, beaded inset face frame fabrication.

When you think about how much money you can save by building your own kitchen cabinets, what's another $100 for a couple of cabinetmaking books to make sure you do it right? Larry is correct when he stated that these books do not convey just how much actual time it will take you to fabricate your cabinets. If you do traditional face frame cabinets with dovetail drawers and raised panel door/drawer fronts it will take you at least a full MONTH's time between preparing solid stock, cutting sheet goods, cutting joints, assembling and installation. DO NOT do what I did last year: tear down, install floor tile, build and finish cabinets, install cabinets, connect plumbing, tile countertop with granite tile... in a two week span! Try to have your cabinets ready BEFOREHAND if possible.

[Larry Fox]

I don't really go by anyone else's timeline estimates as I'd only have to double it!!

Well, I doubt that in my case. I am 14-months from cutting the first piece of stock to the wife putitng dishes in installed cabinets. Still not done but it is trim work at this point.

[Dan Gill]

I had Tolpin's book and Udo Schmidt's. I used Schmidt's book the most, but that's just me.

As has been pointed out, get everything you can ready before you start tearing out. I made all my face frames and doors first, because those store flat against the wall and the carcasses don't. I also planned to do one side of my kitchen at a time. Wrong! I started on the sink side and our oven went out. It was an odd size, so I had to re-figure and move to the other side of the kitchen and do it first.

I also rented a small storage building to keep the carcasses in while I was getting them ready. They just take up too much space in the shop.

All in all, it was a most rewarding project. I have custom cabinets that I can be proud of, much better than we originally had and much better than I could have bought for three or four times what I spent in materials and new tools (really just a biscuit joiner--had everything else I needed). And I expanded our storage, too.

[Mark Hulette]

Hey guys - thanks for all the "School of Hard Knocks" pointers!! Knowledge well-earned.

Great point about constructing it first before demolition! This project will most likely be for a new construction ( ) and hopefully I won't have to deal with demolition!

The more I hear about Schmidt's book, the more interesting it sounds. I plan on doing pocket-screw face frames with 35mm hinges- that much I know. After that it's pretty much up to LOML-

Thanks for all the good info in this thread - good resource.

[Jesse Thornton]

The more I hear about Schmidt's book, the more interesting it sounds. I plan on doing pocket-screw face frames with 35mm hinges- that much I know.

Pocket-screw face frames with 35mm hinges are exaclty what Schmidt uses in his book. Aesthetically speaking I'm not crazy about his cabinets (at least what's presented in that book), but I did glean a lot of good practical construction ideas from him.

I'm actually in the process of building my first complete set of kitchen cabinets. I have a few years of woodworking and carpentry experience to go on, but for the most part I'm exploring a lot of new territory. Perhaps you'll be able to learn from a few of my numerous mistakes!

[Pete Brown]

I have the seen the two books above but I really like the book Building Kitchen Cabinets (Paperback)
by Udo Schmidt best. This book not only gives you design ideas but the nuts/bolts of constructing them.

I second this recommendation. I have to admit that I thought the cabinets in the Proulx book looked, well, crappy. They are functionial, but they just looked very low-end to me. If I'm going through the trouble of building my own cabinets, I want something nice. If you're mass producing cabinets for a very cost-conscious crowd, that's another matter.

While I have deviated significantly from what Schmidt does, his book is what really got my brain working on the cabinet design and construction problems. That, and the Tongue & Groove set from Sommerfeld.

Pete