Is there a better way?

[David Christopher Robinson]

Hello All,

I am planning on building a platform bed and am using an assembly instruction guide from an existing bed as a plan. What I am wondering is if there is a better way to make a wooden knockdown connection rather than using the KD connectors. I was planning on using 3/4" plywood for the base but wood something like a dovetail using solid wood be the only way to accomplish this?
Any ideas?
Thanks

[Jamie Buxton]

A dovetail isn't a very good knockdown connection. It resists disassembly in only one direction. In the other direction, it relies on glue. After you've glued it, you can't take it apart.

You might consider a tusk tenon. I've used them successfully on knock-down tables.

[Joe Dusel (Vista, CA)]

I use RTA fasteners in some of the furniture that I make so that I can ship it flat. The fasteners make for a very strong joint. The problem for a one-off type situation is that you either need to buy a jig which could be expensive, or you need to have it milled up on a CNC. I pick the CNC route myself. I draw the pieces up with eCabinet Systems software, then I send the file to the CNC shop which cuts up all the parts with all of the holes in exactly the right places.

The attached rendering is of a new shoe bench design that we just had prototyped yesterday on a CNC. The bench is held together by 20 Hafele Rafix type RTA connectors. We are planning to make these out of bamboo plywood.

Joe

[John Schreiber]

You could use something like this, and put the cross pieces in shallow dadoes. But that would be expensive in quantity. You could rig up something similar but lower cost with regular nuts and bolts.

If it's for short term use, you might just use long screws.

[John Schreiber]

I ran across these in a catalog and they might be the ticket for you. To find others, Google Cross Dowels.