Question for the members - building a humidor

[Scott Rader]

I'm building a humidor that will have two drawers at the bottom. I intend on cutting the drawer fronts from the same piece of wood that will serve as the front of the humidor (if that makes sense). My question is what saw/device would you use to accomplish that?

thanks in advance.

[Bill Wyko]

What I have done is cut it up to get the drawer face out of it then glue it back together w/o the drawer face. This way you get the grain match. Good luck, post pics please.

[Danny Thompson]

Same here, using a table saw or hand saw.

The key is to begin with a board wider and longer than you need to make up for the sawkerfs that will occur, and cut the drawer-fronts from the middle of the board.

Answer these and I'll come back with some sample cutting instructions.

- Will the drawers be stacked or side-by-side?
- Will they be flush to the face?
- Will there be any facing between the drawers, to each side of the drawers, and above and below the drawers?

[Scott Rader]

Answer these and I'll come back with some sample cutting instructions.

- Will the drawers be stacked or side-by-side?

stacked

- Will they be flush to the face?

yes

- Will there be any facing between the drawers, to each side of the drawers, and above and below the drawers?

Since they are stacked, I'm planning on their being approximately 1" between and to each side.

Thanks for your input

[Tom Hargrove]

The current edition of Shop Notes has a brief article (with a drawing) on this topic.

[Danny Thompson]

Answer these and I'll come back with some sample cutting instructions.

- Will the drawers be stacked or side-by-side?

stacked

- Will they be flush to the face?

yes

- Will there be any facing between the drawers, to each side of the drawers, and above and below the drawers?

Since they are stacked, I'm planning on their being approximately 1" between and to each side.

Thanks for your input

So here's how I would do it. Let's assume an 9" tall x 12" wide face with 1" of the facing bordering all sides of the drawers. That means the drawers will be approx. 3" tall x 10" wide.

Start with an oversized board, rule of thumb: 1/4" for each anticipated cut. So 10" x 12 1/2". (Let's assume the grain runs across the face of the board and that you have at least one straight edge).

1) Draw a centerline down the center of the board across the grain and square to the straight edge. Draw parallel lines 5" to each side of the center line.
2) Rip a 1" strip. This will be the top section of facing. Falloff will be just shy of 9" x 12 1/2"
3) Rip the next 7 1/2" for the middle section. Falloff will be just shy of 1 1/4" x 12 1/2".
4) Measure Rip the falloff to 1".
5) Crosscut the middle section at the two parallel lines (5" from center. The two falloffs will become the sides of the face.
6) Carefully trim the two falloffs to 1" wide. (This is best executed as a rip against the fence rather than using a miter guage or crosscut sled).
7) Rip the middle section into a 3", a 1", and another 3" piece (drawer front, divider facing, drawer front).
8) Now measure the sides for final sizing by "stacking" the three center pieces and matching the grain of the sides to the center divider facing. The draw a line even with the top of the top drawer and bottom of the bottom. (NOTE: Make sure each piece is oriented with the same face up.)
9) Trim the sides and double-check the fit.
10) Now, with the center pieces stacked together measure the top and bottom facing for final sizing by matching their grain to the drawer faces. Then draw a line even with the outside edge of the sides.
11) Trim the top and bottom to fit.
12) Glue and clamp the 1" wide strips together.
13) Slightly sand or plane the edges of the drawer faces to provide any gap necessary for smooth operation.

Others may have a different cutting schedule, but that's how I would do it. If grain-matching isn't a concern, there are easier options.

[Scott Rader]

for your input and effort....I really appreciate it.