Squaring cabinet during glue up

[Steve Jenkins]

I don't ever check boxes for square. If my chop box is cutting square, the frames will be square.

Its not something that is really all that critical. So long as the Frame is square, the box is cut out well, and your semi anal about getting the frame on straight it'll be close enough.

That's all well and good if you are using face frames. I do mostly european type cabinetry and when the doors and drawer fronts are inset the box better be square.I can't remember the last time I made a face frame.

[Karl Brogger]

That's all well and good if you are using face frames. I do mostly european type cabinetry and when the doors and drawer fronts are inset the box better be square.I can't remember the last time I made a face frame.

I certainly wouldn't call European style cabinetry the norm, or even common in places in the US.

Are you using backs? How about stretchers? Both square things up as well.

[Doug Donnell]

Some great suggestions folks, thanks. I particularly like the idea of skewing clamps away from the perpendicular since I have had some difficulty getting clamps to stay in place when trying to cross them on the diagonal.

Another trip out to the shop after a couple of days of letting my mind rest has confirmed my main problem is an outward bowed cabinet bottom. The top and sides are square with a framing square on both sides, and I was baffled why the bottom and sides both seemed to be 90+ degrees, which shouldn't be possible. Of course, with the bottom bowed it caused the framing square to rock back and forth within the 90+ angle on both sides. I should have measured the diagonals and I may have figured it out quicker. If the diagonals are equal I will go ahead and glue up, then correct the bow with the face frame.

This is the largest individual cabinet in the project, and I suspect that I will work up a sweat installing it. In hindsight splitting the cabinet in half would make glue up easier and installation much easier....

[Gary McKown]

"...I have had some difficulty getting clamps to stay in place when trying to cross them on the diagonal."

Here's where a set of small blocks with V-notches cut into them comes in handy. Make the "V" slightly less than 90 degrees. In case you need a third or fourth hand to get the clamps in place with these, double-stick tape them to the clamp faces or glue a "roof" over the notch so it will hang on the corner by itself.

[Don Morris]

When I do large FF cabinets I do a dry "put together". Get the sequence down. They usually look OK, everything is usually close to square. When you put the glue in the joints of drawers, etc. seems that's when s__t happens. I often have to use my 8' bar clamp/clamps from one corner to the other corner. That's cattywhampus, to be specific, in order to pull it back to square. If you don't have clamps that can do that, get them. Before glue-up, I use two long thin pieces of wood, I place one on each opposite inside corner facing each other (cattywhampus). Where they meet in the middle, make a mark. After you glue-up, put them back in place and see if the mark is where it should be. I use the long bar clamps to bring the mark to where it should be.

[Kyle Iwamoto]

You guys all suck. I have not ever made a "square" cabinet.... I just make the doors, and hopefully they are just as out of square, and look fine....

[Jay Allen]

I certainly wouldn't call European style cabinetry the norm, or even common in places in the US.

Are you using backs? How about stretchers? Both square things up as well.

They are pretty common around here. I have built literally thousands of them over the years, far more than face frame style.

This is a small part of the over 800 that we built for a local school a few years ago. Of course at that volume, we have a better process. A very large piece of equipment called a "case clamp". It is specifically made for building them in larger quantity. They are all square, it makes for much faster installation.

[Karl Brogger]

They are pretty common around here. I have built literally thousands of them over the years, far more than face frame style.

This is a small part of the over 800 that we built for a local school a few years ago. Of course at that volume, we have a better process. A very large piece of equipment called a "case clamp". It is specifically made for building them in larger quantity. They are all square, it makes for much faster installation.

Ah, commercial stuff. Yes that is typically euro here too.

You guys dowel everything together? Pre-glued dowels? Those go together pretty nice with a good CNC operator. Or at least it is sweet when every hole is pre-drilled and ready to roll and all you have to do is press it together and mount the hardware. Staging takes no time at all and its almost idiot proof with a good system.