by Daniel Diehl
Now you will cut some of the rabbeted lap joints that make this project so challenging. Across the top inside corner of the side panel, cut a rabbet ½ inch in height and ¼ inch in depth. A top view of this rabbet is found in the detail B, top corner drawing, which clearly shows that the ¼-inch dimension of the rabbet (the hatched area in the drawing) runs across the 7/8-inch thickness of the board. The ½-inch dimension (the rabbet’s height) is on the inside face of the panel and can be seen as the hatched area of the end view with panel removed drawing. Similar rabbets run down the front and back of the panel. The corner and hinge, section 3 drawing shows the layout of these rabbets, which are 5/8 inch square and 165/8 inches long. A fourth rabbet runs across the panel from front to back, 13¾ inches from the top edge of the panel and 13¼ inches beneath the top rabbet. (See the end view with panel removed drawing.) This rabbet is ½ inch wide and ½ inch deep.
After cutting the rabbets, trim the bottom corners out square with the edge of a sharp chisel. Next place the feet on the sides, make sure they are square, and dowel them into place with two ¼-inch dowels as shown in the end view drawing. Note that the dowels go completely through the width of the feet.
Stretcher
When the feet have been attached to the side panels, lay them aside and cut a stretcher as shown in the front view drawing. The tenons, which are the full 1¼-inch thickness of the stretcher, are 21/8 inches in length, allowing them to pass through the 7/8-inch-thick side panel and still have 1¼ inches exposed on the outside of the case, as shown in the drawing. Be sure to squarely cut the shoulders, where the tenon joins the stretcher’s body, so that they rest evenly against the inside faces of the side panels when the stretcher pins are inserted. The stretcher should fit snugly but easily through the mortises in the side panels.
Copying the stretcher pin drawing, lay out and cut two pins from 7/8-inchthick wood. Then lay out and cut corresponding mortises, ½ by 7/8 inch, in the exposed ends of the stretcher. Situate the mortises very close to the outside face of the side panels or recess them slightly, so that when the pins are inserted, they pull the stretcher and end panel firmly together. You should not, however, have to hammer the pins into place.
Cabinet Floor
Cut the cabinet floor to size as detailed in the materials list. On the front and back of the cabinet, cut rabbets that are ¾ by ¼ inch. The ¾-inch dimension, which is visible when you look at the board’s edge, is clearly shown in the end view with panel removed drawing. On the ends of the floorboard, the rabbets should be ¾ by ¾ inch. The ½-inch-wide tenons on the ends of the board should slide gently into the ½-by-¾-inch rabbets in the side panels. When you attach the back panel, the floor should position itself.
Back Panel
The back panel, as we have re-created it, is made from two boards running horizontally across the cabinet’s back. The two boards specified on the materials list are of the proper height and length to make up the back of the cabinet. If you wish, you may peg the boards together to form a single panel as described on page 2.
The left and right edges of the back panel are rabbeted 5/8 by ¼ inch. The 5/8-inch dimension is visible when you look at the board’s edge, as shown in the end view with panel removed drawing; the ¼-inch dimension is visible on the back panel’s interior surface. The rabbet across the top of the panel is ½ by ¼ inch, with the ¼-inch dimension running across the board’s top edge. The rabbet across the bottom of the panel is ¼ inch deep and ½ inch wide. It is located 1½ inches above the panel’s bottom edge, as shown in the end view with panel removed drawing.
When the back panel has been rabbeted, it should fit easily between the cabinet’s side panels. The left and right edges of the back panel should be flush with the outside face of the end panels. The floor panel should slide into the rabbet near the bottom of the panel and automatically position the top edge of the back flush with the top edge of the side panels. The snug fit of the floor panel into the back panel should hold both in place.
Frame Assembly
Clamp the cabinet together so that it is square and plumb. Drill and dowel three ¼-inch pilot holes through each side panel and into the end grain of the floorboard. Tap the dowels into place and cut them off, leaving ¼ inch exposed; sand this down later. Repeat the process on the back panel, inserting four dowels along the left and right sides of the panel, and five across the back edge of the floorboard. Locate two of the floor dowels about 3 inches from the outside corners of the floor, situate one in the center, and equally space the other two between the first three. It might be wise to glue the floor and back in place before doweling, because they do not actually interlock with the side panels. When the glue is dry, remove the clamps and set aside the frame.
Door Frame
Because the doors swing on dowel pins rather than hinges, they must be constructed as part of the front assembly, which is then set in place. It will be easiest to build the doors next and construct the frame around them. We have only detailed the left door in the drawings, but the doors mirror each other.
The frame of the doors is made from three different widths and two different thicknesses of wood. Cut the top and bottom rails to length, and cut the tenons on each end as shown in the left door top view drawing. Trim the excess wood from the face of the board, leaving the tenon flush with the back of the rail. Then rabbet a 5/8-by-¾- inch groove on the back of the rail to receive the door panel. The door panel, sections 1 and 2 drawing shows that the top and bottom rails fit onto the edge of the carved panel without actually holding it in place.
Next, cut the left and right stiles for the doors. Although both doors are cut from 7/8-inch-thick stock and both are 12½ inches in length, the stile that carries the hinge pin is 3 inches wide and the stile on the door’s free end is only 2¼ inches wide. Along the interior edge of both the left and right stiles, plow a ¼-by-1¾-inch rabbet. This groove will receive both the carved panel and the top and bottom rails. This rabbet is illustrated in the left door top view and section B drawings. On the outer face of the stile that carries the hinge pin, cut a ¼-by-½-inch rabbet, as shown in the left door top view, left door section B, and left door detail drawings.
Door Panels
Cut the door panels to the size shown on the materials list, noting that the grain runs horizontally on the panel once it is installed in the door. Then cut a ½-by-1/8-inch rabbet along the left and right edges of each panel. These rabbets are detailed in the left door section B drawing.
Enlarge the outline of the carvings from the left door detail drawing, and transfer it onto the fronts of the panels. (The panel’s front is the side on which you cannot see the rabbets.) Carefully black out those areas of the design that will be removed from the panel, which are crosshatched on the drawing. A jigsaw will easily remove these areas, but a scroll saw (coping saw) is the most historically authentic tool for the job. Several fairly abstract birds and flowers form the design, but they will appear properly only when the panel has been fully carved. The design is relatively clear in the photograph.
Next, black out the areas to be carved and then gouge the carvings. The carvings on the doors can be executed with two gouges, one small and one medium. Complete instructions on gouge carving are given on page 4. Executing gouge work in oak requires a steady hand, but the carving on the door panels has no complex shapes or angles to contend with; all the designs are simple crescent shapes (half-moons) cut from the panel’s surface. Practice on a scrap of wood before you begin work on the panel. Because the panel is only ¾ inch thick, anchor it firmly to the workbench to prevent the wood from splitting when you work across the grain in delicate areas.
Assembling the Doors
When the rails, stiles, and panels have been completed, they should fit together easily. Clamp the door together to ensure that it is square, and drill and dowel the stiles in place on the rails as shown in the drawing of the door panel, sections 1 and 2. Do not be alarmed when you realize that the panels are thicker than the top and bot
tom rails; this is the way the original was made. Note in the left door top view and section B drawings that the stile on the free-swinging end of the door (in this case, the right-hand stile) has been planed to a 5-degree angle. This angle allows the door to open and close without binding against the central panel.
Now locate the positions of the dowels that serve as hinge pins. There is a dowel on the top and bottom of each of the 3-inch-wide stiles. Position the pin at the exact center of the board’s thickness, 7/16 inch from either side and 11/8 inches from the outermost edge of the stile. The hinge pin can be seen on both the left door top view and the corner and hinge, section 3 drawings. The pins on the top and bottom of the door must be in precisely the same location if the door is to swing properly. When you have located the center of the hinge pin, drill a ¾-inch-diameter pilot hole that is ¾ inch deep. Tap a length of ¾-inch dowel into the hole and carefully trim it ½ inch above the surface of the door, as shown in the left door detail drawing. Sand any burrs from the dowels’ ends.
Door Latch
The photo of this piece clearly shows a pull on one door and on the other door a scar where the pull has been removed and a lock (now missing) was installed in the nineteenth century. We suggest using the pull and wooden latch mechanism. Locate the position of the door handle in the center of the stile at the midpoint between the top and bottom of the door, and drill the appropriate size hole through the stile.
Molding
There are two strips of decorative molding on the cabinet’s face, one across the top and the other across the bottom. These are shown in details A and C; molding detail, sections 1 and 2; and section 4. Detail A provides the actual dimensions of the various decorative elements of the molding. All the molding can be cut from 5/8-by- 2½-inch stock; the bottom section can then be trimmed to its finished dimensions of ½ by 2 inches as shown in section 4.
Front Panels
There are three vertical panels on the ambry’s front, one on each end and one in the center between the doors. All are the same thickness and length, but the end panels are 31/3 inches wide, while the center panel is only 3 inches wide (see the front view drawing). Cut the panels to length and width as indicated on the materials list.
Rabbeting the center panel to accept the top and bottom moldings is relatively easy. Cut simple 21/8-by-¼-inch rabbets across the top and 2-by-¼-inch rabbets across the bottom of the panel as shown in the section 4 drawing. Trim the width of the rabbeted ends as shown in the center panel drawing. The panel now appears to have a 5/8-by-2-inch tenon on each end. Mark this panel and lay it aside for the moment.
The left edge of the left panel and right edge of the right panel must be rabbeted to fit into the rabbets on the front edges of the ambry’s side panels. The corner and hinge, section 3 drawing illustrates these rabbets, which are 5/8 inch across the face and ¼ inch deep. The opposite edges of these two front panels (that is, the edges nearest the doors) must also be rabbeted to mesh with the rabbets on the stile’s edge. As shown in the corner and hinge, section 3 drawing, cut a rabbet 5/8 inch across the face and ½ inch in depth.
There is also a rabbet across the back of all three panels that allows them to lock into position on the floorboard. This rabbet is ½ inch wide and ¼ inch deep and is located 11/8 inches above the panel’s bottom edge. When these rabbets have been cut into the boards, temporarily fit them to the ambry’s face. If properly cut, the top of the front panels will be level with the top of the side panels.
The rabbeting of the left and right panels to accept the decorative molding is similar to that on the center panel. In this case, however, the panels are rabbeted at two different heights. Study details A and C carefully; the 7/8-inch-wide vertical board that runs the height of the drawing represents the edge of the left front panel. Beginning 2 inches above the bottom of the panel, a 1/8-by-7/8-inch rabbet is cut to fit into the end of the bottom molding like a tenon. Beneath this, an additional 1/8 inch is cut away. To ease the confusion, remember that both the 5/8-inch-wide hatched area and the ¼-inch-wide white area, the surfaces from which you have just cut the rabbets, are part of this same end panel.
When the bottoms of the panels have been rabbeted, repeat the process on the top. Begin the rabbeting 21/8 inches from the panel’s top edge. The first channel is 1/8 inch deep and 7/8 inch wide. The rabbet is then deepened another 1/8 inch and run out to the end of the panel. Lay these panels on the worktable so that the left and right panels are in their respective positions. Referencing the center panel, note how the top and bottom of the panel were turned into tenons by removing ½ inch from either side of the rabbeted area. Similarly, cut away ½ inch from the rabbeted area of the end panels, but only on the inside edge of the panel—that is, on the edge that will be nearest the door. Do not cut back the outside edge of the panels.
Carving the Center Panel
Enlarge the drawing of the center panel on a photocopier and transfer it directly onto the panel. The crescent shaped carvings at the top and bottom of the design can be cut with a gouge, in the same way that similar designs were made on the door panels. The remainder of the carvings can be cut with a combination of gouges and carving knives. Refer to page 4 for additional information. The vertically shaded lines of the design are cut a little deeper than the rest of the pattern. Most of the carving is slightly less than 1/8 inch deep, but this 3/16-inch-deep area makes a distinct visual difference. The hatched area sprinkled with tiny triangles is actually textured with tiny pyramid-shaped gouges. A small Vgouge was probably used to make this pattern. Be careful not to make the gouges too large; the size shown in the enlarged drawing is very close to the original size.
Framing in the Front
Cut the top and bottom moldings to the exact 42-inch length, and notch out rabbets on the outer ends of the moldings to fit accurately over the rabbets shown in details A and C. Carefully chisel out these notches to avoid splitting the thin oak molding. Next, cut two lengths of filler strip to bridge the gap between the front edge of the floor and the back of the molding. Initially rip the filler strip to a 5/8-inch thickness and a 21/8-inch width. Shape the filler strip along the top of the cabinet to the same dimension. Cut the filler strip on the bottom to a width of 2 inches, and then form a ¼-by-½-inch rabbet as shown in the molding detail, section 2 drawing.
Glue the left and right front panels to the ambry’s face, clamping them in position while they dry. When the glue is dry, remove the clamps. Clamp the center panel temporarily in position on the front edge of the cabinet floor. Be sure to position the panel in the exact center of the cabinet so that the openings for the doors are identical. Trim the bottom filler strips to fit between the panels, making certain that they fit neatly around any rabbets on the backs of the panels. Remove the center panel and the filler strips.
Lightly glue the front and back of the rabbet on the back of the center panel, the filler strips where they lap over the floorboard, and the entire back face of the bottom molding. Clamp these pieces in place, checking that the center panel is square and plumb. Position the clamps so that you can dowel the three front panels to the floor of the cabinet as shown in the front view. Adding one or two more dowels to hold the filler strips firmly in place between the cabinet floor and the molding would not be amiss. When the glue is dry, remove the clamps and stand the ambry upright, being careful not to jar the center panel, which is only partly supported.
Set the doors in position, surrounding them with thin cardboard shims to ensure that they are centered between the front panels. Placing a drop of paint on the bottom of the lower hinge pin before lowering the door carefully into place helps establish the point at which a hole needs to be drilled to receive the pin. Remove the door and drill the hole ½ inch deep. Be sure the hole is large enough that the dowel can swing freely, without being loose. (Hint: Prevent wear to the bottom of the door and the hinge pin by placing a thin plastic disk, cut from a dishwashing liquid bottle with a large paper punch, in the bottom of the lower hinge p
in hole. Alternatively, insert a small thumbtack into the end of the hinge pin, but take care not to split the dowel in the process.) Lay the doors aside for the moment. Clamp the top length of molding in place, and cut the top filler strips to fit neatly between the front panels. Glue the filler strips to the molding, clamp them together, and allow the glue to dry. Do not glue the molding to the front panels.
When the glue has dried, remove the molding and filler strips and set the doors in place, wedging them so that they will remain in position without being held. Place a drop of paint on top of the upper hinge pins, and lower the molding and filler strips into place until they touch the hinge pins. Remove the strip and drill the holes as you did for the bottom of the doors. Now place the doors in position and set the strip on top of them. Temporarily clamp the molding strip in place to make sure the doors swing open and shut without binding. When everything fits, glue the molding in place. The doors are now permanently attached; the front of the cabinet is complete.
Top
Not only are the boards that make up the ambry’s top of random width, but many of them are not square; the top view drawing gives precise detail. Although this may not be the most convenient way to build the top, it adds to the cupboard’s quirky charm. The boards given on the materials list will reproduce the existing top.