Cabinet Box Assembly

     Today marks two months since our last post, so an update is long overdue! As of the last post, we were varnishing the interiors of the upper cabinet boxes and trying to figure out how to finish the oak fronts. Now pretty much all of the boxes are assembled, and a few have finished face frames on them!

     We used the Kreg K5 Pocket-Hole Jig (above) to prepare the cabinet box parts for assembly and face frame installation. Unlike Kreg's previous pocket-hole jigs, the clamp handle on the K5 is on the same side as the drill guide. This allows you to quickly drill pocket holes across the edge of a large panel without having to fumble around with a clamp behind your panel. The storage box "arms" are also an upgrade from the previous pocket-hole jigs. These were very helpful for holding a large panel steady as you move it through the jig. As you can see, our jig is attached to a piece of 3/4" plywood for added stability.

Kreg K5 Pocket-Hole Jig in action.

Using the Kreg Right Angle Clamp to secure the top and back of the corner base cabinet.

     Along with the pocket hole jig, we have been using the Kreg Right Angle Clamp and the Kreg Automaxx 3-Inch Face Clamp. The Right Angle Clamp fits into a pocket hole to hold two panels at a 90-degree angle while you screw them together, and the Automaxx Clamp is great for ensuring that the joints of the face frame are flush on the front. These two Kreg clamps and some long bar clamps have pretty much been enough for us so far, but it might be helpful to buy a Kreg Bench Klamp eventually. When using the Automaxx Clamp to keep face frame joints flush while screwing them together, the face frame pieces must hang off the edge of the table. This was pretty awkward when assembling the larger face frames. With the Bench Klamp, the table surface can be used to ensure the face frame joint is flush without having anything hanging off the edge. Kreg has been excellent with their customer service. We had an issue with a part on the K5 jig and the Automaxx clamp, but Kreg sent a replacement with no questions asked.

   
     As far as cabinet box assembly goes, we are now only lacking the fridge surround and the cabinet that goes on top of it. Here (above) are the upper cabinet boxes complete with shelf pin holes on the interiors and pocket holes for installing the face frames on the exterior.

     Check back with us at the end of the week for a write up on the finishing process for the quarter-sawn white oak face frames - it only took about 27 tries to get it right! ;)