Drill Press Cabinet Build Along

In a previous thread, I posted some pictures of a drill press cabinet I had made to fit my Harbor Freight floor drill press, that is probably one of the best things with a cord to ever come from China. My friend Jim has the same drill press, and asked if I could build him a similar cabinet. I had a bunch of stuff left over from other projects, and I realized I had almost everything I needed to build one more. While I was building this one, I took a lot of pictures, and figured I'd share the amatuer wood destruction frenzy with the group here.

So first thing's first, a lesson in plywood:

Really good cabinet grade plywood with 'A' grade veneer faces is really expensive. Like $100 or more per sheet. Home Depot and Lowes put out an assortment of much lower grade ply, usually with paper thin C grade veneers that are very easy to sand through. Even so, their oak, birch, and 'Sande Ply' sheets are usually solid, reasonably void free, and good enough for things that are going to get painted. One day, I walked into Home Depot and saw a stack of 'cabinet ply' on clearance for $34/sheet, versus the $50 I usually pay for their other products. Thought it was a good deal, so I snapped up three sheets. Figured I'd build a couple shelves for my son and paint them in bright primary colors.

I very quickly learned why this cheap Chinese plywood was on clearance.

http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...vinshelf15.JPG
Typical paper-thin veneer. Unusually fragile, though, and not very well adhered to the sub layers.

http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...vinshelf14.JPG
Uneven layers chocked full of voids. You never know whether a screw is biting into several layers of lamination, or one or two plys and a bunch of empty space. At least until you stress something and it all cracks and warps.

http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...vinshelf16.JPG
All those uneven layers pressed into one another under high pressure?

http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...vinshelf17.JPG
Cause a shit load of warp when you cut into them for just about anything.

All those nasty little voids also have to be filled and sanded flush for any exposed surface. This is why real cabinet makers use veneered MDF for high end cabinets; consistency, ease of machining, and minimal warp.

So these sheets suck, and the headache they caused me was not for the $20 or so that I saved. Fortunately, most of their limitations could be somewhat ignored in shop furniture. Plus I was never going to use the last sheet, making it essentially valueless, or in kinder terms, 'free'. Exactly the price I was willing to pay to build something for my friend Jim.

Onwards to the sheet good breakdown:


Set up my cutting table, which is essentially a couple of 2x4s and a sheet of 4x8 sheathing with insulating foam glued on it. Lets me slap up a sheet of ply and cut without bending over or jerry-rigging sufficient support.
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...ingtable02.JPG
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...ingtable09.JPG

Carcass cutting went pretty fast with the track-saw, which is a very expensive system for breaking down sheet goods for those of us with no natural talent for cutting in a straight line.
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild08.JPG
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild09.JPG
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild11.JPG

With the fast part out of the way, it was time to start on the mobile base. I had three Harbor Freight mobile bases that I bought on clearance some years ago, intending to mobilize a saw I subsequently got rid of. They have been sitting around gathering dust, so out they came:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild01.JPG

Mobile Base Stretchers:

The Harbor Freight mobile base requires 1.25" x 1.25" stretchers. So first up, a scrap 2x4 gets cut roughly to length:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild02.JPG
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild03.JPG

Then on to the table saw to be cut into the appropriate width dimensions:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild04.JPG
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild05.JPG

Fitted into the mobile base pieces and marked for final trim:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild07.JPG

The very first of 20 some fittings of the base:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild12.JPG

A lot of drilling for the cross bolts:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild14.JPG

And a test fitting with the aid of a hammer and impact wrench:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild15.JPG

A lot of marking, trimming, and fitting with an oscillating tool and a chisel:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild18.JPG
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild19.JPG

And a mobile base is born:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild20.JPG

Carcass Assembly

Of all the tools I do own, I do not own a jig saw, which would have been really useful at the point where I needed to cut holes for the drill press column. I also don't own a circle jig. But I have plenty of scrap and a circle cutter for the drill press, which will work well enough for my purposes.
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild16.JPG
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild17.JPG

Armed with my circle jig, I put a straight bit and template collar in my router, and routed me a circle in the top and middle sheets of the carcass ply. That done, I moved on to drilling eleventy-million pocket holes in all of my carcass sheets:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild22.JPG

And cut some face frame pieces out of some Aspen 1x sticks:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild23.JPG

And then I pocket-screwed me a carcass together:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild25.JPG
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild24.JPG
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild26.JPG

And I had me the first appearance of a drill press cabinet:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild27.JPG

Or bolt the drill press on a old steel file cabinet.

Doesn't work so hot with a floor model press, unless you are Manute Bol.

Damn, yer an ambitious feller ain'tcha? Oughta be bitchin' when it's done but jeeze Louise, looks like a lotta work.....

I am enjoying your posts, Johnny. Thanks for sharing!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by rondog

Damn, yer an ambitious feller ain'tcha? Oughta be bitchin' when it's done but jeeze Louise, looks like a lotta work.....

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Yes, it was a lot of work. I probably have about 20-25 hours into it, all told. The vast majority of which was in handling the small details. However, this is a hobby for me, and I am not particularly put off with a little bit of work. It was very easy for me to disappear into the garage for a few hours and fall into a rhythm where everything else seemed to fade away. If it was my job, I'd hate it and I'd be broke. If I had to sell it, I'd never be able to charge a decent wage for my materials. But as a gift to a friend and an opportunity to unwind and practice some skills that were otherwise rusty, I got a lot more out of it than I put into it.

I'll update this tomorrow with some more pictures of the process and the completed project.

Wow, that is awesome! thanks for sharing.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by cableguy11

Wow, that is awesome! thanks for sharing.

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Tell me .if i had known there was this much work involved. I would have subbed it out ;)

John does amazing work. That he would call me a friend well..................Humbled am i. Now i need some warmth to get a painting it. Have a few projects need drilling. Just can't see having coolant and metal bits all over the top.


Thank you doesn't cover how pleased i am with the quality of work done. This means i have to upgrade the other tools in the shop to keep up appearances.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by JohnnyEgo

But as a gift to a friend and an opportunity to unwind and practice some skills that were otherwise rusty, I got a lot more out of it than I put into it.

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How do I get on your friend list?? :D

Quote:

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Originally Posted by HoneyBadger

How do I get on your friend list?? :D

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Good Barbacoa.

Drawers

Started with some 6" pine I had laying around. Cut some 1/4" grooves into the base with my table saw, to fit some scrap Melamine-covered Masonite board:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild28.JPG

Used pocket screws to butt-joint them all together:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild31.JPG
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild30.JPG

And mounted them up to some 15" Accu-Ride full extension slides.
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild29.JPG
Speaking of which, the full extension slides are so much cheaper in bulk on the internet than individually at a home improvement store. I bought a 10 pack of these for another project for less than the cost of the three slides I actually needed from Home Depot. Again, Jim benefitted from the free extras taking up space in the garage.

Slapped some Melamine drawer faces on them:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild34.JPG
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild35.JPG

And called it a night:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild37.JPG

Drawers, Part II

Applying Melamine edge banding to the drawers.
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild49.JPG

I use my household iron to heat up the adhesive.
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild50.JPG
(Pro Tip: Make sure you clean all the spill-over adhesive off the iron before you return it to your wife's sewing room.)

I use a roller to make sure the adhesive has a good grip on the edge of the board before the glue cools.
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild54.JPG

A very inexpensive edge trimmer takes off the excess:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild51.JPG

A couple light passes with a 220 grit sanding sponge breaks up any sharp edges remaining, and gives it a pretty clean look.
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild52.JPG
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild53.JPG

Looking great so far.

Rear Door
There is a lot of usable space behind the column of the drill press, while still being in the same over-all footprint of the drill. This is due to the amount of space the drill press motor on the head extends behind the table and press base. This is part of the nature of what makes a drill press tippy and dangerous to mobilize. When I built my own cabinet, I saw an opportunity to use the extra space and provide an extra measure of stability by lengthining the base-plate footprint.

First I finished trimming the rear opening:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild36.JPG

Then I cut some tongue and groove rails and styles for the rear door on the router table:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild40.JPG
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild41.JPG
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild42.JPG
I used the router table instead of the saw because I find it a little bit safer and easier to work with narrow stock and do the cope cuts for the stiles on the ends.
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild43.JPG
Good enough for shop furniture.

Some more of that 1/4" Melamine scrap made for a very light-weight door. Some extra Blum 1/2" offset hinges (also extra from another project) and some glue make for a nice, lightweight door.
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild44.JPG

And Voila:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild46.JPG
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild45.JPG

Detail Work
Now I was at the 80% complete mark, which meant the time-consuming tedium of cleaning up the small details could begin.

First, there was a gap between the carcass and rear face frame, because the carcass base wasn't quite flush. This is why I love my overpriced German tracksaw:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild32.JPG
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild33.JPG

Also needed to cut the front of the frame so that it could ride over the rails on the mobile base and be flush with the wheel mounts:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild38.JPG
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild39.JPG

A little shop clean-up:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild47.JPG

And then some mortices for the hinges via router and chisel:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild48.JPG
Keep meaning to build or buy a jig or template for this sort of thing. Also keep forgetting to actually do it.

Need a little more clearance for the height adjustment knobs on the mobile base:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild59.JPG

And the little things like knobs:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild57.JPG
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild58.JPG

With respect to the extra space and the rear door, how realistic would "U" shaped drawers be?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Irving

With respect to the extra space and the rear door, how realistic would "U" shaped drawers be?

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The rear door sits behind the stand / upright part of the press. You forgot this was for a drill press? Storage is divided in half. John designed it to utilize as much space as possible.

I'm sure it could have been built with no rear storage, using the upright of the press as the rear of the cabinet. However from the projects we've seen John do. He tends to over design them.
1 drawer, great, TWO drawers AND Rear Storage, EVEN BETTER!

Please pardon a bit of thread drift, but how well do those insulation panels in the garage door work? And where'd you get them?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by rondog

Please pardon a bit of thread drift, but how well do those insulation panels in the garage door work? And where'd you get them?

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There's foil faced and plain foam backed panel kits. I have the foam covered that came with the garage doors. Well worth the price to do it yourself. I also have a fairly well insulated shop.
http://www.lowes.com/pd_222457-10477...nsulation+kits

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Irving

With respect to the extra space and the rear door, how realistic would "U" shaped drawers be?

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Not impossible, and I did something similar in my router cabinet to work around the lift gears. You give up some rigidity in the drawer, but these drawers are small enough it probably wouldn't be too much of a problem with overloading.
For my own cabinet, I thought about it but intentionally went in another direction, because I have some things that need to be stored vertically, like the oil reservoir and a pneumatic column hold down.
For Jim's cabinet, he got what he got because I had seven 15" slides laying around, and I wasn't going to buy any longer ones, so he got the same design as mine.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by rondog

Please pardon a bit of thread drift, but how well do those insulation panels in the garage door work? And where'd you get them?

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When I put them in, I ran my infra-red thermometer across them before and after. The surface temperature on the bare panels had been about 5-10° of the outside temperature. With the panels, the surface temp has gone up another 10°. Not much, but often the difference between whether I can see my breath in my garage or the crap melts off the car. That is the only effect I can quantify, but I will say that when I run a heater, it does seem like more heat is retained in the garage than before the panels.

They make kits with different kinds of matting that you can get at Home Depot or Lowes. Many of these are less bulky than the 1" foam sheets, but the foam isn't that heavy and my opener has not had any problems with the added weight over the last three years. I went with the foil backed sheets, which were something like $15 per 4x8 sheet, and I think I used three all told to cover all the panels of my door except for the window row. You can cut it with a carpet blade or other long razor blade, although I used a circular saw in the interest of time. If you go the power tool route, be mindful, as the foam will bind up a blade way quicker than wood.

Detail Work, Part II
Ah, the little things:

Rounding over all the hard edges on the outside with a round-over bit and router:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild60.JPG

Making sure I have adjustment clearance for the mobile base knobs:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild61.JPG

A backer for the rear shelf area, with some peg board incorporated for organization:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild62.JPG
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild63.JPG
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild64.JPG
This was a lesson learned from my own cabinet, which did not have a backing to the rear compartment. Stuff will sometimes lean over and get caught in the drawer mechanisms of mine when I move it. Lesson learned.

Cutting the notches for bolt access so that I could bolt the drill press base very securely to the two layers of mobile base bottom:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild55.JPG

Final Install
With the help of a couple of fine folks on here (Mike, Robert), we lifted up the drill press and slid it into the mobile base. Couple whacks with a sledge hammer, and it fit like a glove. We got two 1/2" carriage bolts very securely mounting the drill press base to the two layers of ply mobile base, and got all the shelves and rear door bolted up.
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild67.JPG

Top hatch in place to allow Jim to get stuff out of the back when the drill press is up against the wall.
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild66.JPG

All done except for final paint, which will come some day when it warms up over 60° for any length of time.
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild65.JPG

And most importantly, making space for my wife to get back the garage:
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild68.JPG
http://www.johnnyego.com/wood/2015Pr...cabbuild69.JPG

Thanks for sticking with me!