Approach
This is the last piece of furniture to complete furnishing the sauna suite.
The vanity base starts out quite similar to the changing room benches or the table from previous blog entries. It features rails fastened to legs via mortise and tenon joints.
To make it a cabinet, panels are added between the frame pieces. This is a lower rail and shows a 3/8” deep groove for the side panel on the top and a 1/4” deep groove for the bottom of the cabinet in the side of the rail. I routed the top groove with the same 5/16” spiral upcut bit that I used for the mortises.
This is the top rail. The groove on the face is for a cleat to provide more glue surface area for the silicone to hold the marble vanity to the base. The other groove is for the top of the side panel.
This is a front leg, with mortises on the side, that holds the cabinet doors. The grooved portion is to hold the side panel. NOTE: I routed the hinge mortises before assembly.
This is a back leg with grooves to hold the side and the back panel.
Close-up of a mortise and groove in a leg.
Assembly Sequence
I assemble the side panels first.
Start with the front leg and a pair of rails.
Add the plywood side panel. NOTE: I used 1/2” plywood and dadoed it to fit the 5/16” groove. I placed the dadoed side into the cabinet for the side panels.
Add the back leg.
Add the 3/4” plywood floor, the back rails, and back plywood panel.
Add the other side assembly. Clamp the entire cabinet at the same time to ensure everything lines up before the glue sets. I used polyurethane construction adhesive because of its longer set time. (I don’t like foaming Gorilla glue.)
I’m glad that I’ve invested in a bunch of Bessey K-Body clamps over the years!
Close-up of the glue cleats.
Next
Build the cabinet doors.
-- Mark, Minnesota
0 comments so far
Have your say...