Krenov style cabinet question

[nodima]

I've read through 3 of his books, and must have missed this detail.  For many of the cabinets he built, there are interior partitions and drawers.  What was the joinery involved?  I know the carcasses are done with dowels typically.  Can't find details for the interior partitions  Were those also doweled, or done with dados?  Specifically, joining the interior partitions to the surrounding case.

[Handplanesandmore]

No, not dadoes. He used Festool dominoes.








Joke of course.

I think he used dowels although his books do not cover specifically about partitions. See p. 47 about the dowels used on the side in A Cabinetmaker's Notebook and p. 134 in The Fine Art of Cab. for his dowel jig.

Simon

[SteveS]

The cabinet I made I used dadoes for the horizontal dividers.

[Aram]

I've read through 3 of his books, and must have missed this detail.  For many of the cabinets he built, there are interior partitions and drawers.  What was the joinery involved?  I know the carcasses are done with dowels typically.  Can't find details for the interior partitions  Were those also doweled, or done with dados?  Specifically, joining the interior partitions to the surrounding case.

Several of the staff at the Krenov School are alums from Krenov days. Why not email them and ask?

[mdhills]

I've read through 3 of his books, and must have missed this detail.  For many of the cabinets he built, there are interior partitions and drawers.  What was the joinery involved?  I know the carcasses are done with dowels typically.  Can't find details for the interior partitions  Were those also doweled, or done with dados?  Specifically, joining the interior partitions to the surrounding case.

In Impractical Cabinetmaker, you'll see bridle joints, dados and haunched tenons, and dowels.
It seemed like the dowels were more common with his veneered work.

Brendan Gaffney recently wrote a book on Krenov.  Might have some details, or he might be able to share some details of the joinery.

Matt

[Don_M]

I've read through 3 of his books, and must have missed this detail.  For many of the cabinets he built, there are interior partitions and drawers.  What was the joinery involved?  I know the carcasses are done with dowels typically.  Can't find details for the interior partitions  Were those also doweled, or done with dados?  Specifically, joining the interior partitions to the surrounding case.

If I understand what you are asking about - it is the internal (hidden) joinery (front rails/runners/kickers) that support the drawers

I built a Krenov inspired Cabinet on Stand ua few years back and during my research I remember finding a drawing (somewhere!!) of the actual internal carcass of one of his cabinets – just can’t remember where and I wish I had saved photos of the joinery in the piece I built to show you – but alas!!

FWIW - I don’t think it probably matters what you type of joint you use - I went with standard M&T joints for the hidden front rails, drawer runners and kickers. But I can tell you that the internal drawer support system is quite delicate (in my case nothing more than ½” thickness for the hidden front rails and supporting runners and kickers) – all of these components sit behind what essentially amounts to a an overlay drawer front. The milling (jointing and planning the individual components) has to be done very carefully to insure the “floating” drawer effect does not bind – and for me the M&T joint just provided the most accurate technique to insure proper alignment of all the component pieces.

I put together a quick sketch that I hope helps – good luck!

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[nodima]

Dominos.  *snort*   My reading comprehension is better than that!!!


Don M, you understood the question for sure.  Interesting that you show the dividers as the traditional set up with runners/kickers and front rail.  Makes more sense than a solid piece as I had been thinking.  Thanks for the drawing, I've made other drawers in that manner in past.  Beautiful casework, btw, well done with the continuous grain on the drawer fronts.

[Don_M]

Dominos.  *snort*   My reading comprehension is better than that!!!


Don M, you understood the question for sure.  Interesting that you show the dividers as the traditional set up with runners/kickers and front rail.  Makes more sense than a solid piece as I had been thinking.  Thanks for the drawing, I've made other drawers in that manner in past.  Beautiful casework, btw, well done with the continuous grain on the drawer fronts.

Yes – the internal drawer support structure is similar to how one would construct a traditional drawer (rails, runners, kickers and dividers). These components are just hidden behind the overlay drawer front. About the only thing I did differently was to mortise the mid and lower front dividers (which I mis-labeled as front rails in the sketch) into the side legs instead of using a sliding dovetail.

I suppose I constructed it this way because that was how it was done in the Krenov cabinet I saw in a one of his books where he showed the internal drawer cavity structure.