12-03-2018, 12:14 PM
I have kit furniture for a bedroom I put together about forty years ago. The only thing obviously cheap about it was the pine species. It now has its fair share of furniture death monsters, fingernail dings, water spots, and traffic accidents. It's also that Spanish Walnut stain finish that will come back into fashion in a couple years. The only thing different is it moved from the newlywed bedroom to the child's, to the spare. My clothes were pushed out of the master to it, so this set has been in constant use.
Here's what made it work so well:
Any part that had a greater chance of meeting any one of the three monsters of furniture death, that destroys plywood, is solid wood. There isn't much area left for plywood. Remember everything solid is pine.
The front faces are solid frame and panel doors. Drawer faces are minimum 3/4-inch and use sliding dovetails for solid 3/8-inch drawer sides and back; drawer bottoms are cheap hardboard.
Tops are solid 1-3/8 inch wood. 1-inch would be plenty.
The corners are solid 1-3/8-inch framing that encase thinner plywood panels at the sides. The only plywood is at the case sides and used as a panel. The back is hardboard.
All interior web framing is solid wood. The greatest irritation, if it can be considered one after all these years, is that drawers ride on a single center runner using Teflon hardware. The drawer sides ride on the facing blade. There is no friction wear on any drawer sides. Deft brand lacquer protects most of the wood from wear.
That's my story.
Ps. After Son took over use one of the pieces to the set was donated to a thrift store. That was in the mid 1980s. A year ago I saw the same piece at a thrift store. There were some kids' stickers on it; a little beat up but everything worked like new.
Here's what made it work so well:
Any part that had a greater chance of meeting any one of the three monsters of furniture death, that destroys plywood, is solid wood. There isn't much area left for plywood. Remember everything solid is pine.
The front faces are solid frame and panel doors. Drawer faces are minimum 3/4-inch and use sliding dovetails for solid 3/8-inch drawer sides and back; drawer bottoms are cheap hardboard.
Tops are solid 1-3/8 inch wood. 1-inch would be plenty.
The corners are solid 1-3/8-inch framing that encase thinner plywood panels at the sides. The only plywood is at the case sides and used as a panel. The back is hardboard.
All interior web framing is solid wood. The greatest irritation, if it can be considered one after all these years, is that drawers ride on a single center runner using Teflon hardware. The drawer sides ride on the facing blade. There is no friction wear on any drawer sides. Deft brand lacquer protects most of the wood from wear.
That's my story.
Ps. After Son took over use one of the pieces to the set was donated to a thrift store. That was in the mid 1980s. A year ago I saw the same piece at a thrift store. There were some kids' stickers on it; a little beat up but everything worked like new.
