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Folks,
I'm looking for some advice. I am going to make 2 twin beds for the guest bedroom. I'm considering frame and panel construction for the headboard and footboard. How thick would you make the panels? On the one hand, thinner means less weight. One of my goals nowadays is to better engineer my furniture so that it doesn't take two people to move it. On the opposite side, occupants might be leaning against the headboard, ie when reading before going to sleep. It would be embarassing if an overly thin panel cracked as someone leaned against it.
Further information: panels will be made of sycamore, frames will be walnut.
Thanks,
Mark
Mark in Sugar Land, TX
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are you going to raise the panels or are they flat?
that to me is one determining factor
If they are just flat then 1/2" thick with a 1/4" groove and relieved from the back is generally plenty
Joe
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Agree with the 1/2" overall thickness, but depending on how thick your frames are, I would think about making the groove a full 1/2", might be overengineering but worth considering.
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I think it would depend on the size of the panel...are you talking multiple smaller panels or one big one? What size?
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(01-21-2017, 10:14 AM)Admiral Wrote: Agree with the 1/2" overall thickness, but depending on how thick your frames are, I would think about making the groove a full 1/2", might be overengineering but worth considering.
I should have stated that 1/4" tongue would be an acceptable minimum and if the frame thicknesses would allow for a wider groove it would not be over engineered by any stretch of the application
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The panel should be at least 1/2" thick, preferably 3/4". The bigger issue is the panel dado needs to have a lot of meat behind it or the back lip of the dado will snap off. I had one that was 3/8" thick break off when a kid jumping on her bed fell against it and it cracked the back dado off. I made the replacement out of 6/4 thick frame lumber and set the dado almost 3/4" in from the back. No more breaking when abused.
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Thanks, all. Sounds like 1/2" for the panel would be ok. The frame is thicker than the panels, so I should have enough strength on the dado's.
Mark
Mark in Sugar Land, TX
