Reply To: Drawer frame
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My writing table has a drawer supported by Phillip’s alternative one, and as the table has no front apron or rails the construction maximises the depth of the drawer. Most sensible, the designers went for a rather narrow and short drawer, thus avoiding any risks of jamming – leaving me very happy with this piece of contemporary Danish furniture.
The coffee table, however, has aprons of 101.6 mm (4″), which are tenoned into the legs in a way that leaves a gap of 3/8″ (9.525 mm) between the aprons and the inside of the legs. Hence, if a drawer (or probably two) is to be added, it seems that: first, the front apron will have to be replaced or opened to the let a drawer through, and second, a support structure is needed to prevent the drawer from racking, jamming, tilting or just fall right down, which probably would be utterly embarrassing.
As for creating an opening at the front for the drawer to pass through, there seems to be two traditional methods. One can cut an opening in the front apron, or one can replace the apron with two rails; one running directly beneath the top and the other along the lower edges of the side aprons.
A drawer support structure for a table with aprons consists of, I have learnt, runners supporting the bottom edges of the drawer sides; guides along the drawer sides and top to make the drawer run straight without horizontal tilt; and, optionally a kicker to prevent vertical tilting as the drawer is pulled out. Wide drawers may also have a runner at the mid of their bottoms, running in a groove, to prevent racking and sideways jamming.
In his 18th century book ‘L’Art du Menuisier’ (to English as ‘With All the Precision possible’ by DC Williams; Lost Art Press) André Roubo does away with the whole thing by attaching rebated pieces to the apron, with the rebates going beyond the inner faces of the legs. The drawer is thus running in the rebates.
The Anglo-American “approach of honour” appears less wood-wasting and laborious, as it consists of two L-shaped components, such that the vertical aspects (acting as guides) are joined or fastened to the aprons, while the drawer runs on top and beneath the horizontal aspects. (Please see attached drawing).
Perhaps a 34″ wide drawer would look less aesthetic, in which case the alternatives would be one smaller drawer or two. In the former case Phillip’s alternatives 1 and 2 look very suitable to me. In the latter, there would be a need for a drawer divider. The attached photos provides one – probably very poor – solution for a rail onto which runners can be attached.
Can’t help but thinking that ‘Adding a drawer to a Coffee Table or End Table would make for a very good video series…
/soj
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- This reply was modified 7 years, 2 months ago by Sven-Olof Jansson.
- This reply was modified 7 years, 2 months ago by Sven-Olof Jansson. Reason: Typo