I got my drawers into a tight spot

Dudes and Dudettes,
I was able to purchase a Jet 16-32 drum sander this year after convincing my wife that this would be the LAST big machine I would need. Hopefully she did not record the conversation. As some of you already know, it’s a freaking awesome addition to the shop. Anything that saves time sanding is truly a gift from the woodworking Gods.

Since I work out of my garage and space is at a premium, I decided to install some drawers into the stand that Jet provides. This proved to be an exercise in measuring and re-measuring because the legs splay out at a compound angle. Much like mine after a few drinks. I realized that the drawers wouldn’t be very big because of the angles, but proceeded anyway because I’m retired, golf season is almost over, so what else am I going to do after my thumbs grow tired from twiddling.

First step was to construct a box from 3/4 ply as big as possible but still fitting within the space. Since the corners would show from the side of the stand, I used edge miters. I used my Dowelmax tool to add dowels for strength and alignment. If any of you have this tool, the 45 degree attachment is well worth buying. Next came more measuring to determine maximum drawer width and spacer width for the drawer slides. At this point my head was starting to hurt, but thankfully it was the end of the day and a glass of Chardonnay resolved all problems.

I then built the drawers using a technique learned from Ramon Valdez on YouTube, which produces a very strong box. Here’s the link:
https://youtu.be/iPNH3JGdSDs?si=1-PMvU5nRtZjVXCl
He is the real deal, very professional, working for years in a cabinet shop before going out on his own. He doesn’t produce a lot of content, but I highly recommend his channel. Another thing I learned from him is how useful a portable belt sander is for building fine furniture. I had always thought that a belt sander was for rough work only, but it’s often a superior tool compared to a RAS to keep surfaces flat.

I made the drawer faces from Alder, which doesn’t get much love. I think it looks great paired with Maple. And a crisp California Sauvignon Blanc. Angles on the faces were cut to match the opening, a quick slathering of Osmo, and Bob’s your uncle. Now, if I can only keep the sawdust out of my drawers…