wrote
On Oct 30, 10:03 am, "Swingman" wrote:

You will not get a definitive answer because what you have asked is
basically a religious question ... try'em both, then pick your favorite.


Swingman,

I agree with you from things I have seen at other sites. But I have
to admit: Thus far, all opinions seem to be strongly toward face
frames.

I also took a look at your website and the cabinets you made are
beautiful. I saw you, too, built face framed cabinets. There must be
a reason in there somewhere, even if it is simply that you like the
looks (which I cannot believe is the *only* answer!).

I'm partial to face frames, but I'm my main client since I build most of the
houses my cabinets go in. I prefer the rigidity, _squareness_, and look of
face frame cabinets, but that's just my personal preference.

In the construction business you are always searching for a known, square,
starting point to hang your hat on. A properly built face frame cabinet will
give you that, IME.

Most of the folks in the cabinet business will tell you in a heartbeat that
they can make more money doing frameless. So it depends on your POV and
whether you are making a living on the open market as to which one you
specialize in.

For those "eating their own dog food", you really need to try both to see
which suits your tastes, the equipment you need, and your level of
expertise.

I don't know if I am right or wrong but I am going to start by
building some cabinets for the garage in the form of a base for a new
workbench, for a tool cabinet, for a nuts-n-bolts-and-other stuff
cabinet, and as a tablesaw base. I figure this will give me more than
enough practice. And if the wife *STILL* insists we purchase, I will
make some more for the laundry room and maybe a bathroom or two. I
gotta figure a way to wear her out........

As far as tools, if you decide to go with face frame cabinets, you will
certainly want to consider a Kreg pocket hole jig ... it is a big time saver
for making face frames with just the right amount of joinery strength, and
it allows you to batch cut your rails and stile, which goes a long way to
insuring uniformity and _square_.

And, with regard to reference material:

John Paquay's "Building Your Own Kitchen Cabinets" and Jim Tolpin's
"Building Traditional Kitchen Cabinets" are two good sources of information.

I personally like John's basic kitchen cabinet construction method, which
focuses on hardwood face frames, routed to accept the cabinet sides and
floors (READ that again!), which, if you concentrate on making your face
frames to high standards of square, will insure a square cabinet that is
easy to install, and easier to fit doors, drawers and door fronts to.

AAMOF, once you build one cabinet using John's method, the light goes on and
no cabinet is then too tough. The last time I looked his booklet could be
ordered at:

http://home.insightbb.com/~jpaquay/shop.html

While John's little book is geared to the construction of the basic wall and
base cabinet, Tolpin's book is a fairly good reference for different types
of cabinet construction, drawers and, in particular, installation.

If I had to do with just one, and had never built a cabinet before, I would
go with John's self-published booklet... but both of them together will give
you what you need, and the confidence, to get the job done."

Good luck ... and feel free to ask any questions.


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www.e-woodshop.net
Last update: 10/25/07
KarlC@ (the obvious)