On 04/09/2016 8:09 PM, DerbyDad03 wrote:
....

The biggest problem with the dresser is that the bottoms of the long
drawers sag a bit (actually, a lot) so I may need to add some "beams"
to flatten them out. (suggestions welcome)

http://imgur.com/Y7aKfPU

I think that they are solid wood (?) because I don't see any plies.
Did they use plywood for drawer bottoms back then?

http://imgur.com/pRNq7Ab

In any case, the insides of the drawers are finished and I don't want
to replace the bottoms. Again, suggestions for flattening them would
be most welcome.
....

As J McCoy notes, they're nailed with brads; this is common construction
so the bottom can be replaced if necessary; if all four sides are
captured in groove then the only choice is to try to disassemble the
drawer itself...anyway, that aside, I'd recommend to _not_ do major
structural modifications; two suggestions.

1) use a _tiny_ drop of epoxy in _only_ the nail holes and sufficiently
small it won't glob up and glue the bottom to the rear drawer bottom and
re-nail. I've had success if the drawers aren't subsequently
drastically overloaded in that the epoxy will hold the nail but you've
not ruined any chance of removing them for repair/replacement of the
bottom later by gluing the bottom itself...

2) there are only three (or maybe there's a fourth towards the left;
unclear from picture for certain) brads shown; whether that's all there
were or that's all there are left, having lost a couple of others, the
obvious fix in the vein of the original is to add a couple new ones in
fresh wood locations. I'd probably add a second near the existing and
then insert new between present locations.

Btw, the knob kickers can usually be fixed by a strategic insert of a
small patch inserted in the necessary location to provide a new "bite"
surface. I didn't look at all the pictures but have had a number of
these in the past when the SHMBO ran a small antiques booth in TN and
worked over a lot of pieces for her...that was a "trick" taught me by
Lonnie Bird in one of his seminars many, many years ago, now...

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