Cedar Book Case #1: Design - thoughts/suggestions very welcome.

I have not seen a shelf support system like the one you show. If I get it right, the darker piece is holding the shelf up – if you remove it, the shelf would drop. Right?
Seems like it would work fine. Maybe a little finger groove on the bottom of the darker piece to make it easier to pull out? I could see a tight fit where one just forces the darker piece it and then … it’s stuck! Another option would be a chamfer on the back edge …
I like the concept. Your case design looks excellent!

-- Steve - Impatience is Expensive

Dave, the problems in the design are related to sketchup laziness; i try to spend more time building than sketching. The supports will be a single piece, but while I was adjusting the size it was easier to have one unit and multiple it. The corner at the bottom will be flush, not sure what happened there. The joints will be M&T or dovetailed. Can you change the grain direction from within sketchup? I’ve always rotated the material in another program and hence could not always be bothered.

-- Daniel - http://theloveofwood.blogspot.com/

Alternatives…

-- Daniel - http://theloveofwood.blogspot.com/

Huh, well that’s interesting, I usually use pins in the ends to support the shelves. Just shows to go ya that there are different ways to skin a cat. I personally lean towards the pins to keep a smooth side, but your design looks like it works. If those bottom two pics show the finished article, I approve!

lol… the bottom two pics.. do not show the finished article… mine might be a littler simplier…. just put them up to look at the shelving adjustments…

-- Daniel - http://theloveofwood.blogspot.com/

Hi, It will be beautiful!

For about ten years, I lived in a house built in 1940 and the linen closet shelves were designed with just that kind of adjustable shelving. It was the first time I’d seen it. The support and cross pieces were not very thick – 1/2” at most, and they were only about 5/8” wide. The shelving was solid pine, painted and 3/4” thick. The cabinet was fairly deep, close to 20 inches and about 4 feet from left to right inside. There were more shelves than were being used and the extras just sat on the bottom of the cabinet. It took me a while to notice they were shelves and not the floor of the cabinet – and I was delighted to find them. Good luck, Chris

-- Use what talents you possess; the woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best. Henry Van Dyke

Daniel,
a post script: The shelving was notched on four corners to sit nicely in the recess above the support and still extend to the full inside dimension of the cabinet.

-- Use what talents you possess; the woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best. Henry Van Dyke

A interesting design but the style of adjustable shelves your suggesting is to busy for a modern piece of furniture I would use a hidden clip style.
Like these.

http://www.leevalley.com/us/hardware/page.aspx?p=40191&cat=3,43648,43649&ap=1

-- W James Brokenbourgh Custom furniture maker http://artisticwoodstudio.com/

I like your adjustable shelving system, and I really like the idea of making the shelving parts, instead of buying hardware. Whether it’s done with a contrasting wood is your choice.

-- You can't control the wind, but you can trim your sails