Drawer Sides Lumber?

Poplar. It is very straight grained so it does not warp easy. It is also fairly cheap and easy to work. It is semi-hard. There are not any knots so it looks OK, but it would be kind of boring for something like a drawer front.

-- Stevethepeeve -- I'm no rocket surgeon

I always use oak. Strong and never wears out.

-- Gary, East TX -- The longest journey begins with a single step.

i like alder it’s strong, it’s cheap, and it looks good with just an oil finish.

-- Roper - master of sawdust-

i use poplar. inexpensive, decently have, good to machine with, no knots but it does have discoloration a lot. just at the lumberyard pick out the ones that have the most similar color throughout. hope this helps.

Soft maple works good in dovetail jigs and finshes nicely. And it’s not too pricy.

-- DocK, WV

I live near an Amish community with over 60 cabinet shops employing close to 300 people. The main part of my business (before I got into flooring) used to be selling drawer side stock and lumber for drawer sides (some wanted to make their own). I was going through about 3000 bf/month of white ash. The leading choice was soft maple. I didn’t have a source for good soft maple. Only 2 shops used poplar. Several shops would have used poplar but you couldn’t get it white both sides. Nobody liked the green in the poplar.

-- David, Southern Indiana, http://www.freedhardwoodflooring.com

I use 1/2” maple.

-- With God's help all things are possible- even woodworking. Woodworking is not just a hobby, it is an (expletive deleted) expensive hobby.

Thanks guys for the help.

-- CJIII Future cabinetmaker

poplar is traditional

I used to make semi loads of birch or aspen drawer sides.

-- barlow

It depends on the peice. For cheaper items I will use poplar. For high quality items maple will be used. Local shops seem to always have scraps left over from projects and will give them to me free or almost free or my wood supplier will give me a good deal on his lower quality maple.

I am thinking about using soft maple for my mom drawer sides.

-- CJIII Future cabinetmaker

Generally soft maple.

-- What exactly is "The Move" and who are you calling a "Quirky Jerk"? -- http://www.north40custom.com

i agree with soft maple, i like poplar as it is cheap and it is great if you can find pieces with even coloration but since that is hard i think it would save you the trouble to just go with the maple.

Years ago I ran across some old dusty, dirty cherry that had been sitting in a lumber yard storage shed for years.
I made the drawers for my kitchen cabinets with it. Nice looking drawers.

-- Bob C www.rctonewoods.com