# Drawer Side Thickness



## Redoak49 (Dec 15, 2012)

I am building a dresser 34" wide and 31" tall from Red Oak . The drawer boxes are about 29" wide, 17" deep and 6" tall and will be made from Ash with dovetail corners. The drawers will run on wooden runners with slick take.

The Ash stock is currently 3/4" thick and I think they look to heavy and considering reducing the thickness. What drawer material thickness do you think is best for this size drawer. The dresser is for my grand kids and i do want them sturdy.


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## Loren (May 30, 2008)

1/2" oak is plenty strong for almost any drawer,
imo, but there are aesthetic reasons for going
thicker in an heirloom piece.

It's interesting to note that 3/4" was not a standard
dimension in furniture making prior to power tools.
I had a Stanley #46 skew dado plane for awhile and
the 3/4" cutter is conspicuously absent to modern
users. Stanley never made the cutter because the
dimension was simply not used.

Anyway, 5/8" looks nice. It's unexpected in today's
uniform furniture world of 1/4" steps in sheet-board
thickness. You can go a little thinner or a little thicker
for some added interest. I think James Krenov
discusses thickness in one of his books. I like to
mill and use 4/4 stock as thick as I can get it for
a given milling run on a project. I think 7/8" looks
sturdier than 3/4" and it adds a handmade aesthetic
to deviate from the norm.


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## martyoc (Nov 21, 2015)

I think that 1/2 inch is a good size for hardwood drawers. I've used that for quite a few dresser and table drawers over the years. It is sturdy and is also thick enough if you wish cut dados for drawer bottoms .


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## AlaskaGuy (Jan 29, 2012)

1/2 for me. anything thicker looks to bulky to me. It's personal taste if you asked me.


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## jdmaher (May 4, 2011)

I'm a 5/8" guy.

1/2" is probably plenty strong, but I do like the chunky feel of 5/8"


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## RichT (Oct 14, 2016)

> I m a 5/8" guy.
> 
> 1/2" is probably plenty strong, but I do like the chunky feel of 5/8"
> 
> - jdmaher


+1 on 5/8". I think it looks best. No rationale, just what appeals to my eye.


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## jonah (May 15, 2009)

1/2" is pretty standard, but deeper drawers could probably benefit from a little more stability. 5/8" isn't bad, depending on the piece. For deeper drawers I would go 5/8" and for regular sized ones 1/2" is fine


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## Redoak49 (Dec 15, 2012)

Thanks for the comments….I agree that 5/8" sounds good and a reasonable compromise between strength and too chunky.

Time to get the planer out and make some chips.


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## Unknowncraftsman (Jun 23, 2013)

I think somewhere between 1/2 and 5/8 is a good size.Also consider a center mount slide.When a drawer is wider then it is deep a center slide helps a lot.


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## TarHeelz (Sep 13, 2012)

9/16!!!!. Everybody else is totally wrong!


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## GT350 (Dec 22, 2012)

5/8" is my favorite.


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## pintodeluxe (Sep 12, 2010)

I think 5/8" looks more elegant than 3/4", but feels every bit as strong.


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## Iguana (Jun 22, 2011)

The drawers in my shop cabinets are approximately the same size, and made from 1/2" plywood. Plenty sturdy, and they carry a lot more weight than a dresser full of underwear and T-shirts ever would. And solid Ash is a lot stronger than plywood. So anything 1/2" thick or more would exceed your strength requirements by a large factor.


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## wormil (Nov 19, 2011)

I just built a cabinet with 31" wide drawers, 1/2" material, no concerns at all about strength. Also have kitchen cabinets with drawers that wide, 1/2" material, loaded with pots and pans, no issues.


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## Loren (May 30, 2008)

I think some of the arguments for 1/2" drawers 
are a bit outmoded. For one, modern slides 
mean the weight of the drawer isn't as much of
an issue with smooth operation. It's easy to observe 
wear and sticky drawers in old chests with wooden 
slides. Two, if you're hand cutting dovetails, the 
thinnest wood means the least amount of work 
with a chisel.


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## AlaskaGuy (Jan 29, 2012)

I've made a ton of drawers over the years, Kitchens get 1/2 BB ply and furniture get solid wood. Never a problem with and size drawer. I make a lot of wide drawer. Really wide drawer get rack and pinion drawer slides. It really is more about eye appeal that draw strength.




























1/4 inch BB ply is stronger that you'd think.


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## Redoak49 (Dec 15, 2012)

Thank you for the comments. Several of the replies have mentioned drawer slides. BUT I mentioned to begin with that I am using wood slides with slick tape. The drawer will actually slide on the bottoms of the sides. While 1/2" material may be strong enough, I think that having slightly wider sides will slide better.


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