# Pinned Box Joint?



## RippKutt (Jun 13, 2012)

Hello Jocks. I live in a thirty yr old condo. The kitchen cabs are all built in(particle brd and formica). I'd like to make new boxes for the drawers using 1/2" ply. The drawer faces screw into the drawer box from the inside. The back rail of my box will fit into dados to be glued and screwed. At this time I can't do dovetailing. So…. If I use a simple box joint with glue for the front of the box, can I drill vertically thru the joint and pin it with a finish nail? Is this overkill or worth time? I await your suggestions. Thanks, Dennis


----------



## pintodeluxe (Sep 12, 2010)

For plywood drawer boxes I would stick with rabbeted joints. If you want to upgrade to solid wood sides, then you can do box joints or get a dovetail jig.


----------



## kdc68 (Mar 2, 2012)

Agreed with *pintodeluxe…...*A version of a rabbet joint I'd use is the locking rabbet


----------



## crank49 (Apr 7, 2010)

Lock rabbet joint is good. I have used it often.

In solid wood a regular box joint is tested and confirmed to be just as strong as a dovetail; no need to pin.


----------



## jumbojack (Mar 20, 2011)

+1 for the locking rabbet


----------



## spclPatrolGroup (Jun 23, 2010)

For my kitchen I used simple rabbits a little glue and some finish nails since I had to make a lot of them and on a deadline. I don't even notice the joinery in day to day use.


----------



## NiteWalker (May 7, 2011)

> Agreed with *pintodeluxe…...*A version of a rabbet joint I d use is the locking rabbet
> 
> 
> 
> ...


+1. That's my favorite joint for drawers.
Here's a great article showing how it's done.
It shows the setup for a table saw, but it works on a router table just as good. Though if you have a bunch to do, the table saw and dado set is faster.


----------



## helluvawreck (Jul 21, 2010)

A regular lock rabbit is a good joint if it is done right. I've used it on some shop cabinets and they seem to be holding up well. Modern glue is quite amazing.

helluvawreck aka Charles
http://woodworkingexpo.wordpress.com


----------



## AlaskaGuy (Jan 29, 2012)

Another vote for lock rabbit for plywood drawers.

For solid wood drawers if using box joints I think to pin them is overkill.


----------



## RippKutt (Jun 13, 2012)

Hi again Jocks. Thanks for the replies. I'll go with the rabbet joint. Next question… drawer box bottom? I have 1/4" Luan laying around but it finishes crappy. Maybe sandeply or hardboard from the Orange Store. What thickness? This is for kitchen drawers with utensils and gadgets. I await your suggestions. Thanks, Ripp.


----------



## kdc68 (Mar 2, 2012)

1/4" should be fine for utensils and gadgets. Keep in mind 1/4" plywood isn't necessarily 1/4. Chances are it will be more like 7/32nd".

Here's a method to create the perfect width groove. I'm sure others will post with their methods.

A couple of passes with the table saw will create the groove for the bottom. Make one initial pass with all your drawer pieces, then tweak the fence over and make the second pass. Test cut with scrap until you get the correct width of groove…


----------



## NiteWalker (May 7, 2011)

Yep, 1/4" sold be fine. The bottoms on the drawers in my apartment are 1/4" hardboard and they're fine. I prefer baltic birch plywood as it's very strong even at 1/4".

You can build a test drawer with the luan and subject it to various loads to see if it meets your needs.


----------



## gfadvm (Jan 13, 2011)

I too like the lock rabbit joint for most drawers. I only pin box joints when I'm not going to glue them.

Dry erase board makes great drawer bottoms as it really increases the visability in the drawer (almost like having a lighted drawer)


----------

