From ShopNotes Magazine page 1 © 2002 August Home Publishing Company All rights reserved

RollingTool

Cabinet

AA.. DDrraawweerrss.. To provide easy access,the three drawers in the rolling cabinetare mounted on full-extension slides.

BB.. SShheellff && TTrraayy.. Portable power toolsare stored underneath on a largebottom shelf and a sliding tray.

Isuppose I could have bought a rolling tool cab-inet. The kind with big banks of drawers and

lots of storage underneath that auto mechanics use.But something just didn’t seem right about storingmy woodworking tools in a metal cabinet.

What I really wanted was a tool cabinet thatwas made from wood — one with a traditionalappearance that I could roll right up to the benchwhile I’m working. So I decided to build a rollingtool cabinet of my own.

The overall design features two parts: a largebase cabinet that rolls on casters, and a small toolchest that sits on top. The companion tool chestplan is available at www.PlansNOW.com.

Plans N O Ww w w . p l a n s n o w . c o m

®

The companion CCrraaffttssmmaann TTooooll CChheesstt plan alsoavailable at www.plansnow.com

From ShopNotes Magazine page 2 © 2002 August Home Publishing Company All rights reserved

MaterialsCaseA Side Stiles (4) 3/4 x 31/2 - 38B Back Stiles (2) 3/4 x 31/2 - 38C Side Rails (4) 3/4 x 31/2 - 15 1/2D Back Rails (2) 3/4 x 31/2 - 243/4E Side Panels (2) 151/2 x 311/2 - 1/4 Ply.F Back Panel (1) 243/4 x 311/2 - 1/4 Ply.G Fixed Cleats (2) 3/4 x 2 - 191/2H Adjustable Cleats (2) 3/4 x 11/2 - 20I Corner Blocks (8 pieces) 3/4 x 23/4 - 201/8J Divider/Bottom Shelf (2) 20 x 301/4 - 3/4 Ply.K Trim Pieces (2) 3/4 x 1 - 301/4L Sliding Tray (1) 101/2 x 293/4 - 3/4 Ply.M Lip (2) 3/4 x 11/2 - 293/4N Apron (1) 3/4 x 23/4 - 301/4O Base Pieces (2) 3/4 x 43/4 - 221/4P Top (1) 3/4 x 221/4 - 321/4

DrawersQ Top Drawer Front (1) 3/4 x 31/2 - 30R Middle Drawer Front (1) 3/4 x 43/8 - 30S Deep Drawer Front (1) 3/4 x 51/4 - 30T Top Drawer Sides (2) 1/2 x 31/2 - 201/2U Middle Drawer Sides (2) 1/2 x 43/8 - 201/2

V Deep Drawer Sides (2) 1/2 x 51/4 - 201/2W Top Drawer Back (1) 1/2 x 31/2 - 283/4X Middle Drawer Back (1) 1/2 x 43/8 - 283/4Y Deep Drawer Back (1) 1/2 x 51/4 - 283/4Z Drawer Bottoms (3) 283/4 x 20 - 1/4 Ply.DoorsAA Door Stiles (4) 3/4 x 31/2 - 197/8BB Door Rails (4) 3/4 x 31/2 - 81/2CC Door Panels (2) 81/2 x 133/8 - 1/4 Ply.DD Door Stop (1) 3/4 x 3/4 - 301/4

Hardware• (3 pairs) 20" Full-Ext. Drawer Slides• (2 pairs) 125° Inset Hinges• (8) 13/4" x 23/8" Brass Pulls• (4) 3" Locking Swivel Casters• (16) 1/4" x 1" Lag Screws

• (16) 1/4" Flat Washers• (4) #8 x 21/2" Fh Woodscrews• (22) #8 x 11/4" Fh Woodscrews• (9) Figure-8 Fasteners• (18) #8 x 5/8" Fh Woodscrews

From ShopNotes Magazine page 3 © 2002 August Home Publishing Company All rights reserved

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I started on the rolling tool cab-inet by making the case.Basically, it’s a large open boxthat’s divided into separate storagecompartments, see drawing.

SIDES & BACK. To add rigidityto the case, the sides and backare made of solid wood framesand plywood panels. Each frameand panel is held together withsimple (yet strong) stub tenonand groove joints.

The pieces of these frames areidentical in width (31/2"). And sois the length of the side (A) andback stiles (B), see Fig. 1. Butsince the sides are narrower thanthe back, the side rails (C) areshorter than the back rails (D).

To accept the plywood panelsand rails, there’s a groove cut ineach piece, see Fig. 1a. And stubtenons are cut on the ends of eachrail to fit the grooves, see Fig. 1b.

PANELS. With the joinery com-plete, you can add the side (E)and back panels (F). These arejust 1/4"-thick pieces of plywoodthat are glued into the frames.

At this point, there’s still somework left to do on the sides. Tomake the sliding tray (added

later) adjustable, I drilled aseries of holes in the side stiles(A), see Fig. 1. And there’s arabbet that’s routed in the backedge of each side to accept theback, see Fig. 1c.

BULLNOSE. To soften the frontedges of the sides, I routed abullnose. But rather than buy aspecial bit, I used a 1/2" round-over bit instead and made a passon each side, see detail in Fig. 1.

This leaves a slight “flat,” but allit takes is a little sanding tosmooth it out.

SUPPORTSBefore assembling the case, it’seasiest to add supports for adivider, sliding tray, and shelf.

FIXED CLEATS. The divider issupported by a pair of fixedcleats (G) made from 3/4"-thickhardwood, see Fig. 2. After posi-

Case ————————————————————————————————————————

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From ShopNotes Magazine page 4 © 2002 August Home Publishing Company All rights reserved

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tioning each cleat flush with theinside edge of the rabbet, they’resimply screwed to the side stiles.

ADJUSTABLE CLEATS. Thesliding tray is also supported bytwo cleats. But to move the trayup or down, these adjustablecleats (H) have pins (dowels) thatfit into the holes drilled earlier inthe sides, see Fig. 2a.

To hold the cleats tight againstthe sides of the case, the tray sitsin a rabbet cut in the edge of thecleats, see Fig. 2a. This way, theedge of the tray presses againstthe cleats and holds them in place.

CORNER BLOCKS. One last setof supports is a pair of cornerblocks. Besides supporting thebottom shelf, these corner blocksdirect the weight of the tool cab-inet onto the casters, see margin.

To help carry this weight, thecorner blocks (I) are made bygluing up four pieces of 3/4"-thickstock, see Fig. 2. These blocks aresimply glued flush with the

bottom of each side.

DIVIDER, TRAY, & SHELFWith all the supports in place,you can turn your attention tothe divider, tray, and shelf.

DIVIDER. The divider sepa-rates the cabinet into an upperand lower compartment. The topcompartment houses threedrawers. And the lower one pro-vides storage underneath.

The divider (J) is just a piece

of 3/4"-thick plywood with holesdrilled in it to attach it to thefixed cleats, see Fig. 3. Gluing ona hardwood trim piece (K)covers the front edge of thedivider, see Fig. 3a.

SLIDING TRAY. To provide easyaccess to tools, the sliding tray (L)is a narrow piece of 3/4"-thick ply-wood that pulls to the front of thecabinet. A hardwood lip (M) gluedto the front and back edges keepstools from falling off, see Fig. 3a.

SHELF. For storage at thebottom of the case, there’s a shelf(J) that’s identical in size to thedivider. Again, a trim piece (K)creates a finished looking edge.

ASSEMBLY. At this point, youcan glue up the case. To keepthings square, I slipped the dividerand shelf into the case. When theglue dries, just screw them inplace and install the sliding tray.

APRON. Next, I added a hard-wood apron (N), see Fig. 4. Aftercutting a gentle curve on thebottom edge, this apron is gluedto the trim piece (K) and cornerblocks (I), see margin and Fig. 4a.

CASTERS. All that’s left is toadd four locking swivel casters.To provide a sturdy mountingplatform for the casters, twobase pieces (O) are attached tothe bottom of the case, see Fig. 5.After routing a bullnose on thesides and front of the base pieces,they’re screwed to the cornerblocks and sides. Then justattach the casters with screws.

To lay out a largecurve, bend athin strip ofhardboard in anarc. Then havea helper markthe curve on theworkpiece.

Shop Tip

A thick cornerblock directs theweight of thecabinet and toolsonto the casters.

From ShopNotes Magazine page 5 © 2002 August Home Publishing Company All rights reserved

Top —————————————————————————————————————————

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{ PPoocckkeettss.. To create crisp, clean pockets for thefigure-8 fasteners, it’s best to use a Forstner bit.This can be a large (11/2"-dia.) bit (left). Or use asmall (1"-dia.) bit and drill overlapping holes (right).

With the case complete, Istarted on the top of the cabinet.

To provide a sturdy platformfor the tool chest, the top (P) is asolid wood panel that’s made bygluing up pieces of 3/4"-thickhardwood (oak), see Fig. 6.

WOOD MOVEMENT. But a solidwood top creates an interestingproblem when attaching it to thecase. It has to be held tightly inplace. But to keep the top fromsplitting, it still has to expand andcontract with changes in humidity.

FIGURE-8. To secure the topand allow for wood movement, Iused metal figure-8 fasteners.The small end of these fastenersattaches to the sides (or back) ofthe case, see details in Fig. 6. Thelarge end fastens to the top. Thisway, when the wood expands orcontracts, the fastener pivotsand keeps the top from splitting.

POCKETS. The figure-8 fastenersare recessed into shallow (1/8"-deep) “pockets.” After laying outtheir location, I drilled the pocketswith a 11/2"-dia. Forstner bit, seeFigs. 7 and 7a. But you can alsodrill overlapping holes with asmaller bit, see photos below.

Before attaching the top,there’s one more thing to do.That’s to rout a bullnose on thefront and sides only. (The back

edge is left square.)INSTALL FASTENERS. At this

point, you’re ready to install thefasteners. Installation is just asimple three-step process, see

box below. Note: To provide easyaccess to the case when workingon the drawers, it’s best to waituntil the drawer slides areinstalled to attach the top.

Figure-8 FastenersTo install a figure-8 fastener,start by screwing the smallend of the fastener to thesides and back of the case, seeStep 1. Then, after positioningthe top and marking the loca-

tion of the hole in the big end(Step 2), drill pilot holes in thetop and screw the top in place,see Step 3. (Note: These fastenersare available from a variety ofwoodworking catalogs.)

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From ShopNotes Magazine page 6 © 2002 August Home Publishing Company All rights reserved

To provide storage for differentsizes of tools and materials, Ibuilt three progressively deeperdrawers for the upper part of thetool cabinet, see Fig. 8.

Strong locking rabbet jointshold the drawers together. Andfull-extension drawer slides pro-vide easy access to what’s inside.

There’s nothing complicatedabout building the drawers. Thedrawer fronts (Q, R, S) are madefrom 3/4"-thick hardwood (oak),see Fig. 8. And I used 1/2"-thickstock (maple) for the drawersides (T, U, V) and backs (W, X,Y). Note: These pieces are sized toallow 1/2" clearance for the drawerslides and an 1/8" gap all the wayaround each drawer front.

LOCKING RABBETS. With thepieces cut to size, you can con-centrate on the locking rabbetjoints. (See Figs. 8a and 8b.)Then just cut grooves for theplywood bottoms (Z), see Fig.8c.

DRAWER PULLS. Before gluingup the drawers, it’s easiest toinstall the brass pulls on thedrawer fronts. (For a step-by-step procedure see page 7.)

DRAWER SLIDES. Now it’s justa matter of adding the drawerslides. These slides have twobasic parts.

One is centered on the width ofthe drawer sides, see Fig. 9. Itlets you adjust the drawer up anddown, so you’ll be able to “finetune” the drawers for a consis-tent 1/8" gap all the way around.

The other part attaches to theside of the cabinet, see Figs. 9 and9a. By adjusting this part, you canposition the drawer fronts fartherin or out of the cabinet. Note:Since I wanted to recess thedrawer fronts about 1/8" back, Ilocated the slide 5/8" in from thetop of the bullnose.

ATTACH TOP. Now all that’s leftis to attach the top (see oppositepage) and slide in the drawers.

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Drawers ————————————————————————————————————

From ShopNotes Magazine page 7 © 2002 August Home Publishing Company All rights reserved

Doors———————————————————————————————————————

To keep dust and chips out of thelower part of the tool cabinet, Iadded two doors. Like the sidesand back, the doors are simplewood frames and plywood panelsthat are held together with stubtenons and grooves.

APPEARANCE. In addition tothe joinery, I also wanted tomaintain a consistent appear-ance between the different partsof the cabinet.

So the stiles (AA) and rails(BB) are the same width (31/2")as the stiles and rails on the sidesand back, see Fig. 10. And tomatch the spacing of thedrawers, these frame pieces arecut to length to allow an 1/8" gapall the way around, see Figs. 10aand 10b.

Now you’re ready to cut thestub tenon and groove joints,refer to Figs. 1a and 1b on page18. Then, cut the door panels(CC) to size and glue up the doors.

Before installing the doors, Iadded a stop (DD) that keepsthem flush with the front edge ofthe divider when they’re closed.

This is a strip of hardwood that’sglued under the divider, seeFigs. 10 and 10a.

INSTALL DOORS. After addingbrass pulls (see box below), youcan install the doors. They’reheld in place with 125°

European-style hinges, see Figs.10a and 10b.

This requires drilling a 13/8"-dia. hole in the door stile toaccept the hinge clip, see Fig.10b. Then attach the mountingplate to the side, see Fig. 10a.

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Installing Brass PullsIt’s easy to install a brass pull flushwith the surface of a door (or drawer).All it takes is to cut a two-tieredmortise — a deep, oblong-shapedpocket for the part that sticks out inback, and a shallow, rectangularrecess for the mounting plate.

TEMPLATE. To lay out the deeppocket, I use a hardboard templatewith a horseshoe-shaped opening to

SSTTEEPP 11 SSTTEEPP 22 SSTTEEPP 33 SSTTEEPP 44

setting thepull into the opening and markingaround the mounting plate (Step 3),rout the shallow recess up close to(but not touching) the line (Step 4).

Now chisel up to the edges, check-ing the fit of the pull as you work.

match the back of the pull, see Step1. To allow for some adjustmentwhen positioning the mountingplate, the opening is 1/16" larger thanthe back of the pull. Note: I drawcenterlines on the template to makeit easy to align.

To form the deep pocket, it’s eas-iest to use a straight bit and rout upto the line, see Step 2. Then, after