Well this sucks (Kreg tool)

[Paladin]

I was playing with my new toy today and slowly as I put it together and read the direction it dawned on me, I need wood in order to play with it! I had forgotten in all of my excitement that I can't even play with my toy unless I have some consumables and materials.

Now this brings me to another question, what types of wood is everyone using for their cabinets etc? I don't want pine and I'm really not too sure I can afford all red oak, or even all of the many faces. I'm leaning towards a color in the medium reds or maybe a maple, nothing too dark. I'm thinking I'll play with some scrap pine and then go out and tackle some real wood as soon as I settle on what to use. Is alder a soft wood or hard?


 

[Jerry Liebler]

Palladin,
     I used hard maple.  It's very strong and split resistant, much easier to work with than oak but a bit more expensive.  Cherry would be redder but even more expensive,  I've used it on some other projects and it is also very nice to work with. 
Regards
Jerry 4107 1120

[jlaney]

liston up
i got me on of those pocket screw kits, and right away i got the drill in a bind and broke the pilot end of drill off. looked for a new drill and it was nearly as much as i paid for the kit. so i bought a new kit with only one hole just to get a new drill. i like the kit real well  thanks jt.

[TomC]

I had clear white oak cut to a true 3/4" x 2" for my cabinet framing.  Then used 3/4" furniture grade plywood covered with white birch for the walls and doors-really beautiful stuff and available at Home Depot for about $45 a sheet.  It is easy to work with and strong, has no holes in the plys and urethanes up nicely. All cabinetry is screwed to the 1x2 horizontal strips that are screwed to the metal uprights and also screwed into the floor.  All my cabinets are mechanically held together with L and T brackets that were pilot hole drilled then screwed.  So technically, I could just unscrew the entire bus and take it apart.  I only used glue on the wall corners of the bathroom and closets.  Otherwise everything else is free to flex a bit-and doesn't make noise going down the road.  Good Luck, TomC

[donnreeves]

I used cherry and it looks beautiful, but I still haven't recovered from the price. You might consider 3/4" veneered cabinet grade plywood. Comes in any species and Is a lot cheaper than solid stock. heat activated edge banding coveres the edges. Maple is semi expensive, hard, but requires care in staining to prevent blotching. Alder is a medium hard wood, easy to work, but also blotches. Oak is Probably the most popular cabinet choise because of it's price, workability, grain, and the way it takes stain. Donn

[JackConrad]

     A fellow busnut and myself went together and purchased about 600 board feet of 5/4 rough sawn, kiln dried red oak. We then milled it to finish dimensions with surface planer and joiner/planer. Cost was much less than buying dimensional red oak at Home Depot or Lowe's. We did purchase 4X8 sheets of oak furniture plywood (3/4" & 1/4") at Home Depot. Check with a local cabinet shop that builds more then formica covered particleboard cabinets for a source of 5/4 lumber.  Jack

[mikelutestanski]

Hello        On choices of wood?    you may want to consider where and what kind of travels you may do when considering types of wood ..
   ie.   If you are traveling into very dry country the wood may shrink. Or real humid locations the wood may swell.
      For that reason alone and stories we have heard from other bus friends about cabinets shrinking and changing shape;  we chose birch veneer plywood for our woodwork and used solid doors (some are solid frames with stained glass inserts).
     That was our choice  and fits our needs.
   I pass this on only for your consideration to let you make an informed choice..
   Concerning the kreg tool  been wanting to buy one but have got along with out it so far... have a biscuit cutter and use that for simple joinery..

      Regards and  Happy bussin     mike   

[Dallas]

I was playing with my new toy today and slowly as I put it together and read the direction it dawned on me, I need wood in order to play with it! I had forgotten in all of my excitement that I can't even play with my toy unless I have some consumables and materials.
 

Well, Paladin,
Since you don't have any material to use to play with your toy, I'll be happy to take it off your hands. I'll even pay for shipping! 

Seriously, I've seen the Kreg tool in action and it's great. Someday, maybe, when I'm ready to start changing the inside of our bus to something less, ummm, "Early American Sanitary Landfill" I'll get one.

Have fun with it!

Dallas

[captain ron]

Since I was painting my doors and laminating my case work I used poplar it is inexpensive and easy to work with. By defenition it is a hard wood but in all actuality it is a soft wood.

[NewbeeMC9]

Charley,
What kinda wood did you use on Mikes bus?  His cabinets looked good.

[captain ron]

That's all red oak. Thanks

[H3Jim]

I used all cherry and am very please with it.  for the lighter woods I would consider poplar, maple or birch, all nice looking

[belfert]

I was originally going to use pine in my bus for cost, but I found a good source for birch plywood pretty cheap so I am going to use birch instead.  I was worried about the pine being too soft so I'm happy I found the birch.

[Skykingrob]

Hey Paladin
I have used cabinet grade birch plywood for the wall portions of the casework and then had a local millwork company provide the sold birch for the cabinet rails/styles and am having a cabinet shop make the cabinet door/drawer faces out of solid birch. Birch like maple and pine will blotch when staining so either wipe down with paint thinner to close the grain or use a penetrating sealer and follow with a gel stain.
That Kreg jig is a very nifty tool for attaching the rails/styles to cabinet cases. Also another tool that works where the Kreg doesn't is a biscuit cutter. The only drawback is you have to use glue and clamps with the biscuits.
Isn't this conversion stuff a real adventure. Who would have thought you had to learn all these new skills.

Rob
91 LeMirage XL
Missouri