Utility drawer box
Drawer dado/rabbet
A quick drawer corner: a groove in the side and a tongue on the front or back.
Use when
- The drawer is a shop box, not a show piece.
Don’t use when
- Do not use it where the corner will be handled every day and looked at.
- Keep
- Waste, hatched on the drawing
- Dimension
- Long parts are broken. The 1 in bar is true scale.
Stock
Thickness steppers move by 1/16 in, or 0.5 mm. You can type 3/4 or 1-1/8.
Sizes
| Mark | Size | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| Rabbet on the front | 3/8 in | Default is the same 3/8 preference as a dado, clamped to the end stock |
| Dado width | 3/8 in | End thickness minus the rabbet, so the outer faces land flush |
| Dado depth | 1/4 in | Cut into the side. Same depth rule as a housing |
| Side thickness | 1/2 in | The dado lives in this piece |
Cut sequence
1Rabbet the front
The rabbet is 3/8 in deep. What is left becomes the tongue.
Setup: Dado width will be 3/8 in.
2Dado the side
Walls 3/8 in apart, floor at 1/4 in.
Stop when: The outer faces flush when the tongue seats.
3Dry-fit, then glue
Close the joint dry. Check that shoulders and faces meet, then glue. If this is a frame or a box, check both diagonals before the glue grabs.
Stop when: Dry-fit is tight with hand pressure, square, and the diagonals match.
Glue
Long grain to end grain
Strength
furniture
Movement
The front shows a lip. The side's end grain sits in the rabbet, and the dado keeps the front from pulling off.