Was it worth it? What tools did you need?
Any one here made their own kitchen cabinets?
- Thread starter Rust_Belt_Pete
- Start date
The Kreg tools available at HD or Lowe’s are extremely helpful. They have drill jigs and screw kits made for each application so you get perfect angles on your holes & screws; there are many other Kreg tools & jigs for just about every other woodworking task you can think of. We turned my buddy’s $38,000 kitchen quote into a $3,500 Kreg project, and he used better wood for the cabinets and a 2” thick handmade Cherry countertops to finish them off.
2" cherry countertops? Like butcher board or?
When we did our kitchen Dad and I made the sink base because we couldnt buy a cabinet that fit what we needed. I would consider doing an entire kitchen provided I had the time, not because it would be cheaper (likely) but because I could make exactly what I wanted with the material I wanted.
I'm building a rustic cabinet to go under my tv. Its 10ft long, making it from pine, so its easier to distress the doors, and lighter. Used some peg reinforcement.
I wanted something to hide the dvd and direct TV boxes , along with the cables. I have to round over the doors with a round over bit and do some sanding.
Will probably distress the doors with a chain prior to final sanding and finishing.
I'm using concealed 1/4 inch overlay fumiware soft close hinges.
View attachment 247531
I wanted something to hide the dvd and direct TV boxes , along with the cables. I have to round over the doors with a round over bit and do some sanding.
Will probably distress the doors with a chain prior to final sanding and finishing.
I'm using concealed 1/4 inch overlay fumiware soft close hinges.
SammyChevelleTypeS3
$50 site donor 2023
What you plan to finish it with? Natural or ? Looks like going to be nice. 
I think a gunstock oil stain that lets the wood grain show, then poly. The floor in the picture is in the room the cabinet will be mounted. Gunstock stain should match the lighter parts of the floor.What you plan to finish it with? Natural or ? Looks like going to be nice.
At least it does on my test piece.
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We had our cabinets replaced and built buy Amish guy and his sons. They measured everything. We selected the finish and the counter top color. They built them in their shop without electric power tools. They have belts and shafts in the ceiling. They don't drive a vehicle so they pay a neighbor to take them everywhere. They showed up with our cabinets and put everything together in about 4 hours. The price was just $3300. This was about 10 years ago and they still look and work just like when they built them. awesome craftsmen.
You don't mean IKEA I assume?
You just need a level, drill, hammer, stud finder, screw driver and a allen key for those.
They are pretty decent though, TBH my only real complaint after 20 years is that the solid wood door could be an eighth of an inch thicker, and the fridge wide cabinet above the fridge has some sag, as my wife insists the weakest cabinet should hold the heaviest items... Ours is all solid baltic birch doors and veneer and there's only a couple spots where you can see the cabin sides with wood look melamine, and that could've been avoidable with some better planning, and I guess fixable even now, as sliding down cabinet is easy enough to do. If I build another house I am using IKEA again, as it makes a nice enough, durable kitchen for my budget.
You just need a level, drill, hammer, stud finder, screw driver and a allen key for those.They are pretty decent though, TBH my only real complaint after 20 years is that the solid wood door could be an eighth of an inch thicker, and the fridge wide cabinet above the fridge has some sag, as my wife insists the weakest cabinet should hold the heaviest items... Ours is all solid baltic birch doors and veneer and there's only a couple spots where you can see the cabin sides with wood look melamine, and that could've been avoidable with some better planning, and I guess fixable even now, as sliding down cabinet is easy enough to do. If I build another house I am using IKEA again, as it makes a nice enough, durable kitchen for my budget.
No… like he lives on 20 wooded acres with cherry, black walnut, tulip, hickory, and some other hardwoods, and also has a friend that owns a sawmill. He had them come drop the trees, process the trunks into rough-cut lumber, and then finished the final planing, sanding, and joining (biscuit joiner from Festool) to finish them out.
If you’re interested, check your local specialty lumber companies for some 8/4 cherry.
I've done some hobby wood working over the years and built a few cabinets. To build kitchen plywood cabinet boxes with face frames and doors would be a HUGE undertaking and take a lot longer/more work than you might imagine. With some helpers, you could do most of the work with a good table saw.
Man, it would have to be a labor of love with lots of free time available. There are a few door makers on ETSY that are very affordable.
Man, it would have to be a labor of love with lots of free time available. There are a few door makers on ETSY that are very affordable.
I am going to be honest with you...........if you dont know what tools you will need to do the job, you probably should not start off your learning experience with kitchen cabinets.
When we had to replace our kitchen cabinets after our house was flooded, Lowe's quoted us just under 20 grand. Ouch! The wife and I started looking at cabinet kits. We ended up buying cabinets from Kitchen Cabinet King for about 4.5 grand. Came on two pallets. Solid wood, easy to assemble and the quality was excellent. I don't have tools, time, patience or skill to design and make cabinets. My dad did and he DID!
We couldn't find a counter top we liked. We settled on buying solid oak floor planking from a flooring place at a clearance price of about $600 for two bundles (I forget how many square feet). After five coats of Helmsman spar varnish, they look great and have weathered well for eight years.
I'm retired so this was my day job. Took about a month (26 cabinets).
We couldn't find a counter top we liked. We settled on buying solid oak floor planking from a flooring place at a clearance price of about $600 for two bundles (I forget how many square feet). After five coats of Helmsman spar varnish, they look great and have weathered well for eight years.
I'm retired so this was my day job. Took about a month (26 cabinets).
Not that long ago, maybe around 2005 or so, my grandmother's neighbor made pine cabinet doors for her kitchen. He was a hobby woodworker with acceptable Grizzly woodworking equipment. He did a great job, they looked sharp, and looked the part for her country home.
Unfortunately, he did not get them up perfectly straight. They needed more modern hinges with adjustability instead of the classic external style hinges. It may not have been his fault as the cabinets themselves had been up already for 30 years and were not perfectly true.
Unfortunately, he did not get them up perfectly straight. They needed more modern hinges with adjustability instead of the classic external style hinges. It may not have been his fault as the cabinets themselves had been up already for 30 years and were not perfectly true.
- Joined
- Jul 18, 2022
- Messages
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No, but i made a few pieces of furniture and a built in for a mud room. We have remodeled 2 kitchens with semi-custom cabinets. Not cheap, but not real expensive. The fit and finish quality of even that level of cabinet would be a huge challenge to achieve. Plus the space to do the project.
Knowing I want every detail to look perfect and match it just doesn't make sense.
If it's to save money, you really have to shop around. I have found cabinet prices to be all over the map. There is alot of marketing that pushes you into higher end cabinets that I don't think are any better.
Knowing I want every detail to look perfect and match it just doesn't make sense.
If it's to save money, you really have to shop around. I have found cabinet prices to be all over the map. There is alot of marketing that pushes you into higher end cabinets that I don't think are any better.
There is only one way to learn
I agree, and like the attitude.There is only one way to learn
If you have a bunch of time and willingness to start over, sure. There is a bunch more to cabinets than a Kreg jig and a level, especially when it come down to installation.
One word of advise, make the cabinets in one continuous cabinet is possbile. Say you have 8 ft of cabinet space, make an 8ft cabinet......dont make 4 2ft cabinets. You will see when you go to install.
Overall cabinet height should be 34 inches, depth 25 inches or more
be careful in the inside corners
Thank you for the compliment. Me as a person and my attitude and outlooks kind of put me in a corner of DIY.
I am picky and want things done right and wont settle for good enough or what passes for quality work these days. I saw what professionals did and it was impressive but I cant afford to pay professionals what they are worth. (no not you home depot rando, sit back down, having no clue and some tools doesn't make you a contractor).
So I am at a place in my life where I want certain things certain way and I have to do it myself or pay a contractor what I originally bought my house for.
Im not stupid and both my uncle and grandpa have wood working in their blood. I grew up with the sound of a table saw and had to be a 2nd pair of hands for my grandpa since I can remember.
I can get something affordable and be unhappy or I can try to make it myself and be very happy. Yes I may have to start over multiple times, yes I will make mistakes.
I spend too much time in the kitchen to stare at reconstituted ikea cardboard painted in hospital white.
I am picky and want things done right and wont settle for good enough or what passes for quality work these days. I saw what professionals did and it was impressive but I cant afford to pay professionals what they are worth. (no not you home depot rando, sit back down, having no clue and some tools doesn't make you a contractor).
So I am at a place in my life where I want certain things certain way and I have to do it myself or pay a contractor what I originally bought my house for.
Im not stupid and both my uncle and grandpa have wood working in their blood. I grew up with the sound of a table saw and had to be a 2nd pair of hands for my grandpa since I can remember.
I can get something affordable and be unhappy or I can try to make it myself and be very happy. Yes I may have to start over multiple times, yes I will make mistakes.
I spend too much time in the kitchen to stare at reconstituted ikea cardboard painted in hospital white.
If you want a decent looking countertop and don't want to spend money for granite or quartz, Formica has a product that does away with the ugly brown seams and looks nice. My brother and I used it on 2 home flips.
https://www.formica.com/en-us/campaigns/idealedge-decorative-edging
https://www.formica.com/en-us/campaigns/idealedge-decorative-edging
