48" wide bottom drawer

[J Scarlett]

I'm building a built-in entertainment center and am trying to figure out the best way to design the bottom drawer. The entertainment center is approx 48'(1200mm) wide and 24'(600mm) deep. At the very bottom I would like to put a single drawer that is 12'(300mm) tall.

What kind of slide mechanism should I use? Side/bottom/ball bearing/roller? (The inside bottom is flat and solid so there is a large flat surface to utilize)

I'm thinking that because of the size and weight of the drawer the bottom mount would provide the best support, but I've never done any building beyond framing so any help is appreciated.

Thanks Jason

[bsa441]

I agree with bottom-mount. 48" wide is very wide and you might consider 3 slides, evenly-spaced along the bottom..

[Swingman]

Personally, and unless looks are a big factor, I would go with a heavy duty pair of side mounts.

[Pat Barber]

Accuride makes several slides for large and heavy applications.

would use 1/2" plywood for the entire drawer.

The proper side mount slide will be more than enough.

Be prepared for a rather stiff charge for such slides.

A smaller set of drawers(2) would be a great deal easier to deal with....

a drawer that large, you get a lot of lateral swing, which means the drawer is constantly trying to jump out of the track.

Large drawers attract large amounts of stuff that can get quite heavy.

Of course you will have "very" tight tolerances when installing a drawer that large with 1/8" being the slack side.

This means you must be VERY accurate on your box building and getting everthing VERY square. Any mistakes will result in a very poor fitting drawer.

J Scarlett wrote:

[J Scarlett]

[imp2aca]

Considering the width of the drawer, and the wood expansion/ contraction factor, side slides may not work well; they may jump the track or jam when the temperature/moisture level changes. Couple of years ago I built an entertainment center for a 50' TV, which has two

48' wide drawers at the bottom. I did not use any slides. Just nailed wood strips inside the cabinet to guide the drawers on both sides, and applied paste wax. They work perfectly. No jamming. No roller needed.

Most high end furniture from stores use a center slide below the drawer, which does not have the issue of wood expansion as opposed to the side slides.

[J Scarlett]

Was the TV centered over one of the drawers or between the two drawers? I'm wondering about potential sagging of the shelf to hold the TV and whether or not it may need some reinforcing/center support. Ideas? Thanks again.

[e-mail] wrote:

[imp2aca]

2 drawers below the TV shelf as mentioned below. I used 1/4' plywood as the backboard (nailed to the case and the shelves from behind) to counter the sagging. I also ran a 3/4 by 1-1/2' strip below the shelf (resessed about 6' from the front) that serves as a reinsforcement. It compromised the drawer's inner space (hight) a little bit, but since these are HUGE drawers, a little loss of space is no big deal.

The drawer bottom is 1/4 plywood that sits in the dados of the drawer front/back/sides so it won't sag. I did not run any center support at the bottom of the drawer, but I think it's probably a good idea, since the drawer bottom might pop out of the dados when the front is pulled and flexed due to it's 48' length, although it has not happened yet.

[B A R R Y]

A drawer will usually have the grain going lengthwise. Wood doesn't move much in that direction.

I'd personally choose heavy duty ball bearing bottom or side mounts.

[charlie]

what the floor? what about putting it on casters and rolling it on the floor like a small trundle bed? some guides on the sides would keep it square to the frame so it wouldn't bind up.

regards, charlie

[goaway]

The first question I would be asking is : What are you putting in this rather large drawer. The weight of the items inside can play a factor in all of this. Enev with the best side mounted slides if the middle sags, your done. If you even think that it will get loaded up with things, like magazines by "acident" then three bottom mount slides would allow for even the heavest load. Since we humans are REAL bad at predicting what will end up in a draw, go for the heavest estimate. Good luck

[Bill in Detroit]

What the heck is THIS DOING HERE? It doesn't have ANYTHING to do with global warming! ;-)

(I don't know the answer to your questions but my mind left skid marks when I hit upon your posting after a seemingly endless chain regarding global warming.)

As you were. Carry on. Bill