Any books on making face frame kichen cabinets using the Kreg system?

On 4/16/2012 8:42 AM, John Shear wrote:
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Great, free design tool for both the hobbyist and professional woodworker.
SU has a less steep learning curve than most 2D CAD programs, but being 3D modeling software, it does require a bit of getting used to and may seem counter-intuitive at first ... don't give up, it is well worth the effort and, once the light bulb comes on, the proficiency will come quickly and easily. And it's free ...
There are a number of new resources specific to the woodworker. Bob Lang's Sketchup Blog, one of the more up to date, has woodworking specific content, as well as providing a basic understanding of how to use the program, highly recommended for woodworking SU starters:
http://readwatchdo.com/category/blogs-main/sketchupblog /
And there are a few woodworkers here who wouldn't walk out to the shop before doing some advance SU planning, so don't hesitate to ask if you have some specific questions.
If you're on G+, Bob's Sketchup page is here:
https://plus.google.com/106940157095126556776/posts

> On 4/16/2012 1:13 PM, John Shear wrote in email:
> When you started designing face frame style cabinets, how did decide > the width of rails and stiles as well as door frames? Did you just > copy what manufactured cabinets had, or did you have a better way? I > like designing things, but I don't know how to choose proper > proportions.
~ First a bit of philosophy: The holy grail of cabinet making is "SQUARE".
Making a _perfectly square_ cabinet insures that all doors and drawer fronts will fit and be easy to install, and that the cabinets themselves, even when hung on a wall that is not plumb, will be easier to shim to that wall, and that those doors and drawers will always work because the cabinets will remain square even if the wall moves, which all walls will do.
The easiest way to achieve "square" in your cabinet making is to _batch cut_ all the component parts.
IOW, set the table saw fence ONE TIME ONLY, and cut ALL the component pieces that are going to be 1 1/2" wide at that time BEFORE moving the table saw fence to another setting; Set the table saw fence to 30", and cut ALL the component parts for ALL cabinets that are going to be 30" long, BEFORE you move the table saw fence to another setting.
Repeat as often as necessary to batch cut all your cabinet parts, rails, stiles, end panels, floors (which includes the top in industry parlance since they are the same size), and backs.
As to your question about widths.
I base the face frame's rail and stile widths on the thickness of the plywood you are going to use for the casework, as well the size of the dadoes I will route into the face frame to accept that plywood. *More about why below.
I almost always use the following dimensions for rails and stiles:
Base cabinet stiles: 1 1/2" wide Base cabinet rails: 1 1/2" wide Drawer rails: 1 1/2" wide
Wall cabinet stiles: 1 1/2" wide Wall cabinet top rail: 2 1/2" wide (to take the crown) Wall cabinet bottom rail: 1 1/2" wide Wall cabinet Intermediate stiles: 3" wide
That is more or less an industry standard but you can certainly vary the above for any reason, including your preference with regard to appearance. But! ... be sure to take into account any hardware like drawer slides and door hinges when making that rail and stile with determination. (AAMOF, buy those items, or insure they are available, BEFORE you cast your design in stone and start building).
~ Philosophy again: The idea is to take the time to make the face frames FIRST, with meticulous attention to making the face frames as perfectly square as possible (easily achieved with _batch cut parts_ ), AND then assemble the casework on top of that square face frame, basically insuring a square cabinet.
Route the necessary dadoes into the backside of the face frame to accept the ends of the casework.
Route the necessary dadoes/groove into the _end panels_ of the cabinet case.
Assemble the face frames using pocket hole screw joinery.
Once your face frames are completely assembled, with due attention to them being square:
Lay the face frame, dadoes up, on a flat surface and assemble, and glue and/or nail the previously dadoed case work plywood component ON TOP OF THE ALREADY ASSEMBLED, SQUARE FACE FRAME.
Doing it this way, and only this way, absolutely insures that you have the squarest possible cabinets; cabinets that will not only attach to each other easily for a cabinet "run", but cabinets in which the doors and drawers will always work until the house is torn down ... something that can only be achieved, with any assurance, with properly made, _shop built_ cabinetry!
*More about the face frame stile and rail widths:
With a cabinet case made of 3/4" plywood, and using a 3/4" dadoe in the back of 1 1/2" wide stiles to accept the 3/4" plywood, leaves 1/2" on inside of the stile facing into the cabinet so that you can use a 1/2" plywood spacer for mounting your drawer slides; and 1/4" on the outside that you can use as a _scribe strip_ should you need to scribe to a wall at the end of a run ... the latter, when trimmed out with 1/4" thick material at the top and bottom of the cabinet, also makes a nice finished appearance to a cabinet side that is going to be visible:
http://e-woodshop.net/images/3930-Kitchen13.JPG
Let me know if you have any questions.

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Let me suggest cutting a couple EXTRAS of every critical piece BEFORE you move the table saw fence. You will use these mostly as spares when you screw up. Swing and Leon and a few others here could do the job in their sleep, but some of us are mere mortals to whom shit happens.
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Another big snippage....
Regards, Roy