Cabinet Making

Some cabinetmakers make standard faceframe style cabinets while others build "european" (frameless) style cabinets. Some make a blended version of both. Still others, seeing a need in the industry, may create a shop that only sells cabinet parts and pieces to other shops.

If you're only interested in building a few cabinets for yourself then you probably just need to consider basic cabinet sizes, the type of hardware to use, what type of finish to use and whether to buy or build the cabinet doors. This wouldn't require any more than a basic woodworking shop with standard woodworking machines.

If you're thinking about setting up a dedicated cabinet shop, then you would need to consider different, more specialized machines. Most cabinet making machinery is specialized to do one operation and do it fast and accurate. For example, the best of table saws can't compete with vertical or horizontal panel saws. The same goes for a standard drill press that you find in most general woodworking shops. It can't compare with the gang drills that drill entire rows of holes in one pass.

Don't let me discourage you. Setting up a cabinet shop can be a major investment and you don't want to start off by investing money in the wrong equipment. For most cabinet shops some of the basic equipment is still required. Some basic equipment isn't!

For a cabinet shop that makes european cabinets you can get away with only three machines. The basics required here are a panel saw, edgebander and gang drill. The panels are purchased prefinished, the doors and drawers are bought from a shop that specialize in doors and drawers, and the end product is shipped assembled or not.

These is just a few of the things to consider when deciding how to set up your shop. If you just want to build some occasional cabinets then stick with a general woodworking shop. This leaves you with the versatility of being able to make a lot of other items that you may want to build.

If you decide to dedicate your shop to cabinetry then set up so you can compete with other cabinet shops by planning ahead and by buying the right cabinet shop machines. Above all else, have fun! Happy cabinet making!

Go to another great article about cabinet making - Cabinet Shop Layout