Cabinet Drawer Joint Types

By The Editors at Skills Institute Press
Updated on September 12, 2022
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Set off by the simplicity of a metallic single-pull handle, a solid wood drawer glides smoothly in and out of a frame-and-panel cabinet. Grooves routed into the drawer sides run along supports attached to the frame of the cabinet.
Set off by the simplicity of a metallic single-pull handle, a solid wood drawer glides smoothly in and out of a frame-and-panel cabinet. Grooves routed into the drawer sides run along supports attached to the frame of the cabinet.
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False Front Drawer: A separate front is nailed over the structural front; conceals end grain of drawer sides.
False Front Drawer: A separate front is nailed over the structural front; conceals end grain of drawer sides.
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Sized to fit between grooves cut in the sides of a drawer, a plywood bottom panel slides into position. The panel will bottom out in a groove in the front and be nailed to the back to secure it in place.
Sized to fit between grooves cut in the sides of a drawer, a plywood bottom panel slides into position. The panel will bottom out in a groove in the front and be nailed to the back to secure it in place.
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Lipped Front Drawer: A rabbeted front creates a lip that serves as an overhang; useful for concealing commercial runners when the drawer is closed; lip performs double duty as drawer stop.
Lipped Front Drawer: A rabbeted front creates a lip that serves as an overhang; useful for concealing commercial runners when the drawer is closed; lip performs double duty as drawer stop.
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Flush Front Drawer: Allows the drawer to fit entirely within the cabinet; also known as an inset drawer.
Flush Front Drawer: Allows the drawer to fit entirely within the cabinet; also known as an inset drawer.
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Rabbet Joint: For back-to-side joints on most drawers; also strong enough for joining the front to the sides if reinforced with screws or nails; suitable for solid wood or plywood.
Rabbet Joint: For back-to-side joints on most drawers; also strong enough for joining the front to the sides if reinforced with screws or nails; suitable for solid wood or plywood.
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Through Dovetail Joint: Strong, decorative joint for any drawer corner; end grain of drawer sides can be concealed with false front; appropriate for solid wood but not plywood.
Through Dovetail Joint: Strong, decorative joint for any drawer corner; end grain of drawer sides can be concealed with false front; appropriate for solid wood but not plywood.
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Half-Blind Dovetail Joint: The traditional joint for connecting the front to the sides; conceals end grain of sides; suitable only for solid wood.
Half-Blind Dovetail Joint: The traditional joint for connecting the front to the sides; conceals end grain of sides; suitable only for solid wood.
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Dado Joint: Can be used to join the front to the sides and the back to the sides; for solid wood or plywood.
Dado Joint: Can be used to join the front to the sides and the back to the sides; for solid wood or plywood.
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Double Dado Joint: For any corner of small, light-duty drawer; conceals end grain of sides and front; suitable only for solid wood.
Double Dado Joint: For any corner of small, light-duty drawer; conceals end grain of sides and front; suitable only for solid wood.
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Side-Mounted Drawer: Wooden slides screwed to carcase side panels run in grooves routed in drawer sides.
Side-Mounted Drawer: Wooden slides screwed to carcase side panels run in grooves routed in drawer sides.
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Commercial Slide Runner Drawer: Metal slides screwed to drawer sides mesh with runners screwed to carcase.
Commercial Slide Runner Drawer: Metal slides screwed to drawer sides mesh with runners screwed to carcase.
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Bottom-Run Drawer: Drawer slides on rail and runner assembly. Twin tenons at ends of rail are glued into double mortises cut into carcase panels; one edge of runners is rabbeted and fits into groove cut into panels.
Bottom-Run Drawer: Drawer slides on rail and runner assembly. Twin tenons at ends of rail are glued into double mortises cut into carcase panels; one edge of runners is rabbeted and fits into groove cut into panels.
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1. Drawer Slide: Sits in groove routed in drawer side; screwed to carcase side panel. 2. Bottom Panel: Typically 1/4-inch plywood; fits in groove routed in drawer sides and front. 3. Drawer Side: Joined to front and back with any of a variety of joints; groove shown meshes with drawer slide. 4. Drawer Back. 5. Drawer Front: Typically thicker than sides, back and bottom; may be covered by a false front.
1. Drawer Slide: Sits in groove routed in drawer side; screwed to carcase side panel. 2. Bottom Panel: Typically 1/4-inch plywood; fits in groove routed in drawer sides and front. 3. Drawer Side: Joined to front and back with any of a variety of joints; groove shown meshes with drawer slide. 4. Drawer Back. 5. Drawer Front: Typically thicker than sides, back and bottom; may be covered by a false front.
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“Cabinet Construction” by the editors at Skills Institute Press is a woodworking guide with all the technical information you need to succeed, written in language anyone can understand. 
“Cabinet Construction” by the editors at Skills Institute Press is a woodworking guide with all the technical information you need to succeed, written in language anyone can understand. 

There are three main elements to the anatomy of a drawer and several drawer joint types. Understanding them is the secret to building drawers that glide smoothly, hold their weight, and never jam.

Building Drawers

In essence, a drawer is nothing more than a box without a top–a front, a back, two sides and a bottom. Individual examples, however, belie this simplicity. They run the gamut from the modern kitchen drawer slamming shut on metal slides to the drawer of a well-made Victorian desk whispering home with a nearly airtight sigh. The former is often an anonymous, interchangeable unit with a false front. The latter may be a finicky individual precisely fit to an opening in a particular piece of furniture, its unique face blending beautifully with the grain of the wood surrounding it.

Pulled open, a drawer reveals more of its personality. Each of its five pieces may be cut from a different wood. The front, which shows most, is chosen for its species, color and grain; the thinner sides for long wear; the back for strength; the bottom for stability.

Not only is the front the most visible part of a drawer, it also takes the most abuse. Keeping it attached to the sides requires a durable, solid joint.

A drawer’s most basic function is to hold things. But it must also slip in and out of the piece of furniture housing it without jamming or chattering. As with joinery, mounting a drawer offers many choices. Every method must support the drawer, prevent it from tipping as it is pulled out and stop it as it slides home. The perfect drawer will glide nearly out, then hesitate a bit; drawer stops prevent the unit from being inadvertently pulled all the way out or pushed too far in.

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