Baking center

[thunderbirdbat]

I have a small galley kitchen in my house so I have been working on a new cabinet similar to a Hoosier Cupboard. When this 6 ft cabinet is completed, I will have about doubled the countertop work space available. The counter work height will be a couple of inches higher than traditional counter height but my husband requested it be a few inches taller and I actually prefer a higher work surface as well. My husband wants it to be free standing and movable even if it does not get moved vary often. I found some leveling casters that I think will work. My husband picked up a sheet of plywood for the base cabinet and a birch butcher block counter top for me to use for it. Just pine plywood but it should work fine for the cabinet. I have been staining and finishing all the pieces before assembly so far. Since the base is a long piece of plywood, I have put a grid of support pieces on the underside to help prevent any warping or sagging. Not sure how well it will work but only time can tell.

Dados and groves cut for dividers and back. Stain and finish applied.

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Grid supports and casters installed.

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[larryhrockisland]

If you glue and screw another piece of plywood to the three long runners would that create a torsion box effect?

[thunderbirdbat]

If you glue and screw another piece of plywood to the three long runners would that create a torsion box effect?

I have thought about that. The ends of this piece sit in dados on the upright ends and I want to use pocket hole screws to act as clamps in the middle. This will require taking out the end cross pieces and then reinstalling them. I am also using screws up into the dividers to help clamp the middle of them into their dados. I could install the a bottom piece after that. I am just not sure how much the bottom piece of plywood would help.

[edma194]

Those look like the same leveling casters I used on my table saw dolly. Very heavy duty. I didn't have the same constraints as you so I used a couple of pieces of heavy aluminum angle for reinforcement because it was easy to do and inexpensive since I already had the angle.

Adding a piece of plywood to the bottom will make it a little stronger for this purpose, but the cross pieces you have are already stabilizing the longer runs. Just a layer of 3/8" plywood on the bottom would inexpensively add some more strength and remove areas for dust and dirt and crawling things to hide underneath.

Hope you follow up on the build. I would like things to work out to make a kitchen island on wheels like that. Be interesting to see how this goes.

[thunderbirdbat]

I probably will add the piece of plywood to the bottom but it will have to wait until I purchase a piece for it. In the meanwhile, I have gotten the major parts together.

Dividers glued and clamped in place, screws still need to be installed.

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Carcass assembled and underside of top finish curing.

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Top finished.

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Put a sheet of resin paper over the top to protect it as the only place I have to store it safely is on top of the carcass base.

Adjustable shelves finished and appliance lift installed.

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Instead of just a shelf for the lift assist for the mixer to sit on, I want a pull out shelf to set things on when using some of the Kitchenaid attachments as some of them require items under them in front of the mixer. I am also thinking about putting a couple of dowels behind the mixer to store the different accessories like the dough hook or whisk when not in use.

Now to get the back installed and the top fastened down. Then I can start thinking about the drawers above the adjustable shelves and doors. The mixer is too tall for a drawer to fit above it. Hopefully I can also get my husband to decide on a type of wood for the front edge banding, drawer fronts and doors.

[edma194]

Great idea for the mixer with that easy lift! I didn't even consider taking it off the counter because I don't want to have to pick it up. Do lift brackets lock in the upright position? I'm already looking at sliding shelves for the kitchen cabinets so I might incorporate one of those immediately and eventually on the island I'm thinking about.

[thunderbirdbat]

Great idea for the mixer with that easy lift! I didn't even consider taking it off the counter because I don't want to have to pick it up. Do lift brackets lock in the upright position? I'm already looking at sliding shelves for the kitchen cabinets so I might incorporate one of those immediately and eventually on the island I'm thinking about.

I agree the mixer is heavy when moving it around and with our limited counter space, it is stored else where. Which means that it only gets pulled out once in a great while. I am hoping that with the lift it will be used more often.

Yes the lift locks into the upright position. There are a few different manufacturers of them with some differences. This one has a lock that clicks once to lock, pick it up again until it clicks to unlock and lower it while other manufactures have a lock that you have to manually release. Some versions even has a soft close feature. https://www.amazon.com/Rev-Shelf-Heavy- ... 7e17e03685 This is the cheapest version. https://www.amazon.com/Wood-Technology- ... 7e17e03685 Depending on how it ends up working, I may see if I can add the soft close feature from a different manufacturer to it or replacing it with a different brand. There are different size requirements for the cabinet it can go in based on manufacturer and on what size appliance is being placed on it. My husband has a 6 qt Kitchenaid making it a taller sized appliance so I can not put a drawer above it. If you do decide to get one, be aware that the springs are a pain to install. My husband installed the springs on this one and ended up using a pair of vice grips.

[chapmanruss]

Brenda,

It is looking great so far. Nice work. I like the lift assist for the mixer.

[thunderbirdbat]

I Installed the slides for the drawers then got the back installed and the top fastened down. Hubby finally picked a board that I had laying around for the front edge banding and drawer fronts. It is just short of 8 ft long and about 12 inches wide. I believe it is ash but it may be oak. I have trouble telling the difference between them. I should have enough in this one board for 3 drawer fronts (about 6 x 18 inches each) and the banding. I should be able to work around the knots as I only need two long banding pieced of about 6 ft and the rest of the banding will be less than 3 ft.

Filled the knots with casting epoxy to help stabilize them before cutting and thicknessing.

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[thunderbirdbat]

I finished putting the edge banding on the baking center. I put a thinned coat of amber shellac on the banding. Now I just need to decide if I want to put lacquer or spar urethane on the banding. I used spar urethane on the shelves for durability and lacquer on the case so I am thinking about doing that again. I want to complete the finish on the top piece of banding for the appliance lift before installing it as there is a handle that will be attached to it to aid in the lifting.

Edge banding installed.

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Amber shellac applied.

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