A true reflection of your fine craftsmanship

Here’s a project that makes a perfect “showplace” for your collections and other treasured items. It’s alsoone that’s excellent for learning how to use a variety of your versatile MARK V accessories.

We chose walnut for our cabinet, but any hardwood will work quite nicely. Its doors, sides and upper & lower backs are frame-and-panel construction, made using Shopsmith’s Cabinet Set Shaper Cutters. The mirrored back and see-through glass shelves provide an excellent all-around view of the treasured items on display.

We started by cutting all the stiles (A,B,C) and rails (D,E,F,G) to size, as listed in the Bill of Materials. Go ahead and cut them to exact size now, as this will make it easier to clamp and glue them together later. Do be aware, however, that doing so means you’ll have to be careful when you mill them on the shaper, since you will have no margin for error. While you’re cutting things out, make an extra 2-inch wide rail and stile to use as test pieces for setting-up your shaper cuts.

Step 1: Shaper Set-up. With your shaper table set at waist height so you have optimum control, position your shaper fence and table so the shaper cutter clears your miter gauge by about 1/4-inch. Use a miter gauge stop rod or a wood dowel mounted in the stop rod holes of your miter gauge to set your shaper fence so it’s parallel to the miter gauge slot, from one side of the table to the other and tighten the fence to the table surface.

Step 2: Coping Cut Set-up. Install one of the 3/8-inch coping cutters and the 1/4-inch (short) straight cutter on your arbor (The coping cutter is the cutter used to form the female half of your two-part joint on the ends of your door rails). Put your smallest rub collar on your arbor first — then your coping cutter (its ogee edge UP towards the arbor setscrew) — then the 1/4-inch (short-wing) straight cutter below it, followed by the next smallest rub collar, the arbor washer and (tightened) nut. Be sure the two cutters are oriented with their cutting wings offset from one another (not aligned) and both cutting in the proper direction. Install the arbor (with cutters attached) to the MARK V’s spindle. NOTE: Be sure the arbor “bottoms-out” completely on the spindle before tightening. Adjust the infeed and outfeed halves of your shaper fence (right-to-left) to leave a minimum opening for the cutter. Rotate the cutter by hand to check this clearance.

CAUTION: Be sure your machine is unplugged before doing this!

Next, install a 3-inch high x 3/4-inch thick wooden extension to your miter gauge face. It should be long enough that its end just touches the Shaping fence once it’s been adjusted to its final setting. This extension will serve as a backup to prevent splintering and tear-out on the exit side of your cross-grain cuts at the ends of your rails.

Using a soft lead pencil, cover one end of your test piece with a dark pencil mark. Adjust your fences and quill to make a FULL PROFILE cut in the ends of your rails. When the adjustment is correct, the cutting tips of your 1/4-inch straight cutter should be EVEN with the face of your fence and the curve of the ogee shape on the coping cutter should leave a 1/32-inch step at the end of the rail. It should NOT create a knife-edge.

Check your set-up by making a short cut on the END of your RAIL test piece (NOT the stile). If it’s correct, your coping cutter will form the desired profile while the 1/4-inch cutter mounted next to it will barely brush against the end of your rail, “smearing” the pencil lead without removing it.

REMEMBER: You must be sure to create a full profile cut without reducing the overall length of your rail pieces. There is a very narrow margin for error here if you want your joints to fit tightly. You may have to make a few test passes to achieve the correct adjustment. The first couple of these passes may not even touch your workpiece. That’s OK. It’s important that you take as much time with this set-up as necessary to get as close to perfect as possible. Once you’re confident of your set-up, use your Miter Gauge and Safety Grip to keep your hands out of harm’s way as you make your cuts in the ENDS of all RAILS.

Step 3: Sticking Cut Set-up. Without changing your table or fence settings, remove the arbor (with the cutter attached) from the shaper spindle. Change to the sticking cutter. This is the cutter used to form the mating male half of your two-part joint.

Put your smallest rub collar on your arbor first — then your 11/16-inch sticking cutter (its ogee edge DOWN and away from the arbor setscrew) — then the 1/4-inch (long-wing ) straight cutter below it, followed by the next smallest rub collar, the arbor washer and (tightened) nut. Be sure the two cutters are oriented with their cutting wings offset from one another (not aligned) and both cutting in the proper direction.

Install the cutter on the spindle, being sure the arbor “bottoms-out”, as it did when you installed the coping cutter. Rotate the cutter by hand to once again verify all clearances to the fence and table. Adjust your vertical quill setting so the top surface of your 1/4-inch cutter is exactly even with the top surface of the tongue left on the end of test rail you cut earlier.

Next, install the quill-mounted feather board guard and the table-mounted feather board that came with your Shaper/Drum Sander Fence and adjust them so they hold your 2-inch wide test rail firmly against the table surface and the fence as you make your cut on the inside EDGE of your test RAIL.

Make your sticking cut on the inside EDGE of your 2-inches wide test STILE. Check the accuracy of your cut by matching-up the coping cut on the end of your test RAIL with the sticking cut you just made. Once you’re satisfied that your cuts match-up, shape the inside EDGES of all rails and stiles, starting with the 2-inches wide pieces (A,B,C,D,F . . . then re-set your featherboard to shape the 2-3/4-inch wide pieces (E,G).

IMPORTANT NOTE: For more information about how to set-up and use our Complete Cabinet Set Shaper Cutters, visit the special article about these cutters in this issue of HandsOn!

Step 4: Forming The Rabbets. Using your table saw with a Combination Blade and a Zero Clearance Table Insert, cut away the small 1/8-inch or so square scrap from the inside edges of all frame stiles and rails to create the 3/8-inch x 1/4-inch glass rabbets (see Section A-A). Take your time and be very careful when making your set-up for this cut, as any error here will affect the fit of all frame members.

Now, locate and drill the holes for the dowels used to hold the corners of the rails and stiles together, then locate and drill the holes for your glass shelf pins. Glue and assemble each frame, taking care to clamp them square, with end and edge surfaces flush. Remember that you cut these to exact size earlier, so you should have no extra stock to sand off, once assembled.

Next, set up and cut the 60-degree bevels on the sides of the frames (see Figure 1). Remember that the back frames are cut at 60-degrees to the face side while the others are cut at 60-degrees to the back side. Now, locate, drill and countersink the screw holes used to assemble both back frames.

Using hardwood veneered plywood, make the cabinet base (K) and shelf (L). As an option, you could glue-up solid hardwood stock to make these pieces. Whichever option you choose, be sure to build them a little oversized. Once the glue has dried, use your jointer to true-up the back edge of each piece so it’s straight and square. Cut the 60-degree angled edges, then rip and joint them to their finished size.