Plywood or solid oak for workbench drawer case
Russell Seaton
>Long title but it conveys the question I am wanting advice on. I am getting around to building the drawers to fit in the workbench base. The drawers will be on metal full extension ball bearing slides. Accuride, Bum, etc. The drawers will go inside of a large drawer case or two which will sit on the rails between the legs of the benchtop base. The question is should I use oak venner or baltic birch plywood or solid oak for the drawer case?
Size of the drawer case/cases is 57.5" wide, by 18" tall, by 22" deep. With solid oak it would be two cases equaling this total size and with plywood it would be one case.
Solid oak pro/con:
1. I already have about 80 board feet of S2S 4/4 white oak to use.
2. Upon looking over the oak last night, I discovered I was not too careful picking straight pieces. Its bent, twisted, crooked and is only useful for cutting into short pieces.
3. The bench is all solid red oak so a solid white oak drawer case and drawers would match very well.
4. I will get lots of planing practice.
Plywood pro/con:
1. Fast and quick and easier. Cut the top, bottom, sides with a fine circular saw and glue, screw, biscuit it together.
2. Everything will be flat, straight, even thickness, not warped and bowed and twisted.
3. I would have to buy suitable plywood. About $80 for baltic birch or $40 for oak plywood.
4. No worrying about expansion and contraction of the case. This might cause problems with the screwed on drawer slides and the screws I will use to attach the case to the bench base rails and legs.
Right now I am leaning towards using solid wood because my oak is so bad that it is only good for 2 to 3 foot pieces, which is all the drawer cases will require. But the possible/likely expansion/contraction problems with screwing drawer slides to the solid oak has me worried.
