In the last blog post we got the cabinet sides attached to the back. If you are building along, you'll have noticed that this sub-assembly is pretty flimsy, so it is time to add a top and bottom deck to secure the parts and finish up the cabinet.

The material used here is not really important, the top will be covered by the torsion box that will be the downdraft sanding area, and the bottom is nothing more than a fixed shelf since the castors will be fixed to a 2x4 frame. I used a piece of scrap OSB for the top (the hole in the center serves no purpose, it was in the scrap) and the bottom was a piece of 3/4 birch ply I had. It just looks nicer than the OSB.

These parts could be nailed or screwed through from the outside of the panels, but I chose to pocket screw them. Yes, it is just a work station, but I like things to look as nice as possible. For me, it is just more pleasant to use tools that look as good as they operate. Carefully measure your box opening and cut the panels to size, then drill the pockets and screw the parts together.

You'll notice that I am using a clamp here. The point of a screw tends to separate parts a little before it grabs and pulls them back together. Since pocket screws go in at an angle, they tend to pull along the angle, mis-aligning the joint. clampint the joint prevents the initial separation, and the join remains where you placed it.

The same process is used to secure the bottom. If we were planning to attach casters directly to the bottom deck, then I probably would not trust the screws to hold since the deck is inside the box. This is a work station, and we can assume that it will see a lot of force pushing downward as we work. But since the top will overhang the cabinet, I want to casters to extend beyond the cabinet for stability, so we will be creating a frame under the cabinet to secure the casters. The entire box will rest on top of this frame so everything will be well supported. In the next post, we will assemble the frame and secure it to the box.

I certainly invite you to add your thoughts or send along ideas that have worked well for you. Please feel free to add your comments here on the blog, on our Facebook page, or via Twitter. Let us know what you think! -2Sand.com