45 Year-old Kitchen Retrofit

basswood

My current project is a old kitchen with site built cabinets that are in great shape. I built a few new cabinets to match the old ones and I'm doing a site built laminate top.

Here is a pic of the old cabinets and a pic showing how I check the counter edge before laminating (I want the edge square to the top--especially on curves).

Jig saw blades don't always cut plumb and the two layers of the top aren't always stacked just right... where the square shows any problems, I tune up the edge with a belt sander.

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basswood

There is a plumbing cleanout behind the sink base... so I made a 10 x 10" access in case the plumber needs it someday.

The laminate tops used up four 4x8 sheets of IPB. Here are 5 of the pieces I cut and cut biscuit slots for:

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Hardly Working

What's up with the EMT conduit in the background? Is this res. or commercial?

What material or you using for the sub-top?

basswood

It is a church kitchen... in a basement. Not a glamorous job, but it pays the bills.

The laminate substrate is Industrial Grade Particle Board.

Hardly Working

Wow I've worked for some big clients before but your working for the Big Guy.

irockwithdirt

Nice Job! Those cabinets appear to be in excellent shape from the pics.........it's shamefull to think how many similar to those I've destroyed

HandyHails

Just curious-- Did you hinge the door? I see so many bathrooms w/ just drywall screws holding those in place.

I've been using cabinet door magnets lately for mine.

loneframer

Hey Bass, those cabs remind me of a site built kitchen my dad built in the mid 70s. It's one of my first memories of being on one of my fathers jobs. I was maybe 9 or 10.
Thanks for the total recall moment.

basswood

Yup. The folks there are pretty nice to work with too.

The great condition of the cabinets is because in a church they get used just two or three times a week... rather than 2-3x's a day. It was interesting to build new copies of the old cabinets.

Since it is in the back of a sink base... I just used screws.

Whoever built these did a nice job... some of the best site built cabs I've seen. I got pretty good at running 3/8" x 3/8" rabbets on the door edges in two passes on the table saw.

Prost,

Bass

basswood

Here are a couple pics of my laminate slitter set up. Melamine table and MDF fence (keeps laminate from slipping under the saw fence and binding and provides infeed and outfeed support for the floppy laminate):

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basswood

Here are a couple of laminating tips. I use quick clamps to stage the edge banding... after the contact cement is ready I press the banding into place.

For top laminating, I use old tape measure blades as spacers (like using blind slats, but you can cut any length you need).

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basswood

Here is the top laminated (they picked a laminate that looks like particle board so you can't tell I did anything).

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loneframer

Hey Bass, are they broken tape measure stickers?

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"Walking the fine line between production and perfection"



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basswood

If people ask too many questions... I cut up their tape measures when they aren't looking.

Actually, I use my broken tapes and collect broken tapes at job sites for this purpose. Dumpster diving.

loneframer

Just don't lean in too quick on those things, you could come up a little short, if you follow my drift.You gotta run them to Home Repo and put the miniblind cutter to them. Ease the corners some.

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"Walking the fine line between production and perfection"



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D.Foster

Old mini blinds work well too!!

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Do what you would do, as if i won't Do anything after you Did It!

kingsriverwood

Try snaking nylon string on counter tops. Start pulling from the end you want to stick first. Works great

KMac

And now I'm going to grab that broke tape I threw in the back of the truck the other day.

Great idea Bass - as usual.

CarpenterMatt

Thanks for the progress pics Bass. I'm amazed at the stuff you do onsite. Over here 99.95% of projects would sub this out to a cabinet/kitchen shop, even if they did the cabinet install. I guess if you have background experience in a shop it's no big deal. Keep the pics coming. I just landed some good news on the workfront, so hopefully I'll be able to reciprocate an interesting job progress thread in the near future.

DBCoop

Bass. Thanks !!!! And keep em coming.