How to Make Cabinets With Birch Exteriors and Melamine Interiors

Determine the dimensions of your cabinet before you begin. Measure the space where you want to place the cabinet to determine its height, length and depth. For this project, the cabinet will be 48 inches long, 30 inches high and 12 inches deep.

Mark sheets of 3/4-inch melamine board with the various panel sizes required for your cabinet. Use 4-by-8 foot sheets for easy cutting and layouts. You’ll need two 30-by-12 inch side panels, two 12-by-46-1/2 inch top and bottom panels and one 30-by-48 inch rear panel.

Mount a triple-chip saw blade to a table saw to cut the melamine. Set the blade’s height so it's just a bit more than half the thickness of the melamine board.

Set the board onto the table saw so that the marked cutting line is aligned with the saw’s blade. Start the saw and push the board slowly against the blade to cut it along the marked line. The blade should only cut halfway through the depth of the board. Flip the board over and readjust its position so that the cut through this side will match that already made through the opposite side. Run the board through the blade to complete the cut. Repeat the cutting process until you’ve cut all five of the cabinet panels.

Assemble the case for the cabinet by gluing the sideboards together with wood glue then nailing them in place with 3/4-inch coated nails. Place the top and bottom panels between the side panels to create a rectangular box. Check that the corners are square and at 90-degree angles with a carpenter’s square before nailing them in place. Space the nails every 4 inches.

Cut a 1/4-by-1/4 inch rabbet with a router equipped with a rabbet bit along the inside edge of each of the side pieces on the side of the frame where the cabinet rear will mount. Cut a second rabbet on the edges of the cabinet back to create an overlap to mount onto the cabinet body. Place a bead of wood glue along the rabbet ledge of the cabinet body then lower the back panel in place. The rabbet cut into the back panel should fit snugly into the rabbet cut in the cabinet body. Nail the cabinet back securely in place with nails spaced about every 6 inches.

Cut two 48-inch-long, 3/4-by-2 inch facers from plywood to place on the top and bottom edges of the cabinet, and four facers that are 28 inches long to serve as side edges and interior mounts for the cabinet doors.

Glue the long facers flush to the top and bottom edges of the cabinet -- they will overlap the opening slightly -- then nail them into place with finish nails. Glue the two side facers flush with the side edges then nail them to the cabinet as well. Set the two middle facers between the top and bottom boards and glue them in place, spaced 16 inches apart. Nail them securely into position by driving the nails through the top and bottom facers and into the edges of the facers. Use a nail set to drive all nail heads flush with the surface of the wood.

Sand all sides of the cabinet smooth and flush with a power sander. Wipe them clean with a tack cloth.

Measure the side panels of the cabinet and cut birch wood veneer sheets to match the measured lengths. Brush a layer of construction cement over the panels and over the veneer sheets then wait for the glue to become tacky. When the glue is still sticky but not wet, press the veneer into place over the panels. Run a laminate roller over the veneer from the center of the panels to the edges to remove any air pockets. Repeat the veneer placement for the facers.

Purchase three birch cabinet doors to fit your three cabinet openings. Mount handles to the doors where desired with a Phillips head screwdriver then mount the doors onto the cabinets with the hinge type of your choice. The cabinets are now ready to mount where you want them.