Drawer Construction: Five-Piece Box and Slides
A functional drawer consists of four sides and a bottom — the front, back, and two sides form the box; the bottom panel floats in a groove. For the five-piece construction method: (1) Mill the four sides to thickness (typically 1/2 inch Baltic birch plywood for shop drawers; 5/8 inch solid wood for furniture). (2) Cut a groove (dado) along the inside bottom edge of all four sides, 1/4 inch wide and 1/4 inch deep, starting 1/4 inch from the bottom edge — this houses the 1/4-inch plywood bottom. (3) Join the box using dovetails (traditional), box joints, or drawer lock joints (for production work). (4) Slide the bottom into the grooves and pin it to the back panel with one screw (allowing seasonal movement). (5) Size the drawer box 1 inch narrower than the opening for side-mount slides, or to the slide manufacturer's specification. Undermount soft-close slides (e.g., Blum Tandem) require 1/2 inch of side clearance per side and conceal the slide from view.