# Bookshelves coming along



## justin2009 (Jan 5, 2009)

Finished with first coat of paint, then noticed a seam developed in my facing, had to fill it. Need to sand the entire thing and apply second coat. Couldn't wait on the top, so I installed it and now I'll have to cut-in around it with the paint. I need more patience!

Still need to move the outlet. I trimmed the back of that shelf a hair to make room for the outlet where it is, but I think that is 100% half-assed, even if it will be covered up by books, so I'm going to finish it right. Bought the old work boxes.

I was thinking about installing puck lights in the top of each section of shelves. I took the plate off the outlet and that outlet is in the middle of a line, so I'm not sure now WHERE I would get power to the lights. Had that outlet been on the end of a line, I would have just ran romex up to the top of the shelves to another old work box, which I also bought. I guess I can find the wire in between those studs at the top of the unit, run it into an old work box, and install another outlet above the unit, but if the old romex is too tight, there won't be enough to reach the new outlet...

I've marked up the shelves, John Madden style...


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## dbhost (Jan 28, 2008)

The most critical issue I see is the Fridge out of beer... Otherwise, nice work so far...


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## bradnailer (Nov 11, 2008)

Yep, have to agree on the beer. Nice work, Justin.

Did you glue the tops to the cabinets? It's OK if you did, but if they are screwed perhaps you can back out the screws and not have to cut in.

I really like pieces that have wood stained tops and painted cabinets. I've made several my own bad self.


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## justin2009 (Jan 5, 2009)

They're brad nailed. I've done the rest of the trim in the house and I can now do a passable job of cutting in, which usually goes like this:

Paint very carefully, but hit a spot or two. Wait until paint dries, scrape paint off finish with razor blade. I also installed the wood floors and trim in the living room and installed the trim unpainted. MAJOR mistake. Lots of time on my hands and knees. Apparently, I still haven't learned my lesson!


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## firehawkmph (Apr 26, 2008)

Justin, 
I was thinking the same thing as DB, fill up that fridge first:drink:
I am not sure I am following you on the puck light situation. It shouldn't make a difference if the outlet is in the middle of a run. If you want to pull power off it you still can. If you have two pieces of romex coming into the box, and you want to add a third one to go up and feed your lights, you just need to add pigtails if there aren't any there already. It sounds like someone ran the wires right into the outlet. Take your three sets of wires off your romex pieces in the box including the one you are adding and strip the outer jacket back a few inches. You should have three of each wire, black, white, bare copper. Take and cut a scrap of romex about 6" long and pull the three wires out of it. Now you have a fourth set of wires. Using the red scotchlocks, take and strip the ends of the wires with jackets on them back about 9/16". Twist all four bare ends of the blacks together and put a scotchlock on it. Now do the whites and finally the coppers. Take the extra set of wires that are now tied into the rest and connect them to the outlet, using the screw connections. Black to the gold screw, white to the silver screw, and bare copper to the green ground screw. Carefully tuck the wires into the back of the box. I always put a couple of wraps of black electrical tape around the sides of the outlet so the screws are covered up. In case you have to take it back out and haven't shut off the power, you won't get zapped. Hope this helps.
Mike Hawkins


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## justin2009 (Jan 5, 2009)

firehawk - that is VERY helpful. Thanks a bunch. I worked for an electrician one summer as a teen - man, has to be 17 years ago now, and I don't remember them ever showing me a pigtail! Do a little reading, and it says that code in many places require one! Thanks for the information, that solves my problem and I learned something all in one post!


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## firehawkmph (Apr 26, 2008)

Justin,
Piece of cake. If you do everything right, it should look like this:


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## Kenbo (Sep 16, 2008)

Looking good. Make sure you post the final pictures when you have completed it. (unless you burn it down first with faulty wiring. :laughing
Ken


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## basser (Sep 15, 2008)

*built in*

WOW fantastic job.....I have a similar idea in progress, although I am going to face frame the unit with oak(clear finsined) and it will have higher base cabnets which will hold a centered TV. What material did you use for the shelving and sides? I was considering plywood, since mine would also get painted. my counter top will be sycamore.
Andy


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## justin2009 (Jan 5, 2009)

Basser425 said:


> WOW fantastic job.....I have a similar idea in progress, although I am going to face frame the unit with oak(clear finsined) and it will have higher base cabnets which will hold a centered TV. What material did you use for the shelving and sides? I was considering plywood, since mine would also get painted. my counter top will be sycamore.
> Andy


The sides and shelves are birch plywood from big box. It's nice plywood, but in mm instead of inches. My router bit cut dados about a sixteenth too big for the shelves. I went and found true 3/4 plywood then for the top and bottom shelves as I wanted some sort of tight joinery to hold the carcass together.  Top is rabbeted(sp?) and the rest are dadoed(sp?). I allowed the slop on the middle three shelves begrudgingly. Filled those seams with wood filler and sanded. The stained section and top trim are pine as well and match the pine floors (fairly well). I learned doing the floors that the rougher you sand the pine, the more even it takes the stain, so I stop at 80 grit and stain.

Facing is mostly pine, 1x2, 1x4 for the arches, and 1x1/4 for the shelves, to give them a slightly recessed look. 

Thanks for all the compliments! firehawk, I'm going to have to ask you for a schematic! If the unit burns, either through faulty wiring or spontaneous combustion, I'm getting the Mrs. to approve a better table saw so I can set up a dado blade and then use the mm ply.


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## kalebhjones (Jan 13, 2009)

I love the CENTER VERTICAL Space you created. Really makes it standout more. Good work

Kaleb


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## justin2009 (Jan 5, 2009)

Thanks! Have a collection of old paddles and oars I think we'll put in the middle which gave me the idea. At first, the first shelves were slated to be about 22" from the top of the drawer unit. But I built the bookshelves 8' tall and they almost hit the ceiling, so I had to cut them down some. I think that was mistake #73.


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## peejmeister (Feb 4, 2009)

justin2009 said:


> ...It's nice plywood, but in mm instead of inches. My router bit cut dados about a sixteenth too big for the shelves. I went and found true 3/4 plywood then for the top and bottom shelves as I wanted some sort of tight joinery to hold the carcass together.


Nice work, there, Justin! 
I was about to route my first dadoe for similar big box plywood when I noticed the sloppy fit on my test run. I was able to find a set of router bits that match the metric plywood thickness and all things are good in the world (even have beer in the fridge now)!

http://www.woodcraft.com/family.aspx?FamilyID=5389


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