Open-sided shelves?

[LancsRick]

I'm partway through knocking together some shelves from T&G oak flooring offcuts. I have the shelves made up, 32cmx44cm from 3 boards each. As the shelves will be open-sided, I want to cover up the ugly exposed T&G joins at the sides.

The most obvious approach would be to fit an edging piece on both sides, but I was wondering if there were any more interesting suggestions that people have used in the past?

 

[Shultzy]

Easiest way is to cut 6mm strips from the flooring and mitre them around the 3 sides.

 

[LancsRick]

Would I not need to worry about constraining movement?

 

[Brentingby]

Add edging like this. Glue the end pieces on only toward the front. Peg them at the back with oval holes in the tongue so the boards can shift with changes in humidity.

 

[LancsRick]

Good plan thanks. Love the drawing too, what did you use?

 

[Brentingby]

Thank you. SketchUp.

 

[LancsRick]

You must be handy in that to create things that casually!

 

[Brentingby]

I manage to get it to work sometimes. This wasn't very difficult.

 

[LancsRick]

Reflection time. I'm having second thoughts about the mitred strips because they'll only be partially fixed to the shelves, and then would be slotted into dados on the uprights, making them the load points.

Instead, what I'm thinking of doing is having the 4 uprights with dados cut, shelves slot into the dados, and then putting a horizontal slat between each front-back upright to hide the T&G joins. I'm not sure how to do this without having to do some very fiddly M&T joints - the best idea I've come up with would be to cut an additional dado slot just above the current one for the shelf, and slot in a piece cut in the shape below...

+---------------+
|_ _|
|________|

I could stick veneered ply over the T&G but that feels like cheating!

 

[AndyT]

I'm confused. Your heading says 'open sided shelves' but now you describe shelves fitted between uprights.

If you do intend to support the shelves by sliding them into dados/housings in uprights, then there is no need for lippings on the ends of the shelves - the uprights will hide them. So the front just needs a straight lipping, which can be plain glued, pinned or whatever you prefer.

If I've still not understood, could you show us a drawing - a photo of the back of an envelope sketch would do. I can't make out if your ascii art is a plan, elevation or what. Sorry!

 

[Brentingby]

Based on your latest description, I agree with Andy. there's no need for the lipping. But then they aren't open shelves as you indicated in your original post and the title.

 

[LancsRick]

It's a fair copy, my descriptions are rubbish! By open sided I meant that they are not solid sides like a bookcase. I will scribble and put a picture up.

 

[LancsRick]

Feast your eyes on my artistic masterpiece!

http://m.imgur.com/gallery/fiG9x

 

[AndyT]

That's clearer!

You could make it as shown but add two strips of edging, same as the thickness of the shelves, cut square on the ends, in the gaps between the uprights.

 

[LancsRick]

Would you bond those to the uprights or the shelves? Just thinking of movement etc.

 

[Brentingby]

Your drawing does make things clearer.

I wouldn't put anything on the edges. The uprights and the shelves will move in the same direction. If you put a piece in between the uprights with the grain running front to back, seasonal movement will either open up gaps or it'll break the joints. Leave the end grain on the shelves exposed.

 

[AndyT]

The choice is yours. If you do want the edging, cut it slightly short, and fix it with a couple of panel pins. If they need to, the pins will bend a little, where glue would crack. The gaps will be in shadow and need only be a mm or so at each end.