Steps to Build a Wooden Step Cabinet! 2026

Steps to Build a Wooden Tiered Cabinet, the largest single piece of furniture I have made is this tiered cabinet. The finished piece measures 8 ½' tall and over 10' long. This project has been great, although it almost fell on me.

Step 1: Introduction

1. I started with several client meetings and design iterations for the cabinet.
2. Once the design was finalized, I did some calculations and headed to the lumber yard and purchased 5 12′ 8/4 black cherry boards to build the frame of the piece.
3. Back in the workshop, I cut all the rough boards except one, with which I made the longer members. I then straightened one face and one edge of each board on the jointer and then sent them all through the planer to get a smooth, uniform thickness of 1 13/16″.
4. After that, I ripped all the boards off the table saw to 1 13/16″ squares and sent them all through the wide belt sander to get up to a 1 3/4″ square spacing.
5. Next, I carefully calculated a cut list for the paper and cut all the pieces along the table saw.

Step 2: Beginning of carpentry

6. Moving to the horizontal mortise, I carefully placed in a mortis exactly centered on the stock and began cutting mortises on the ends of all the short pieces and then on the longer pieces, taking the time to lay out the mortise placement.
7. Once all the mortises are cut, you should see the shape.

Step 3: Make Panels

8. I then measured all the panels to fill the backs, dividers and sides.
9. Using 1/16″ thick sheet metal I cut panels for all the back panels and interior dividers. For the exterior walls, I carefully reserved the same material in 9′ x 22″ panels so that the grain would follow the treads and also the risers when looking at the unit from the side or top. This effect is subtle but it was worth doing. This detail just requires careful planning and labeling as you go. To make a tight/straight joint on the sheet metal, slide it through the assembly assembly very low. This trick will only work with extra thick sheet metal. I then secure the joint with normal adhesive tape.
10. For the substrate, I used ½” ultra-lightweight MDF. Since the panels are not structural, you will notice less weight later. I cut the pieces to match the panels on the table saw. Using a foam roller I applied an even layer of yellow glue to the veneer and one side of the substrate and placed it face down in my vacuum bag. Some prefer to glue both sides at once; I've never had a problem doing one side at a time. I let each side dry a minimum of 4 hours. There are many panels, this takes a few days.
11. When all the panels were finished, I scraped the tape off with a cabinet scraper. If you don't have a wide belt sander, I recommend looking into a one-hour rental at a local store. This will give you a consistent thickness and uniform sanding pattern. It will still need to be finished before assembly, but this is inevitable.
12. With the frame still dry, I label all the parts. I also marked where each panel went. Take the extra time to check that each part is labeled and that the position of each panel is well marked. I've never missed one, so triple check.
13. Back at the table saw, I set the blade to groove with the thickness of the sanded panels plus a “hair.” Loose enough to fit a small piece of paper into the panel slot.
14. Now, I cut all the dice into the members as marked. There are some that require stopped dice. When you do this, PLEASE TAKE YOUR TIME! The sockets need extra special care on the table saw. I made mine on a vertical saw and was glad to know it had that extra security.
15. I made a ½ unit and sized them to fit the exact width of the mortises. Then I put a stop on a miter gauge and cut enough for all the front and back mortisess. I cut them 1/8″ shorter than the combined depth.
16. Then I glued the front frames together. I choose to do this in stages when possible. It's nice to be able to have just a few elements to have to check and balance. As each element is glued, be careful to check for squareness. Tight and straight work is essential at this stage.

Step 4: Glue

17. I measured the front frames for the back panel sizes. Adding to the depth of the dies, I cut the panels starting with the largest ones first and was careful to choose a nice grain placement. Then I finish sanding all the panels at 220 grit and smoothing all the edges. This is important to prevent the sheet metal from splintering during construction.
18. Next, I glued the back panels. Now it's coming together!
19. For the last time, I dry-fitted the boxes together and measured the missing panels. I sorted and sanded all the panels very carefully to label the tread and tread panels to keep them in order.
20. I sanded the front and rear frames, preparing for the big glue-ups. I took an extra minute and ran a little grain along each die. This helps the parts stick together when the heat is on and the glue is setting.
21. Now I gathered clamps, a couple bottles of glue, some rags and a rosary. I cleaned up the workspace and carefully prepared all the necessary parts and devised a plan for applying glue, inserting tenons and panels as smoothly as possible. At the beginning of your pegging, take a deep breath and get going. If everything goes well, congratulations, if not, separate it. It's not worth making mistakes. Take it out, clean the glue and try again the next day.
22. Now invite friends and family to tell you how smart you are for doing something so cool.

Step 5: Doors

23. Using a sharp chisel and a random orbit sander, I cleaned up the extra glue and smoothed the joints and was sure not to round any of the nice square pieces.
24. On a piece of paper, I laid out the different paneled doors. Then, being careful with my measurements out of the box, I created a cutting list for the parts needed.
25. I milled the material needed for a strong 3/4″ and also laid the necessary door panels as described above. Once I milled the material, I carefully checked the original dimensions and sized all the material on the table saw.
26. Then I cut mortises at all the necessary joints; This should only take one setting on the milling machine.
27. I put the panels in the sheet metal press one side at a time. After pressing, I removed all the glue from the press panels. As with the frame, I cut slots to allow for panels. Once again, you must be very careful.
28. I glued the doors, making sure they were flat and square.
29. For the sliding doors, I repeated all the same steps, but made the reservation 5/8″ thick.
30. Using a calculator, I came up with a symmetrical design for the decorative trellis.
31. With the decorative lattice strips prepared, I created 'layout' blocks to help evenly space the strips. I marked all the joints with a pencil and cut a mortising machine.

Step 6: Door Configuration

32. I glued the sliding doors, just like the regular doors. Next, I sanded all the doors, paying close attention to the joints; making them nice and even.
33. On regular swing doors, Drill for 32mm cup hinges. At the same time, I took a piece of wood, the same vertical size as the door.
34. I mounted the cup hinges on the member to align the hinge cabinet hardware.
35. Now, I placed the rod in the cabinet with a ¼” backhand, youTaking care to keep the cane perfectly vertical.
36. I put the door hardware in the cups and placed the doors in the stepped cabinet.
37. I then made adjustments for even spacing for an optimal 1/16″ width and smooth rolling.

Step 7: Sliders

38. On the sliders; I installed the decorative trellis of the sliders. My first step was to measure all the sticks, without taking into account the need for carpentry.
39. Then, in two stages, I marked for the carpentry. First I installed all the vertical sticks at once and with a long straight edge and marked all the necessary dice.
40. I remove the horizontal sticks and repeat the previous steps for the vertical sticks.
41. Using a gauge on the table saw and my table blade, I cut all the necessary dice, taking the time to fit each one.
42. I glued everything together with the help of a small hammer.

Step 8: Drawers and finishing

43. Then I moved on to the drawers. I decided what size I wanted my drawers to be and sized my unit. I like the ½” wall drawer boxes.
44. I cut dovetails (use whatever method you feel comfortable with) and glued the drawers together. Next, I decided what type of drawer fronts and handles I wanted. I have fabricated, sanded and tied the drawers after they have been sanded.
45. Next, I finally sanded all my parts. For this, I suggest you use your dust mask, this step is going to take a while.
46. Time to finish work. I chose to spray all my parts. You can choose the same or oil. As with all steps, take your time here. Any piece of furniture is only as good as the finish you put on it.

That's all! Thank you for visiting us!

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