Lining newly built machinist chest. options? would like felt...but....corrosion and bottom thickness?

[maple syrup]

Hello,
I am building a new machine this chest from scratch. I have two (2) questions:

(1) the first thing is that my drawers will be 20"x46". rather large. I wanted to use drawer bottom wood material as thin as possible, but I do not want deflection issues or breakage. is 1/4 inch recommended". I've seen a poster to somebody mentioning that they used 1/8" of an inch which seems very thin.

(2), the second question I have is what liner to use. I was thinking about using felt. I love the look and the way it feels, but have been reading online that there is the following issues doing so:

• some synthetic felts off gas leading to corrosion of equipment
• Some felts are acidic
• some felts " may" hold a charge, causing galvanic corrosion. I've seen this written although not sure if it is the case.
• natural felts such as wool felts have the potential to abosorb and release moisture Leading to corrosion( correct me from wrong)
• rayon/viscose. could not find information??
• it seems difficult to find a felt that is provenNot to lead to corrosion.
• It should also be said that some of this information appears to be anecdotal.

I will not buy one from Gestner, as as it is beyond my budget, plus their 36" size of rolls doesn't help me.
, what should I use for a lining materia if felt is just not really possible? I will need a lot of it. eight drawers total.

• I don't really like the look of cork.
• no suede!!

 

[woodchucker]

Hello,
I am building a new machine this chest from scratch. I have two (2) questions:

(1) the first thing is that my drawers will be 20"x46". rather large. I wanted to use drawer bottom wood material as thin as possible, but I do not want deflection issues or breakage. is 1/4 inch recommended". I've seen a poster to somebody mentioning that they used 1/8" of an inch which seems very thin.

(2), the second question I have is what liner to use. I was thinking about using felt. I love the look and the way it feels, but have been reading online that there is the following issues doing so:

• some synthetic felts off gas leading to corrosion of equipment
• Some felts are acidic
• some felts " may" hold a charge, causing galvanic corrosion. I've seen this written although not sure if it is the case.
• natural felts such as wool felts have the potential to abosorb and release moisture Leading to corrosion( correct me from wrong)
• rayon/viscose. could not find information??
• it seems difficult to find a felt that is provenNot to lead to corrosion

I will not buy one from Gestner, as as it is beyond my budget, plus their 36" size of rolls doesn't help me.
, what should I use for a lining materia if felt is just not really possible? I will need a lot of it. eight drawers total. I don't really like the look of cork.

you need to search this site. I have posted many times about a self stick silver ware anti tarnish material. Way nice , no gluing because it already contains the peel and stick.

 

[whitmore]

Hello,
I am building a new machine this chest from scratch. I have two (2) questions:

(1) the first thing is that my drawers will be 20"x46". rather large. I wanted to use drawer bottom wood material as thin as possible, but I do not want deflection issues or breakage. is 1/4 inch recommended".

...for 20" wide, with steel tools, half to 3/4 inch would be better. For an 8" wide drawer, eighth inch (tempered
hardboard) would probably work. Deflection goes as the width over the (?)cube of the thickness...
Here's a calculator that should help:
The Sagulator

I was thinking about using felt. I love the look and the way it feels, but have been reading online that there is the following issues doing so:

• some synthetic felts off gas leading to corrosion of equipment
• Some felts are acidic
• some felts " may" hold a charge, causing galvanic corrosion. I've seen this written although not sure if it is the case.
• natural felts such as wool felts have the potential to abosorb and release moisture Leading to corrosion( correct me from wrong)
• rayon/viscose. could not find information??
• it seems difficult to find a felt that is provenNot to lead to corrosion.
• It should also be said that some of this information appears to be anecdotal.

Chemically, you should not have to worry about acrylic felts (which is the only kind I could find
at the local crafts store), and as for wool... there's anecdotal info about an iron gatepost that has
stood the weather for centuries, no sign of corrosion, and the only treatment it has is... a herd of sheep
passes through it, both ways, most days of the year.

Lanolin and wool is the content of sheep hair, it's not corrosive.
Unless the color dye is chemically active, felts aren't likely to be a problem.
The makers of 'proven' materials (VCI sheets?) might be pushing FUD (fear/uncertainty/doubt) your way.

 

[Nutfarmer]

Don’t use white wood glue to glue the felt in. It is better to use a contact glue. The moisture in the wood glue can cause problems.

 

[Martin W]

You can get a Domestic hardwood plywood that is finished with a UV cured clear. Columbia Forest is one. Any local cabinet shop will sell you off cuts, or you can try one of the suppliers in Toronto like Robert Bury, Upper Canada Forest Products, McFaddens. Weston Premium Woods, Wanderosa Wood Products. These are some of my Wholsalers. Baltic birch is an offshore import that will work also.
1/2" minimum thickness, rebate the bottom into the sides.
Another option is solid wood dovetail drawers. Distinctive Wood Products, or Eldorado Plywood are custom makers of dovetail drawers
Nut Farmer is right on with gluing the felt.
Martin

 

[Mauzinette]

If corrosion is a major concern, what about Zerust lining?

 

[maple syrup]

you need to search this site. I have posted many times about a self stick silver ware anti tarnish material. Way nice , no gluing because it already contains the peel and stick.

I have. My information is come from here, but since not everyone has said the same thing in the past, a consensus can be formed more recently. In any case is there a specific brand that you recommend? for a reasonable price

...for 20" wide, with steel tools, half to 3/4 inch would be better. For an 8" wide drawer, eighth inch (tempered
hardboard) would probably work. Deflection goes as the width over the (?)cube of the thickness...
Here's a calculator that should help:
The Sagulator

Chemically, you should not have to worry about acrylic felts (which is the only kind I could find
at the local crafts store), and as for wool... there's anecdotal info about an iron gatepost that has
stood the weather for centuries, no sign of corrosion, and the only treatment it has is... a herd of sheep
passes through it, both ways, most days of the year.

Lanolin and wool is the content of sheep hair, it's not corrosive.
Unless the color dye is chemically active, felts aren't likely to be a problem.
The makers of 'proven' materials (VCI sheets?) might be pushing FUD (fear/uncertainty/doubt) your way.

I used the calculator. After going through it a bit, I only just noticed that the calculator is for support on two sides of a long shelf. I will be attaching it on all four sides is not shelf. A neat tool, but I'm wondering if the width (21") should be the only dimension used for calculation. even so, that calculation still assumes 0 zero support on the side although there is a little bit. I like the calculator for other stuff, but wonder if there's something better.

I am using Baltic birch plywood ( offshore, rather than the real thing).If

as a side note, I originally only envisioned maybe 30 pounds for each of the small drawers and 50 pounds for the medium and 80 for the bottom. this is just an estimate as I don't really know where everything Will end up

You can get a Domestic hardwood plywood that is finished with a UV cured clear. Columbia Forest is one. Any local cabinet shop will sell you off cuts, or you can try one of the suppliers in Toronto like Robert Bury, Upper Canada Forest Products, McFaddens. Weston Premium Woods, Wanderosa Wood Products. These are some of my Wholsalers. Baltic birch is an offshore import that will work also.
1/2" minimum thickness, rebate the bottom into the sides.
Another option is solid wood dovetail drawers. Distinctive Wood Products, or Eldorado Plywood are custom makers of dovetail drawers
Nut Farmer is right on with gluing the felt.
Martin

I was originally considering using brads or finishing nails on the bottom rather than rebating the draver sides to save some space. it is true it would look better rebating I think. why would you consider rebate as opposed to nailing the bottom? is there a structural reason or sagging reason?

If corrosion is a major concern, what about Zerust lining?

it's funny I used An imitation brand ( dollar store) for a portable toolbox long time ago. The only thing I didn't like about it is I found it a little bit too " sticky". of course excellent for stopping things for sliding.

I recognize him being a little bit picky, but this is a lifelong investment, so I want to get something decent

 

[whitmore]

I was originally considering using brads or finishing nails on the bottom rather than rebating the draver sides to save some space. it is true it would look better rebating I think. why would you consider rebate as opposed to nailing the bottom? is there a structural reason or sagging reason?

It's structural; nails can loosen over time (and atmospheric moisture variation), unless you use ribbed or hurriquake
type nails. For solid wood, the rebate doesn't hurt overall strength of the bottom, and makes better
support than a few nail heads (larger contact area, better spreading of the stress on the sidewalls).
With plywood bottoms, gluing the bottom to the sidewalls and using minimum rebate depth can
work well. With solid wood bottoms, some 'float' is allowed by the rebate, and that's required or the
bottom will shrink and crack because of nails, and ribbed nails are just... worse.

 

[maple syrup]

are there any good alternatives to zerust or anti tarnish silver cloth? i like the anti tarnish such as one from vougue, but shipping to canada is prohibitive

 

[maple syrup]

I got 3 used baize pool table fabric covers (4'x8', 5x10?) from a billiard repair service nearby for $50. the guy told me a little bit about the material. it's a little worn on one side, but the other side is good enough. the truth is I don't know

1. one was from a snooker table and had extremely high wool content i am guessing close to 100%
2. two were from pool tables, different texture, it was a 80%+ wool mix from his guesses.

He said it is possible they came from China, but he didn't know for sure. he said they were all high quality. did seem trustworthy

I suppose I might be taking a risk. I don't know which one would be a better choice to use or scrap them all

what are your thoughts