Replies

1. 
   notDusty | Jan 26, 2005 05:17am | #1

      Larry,

     Are you using flush inset or overlay doors ?

           Advice : use the 6 way adjustable hinges , no more time and much more versatile. The small difference in price may be the difference between perfection and mediocrity .

                              dusty

1. 
   KesslerCraftsman | Jan 27, 2005 03:16am | #5

   Hi Dusty,

   I'm using overlay doors, cut to the specs on the blum hinge packages.  I didn't see any Blum 6-way hinges for face-frame/overlay construction..in fact I just remember seeing 3-way and the 2-way..these are Blum hinges sold by Rockler...

   Further advice?  And thanks Dusty!

   lp

1. 
   notDusty | Jan 27, 2005 03:40am | #7

         Larry ,

            The 3 way are probably the ones I referred to , meaning in and out , up and down ,and side to side 3 adjustments each moving in 2 directions. They sure make us look smart when you can adjust the gap between a split pair to within a freckle . I use a block of wood as a jig to pre mount the face frame  plates . Every now and then if a cabinet is racked I will need to move one side up or down a bit. Work out an distance to edge measurement and stick to it whenever possible . The more repetition you can create the more things will seem to work out with less effort and less thought process at each phase . I use 5/8 " overlay , so if I use a 1 and a 1/2" stile between   two hinge sides of doors it will leave a 1/4" gap between the doors. If that is the look you want , or make it according to your design and desired look .

           good  luck              dusty

1. 
   CRAIGCONEY_M | Jan 27, 2005 08:25am | #9

   someone is now makingplastic templates for the blum plates.  I think they're around $10, well worth the price for the time savings. 

2. 
   DougU | Jan 26, 2005 05:25am | #2

   What Dusty says.

   Make a sample and play around with that before you drill into the nice door.

   Once you get the hang of it you'll love it.

   Doug

1. 
   KesslerCraftsman | Jan 27, 2005 03:17am | #6

   Good  advice and already part of the plan.  Thanks!

   lp

3. 
   cowtown | Jan 26, 2005 10:57am | #3

   I used to drill euro hinge holes with a drill press in the shop, actually eventually getting a cheapo small one that I could take on site, that is until I discovered the Blum Eco-hinge boring jig.

   If yer doors are small, well it's likely that manipulating them on the drill press could only cause small damages to surface or finishes, but when the doors get to be 7'x2', consider this a problem with a drill press unless you is either setting up a 14' long table or supports on site or is exquisitely strong.

   I had actually been assigned an editor to write an article about european hinges and boring on site for FHB a few years back , they even had the draft, the photos, gone through rewrite, and then didn't return my calls. Seems FWW kinda scooped it (mere coincidence I was told- the two rags don't seem to talk to each other ), so I am well aware that there is ####article in the FWW archives about this.

   Why am I not suprised it said essentially the same thing as I was saying then, as now.

   The Blum jig is without a doubt superiour to any attempt to use any kind of drill press, the bigger the door, the more clear this will become to you. The offsets are easy to adjust. Depth of bore is adjustable, and more importantly for the neophyte, you can, even with the 5mm drills for inserts mark the screw locations so with one set up your hinges are square (really nice to have with three or four hinges on a door.

   Up here in Canada, this jig runs around 200 dineros, (150ish US) a close approximation to what LV jig sells for, except it is essentially a one handed operation. No extra clamps needed. For the article, I did run mine of a 9.6v makita drill, although a corded drill is less hassle.

   Methinks you ain't gonna see these fer sale at the local borg-store, I went looking for a representative sample to show ya from ebay and couldn't find one, so go to

   http://blum.com/group/en/03/05/03/01/index.jsp;jsessionid=0000pdT1ZlIAIAsFhqcEalmXd_1:-1
   and look for the ecodrill. Go see one. It is so exquisitely simple and you don't have to move doors around to get the hole in the right location.

   But do do a test first. No sense boring a 3/4" deep hole in a 5/8" door---and don't ask me how I know.

   The only drawback of the jig is shaving clearance, all the shavings go into the the jig, and if yer drilling a bunch of drawers, believe it or not, the most annoying thing becomes clearing the shavings. It uses a hex shank ??torx driver, and it comes with two of them, one stored in each handle clamp, so if you remember to put it back, it is there next time. But yu do get one "reminder" as there is always the other one!! Kudos to the person who thought that up.

   The real beauty of this jig is that it can be taken on site one heck of a lot easier than a drill press.

   Now I'm aware that they also make mounting plate jigs, but they seem to be oriented towards using the 5mm plastic inserts, and I preferr to just screw the plates on. So to go along with this jig, I made a couple of plywood jigs with 1/2" baltic birch with 5/8" screws carefully located so I can simple set them in the cabinet, tap em with a hammer and I have the starting holes for my plates. No measuring involved.

   I keep mine in a generic cheapo red tool box, along with jigs and all the other hinge-boring appurtanances, tools for adjusting same etc.

   Just my contribution

   Eric
   in Cowtown

4. 
   yona | Jan 26, 2005 12:27pm | #4

   Hello Larry,

   I am using Blum for many years, they are beautiful.

   1. Get a catalog from your dealer. It will have all dimensions you need.
   2. Work on a drill press, make your jig so all the holes are identical location and same depth for all doors.
   3. For the big hole get a drill in mm
   4. Since this is your first time using Blum, make a full test for 2 conditions: A - one door is hung (in end condition), B - two doors are hung on same wall (as if it is somewhere in the middle of the cabinet). Check for all gaps between doors, play with the adjustments and see how it works. I hope you ordered the right elements for those different conditions.

   Good luck, have fun

5. 
   ron61 | Jan 27, 2005 08:05am | #8

   I'll mount the doors through the back of each cabinet..since I've not installed the cabinet backs yet..and that just involves lining the doors up so they're even and flush...

   Larry is there a reason why you haven't backed the Cabinets yet ? The backs help Square the Cabinet - I put my backs on after the  Face Frame is on, so I can route & sand " not needing to turn it over on a finished Face Frame "

   I use a gauge block to install my hinge plates and only use it on the plate on the top of the opening - I clip the lower plate to the bottom hinge in the Door -  the upper hinge is in the door - clip it to the top plate that's screwed to the face frame -  attach the lower plate to the face frame while it is clipped on the hinge. Try to center your screws in the slots in the plates so you get the all your adjustment.

   Better be careful with the screws that come with the hinge may twist into

   We never spend much time adjusting the doors until the cabinets are installed - its hard to find a walls that's perfectly plumb and square .

   This is how we do it in the shop , fairly fast .

   Ron

    

    

1. 
   notDusty | Jan 28, 2005 06:46am | #11

             Hey Ron ,

        Yeah , I agree if you set the top plate and clip the bottom in then attach the top to the box it is a real accurate method . Just wondering do your cabinets get finished after the backs are on ? I also use a wood block gauge for setting the ff plates.

                       dusty

6. 
   nikkiwood | Jan 27, 2005 08:47am | #10

   I will repeat what some others have said, but here 10 easy steps that will insure that you get the doors exactly where you want them on the cabinets:

   1) Use a drill press, and get a 35 mm forstner style bit that is specifically desgined for drilling cup holes.

   2) use the screw on hinges, and be sure to use a Vix bit .

   3) Mark a cabinet for the hinges -- about 3" from the bottom of the door opening, and 3" from the top. Be sure to draw a "on center" line for where the hinges will be located. Mount the hinges (on the cabinet).

   4) Remove the hinges from the cab.

   5) Take a piece of scrap that is about 6-8" wide and the exact height of your door. Hold it up to the cabinet, in the exact location you want the door to be. Mark the O/C line from step 3 above.

   6) Use a square to make the O/C line about 2-3" on your piece of scrap.

   7) Set the scrap on your drill press, make sure the drill bit center is on the O/C line; position the drill press fence so there is 1/8" space between the edge of the door and the edge of the drill bit. Set you drill press depth stop so the bit will drill a hair more than 1/2" deep.

   8) Drill the holes (1/2" deep), and mount both hinges on the scrap.

   9) Now, take the scrap (with the hinges mounted), and affix the hinges to the cabinet.

   10) Once mounted, you will be able to instantly determine if the distance from the cup is right. If not, depending which direction you want to move the door, either increase or decrease the 1/8" distance (from edge of door to edge of hole). Keep redrilling the holes (on this scrap or another) until the door is positioned exactly where you want it.

   Good luck.