Hello all, I apologize in advance for the length of this post. I am in the process of assembling a sliding barn door console table with three bays. I have already stained and applied poly before assembly. Since I could not find a full size walnut plywood sheet for the back, I opted to install panels at the rear of the cabinet with pocket screws, which would then be covered by the back panel sitting in rabbet slots. As I proudly inspected two of the newly installed panels, I realized that they were on the FRONT of the case (rabbets were on the opposite side). Don’t know how I actually did this, but my guess was that I was rushing after coming home from work. I would like to move the panels to their intended position, but that will leave the holes in the base from the pocket screws that were installed from the rear. Since the cabinet will have a face frame, I could use a small cove on the stiles, but it will still leave me with several holes in the lower shelf (base). I thought of possibly raising the face frame up 1/16th and covering the holes with a matching 3/4″ strip, but that would leave a less than clean line on the open bay (the one without doors). Flipping out, because this is intended to be a Christmas present. ANY help would be greatly appreciated!! I will try to add pics after this lengthy post.
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Replies
PICs:
They make plugs to cover pocket screw holes -- I would try making a dowel of the same wood, trim with a chisel to fit in the pocket hole, add a dark glue, or possibly a CA glue for speed, then flush it up and spot-finish it.
Thank you for the reply. I'm sorry about the confusing post. The pocket holes themselves, will be covered by the 1/2" back panel. My problem is that when I relocate the interior panels to their correct "side", I will be left with holes from the screw points which went into the bottom shelf. I am thinking about raising the face frame so that I have the inside of frame resting 1/16th to 1/8th" above the cabinet floor, and install 3/4" strips of the same thickness over the holes. this will be stained & Polyurethaned to match. My problem is in figuring out how to attach these strips, since the shelf has already had polyurethane applied. I think 18 ga. brad will split the strip, but I don't know the right type of adhesive that would hold. I think it is salvageable, but it's gonna take some head scratching.
I've made unintentional holes in things now and then :)
I have generally been able to cover them with a trim strip to actually enhance the look. You may not have room on your project to do that (clearance issues), but there's one idea.
If it were me, and all I had were the little holes you described, I would most likely try filling it with some of the MinWax pencils you can get at the big box stores and try and find one that matches the finish. It's a simple fix and I think no one would notice the holes afterwards but you. If you don't like it, can move on to more complex fixes either by drilling out and doweling holes like discussed above or putting trim, etc.
I like the idea, since the screw holes are so small. The only question I have, is whether I would be able to poly over the spots so it doesn't look like something got smeared on the cabinet.
I've put shellac over the spots where I've done this trick and it works fine. If you can't try a test piece, you could also put on some shellac first.
Thanks Joe! I settled on Minwax wood putty in the same color as the Minwax stain. I'm hoping it will be seamless.
Hi
You can try filling the holes with epoxy and inserting wooden dowels with the size of the ends from the plume and paint to the desired color and varnish
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