Furniture

Construct a Up to date Towel Rack

March 4, 2025 Our Editors 0 Comments

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Synopsis: Consisting of a easy body and a single shelf, Leah Amick’s bath-towel rack is an easy challenge that may be in-built a day or two. All the body joinery is minimize on the desk noticed utilizing a dado set. The entrance is linked with lap joints, and the again is joined with rabbets bolstered with small pins. Keyhole slots within the again permit the unit to be hung securely and invisibly. Notches within the shelf preserve it in place towards the entrance of the rack with out the necessity for fasteners.

I designed this piece after my husband and I bought our first house and realized that our visitor toilet lacked storage for towels and toiletries. With ground house at a premium, a wall-hung unit appeared like the best resolution. The rack holds rolled-up towels in two sizes, with room for toiletries and ornamental gadgets.

That is a straightforward challenge that ought to take solely a day or two to construct, not counting ending. All the body joinery is minimize on the desk noticed utilizing a dado set. The entrance of the body is joined with lap joints, and the joints on the again are easy rabbets, bolstered with dowels. And one of many again rails receives two keyhole slots for hanging the rack securely and invisibly.

The shelf can be notched with the dado set to maintain it in place towards the entrance of the rack, and no fasteners are wanted to maintain it steady. As well as, these shallow notches preserve the entrance edges of the body aligned correctly.

I rounded the sides of the body and shelf to match the delicate aesthetic of the bath tray I wrote about in FWW #304. The wooden is identical additionally—walnut—however some other species will work.

Minimize the body joints

The body components are all 3/4 in. thick, which makes milling simpler. The shelf is 1/2 in. thick, and you may make it from one strong piece or glue it up from two or extra.

When slicing the body components to width and size, I made a number of further components as backups in case I made a nasty joinery minimize. I additionally held on to the offcuts to assist me arrange joinery cuts.

**Lay out the lap joints.** To make sure a great match, Amick used mating components to put out the big rabbets
and notches. A white pencil reveals up properly towards the darkish walnut.

**Begin with take a look at items.** Use further items to fine-tune the setup for the lap joints on the entrance corners of the body. The objective is for the ends and faces of the joint to finish up flush.

Lap joints first—Begin by laying out the lap joints in pencil that will help you preserve observe of their orientation. The lap joints are basically massive rabbets which might be minimize on the desk noticed utilizing the dado set. Stack the dado blades just a little underneath 3/4 in. extensive, after which set their slicing depth to about 3/16 in. to start out. I assist the components with my crosscut sled, clamping on a cease block to regulate the size of the rabbets, though a miter gauge might additionally work.Dial within the setup utilizing your offcuts, making certain that the mating components find yourself flush with one another. And make the cuts in a number of passes, creeping up on the best depth of minimize and the best stop-block place.

**Minimize the middle notches.** The stiles are notched for the center aspect rail. Minimize these in two passes, utilizing the rip fence as a cease for the primary minimize and a cease block for the second.

**Don’t neglect the rear rabbets.** The aspect rails have rabbets at their again ends to obtain the again rails.

For those who lack a dado set, the lap joints could be minimize with a straight bit on the router desk, with a miter gauge or a sq. backer board preserving the inventory sq. to the fence.

**Test the match.** The again and aspect rails ought to find yourself flush on the again, however a small quantity of misalignment could be planed and/or sanded away later.

Dry-fit the lap joints earlier than shifting on, ensuring their mating surfaces are as near flush as attainable. And go away the table-saw setup in place for the subsequent steps.

Rabbet the aspect rails—To attach the body components in the back of the rack, I merely rabbeted the aspect rails to suit over the again rails. The center again rail has keyhole slots for attaching the rack to the wall, so it carries the burden of the rack and its contents. I went with the identical sled setup to chop these rabbets, utilizing a take a look at piece to dial within the cuts. After meeting, these rabbets are bolstered with small dowels, created from the identical wooden species because the rack, so that they mix in.

Construct the body in phases

**One joint at a time.** Deal with these joints separately, feeling together with your fingers to make certain the ends are flush as you tighten every clamp. You’ll find yourself with two flat aspect assemblies.

The body is assembled in a number of steps. First, the aspect rails are glued to the stiles. This creates two aspect assemblies that you may lay flat on the router desk for rounding the entrance edges of the body.

Begin with the lap joints—Dry-fit the joints to verify the aspect assemblies are mirror photos of one another and the lap joints come collectively sq. and flush. Then apply glue and clamps.

**Around the entrance edge.** Lay every meeting flat on the router desk to spherical its forefront. Use a 3⁄8-in. roundover bit, flipping the meeting to create a full bullnose profile.

The totally rounded profile on the entrance edges is formed with two passes on the router desk, utilizing a 3/8-in. roundover bit. For those who’ve received your shelf prepared, use the identical router-table setup to spherical its entrance and aspect edges.

Rout the keyhole slots—The central again rail will get keyhole slots for attaching the rack to the wall. The rail isn’t lengthy sufficient for the keyhole slots to line up with two wall studs 16 in. aside, so I like to recommend utilizing drywall anchors to hold it. That can allow you to place the rack wherever you wish to.

Minimize the keyhole slots on the router desk utilizing a 25/64-in. keyhole bit. Start by drilling 1/2-in.-dia. starter holes for the router-table operation. Use a Forstner bit, and set the depth for 1/2 in.—the identical depth because the keyhole slots to comply with.

Now arrange the router desk with the keyhole bit. In case your desk has a miter slot, use a miter gauge to assist the rail. In any other case, you possibly can push it alongside the fence with a bit of plywood or MDF with a squared nook. In both setup, the top of the rail contacts the router-table fence, which locates the slot in a single path, and a cease block limits the ahead journey of the rail and subsequently the size of the slot.

To arrange the minimize, begin with the router off, and drop the starter gap onto the keyhole bit. Then arrange the fence and cease block for the primary minimize.

Begin the minimize the identical means, with the router off and the bit within the starter gap. Then activate the router and push the rail ahead. When it hits the cease block, flip off the router, slide the rail backward, and elevate it off the bit.

Every keyhole slot requires a special setup. You’ll have to reverse the router desk setup to chop the opposite keyhole slot. Simply ensure the slot ends on the similar level so the rack will dangle stage on the wall.

Add the again rails—As soon as once more, begin with a dry-fit. Be certain that the rail with the keyhole slots is the center one and that its keyhole slots are dealing with the best means up.

When all of it appears good, glue and clamp the again rails into the rabbets within the aspect rails. To assist handle this tough meeting stage and make sure the body ended up sq., I clamped a plywood spacer panel between the stiles.

Add the shelf

**Around the shelf.** Amick rounded the shelf’s entrance edge first after which determined to around the ends as properly. However the selection is as much as you.

After milling the shelf to dimension, spherical over its edges on the router desk. Then minimize the notches on its entrance edge that find the shelf on the rack. To put out the notches precisely, maintain the shelf towards the body and switch the situation of the body components to the shelf. The stiles will have to be spaced evenly for this step, so preserve the plywood spacer in place from the sooner meeting step.

**Lay out the notches within the shelf.** With the rack nonetheless clamped to the spacer panel, place the shelf and mark the sides of the notches.

**Minimize the notches.** Use the sled and dado set once more to chop these shallow notches. You possibly can align the cuts by eye right here, creeping up on a great match with the body.

I minimize the notches with a dado set on the desk noticed, with the shelf standing on edge on my crosscut sled.

Reinforce the rabbets—Now you possibly can take away that spacer panel and carry the rack over to the drill press for boring the dowel holes. You would drill them with a handheld drill as an alternative, however I just like the precision of the drill press. I additionally advocate utilizing a brad-point bit, as a typical twist drill will are likely to wander.

Mark the outlet places, and drill the 1/4-in. holes a minimum of 3/4 in. deep. If attainable, use dowels created from the identical species because the rack in order that they mix in, and ensure they match the holes properly earlier than you apply glue. If the match is just too tight, you possibly can sand the dowels.

**Drill for the dowels.** The rear rabbets are bolstered with 1⁄4-in. dowels. Amick introduced the rack to the drill press to drill holes by the joints, however a handheld drill would work additionally.

**Drive the dowels house.** It helps to chamfer their ideas first. Squirt a small quantity of glue in every gap, drive the dowels, and trim off the surplus.

Minimize the dowels a bit lengthy, and chamfer their tricks to make them simpler to insert. Then unfold a modest quantity of glue within the holes earlier than driving within the dowels.

I trimmed off the surplus with a flush-cut noticed after which sanded the surfaces flush.

End and dangle the rack

As I did on the tub tray in FWW #304, I sanded the components to 220 grit, elevating the grain earlier than the ultimate sandpaper cross, and completed them with two coats of Osmo Polyx-Oil, a mix of oil and wax that resists water surprisingly properly.

To hold the rack securely, I used drywall anchors, which include screws that match the keyholes completely. Slide the keyholes over the screws, add some good towels and toiletry gadgets, and the challenge is finished.

I put in my tub rack 4 years in the past, and I proceed to obtain compliments on it. Individuals ask me the place I received it, and like each woodworker, I’m completely happy to inform them.

-Leah Okay.S. Amick is a furnishings maker and product designer in Portland, Ore.

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