Sliding Door Stereo Cabinet

PROJECT #2009

Skill Level: Intermediate

Time: 3 days

Cost: $250

I have a definite affinity for Mid-Century furniture. There’s just something about those refined forms with clean lines and angles that really get me. When it came time to build a cabinet for my stereo equipment, I knew I wanted a simple form with a couple design flourishes. I also knew I wanted to match some of the other furniture and trim in my circa 1964 home. Through a couple design iterations, I landed on a mitered plywood box sitting on tapered legs with sliding frosted glass doors.

With judicious use of pocket hole joinery, a few dowels and mitered splines along with off-the-shelf slider track, construction is pretty straightforward. In fact, I did this whole build using only a drill, router, miter saw and track saw. It took a little practice and some careful measuring to cut the 45° ends of the case, as well as thinking outside the box to cut splines with a track saw, but the result was well worth the fuss.

Creating the Case

Start with constructing the case. Rip four pieces of ¾" plywood at 19" wide and slightly overlong (about 62" for the top/bottom and 22" for the sides). Next, cut the mitered ends. Using 45° crosscuts, trim the top and bottom pieces of the case to 59" long, and the two sides to 19½" long. I used a track saw for this procedure, and it was