Help: Lift and slide doors/swing out shelf.

Submitted by JenS on Fri, 03/30/2012 - 13:45

My husband and I are wanting to make a gaming table, and I want to do cubbies under the table with lift-up doors that tuck under the top of the table. Kind of like how the barrister bookcases work.

Does anyone have any directions on how to do these? I haven't had much luck finding anything, especially for free.

I also would love to do swing-out shelves to hold things like laptop, books, or whatever to get them off the main area of the gaming gable.. but I haven't found anything for these, either. I think I just don't know what to search for. LOL

TIA!

claydowling

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 17:35

It can be as easy as securing them with pins into a groove routed in the top of the compartment. I've heard that those can bind. Something like fifteen or twenty years ago Fine Woodworking ran an article about another way to make them that isn't supposed to bind so easily. It struck me as complicated at the time, but maybe if I looked at it again I wouldn't feel that way. Unfortunately I can't point you to the issue, it wasn't my copy, and I wasn't woodworking at the time.

That might give you a good point to start your research from though.

I also found this back issue of Popular Woodworking that has a plan for Barrister Bookcases: http://www.shopwoodworking.com/product/digital-issue-popular-woodworkin…

You won't be building the bookcases, but you can pilfer the design of the door for your game table. Of course, you could build your own barrister bookcases to store your games after the table is done. I've never known a gamer who didn't have overflowing games.