Re: Help in Sliding Doors for Cabinets/Shelves

goodmorning neo, i will try to help you with my idea. My first option would be to look for a mechanism that could hide the tracks, a track that is embedded in the board and a holder that is strong enough to carry the load of the boards. Second option would be to use two boards, one board align vertically with the track where the wheel is installed and the front face board screwed to it and use the ordinary sliding rail track that is embedded made of steel including the wheel.
Correct me if my idea is wrong. hehe. The problem with the design is the sliding panel is outside the carcase which is quite a challenging but i think there should be a mechanism for that particular design.

Re: Help in Sliding Doors for Cabinets/Shelves

goodmorning neo, i will try to help you with my idea. My first option would be to look for a mechanism that could hide the tracks, a track that is embedded in the board and a holder that is strong enough to carry the load of the boards. Second option would be to use two boards, one board align vertically with the track where the wheel is installed and the front face board screwed to it and use the ordinary sliding rail track that is embedded made of steel including the wheel.
Correct me if my idea is wrong. hehe. The problem with the design is the sliding panel is outside the carcase which is quite a challenging but i think there should be a mechanism for that particular design.

thanks for the fast reply, jo252011. we were on the same frequency. embedded tracks, holder that could support the load, and would not split the wood.

yep. the challenging part is that the panels are outside. this is the beauty of this design. because the 3 panels can have separate paintings/art work, but when aligned, shows one big painting/artwork. and this is the result i am trying to achieve, which i have no solution of. i am planning to have an abstract artwork for the panels. something like this, but horizontal setup, not vertical.

Re: Help in Sliding Doors for Cabinets/Shelves

the cross members will not hold the weight of the doors since embedding the mechanism requires the MDF to be dadoed and will reduce the material to carry the weight.
there are several slide systems with nylon wheels in the market, but most are bulky. the smaller ones are too flimsy and the boards you want supported are heavy.
your design is very nice, I love it. maybe it is best to go around first and look for 2mdf and use it for the cross members...

Re: Help in Sliding Doors for Cabinets/Shelves

the cross members will not hold the weight of the doors since embedding the mechanism requires the MDF to be dadoed and will reduce the material to carry the weight.
there are several slide systems with nylon wheels in the market, but most are bulky. the smaller ones are too flimsy and the boards you want supported are heavy.
your design is very nice, I love it. maybe it is best to go around first and look for 2mdf and use it for the cross members...

thanks, master timber. that's my worry as well. the cross members may not hold the door panels.

my other options is actually to use a thinner wood for the panel doors. the painting/artwork would just be the ones that would make it thicker. the thin board would be on the track, while the artwork would be outside. the artwork would be detachable. the combined weight would not be as heavy as the solid mdf or plywood panel doors.

i still don't know if this would work.

your inputs are very helpful, master timber. and i'm glad that you like the design. thanks. this would really complement the simple sofa design in my other thread.

Re: Help in Sliding Doors for Cabinets/Shelves

I believe the way to do it is to have solid cross members first, flushed with the door (meaning the doors will not hide them) this way you can support all doors from the top and bottom using rollers for both. supporting the long cross members would be easy though so it should cause you minimal problems. I still would recommend getting 1" or thicker mdf for the cross members though.
mdf is a very tricky material to use, it has its own hardware and screws... using what isn't intended for it usually results to breakage or short life of the furniture. study well and do small projects with it if you are not use to mdf before going big. might save you in the long run...

Re: Help in Sliding Doors for Cabinets/Shelves

btw, inhaling mdf dust is very hazardous... please practice safe work habits.
be sure to a wear helmet :confused: 😮 😀

Re: Help in Sliding Doors for Cabinets/Shelves

by the way, the size i am planning to make is 4' X 8' with vertical division, which is about half of the design below, but would have 8 pairs of horizontal compartments, not 7. i would then have 4 squarish sliding panel doors (1 door per 2 shelves or per 2 pairs of horizontal compartments), which could be set aligned vertically on the left, or on the right, or in the middle, to show the complete artwork. but the 4 panels can be positioned differently which could show individual artwork. repositioning the doors, changing the artwork, combined with mood lighting give the area and the furniture different characters. this could also mean that the middle vertical divider should be recessed a bit so that the panel doors can slide from side to side. i think i can compromise this one.

sound simple, but seems ambitious though. 🙁

Re: Help in Sliding Doors for Cabinets/Shelves

my living room would be very small. about 15 square meters. the design i am trying to achieve is minimalist modern (not ultra modern though). sleek, fluid, less surface area, masculine, easy to maintain and repair.

Re: Help in Sliding Doors for Cabinets/Shelves

I believe the way to do it is to have solid cross members first, flushed with the door (meaning the doors will not hide them) this way you can support all doors from the top and bottom using rollers for both. supporting the long cross members would be easy though so it should cause you minimal problems. I still would recommend getting 1" or thicker mdf for the cross members though.
mdf is a very tricky material to use, it has its own hardware and screws... using what isn't intended for it usually results to breakage or short life of the furniture. study well and do small projects with it if you are not use to mdf before going big. might save you in the long run...

thanks, master timber. would plywood or plyboard more suitable for this design?

Re: Help in Sliding Doors for Cabinets/Shelves

btw, inhaling mdf dust is very hazardous... please practice safe work habits.
be sure to a wear helmet :confused: 😮 😀

yes, sir. however, since i don't have the cutting tools, i may have to ask the mdf supplier to cut it to pieces, at an additional cost. i'll just have to assemble and finish it myself at home.

if i am going to use mdf....

thanks again for the advice.

Re: Help in Sliding Doors for Cabinets/Shelves

thanks, master timber. would plywood or plyboard more suitable for this design?

plywood would be more flexible, but designs like this really need MDF, or you would need someone who can filler it well (very hard and expensive if you locate one)

Re: Help in Sliding Doors for Cabinets/Shelves

plywood would be more flexible, but designs like this really need MDF, or you would need someone who can filler it well (very hard and expensive if you locate one)

thanks again, master timber.

i think i may need to revise my design for the doors. instead of sliding doors. i will be using lightweight doors out of the paintings/artwork frame. i will just attached magnets on the top and bottom frames, then attach magnets as well on the shelves or horizontal components. that way i can also open up the whole case by detaching the doors. i just have to hide the magnets by painting it white, i guess.

i'd be happy if you have more inputs, comments, advice, suggestions on this option. is the magnetic doors concept feasible?

Re: Help in Sliding Doors for Cabinets/Shelves

I would like to share my suggestion but I'm having trouble to convey it into words as misinterpreting it may just lead to rejection. I would just draw it and post it here when I'm done (as I'm quite busy right now).

The main idea is just to use the correct sliding components and use false fronts. The components handle the "function" while the false fronts takes care of the "form".

Re: Help in Sliding Doors for Cabinets/Shelves

Perhaps something like this...

*Not to scale, just a rough draft idea. Placement, material thickness, number, etc may be modified as necessary.

The dado/grooves need not be deep but just enough for the rollers to have a guide. The Yellow thing above is just a simple and lightweight guide so as the window could have alternatives for an upper railing and my be fitted as fit as possible. You may only remove the window by removing the yellow guides first, lift so the rollers may be derailed and eventually remove the whole window component.

It would be good if you could get nylon rollers tat could be built into the main window itself by a recess. The left or right one on the picture below is the one I'm referring as it is hidden inside the sliding window.