Options for Adjustable Shelves

i use the hole and pin method and i always use the sleeves . a lot more attractive to look at and less industrial looking . the easy way to lay out the holes is to get a sheet of cheap peg board cut a strip large enuff to cover the area where you need holes . i always put the pegboard against the cab. side and drill thru the holes into the cab. if you should want to try this and want more details let me know and ill take some pics to help you

Blue, an L-shaped shelf is not a problem. Put supports on both walls.
How wide are the walls? How many shelves? How deep are the shelves? How much weight is going on the shelves?
Are you saying you want the shelves flush with walls and sides? How about bringing a router to the job site?

Good luck with your project. Keep your folks happy…

Do they need to be adjustable for a pantry

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We are building a new house and i am using cleats on the wall. Starting 16” from the floor, next couple of shelves 14” spaced, than a couple 12”. It all depends what you parents want to put on the shelves. Maybe check out the pantry in their current house.

This is not a pretty picture, i took it with my pda, but it gives you a feel. I will also place some extra brackets in the longer spans.

PaBull, That is just about the way I build them.

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All I will do is just put a screw in the two far corners to keep the shelf in place.

Now Dennis, I do not call these adjustable, more like “removable”. Here is the next stage on my shelving project:

PaBull, 2 questions:

1) How are you supporting the butt-joint between the 2 boards so that it won’t fail under a heavy load?

2) How wide is the shelf on the left and is it a glue-up?

Thanks,

-Scott

Blue, I use metal plates about 1”x6” with pre drilled holes and put 2 under each joint. Also I will put shelf supports on vertical cleats on the wall to support the shelve in the middle of the span.

The shelves are indeed glue-ups from Lowe’s. My wive was set on not having MDF or plywood in her closets.

I gave the cleats and shelves a round over in the front. We are finishing it all in lacquer.

Hope this helps. Good luck.

Where in Lowes were the glue-ups? The closest I could find was Stair Treads which are still only 12” deep (and they’re insisting on 14”)

It was in the isle by the red oak and poplar. They had some just under 3/4 for less, lesser quality, and some at 3/4 wrapped in plastic in lengs of 24”; 36”; 48”; 72” & 96” and the widths were 12, 18 and 24 or so. It was called “stain grade”.

I went by and saw those boards. The closest fit was a 15” ash. While in Woodcraft I ran across the Kreg K3 and remembered that it can also be used to face join boards. I’ve been drooling over it for awhile for my woodworking so here I can kill 2 birds with one stone and join some 1×8s for this project!

Thanks again for the suggestions, will try and remember to update pics once its done (not going down there until next month)

Yup, that would work, but I did buy the pine already glued up, less work and cheaper…..

If you go for the K3, look on Ebay, some good deals out there.

Good luck, Blue. And keep us posted.

I went ahead and picked up the supports building them similar to what you have in the photo.

Now I got another question as they are looking at going with plywood. My shelf design.

In that photo the yellow bars represent the shelf supports which on the ends go out 15”. The back walls are 43”. I can’t fit a single piece through the door so I will support the joint with a small metal plate on the underside. The question is will 1/2” ply work for pantry shelves or is 3/4” necessary?

Thanks again

I went with 3/4.
But why would the shelf not fit through the door? Did you try?

Good luck, Blue. And keep us posted.

The beach house is 350 mi. so there is no way to try it prior to getting there.

The dimensions for the back walls are each 44” and the side walls are 24”. My concern with making it a single piece is how to get it in once I have a couple shelves installed. I’ll be finishing them here before leaving so if I find out they don’t fit once I get there, what’s the best tool to cut it with a clean edge? (I have an unimpressive circ saw, a nice delta jigsaw with progressor blades, or an old handsaw)

350 miles is a long way … be sure you got all your parts and all your tools.

Use your “circ saw”. Make a jig. Use .25”-.5” plywood the length of your cut and the width of the bottom of your saw to the blade plus about 2.5”. Glue/nail on top of this first board a 2”x.5” strip the long way flush with the long side. After the glue is dry, clamp it on a bench or horse with opposite side of the strip hanging over. Now you take your saw and run it up against the strip (guide) and cut a sliver off the bottom board. Now you jig is complete.
Now when you need to cut a shelve, clamp the jig on the shelve and the edge is exactly where the cut will be.
To make the cut cleaner, you can use a utility knife and or put some masking tape over the top surface, because this is where you will have your tear out. Set your Circular saw just deep enough when you cut plywood.

I hope this helps and good luck. If the jig thing is not clear, let me know and I will send you a picture.

Blue, put all your shelves inside before you start. Then start putting the cleats in from the top shelf and work down.

Went with ply & edge banding over the solid wood (their choice).

Just got back, the shelves went in easy after trimming for uneven walls/corners. Supports work great.

Alright, you could not have done it better yourself, if I may say. lol. Looks very nice and tight as a bug in a rug.
Hope your folks are happy with it. And thanks for the pictures, you left us too long in suspense…