[Shop-talk] Making a door thinner

[Jim Stone]

Thanks, guys!  While I was hoping the planer was a viable option, I didn’t really expect it to work, so I appreciate being talked out of it before I screwed anything up.  Some additional comments on the recommendations:

I like the Grizzly open belt sander!  However, it would cost about as much as just buying custom doors, so I will probably pass on that, unless I get lucky and find a used one.  I’ll look around, just to be safe.
Same thing for the router jig.  I had considered using a router, but didn’t know how I’d get the cut even.  One of those jigs would certainly do the trick, but probably be cost prohibitive.  Still, I’ll research it a bit more.
Unfortunately, modifying the wall isn’t an option.  The door in the pocket is one of a pair and the total wall is about 24 ft long (and 18’ high), so we’d be remodeling the entire house again at that point!
Modifying the cabinets isn’t an option either, although moving them a bit is possible.  Still, this is a wall of cabinets and there is an oven hood in the mix that would also need to move, so the total effort would be more work than anything I could run into with the doors.
On idea I considered after sending my note this morning was something based on floor sanding equipment.  e.g. Screw steel stock to the sides of the door with a 1/8” reveal, rig something around the center to give myself a stop on the other side, and then use a large rotary sander.  I think it might work, but like some of the other ideas, probably be more trouble than the project is worth.  Still, I am throwing it out in case it gives anyone another idea.

So, that brings me back to the most frequent suggestion: find a cabinet maker.  I casually know a couple, but didn’t think they’d have something wide enough.  I assumed they did all of their milling to the base stock, before assembly and wouldn’t have the need to thin something this wide.  Knowing the tools exist and are frequently used gives me hope for that option, which I will pursue, if necessary.  First, I am going to try to get lucky and make them work without modification.  It is theoretically possible to mill down the ’stands’ for the track and make it all work.  I have an extra set of stands, thanks to a previous mistake custom fitting the barn door track, so I have nothing to lose.  If I get lucky (I’m putting my odds at no better than 1:10), it will all fit perfectly and I’ll be done.  If not, I’ll reach out to the cabinet makers and see if they can help me.  Worst case is that the doors go back to ReStore and I try something different.

Thanks again.  I’ll report back when there is a final resolution to the issue.  

Jim

> On Dec 22, 2019, at 9:26 AM, Jim Stone <1789alpine at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> I am installing a barn door in my recently remodeled house and have come up with a problem I would like the group’s help with.  I need to put up a pair of 8’ x 30" barn doors, one of which will slide in next to a tall kitchen cabinet.  So, not exactly a pocket door, but it needs to fit into a pocket.  When we designed/installed the kitchen cabinets we planned the cabinets for a 1 3/8” - 1 1/2” door, which I planned to make out of tongue and groove boards or possibly shiplap.  However, my wife has lately decided that she doesn’t like the look of the board door and wants to try something different.  I wanted to install something temporary while she shops and decides and we went to Habitat for Humanity’s ReStore yesterday to see if they had anything that would cheaply do the trick, at least for the holidays.  To our surprise, they had a pair of new, really nice, 8x30 shaker style doors for $50 each that would look really good in the house.  They are solid wood, I think poplar, and the only problem is that they are 1 3/4” thick.  I bought them anyway, figuring I could always donate them back if there wasn’t a good way to make them work. 
> 
> There is a possibility that I might be able to make the doors work by tweaking the barn door hardware, as the opening is about 1 5/8”.  I will try that, but doubt the wall tolerances are that precise.  It it doesn’t work, my only option - besides re-donating the doors - is to try to narrow the doors a bit.  This should be possible, since the stiles and rails are 4” and 8”, respectively, so I am not talking about narrowing the entire width of the door.  
> (For what it is worth, I should add here that while the doors are currently 8x30, I need to tweak that a bit to make the match the cabinets and door opening and will be cutting them down to about 84” x 29”.  
> 
> I currently have a good bench top planer that I can’t see anyway to use, and a cheap HF hand planer that might work.  But, of course, I would be happy to buy a new one or another tool that would do the job.  We are probably looking at more than $1000 for a pair of 8’ doors that make my wife happy, so there is lots of room in the budget for a new tool.  So, what does the group think?  Can I safely take about 1/8” off each face of these doors.  Is an electric hand planer my best option, or is there another way?  They will be painted in the end, so I can fill in any random gouges, but they do have to be smooth and even.
> 
> As always, thanks for any advice and Happy Holidays to all!
> 
> Jim

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