Eric's MAME Cabinet

General

Before assembling the pieces, cut the notch for the T-molding. Test the notch cut on a scrap piece first so you find the right position that makes the T-molding fit right to the edges of the wood.

Joinery

The cabinet was assembled with pocket screws, which makes a strong joint with a clean look. When two pieces are joined together, the pocket holes are on the inside of the cabinet where you don't see them. A tool called a pocket hole jig lets you drill the angled holes into the woodpiece. You use a special bit that has a stop collar so you drill to the right depth. Then you align the two pieces to be joined and drive a pocket screw at an angle into the pocket. The result is a tight joint that's as strong as a doweled or mortise-and-tenon. I used a Kreg Jig for pocket holes, which I attached to a piece of plywood and placed on the floor where I could clamp wood for drilling. While I originally planned to use Gorilla glue to reinforce the joints, I found that it wasn't really needed. By drilling pocket holes every 8 inches, the resulting joint was plenty strong.

How to Cut Melamine

Because the edges of Melamine will chip when pulled away from the fiber board, it can be difficult to cut. Here's how I cut it to get perfect edges:
  1. Mark lines for your cuts. If you are cutting black Melamine, put down masking tape first, and draw lines on that.
  2. Make the cuts just outside of your lines. Cutting closer to the line means less material you have to route, which means less dust.
  3. Setup a straight edge along the true line for the router to follow. I clamped a 2x4 against the line and turned the Melamine over.
  4. Route the edges clean, running along your straight edge.
For cuts like curves, you have to get more creative on providing an edge for the router. But the router won't fit inside corners, so you have to make the cut with a blade. In this case, cut from the bottom side so the teeth of the blade cause less chipping on the "good side". Try to find blades with more teeth and change your blade often to also help minimize chipping.