Kitchen corner cabinet brackets

[WobblyHand]

A while back one of the shelves in our kitchen collapsed. It is a corner cabinet in which we store various staples. This shelf had some weight on it, since there were bags of flour, sugar, olive oil and stuff on it. Since the kitchen was remodeled only 2 years ago, we contacted the kitchen guy about it. He said to us, you have a lot of weight on the shelf. I'm thinking to myself, you sold me a shelf that is only for knicknacks? I said, this is where we keep things in the kitchen, what can you do to fix it? He takes some measurements and says he will order something.

Time goes by. A lot of time goes by, then even more. In the meantime, we have kitchen stuff in other rooms, because the shelf isn't fixed. Yes, we are tired of this. We have contacted the guy, but we are getting the feeling that it will be a long time, or never, when he comes back, with the mythical part(s).

Examining the cabinet reveals the shelf is undersized for the area. This is somewhat understandable, since one needs to tilt the shelf in to get the shelf into the cabinet. But the shelf seems to be held in place by the same little clips that are used for the normal rectangular shelves. These clips basically have a pin that goes in a flat bottomed hole in the cabinet. The gap between the interior cabinet wall and the shelf is about 0.300" on both sides. This allows the shelf to pry the dowel pin right out of the hole.

There are only 5 clips that hold up the pentagon shaped shelf, 2 on each side, and one in the far rear.

I redesigned a clip to be thicker and have a section the extends below the support. Kind of like this picture.

I had a friend print two for me, that were thinner, and it was obvious, that the printed brackets were the wrong size, and that they never could hold a load. So this design is version 3.

The thickness of the bracket should take up some of the slop of the shelf, I hope. It is 0.300" thick. The pin measure 0.245". I was thinking of making the bracket out of 6061 and pressing in a steel pin. Having never done press fits, is there anything special I need to do? For a 1/4" pin, what size should the hole be? 0.001" undersized? Then heat the aluminum and drop the pin in place?

I'll try to get a picture of the cabinet interior, but it is one of those wide angle shots that is really hard to make.

If anyone has had to do this and knows a better thing to do, please let me know. I don't want to make too many of these, especially if they don't work!

 

[RJSakowski]

A while back one of the shelves in our kitchen collapsed. It is a corner cabinet in which we store various staples. This shelf had some weight on it, since there were bags of flour, sugar, olive oil and stuff on it. Since the kitchen was remodeled only 2 years ago, we contacted the kitchen guy about it. He said to us, you have a lot of weight on the shelf. I'm thinking to myself, you sold me a shelf that is only for knicknacks? I said, this is where we keep things in the kitchen, what can you do to fix it? He takes some measurements and says he will order something.

Time goes by. A lot of time goes by, then even more. In the meantime, we have kitchen stuff in other rooms, because the shelf isn't fixed. Yes, we are tired of this. We have contacted the guy, but we are getting the feeling that it will be a long time, or never, when he comes back, with the mythical part(s).

Examining the cabinet reveals the shelf is undersized for the area. This is somewhat understandable, since one needs to tilt the shelf in to get the shelf into the cabinet. But the shelf seems to be held in place by the same little clips that are used for the normal rectangular shelves. These clips basically have a pin that goes in a flat bottomed hole in the cabinet. The gap between the interior cabinet wall and the shelf is about 0.300" on both sides. This allows the shelf to pry the dowel pin right out of the hole.
View attachment 408396
There are only 5 clips that hold up the pentagon shaped shelf, 2 on each side, and one in the far rear.

I redesigned a clip to be thicker and have a section the extends below the support. Kind of like this picture.
View attachment 408397
I had a friend print two for me, that were thinner, and it was obvious, that the printed brackets were the wrong size, and that they never could hold a load. So this design is version 3.

The thickness of the bracket should take up some of the slop of the shelf, I hope. It is 0.300" thick. The pin measure 0.245". I was thinking of making the bracket out of 6061 and pressing in a steel pin. Having never done press fits, is there anything special I need to do? For a 1/4" pin, what size should the hole be? 0.001" undersized? Then heat the aluminum and drop the pin in place?

I'll try to get a picture of the cabinet interior, but it is one of those wide angle shots that is really hard to make.

If anyone has had to do this and knows a better thing to do, please let me know. I don't want to make too many of these, especially if they don't work!

Your experience with the cabinet maker is one of the reasons that I made my own. The cabinets that we did have made outside were to my detailed drawings and specifications.

One addition would be to use a screw on the underside to prevent the pin from walking out. A longer pin will help as well. In your design use a shoulder on the pin to prevent it from push through. If you really want to add suspenders to the belt, make the neck of the pin slightly longer so it sits proud on the inside and peen it over to form a rivet. An interference fit isn't necessary then. If you make a countersink on the self side, you can file the pin flush with the bracket after peening.

 

[WobblyHand]

Your experience with the cabinet maker is one of the reasons that I made my own. The cabinets that we did have made outside were to my detailed drawings and specifications.

One addition would be to use a screw on the underside to prevent the pin from walking out. A longer pin will help as well. In your design use a shoulder on the pin to prevent it from push through. If you really want to add suspenders to the belt, make the neck of the pin slightly longer so it sits proud on the inside and peen it over to form a rivet. An interference fit isn't necessary then. If you make a countersink on the self side, you can file the pin flush with the bracket after peening.

Wood and I have an odd relationship. Haven't really been successful at making anything that was cabinet or furniture grade. Repairing basement stairs, sure, I can do that. Getting beautiful fits and finishes is not a skill I have. Nor is it a skill that I want to cultivate. Perhaps it is the lack of satisfying results, but wood doesn't motivate me.

Was initially trying to avoid adding more holes to the cabinet, but at this point, just want it to be strong enough to support the load. In its current position, it will be tough to drill, as the reverse angles are tough on human arms. Got to do it somehow, though.

Think your idea of adding a screw through the bottom part is good. The original pin has a shoulder, similar to what you mentioned. May still attempt an interference fit, but will try it out on a practice piece first.

 

[tq60]

Is not plastic that bracket can hold a substantial amount weight.

Something else is wrong.

Agree, removing all brackets and drilling hole in bottom, first drill 1/16 hole, replaceable then place shelf.

Use first hole to mark shelf, use small drill to drill in place or use pencil.

Remove all, use countersink for better look.

Drill to size and make pilot holes.

Screw in all screws while out, remove and install.

The screws will prevent movement but as stated before, something else is not correct.

Flower is heavy, isuspect the shelf dipped under load.

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[WobblyHand]

Is not plastic that bracket can hold a substantial amount weight.

Something else is wrong.

Agree, removing all brackets and drilling hole in bottom, first drill 1/16 hole, replaceable then place shelf.

Use first hole to mark shelf, use small drill to drill in place or use pencil.

Remove all, use countersink for better look.

Drill to size and make pilot holes.

Screw in all screws while out, remove and install.

The screws will prevent movement but as stated before, something else is not correct.

Flower is heavy, isuspect the shelf dipped under load.

Sent from my SM-G781V using Tapatalk

What's probably wrong is the shelf is on the small side. (And the brackets are too small for the shelf size.) The steel bracket is 0.70" long, the shelf is being held by the outer 0.40", with a 0.30" gap between the shelf and the bracket vertical. If the shelf shifted, all the way to the right or left, then the shelf was only held by the outermost 0.10" of the bracket tip. This would tend to cam the pin out of the hole in the cabinet. One of the cabinet holes is partially damaged, I think supporting my statement. In addition, as you noted, the shelf itself could have sagged, which just makes things even worse.

Appreciate the tips on getting the holes in the right places inside the cabinet. That is helpful. I will try that during installation.

Yes, flour and stuff like that are heavy, so are pots and pans, and dishes, as well as canned goods, which are all found on kitchen shelves. Kitchen shelves should be strong. The kitchen cabinet makers should be assuming heavy things, not having a shelf full of potato chips!

 

[RJSakowski]

Unfortunately, kitchen cabinets, like a lot of other products, are made to look good and not necessarily be functional. When we were looking at cabinets for a kitchen remodel, all we saw were made with chip core, covered with a thin veneer. Our carcasses are made with 1/2" and 3/4" Baltic birch plywood, shelving is 3/4" cherry veneered plywood, and facings,doors, and drawer fronts are solid hardwood lumber. I can stand on any of our shelving without fear of collapse.

 

[fixit]

A while back one of the shelves in our kitchen collapsed. It is a corner cabinet in which we store various staples. This shelf had some weight on it, since there were bags of flour, sugar, olive oil and stuff on it. Since the kitchen was remodeled only 2 years ago, we contacted the kitchen guy about it. He said to us, you have a lot of weight on the shelf. I'm thinking to myself, you sold me a shelf that is only for knicknacks? I said, this is where we keep things in the kitchen, what can you do to fix it? He takes some measurements and says he will order something.

Time goes by. A lot of time goes by, then even more. In the meantime, we have kitchen stuff in other rooms, because the shelf isn't fixed. Yes, we are tired of this. We have contacted the guy, but we are getting the feeling that it will be a long time, or never, when he comes back, with the mythical part(s).

Examining the cabinet reveals the shelf is undersized for the area. This is somewhat understandable, since one needs to tilt the shelf in to get the shelf into the cabinet. But the shelf seems to be held in place by the same little clips that are used for the normal rectangular shelves. These clips basically have a pin that goes in a flat bottomed hole in the cabinet. The gap between the interior cabinet wall and the shelf is about 0.300" on both sides. This allows the shelf to pry the dowel pin right out of the hole.
View attachment 408396
There are only 5 clips that hold up the pentagon shaped shelf, 2 on each side, and one in the far rear.

I redesigned a clip to be thicker and have a section the extends below the support. Kind of like this picture.
View attachment 408397
I had a friend print two for me, that were thinner, and it was obvious, that the printed brackets were the wrong size, and that they never could hold a load. So this design is version 3.

The thickness of the bracket should take up some of the slop of the shelf, I hope. It is 0.300" thick. The pin measure 0.245". I was thinking of making the bracket out of 6061 and pressing in a steel pin. Having never done press fits, is there anything special I need to do? For a 1/4" pin, what size should the hole be? 0.001" undersized? Then heat the aluminum and drop the pin in place?

I'll try to get a picture of the cabinet interior, but it is one of those wide angle shots that is really hard to make.

If anyone has had to do this and knows a better thing to do, please let me know. I don't want to make too many of these, especially if they don't work!

I think you have the perfect solution GO FOR IT

 

[tq60]

The shelf needs to fit properly, touching all sides, or at least the brackets.

If it can move then it can fail as you described.

Make a better one...you have a pattern.

Put in place and shift towards one corner.

Sharpen a pencil and slide it vertically along the walls of the cabinet drawing a line along the opposite sides.

Next mark the location of brackets.

Remove and use shelf as pattern but place the side with the line such that the pencil mark is 1/2 diameter away from edge.

Cut to line on material side so it is a bit big.

It it now fits cabinet but not on brackets. Use marked shelf to transfer marks to new where brackets are.

Remove just enough to allow shelf to fit, only from the ones that need it.

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[rabler]

The other thing you could consider is gluing a strip along the bottom of the shelf to improve the shelf rigidity, from the proximity of the bracket on one side to the bracket(s) on the other side. A couple strips of 2" wide by 1" thick (3/4" actual) will significantly reduce and tendency of the shelf to flex under load.

 

[WobblyHand]

The other thing you could consider is gluing a strip along the bottom of the shelf to improve the shelf rigidity, from the proximity of the bracket on one side to the bracket(s) on the other side. A couple strips of 2" wide by 1" thick (3/4" actual) will significantly reduce and tendency of the shelf to flex under load.

I may do that if the shelf isn't rigid enough. Have to finish the brackets before I consider adding the shelf stiffeners.
Will be making some of the brackets this afternoon, at least the aluminum part.