Vlog #91: Computer Armoire?

Video Notes:

  • I can’t pronounce armoire. It’s weird how certain words do that.
  • I’ve settled on a armoire cabinet for my office instead of a desk. It will be a nice piece of furniture to hide all of my office crap.
  • No need to say tool brand names when using that particular tool :)
  • The easel project turned out nice. Lots of good feedback on the project, video, and plans. A win, win, win weekend.
  • I got a new push stick from ChipOut Woodworking. Follow him on Instagram.
  • I use Dry Dex pink spackling to fill nail holes when painting.

 

44 COMMENTS

  1. I think it’s a Home run .
    Great design ,very functional , so lets get err done Son.
    I might like to build one for my wife .
    And as always ” Protect Your DIGITS ”

    Gregg
    Protect Your DIGITS Creations

  2. Ive been looking into something like this too. One thing you might consider is a second tray under the keyboard so you can do paperwork too. Hope you sell the plans afterwards.

  3. Take a drive to Star MS. Heartwood Lumber. I got some mahogany for a little more than $3 a bf. Might be a great option for the armoire.

      • It’s outside but covered. And I recommend letting it acclimate in the shop for a couple months. But it is clean, straight grain. It’s actually rejects from the coffin manufacturers. Apparently they are the largest consumer of mahogany in the US

  4. You don’t seem to have any desk space for your paperwork. May I suggest a drop down table attached to the inside of either the left or right door.

    ARMOIRE= AR / MOIRE

    Regards Ronald Leger, (French Canadian)

  5. As always Jay, I love the build concept of your new work station. Since I hate working on anything in the dark, if it were mine, I’d incorporate a 2 foot LED light in the top. Leaving a space for writing notes, etc. is a great idea as well. Can’t wait to see the final build video and project updates.

  6. You do not have a design that allows for the heat from the tower to be expelled. This could be a problem. Maybe a slot that goes across the back bottom section with some integrated grill work? Looking forward to seeing the video of this build.

  7. Great looking project. I agree: do it as a mulit-part, multi-week build. Also, your feeling is right: no moulding at the bottom. The pronunciation problem stems from the fact that it’s a French word. It sounds pretentious to pronounce it the way the French do, but it works if you just say “Arm-war”

  8. Go with oak! I like the design, I would add the molding at the bottom too. You’re going to want to put your feet on the bottom shelf. Could you do something for that too?

    • I have no urge to put my feet on bottom with my current setup so I doubt I will. I’d rather keep it all closed up on bottom like an actual piece of furniture.

  9. Love the design. I do wonder about the air flow for the PC. I don’t know how beefy of a machine you have but my gaming rig can kick out a lot of heat and putting it in an enclosed space like that would make for a mini oven. Keep up the great videos!

    • Mine is mostly SSD’s and a xeon processor so power consumption and heat isn’t bad. There will be plenty of ventilation though. I didn’t model that part.

  10. Jay, have you given any consideration for heat dispersion from your computer tower? This may not be an issue with such a large cabinet, but it could. I have had a similar issue with ours with the exception of our cabinet has a smaller enclosed space and the heat buildup is intoleable for the tower to operate effectively. Just a thought. Nice plans by the way.

  11. Jay,

    That is a nice clean design for an armoire/office. Consider Steve’s comment about heat buildup. It’s not such a big deal with most modern components (flat monitor throws little heat, hard drive and motherboard run fairly cool). After you get it built, put a thermometer inside and see what the temp diff is between inside-doors-closed and the rest of the room. If it’s not more than 10 degrees you should be OK. Some strategically placed holes and a fan at the top to pull air out would help a little.
    Printer, PC, and monitor makers will usually tell you how much room to allow.

    “Armoire” is pronounced same as “wardrobe”.

    I’m looking forward to seeing your build.

  12. I am addicted to your videos and this design is great! Super comments also from your fans. Have you considered hardwood plywood? I’d think you could save some $$ (but maybe not if you buy enough quantity over time from a single trusted supplier.)
    Also, you often mention your other ‘channels’. What are they and how do I access them? (I’d hate to miss any of your stuff.)

    • Hey Gary. Thanks for the feedback. I really like the look of solid wood better but I might use matching species plywood for the panels. Not sure at this stage. I just have my main channel and my vlog channel. But I do occasionally post stuff on this website that doesn’t make it to either channel so to stay up to date with everything just sign up for one of my email newsletters.

  13. Great ideas. I’m a Kiwi i.e. live in New Zealand. The timber here we use is native so I adapt as necessary though some of these are now protected like Kauri which Is long grained and was especially suited foe sailing ship masts back In the primitive days pre1900

  14. I really like this idea but I have a multi-monitor set up, so I had a little play around in sketchup tonight and came up with this concept for the upper part of the armoire. http://goo.gl/8PAiok

    The doors will have several sets of hinges to allow them to concertina back on themselves and will leave an opening at the sides so that the screens can fold out. I would have the ledge a little wider than yours, about 2 inches, so that it provides support for the doors when in the open position.

    I’ll obviously need to do something clever with the cable management to keep it nice and clean but still allow the screens to move freely, but I think this design could work. The rest of the build would essentially be the same as yours design with a few changes in dimensions.

  15. I think this very nicely designed cabinet deserves to be built out of some sort of hardwood.
    I would like to see you do a stain and finish project.
    Jeff

  16. I would not put the molding on the bottom. Not for aesthetic reasons, but practical. I think you would end up kicking it too easily which would scuff the finish, and I don’t think it adds enough to the look

  17. Great VIdeo as always Jay, Myself i would try to conceal the fact that the top and bottom are two separate pieces by making a connecting seam that match up when stacked and then have just the top/bottom decorative moulding. For air flow, have you considered doing a louvered door? If you don’t need the monitors to be back so far in the cabinet, you could put the tower behind them leaving more room for storage in the bottom, or behind the keyboard tray if it wasn’t so deep. Great idea though!

  18. Some thoughts on the armoire (arm-wa):
    You will enjoy the piece much more, over time, if you make it from cherry or other hardwood. You could use cherry plywood for the inset panels, though book matched figured panels would be AWESOME on the upper doors.

    I vote no on the bottom “crown molding.” The crown molding of the lower carcass should be smaller in scale than that of the upper, but similar in shape. Having the upper doors open at 180 degrees seems a bit awkward to me. I think they should either swing a full 270 degrees, or flip back into sliding pockets. Potential plan purchasers would probably prefer the door pockets. I highly recommend recessed back panels for wire management.

    I don’t know about you, but the mess in my office is mostly displaced paperwork. Do you have a plan to deal with mail, bills, print-outs, etc.? Will you use the keyboard shelf as a writing surface? Just fuel for thought. No need to reply. Good luck. Looking forward to the build.

  19. I love the way you say “um-wah” , I say it the same way.
    I’d skip the bottom trim molding, it may look overbearing and too “I’m trying to make everything match”. If you do go with it I’d scale it to half size, so it’s there but not in your face. Otherwise it might look like that guy in the water with three inter-tubes around him.

  20. The correct pronunciation based on your description of why you are going this route is “crap hider”

  21. I vote no molding on the bottom of the unit. If your feet are underneath the unit, you might be hitting the molding with your ankles and shins.

    I’m looking forward to the build! I want to see how to make the saw tooth shelf supports.

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