Building A Trapezoid Door

Design and Fabrication

In this episode, I build a Custom Trapezoid Door. We remodeled the client’s Colorado Springs house, including a built-in bookshelf as a room divider. To get to the other side, the client wanted a custom door to be the pass-through between the two spaces. The bookshelf and door are made from maple with a custom stain to go with the home’s decor.

Summary

Custom Bookcase Creation and Installation

Brian discussed the process of creating a custom door integrated into a built-in bookcase. He detailed the initial stages of cutting and milling the boards and the use of a tapering jig to shape the top and bottom rails of the door, creating a trapezoid shape. He also explained using a domino joinery system for the middle rails. He then described the process of routing out rabbets for the glass panels to rest in and chiseling out the round corners. He mentioned that the glass would be held in place with glass stops and brad nails. The bookcase’s jamb was custom-sized and used standard-thickness store materials. Brian used a Porter Cable hinge template jig to route out the mortises for the hinges on the jamb and the door. He also shared a link to the jig he used for the template. The door was held in place with a shop-made jig, and the holes for the doorknob and latch were drilled. Finally, the bookcase was stained with the customer’s choice of stain color and installed into the built-in bookshelf.