murphybed-dn1117

From Workbench MagazineAll rights reserved

page 1 of 17 ©2005 August Home PublishingOne copy for personal use. Other copies prohibited.

Plans N O Ww w w . p l a n s n o w . c o m

®

AMurphy bed can transform a homeoffice into a guest bedroom at amoment's notice. What makes this

quick conversion possible is a specialized hard-ware kit (manufactured by Create-A-Bed) thatpulls the bed up into a cabinet.

Even with the specialized hardware, building aMurphy bed is, admittedly, no small under-taking. But the woodworking techniquesinvolved are fairly straightforward, and ourconstruction tips take “Murphy’s Law” out ofthis Murphy bed project.

SPACE-SAVING

MURPHY BED



The key to this Murphy bed’s oper-ation is the specialized hardware.Keep in mind that the details ofthis design are specific to theCreate-A-Bed hardware kit we pur-chased from Rockler (vertical instal-lation for a full-sized mattress).

The main hardware pieces inthe kit are the pivot plates, pis-tons, and ball stud plates (seeIllustration).

There are two pairs of pivotplates in the Murphy bed kit.

Each pair includes a male andfemale pivot plate. These con-nect the bed frame to the cab-inet and allow the bed to foldup and down.

Two hydraulic pistons help con-trol the descent of the bed andalso aid in lifting the bed backinto the storage cabinet.

Each of the pistons snaps ontotwo ball stud plates, which areinstalled on the cabinet side andthe bed frame.

Cabinetmounts to wall andhouses bed frame

in the closed position

Stopkeeps bottom of bed frameflush with front of cabinet

Bed Frameholds mattress and presentsa decorative facade when

bed is folded up into cabinet

Spring-Loaded Latchsecures the bed frame

inside the cabinet

Pivot Platesallow the bed frame tofold up into the cabinet

Hydraulic Pistonmakes it easy for one person

to open and close the bed

Spring Mechanismengages and disengages latch

that locks bed in cabinet

Legpivots down to supportthe bed when in use

Nylon Strap Handlereleases latch and provides a

comfortable grip when pulling bed down

Support Panelscreate a flat, even platform

for the mattress

Construction DetailsOverall Dimensions:

577/8" W x 785/8" D x 843/8" H (Open)

577/8" W x157/8" D x 843/8" H (Closed)

HOW IT WORKS

BedFrame Female

Pivot Plate

Lower BallStud Plate

Piston

MalePivot Plate

Cabinet Side



The first step to building thisMurphy bed is to make a frame tohold a full-sized mattress. It consistsof a large inner frame, a two-pieceplywood face panel, and four bedrails (Bed Frame Assembly, below).

Build the Inner Frame — Theinner frame is composed of five L-shaped struts held in place by twoframe sides (Bed Frame Detail).Construction is simple. First, cut tenstrut pieces (A) to size and glue theminto their L-shaped configurations.Then cut the frame sides (B) to sizeand screw them to the struts.

Add the Face Panel — With theinner frame complete, you can focuson the plywood face panel.This is thebottom of the bed frame, whichmeans it’s the “show”face of the bedwhen folded up in the cabinet.

The face panel is wider than asheet of plywood, so it’s made byedge-gluing two panels (C).To alignthese panels during glue-up, I useda 1/4" hardboard spline that fits intoa slot in the inner edge of each piece(Spline Detail). A handheld routerand a 1/4" slot-cutting bit make quickwork of cutting this slot.

build the basicBED FRAME

Sand a "roundover on edge

!/4

Slot inface panel

Slot Detail

BED FRAMEASSEMBLY

{ Use couplers to extend your pipe clampswhen edge-gluing the face panel. An over-and-under arrangement of clamps prevents bowing.

!/2"!/4

!/2

" slot," deep

Spline( " hardboardx " x 75")!/4

!%/16

!/4"!/4"!/4"

C C

Spline Detail Bed Frame Detail

a

Pipe Coupler

Face Panels(edge-joinedwith splines)



Before gluing up the face panel,there’s one last detail to attend to.That’s cutting a small slot in eachpanel for a nylon strap,which is partof the latch release mechanism (SlotDetail). I used a plunge router withan edge guide, and then routed theslots with a 3/8" spiral bit. Then Isanded the edges of the slots to keepthe strap from fraying (Detail a).

Now you’re ready to glue thepanels together — provided you haveenough long clamps. If not, you can“stretch” your clamps by using thetip shown on page 3. Once you’verounded up the clamps, brush glueinto the grooves, insert the spline,andclamp the face panel together.

Attach Face Panel to Frame —When the glue dries, it’s time toattach the face panel to the innerframe.To do that, set the face panelon a flat surface with its “show” sidedown.Then attach the frame withglue and screws (Bed Frame Detail).

Make the Bed Frame Rails —The next step is to surround theinner frame and face panel withfour bed rails made from 3/4"-thickmaple. Start by cutting the head rail

(D), foot rail (E), and side rails (F)to size.

Add Latch Shims — If you lookat the Side Rail Illustration below,you’ll see that there’s a wood shim(G) attached to the outer face ofeach side rail.This shim ensures theproper spacing between the bedframe and the wall cabinet, whichis required for the latch to operate.

The latch shim is a thin strip ofhardwood that tapers toward oneend. Drill a hole in the shim toaccept the latch.Then sand the taperusing a belt/disk sander.The shim issimply glued to the side rail. Oncethe glue dries, take the side rail to thedrill press and extend the hole inthe shim through the rail.

At this point, you’re ready to startmounting the hardware that makesthis Murphy bed operate.In particular,you’ll be mounting a female pivotplate and a lower ball stud plate toeach side rail.One thing to be awareof here is that the side rails are mirrorimages of each other. So you’ll wantto label the inside and outside faces ofeach rail to make sure the hardwaregets mounted on the correct side.

That done,follow the step-by-stepinstallation process detailed in theIllustration below to mount the hard-ware.Note that you’ll need to drill ahole to accept the female pivot plate.Also, it’s important to install the ballstud plate so the stud is 5/16" above thetop of the rail (Ball Stud Detail).Later,this will allow clearance for the pistonto snap onto the stud.I made a spacerto ensure proper clearance.

Attach the Bed Rails — Allthat’s needed to complete the bedframe is to attach the rails.The siderails go on first.Align these rails sothey’re flush with the inner frameon the ends. Then drive screwsthrough the inner frame and intothe side rails. Now attach the headand foot rails to the side rails usingwoodscrews and finish washers.

After completing the assembly,there’s one final detail to take care of.You need to extend the latch holethat you drilled in the shim and siderail through the inner frame (LatchHole Detail).An easy way to do thatis use the existing hole as a guide. Justchuck a Forstner bit in a portabledrill and drill the hole.

SIDE RAIL

Lower BallStud Plate

Spacer

Stud

%/16"

Ball Stud Detail

Latch Hole Detail

LATCH SHIM



O

H

IJ

K

L

N

M

M

FacePanel

Leg( " x 7 " x 51")#/4 #/4

Pivot Rail( " x 2 " x 51 ")#/4 !/4 !/2

Upper Stile( " x 2 " x 45 ")#/4 !/4 &/16

Ledge( " x 1 " x 56")#/4 !/2

Field Stile( " x 2" x 25 ")#/4 %/ 16

15 "#/ 16Side Stile

( " x 2 " x 31 ")#/4 !/4 !/16

Top Rail( " x 2 " x 51 ")#/4 !/4 !/2

Lower FaceFrame

Bottom Rail( " x 3 " x 51 ")#/4 !/2 !/2

BedFrame

!/4" Steel Pin,3" long

WoodPlug

add a decorative face &FLIP-DOWN LEG

TRIM & LEG ASSEMBLY

H

JK

FieldStileStile

Face FrameTop Rail

1 "PocketScrew

!/4

Pocket Screw Detail

E

!/4"

#/4"

!/4" hole

FacePanel

Upper Stile

1 "&/8

Upper Stile Detail

HJ

L

M

FacePanel

!/4"

Face Frame Detail

BedFrame(bed

foldedup)

LegAssembly

{ A leg assemblypivots down fromthe frame to supportthe bed during use.

a

As I mentioned, the face panel of thebed frame is the “show” side of thisMurphy bed. So to make it as attractiveas possible, I applied decorative trimpieces to the face panel. One of thesetrim pieces is also functional. It’s part ofa leg assembly that sits flat on top of thebed frame when it’s folded up, thenswings down for support when you pullthe bed out of the cabinet (see Photo left).

The trim pieces, including the legassembly, are all made from 3/4"-thickhardwood. They’re attached in threephases.First, a lower face frame is appliedas a single unit (Trim & Leg Assembly).Then two upper stiles are added on.Finally, the pivoting leg assembly is con-nected to the stiles.

Build the Lower Face Frame —The lower face frame is sized to over-hang the bed frame by 1/4" on each side(Face Frame Detail).With that in mind,start by cutting the top and bottom rails(H,I) and side stiles (J) of the face frame.Then drill pocket holes in the rails andassemble the frame (Pocket Screw Detail).Now cut the field stiles (K) to fit betweenthe rails and attach with pocket screws.

The final piece of the lower faceframe is a hardwood ledge (L). Simplycut this ledge to size and then glue andclamp it to the top rail.

Now you’re ready to attach the faceframe.To do this, glue and clamp it inplace, taking care to maintain that over-hang I mentioned earlier.



The Upper Stiles — The upperstiles (M) are next,and these pieces areabout as simple as they get,except forone small detail.When the bed iscomplete,the support leg will pivot onsteel pins that connect the leg assemblyto the upper stiles.You’ll install thosepins later, but you need to makeaccommodations for them now.

To do that, you’ll need to drill a1/4" hole through each stile for thepin (Upper Stile Detail).Carefully layout the location of each hole anddrill it at the drill press.

With that done, glue and clampthe stiles to the face panel.Pay atten-tion to a couple things here. First,make sure that both stiles overhangthe same amount (1/4") as the lowerface frame.Then measure betweenthe stiles at the top and bottom to besure they’re parallel.

Support Leg — Despite its “piv-otal” role in supporting the bed, theleg assembly is still a simple build. It’scomprised of two pieces: the leg itselfand a pivot rail (Support Leg Assembly).

Start by cutting the leg (N) tosize.Then lay out and cut the curved“lift” with a jig saw.

The next step is to cut the pivotrail (O) to size. Note that it’s 1/2"longer than the leg, which creates a1/4" overhang on each side (Pivot RailDetail).This provides clearance to keepthe leg from rubbing against the stiles.

For a similar reason, you’ll needto rout a bullnose profile on oneedge of the pivot rail (Bullnose Detail).This profile allows the leg assemblyto pivot freely without bindingagainst the bed frame.

After shaping the edge of thepivot rail on the router table, simplyglue and clamp it to the leg.

Attach the Support Leg — Inorder to mount the support legassembly using the pivot pins men-tioned earlier, you’ll have to drillholes in the pivot rail that align withthose in the upper stiles.To do thisaccurately, position the leg assemblybetween the stiles and temporarilyclamp it to the bed frame in theclosed position.Then,using the holesin the stiles as a guide, drill the holesin the pivot rail (Fig. 1). Now tap

the pins through the stiles and intothe pivot rail (Fig. 2). Once that’sdone, glue in wood plugs to con-ceal the holes.

Add a Magnetic Catch — Tokeep the support leg from swingingout unexpectedly when loweringthe bed, I added a magnetic catch. It’scomprised of a rare-earth cupmagnet and a strike plate (washer).These parts fit into shallow pocketsthat are formed by drilling coun-terbores in the foot rail and leg(Support Leg Assembly).

An easy way to align the coun-terbores is to use a dowel center.This is a metal pin that you insertinto a dowel hole. It has a sharp spurwhich is used to locate the exactcenter in a mating piece.

To use the dowel center on thebed, drill a counterbore in the footrail. Then insert the dowel centerand close the leg against the foot railto mark the location of the strikeplate. Now drill the counterbore inthe leg and install the catch.

Upper Stile

Foot Rail

Pivot Rail

Leg

!/4

!/4

" x 3" pin,(cut from" steel rod)

Plug

NOTE: Tap pin into place,then glue in wood plug

2

1

Leg

1 "!/8

UpperStile

Strike-Plate(Washer)

Cup

!/2" Rare-EarthMagnet

Foot Rail

PivotRail

!/4" hole

1 "!/24 "!/2

%/8!/4

" counterbore," deep

NOTE: Drill counterborein foot rail first, then usea dowel center to locate

matching counterbore on leg

%/8

!/16

" counterbore," deepR=1 "!/2

SUPPORT LEGASSEMBLY

#/8"Roundover

BitFence

Pivot Rail

Bullnose Detail

PivotRail

Leg

!/4"

Pivot Rail Detail



%/8

!/2

" hole," deep

!/4"T-Nut

!/4"T-Nut

#12 x " FhWoodscrew

#/4

!/4 %/8" x "MachineScrew

5 "!/2

13 "#/ 16

33 "#/ 16

MalePivotPlate

UpperBall Stud

Plate

Stop

!/4 %/8" x "MachineScrew

#10 x " FhWoodscrew

#/4

%/8

!/2

" hole," deep

10 "#/4

#8 x "Panhead

Screw

%/8

%/ 16

!/2

" hole," deep

5"

7 "!/4

Side Detail

QSide Edging

( " x " x 84 ")#/4 #/4 #/8

P

P

R

S

S

T

U

V

W

End Cleat( " x 1 " x14 ")#/4 !/2 #/8

Top Panel( " ply. x 14 " x 56 ")#/4 #/8 #/8

Bottom Trim Board( " x 4" x 56 ")#/4 #/8

Headboard Edging( " x " x 56 ")!/4 #/4 #/8

MalePivot Plate

Headboard( " ply. x 15 " x 56 ")#/4 !/2 #/8

BedStop

Side

#8 x 1 " Fh Woodscrew!/4

Upper BallStud Plate

Front/Back Rail( " x 2 " x 56 ")#/4 #/4 #/8

Side( " ply. x

15 " x 84 ")#/4

!/8 #/8

NOTE: Rip 30° bevelalong top edge (see Bevel Detail)

The bed frame is housed in a largewall-mounted cabinet that’s open infront and back (Cabinet Construction).

What’s unusual about this cabinetis it has to be assembled around thebed frame.That’s because of how thepivot plates in the Murphy bed hard-ware kit fit together.So,while you canmake the cabinet parts in your shop,you’ll actually assemble them in theroom as you install the bed.

Start with the Sides —The firststep is to cut the sides (P) to sizefrom 3/4" plywood.Then glue longstrips of 3/4"-thick hardwood edging(Q) to the front edge of each side tocover the exposed plywood.

Now it’s time to mount the rest ofthe bed hardware.This includes themale pivot plates, the upper ball studplates,and a pair of stops (Side Detail).

You’ll need to drill three holes inthe inside face of each side to acceptthis hardware.Here again, the cabinetsides are mirror images of each other.So be sure to label the inside andoutside faces to avoid getting themmixed up.Then drill the holes andmount the hardware as shown.

Build a Headboard —The nextstep is to add the headboard (R).Like the sides, it’s a 3/4" plywood panelwith hardwood edging (S) on thetop and bottom.This time,however,

I used 1/4"-thick strips so the long,horizontal joint lines between theedging and the headboard wouldpractically disappear.

The headboard will be attachedto the sides of the cabinets withpocket screws (Headboard Detail, page8). To simplify assembly later on,drill pocket holes for the screwsnow.

Topping It Off — Building thetop of the cabinet is next. It consistsof a 3/4" plywood top panel with3/4"-thick hardwood end cleats (U)and rails (V).Note that the end cleatsare narrower than the rails.

Start by gluing the end cleats tothe top of the plywood top panel,flush with the front and back edges.Then glue on the rails so they’reflush with the tops of the cleats.

Bottom Trim Board — The

build an open wall cabinetTO HOUSE THE BED

CABINET CONSTRUCTION

4"

#/4"

BottomTrim

Board

30° bevel

Bevel Detail



CABINET ASSEMBLY

{ Snap an E-clip over the pivotrod to connect the sides of thecabinet to the bed frame.

Top Mount Detail

Headboard Detail

Side

Headboard

1 " Pocket Screw!/4

Side Mount Detail

D

E

AssembledTop

Side

Side

1 " Pocket Screw!/4

Headboard

Side

Assembled Bed Frame(face panel down)

Elevate bed frame with long boards

Side

16"

Male PivotPlate

PivotRod

E-Clip

Side

EndCleat

#8 x 1 " Fh Woodscrew!/4

Top Panel

Top Rail

FIRST: Fit pivot plates together asside goes on and secure with E-clip

(Side Mount Detail)

SECOND: Screwtop to cabinet

(Top Mount Detail)

FOURTH: Secure bottomtrim board with pocket screws

THIRD: Attachheadboard withpocket screws

(Headboard Detail)

NOTE: Snap E-Clip onto pivotrod to fasten sides to bed frame

FemalePivot Plate

final piece of the cabinet is a bottomtrim board (W) made from 3/4"-thickhardwood.Notice the bevel on the topinside edge of this piece (Bevel Detail,page 7). It creates clearance for the bedframe to swing in and out. Rip thisbevel on the table saw. Then onceagain, drill pocket holes that will beused to secure the trim board to thecabinet.

Apply the Finish — Beforemoving the bed from the shop to theroom where it’s going to be installed,you’ll want to apply the finish.

Just a note about the finish. Sincethe face panel of this bed is so large,you may want to use the finish to“break” it up a bit.To help disguisethe bed, I used the clear finish onthe lower part of the panel, the faceframe, and the upper trim boards.

Then I painted the upper part of thepanel to match the walls.

Preparing for Installation —Oncethe finish is dry,you can move the bedpieces into the room. An extra set ofhands will be useful for much of theinstallation process, so round up ahelper,too.Position the bed frame withthe face panel down and the head railfacing the wall.Prop the frame off thefloor with boards to keep it from tee-tering on the ledge of the face frame(Cabinet Assembly).

Assemble the Cabinet — Nowyou’re ready to assemble the Murphybed.The cabinet sides mount to thebed frame first.To accomplish this, fitthe rod in the pivot plate on each sideinto the pivot plate in the bed frame(Side Mount Detail).Then snap the E-clip included in the kit over the rod

to secure the connection.Next, attach the top by driving

screws through the end cleats into thesides (Top Mount Detail).Then mountthe headboard between the sides withpocket screws (Headboard Detail).Finally,clamp the bottom trim board in place(beveled edge facing in), and attach itwith pocket screws.



> The pistonsthat control thedescent of thebed mount on

the ball studplates on the

bed frame andcabinet sides.To attach the

piston, removethe bed stops

and tilt the bedframe into thecabinet (left).

INSTALLATION TIP

R

T

X

Drywall

Drywall

WallStud

Mattress Support Panels( " ply. x 27" x 75")!/4

Top

Headboard

MattressStrap

BedFrame

Latch ReleaseHandle

Baseboard

Latch

LatchShim

Cord &Cable Tie

CabinetSide

Back Rail

#10 x 2 FhWoodscrew

!/2"

WallStud

WallStud

FINALASSEMBLY

#10 x 2 "Fh Wood-

screw

!/2

NOTE: Remove baseboardor notch cabinet to fit

Cabinet

With the cabinet assembled around the frame,we cometo the final installation of the Murphy bed. For this,you’ll need to get your helper to assist in raising theassembly to an upright position a couple feet awayfrom the wall the bed will occupy.

Install the Pistons — The first step is to install thehydraulic pistons that help control the bed’s descent.Theends of these pistons are designed to snap onto the ballstuds on the bed frame and cabinet sides.

Now you might expect to have to compress the pis-tons (or pull them apart) to get them to fit. But as easyas that sounds, you absolutely will not be able to dothat manually. So instead, you’ll have to manipulate thebed to fit the pistons, instead of the other way around.

To do that, temporarily remove the bed stopsyou installed earlier.This lets you tilt the

bed frame into the cabinet so theball studs are the right dis-

tance apart.About threeinches of inward tilt isall it takes (see InstallationTip, below left).

Now, stand behindthe cabinet, orient each

piston with the indicatedend up, and snap the ends into

place over the ball studs.Mount the Bed on the Wall — That pretty

much completes the bed.Now you’re ready to mountit to the wall.To get it to sit flat against the wall, you’llneed to either remove the baseboard or scribe the cab-inet to fit around it (Baseboard Detail).

Once that’s done, set the bed against the wall andcheck it for plumb.When it’s plumb,drive screws throughthe back rail in the top of the cabinet and into wall studs(Mounting Detail).Then lower the bed frame and drivescrews through the headboard and into the studs(Headboard Detail).By locating the screws near the bottomof the headboard, they won’t be visible when the bed isfolded down.

Installing the Latches — The final step in makingthis bed functional is installing the spring-loaded latchesthat come with the kit and a shop-made release handle.

Installing the latches is easy. Just push each one intothe hole in the shim on the side of the bed (Latch Detail).The latches should sit flush with the face of the shim.

Now, you’ll need to make the handle that’s used torelease the latches and pull down the bed (Latch ReleaseHandle Assembly). It starts with a nylon strap that threadsthrough the slots in the face panel.Each end of this strapis epoxied between two washers.When the epoxy has setup, drill a hole through the nylon strap in the center of

installing the bed &FINAL DETAILS



Cabinet Side(inside face)

THIRDTransfer layoutlines to insideface of cabinet

side, then locatecenter of latch

the washers for a machine screw and nut that hold thehandle together.Then drill a smaller hole to connectthe spring that provides tension for the latch system.

To complete the handle assembly, install a machinescrew and nut into the center of each pair of washers,and hook the spring into the smaller hole.Then tie thecord from the latch through the end of the spring.Adjust the length of cord so that the spring just startsto pull, and reinforce the knot with a cable tie.

Drill Latch Catches — The latches rest in “catches”in the cabinet sides to provide a secure hold on the bedwhen it’s folded up.These catches are nothing more thancounterbores that are easy to locate accurately by fol-lowing the sequence shown in Figures 1 through 3, below.

Final Details — Only a couple minor details remain.First, cut 1/4" plywood support panels (X) for the mat-tress to rest on and set them in the bed frame (FinalAssembly, page 9).Next, attach the mattress straps includedin the kit. Take care to position them so they don’tinterfere with the latches. Finally, set the mattress inplace.

MATERIALS & HARDWAREPart PartQty QtyT TW WL LMaterial Material

WorkbenchMagazine.com

MurpyBed

CuttingDiagram

ExtrasNLINE

Extras

ABCDEFGHIJKL

Bed Frame1022112211231

#/4"#/4"#/4"#/4"#/4"#/4"!/4"#/4"#/4"#/4"#/4"#/4"

1 "!/2

1 "!/2

27"8 "%/8

6 "%/8

6 "%/8

1 "!/2

2 "!/4

3 "!/2

2 "!/4

2"1 "!/2

52 "!/2

75"75"

55 "!/2

75"55 "!/2

6"51 "!/2

51 "!/2

31 "!/16

25 "%/16

56"

Inner Frame Struts

Inner Frame Sides

Face Panels

Head Rail

Foot Rail

Side Rails

Shims

Top Rail

Bottom Rail

Side Stiles

Field Stiles

Face Frame Ledge

Maple

Maple

Maple Plywood

Maple

Maple

Maple

Maple

Maple

Maple

Maple

Maple

Maple

Cabinet

MNO

211

#/4"#/4"#/4"

2 "!/4

7 "#/4

2 "!/4

45 "&/16

51"51 "!/2

Upper Trim Stiles

LegPivot Rail

Maple

MapleMaple

P 2 #/4" 15 "!/8 84 "#/8Sides Maple Plywood

QR

21

#/4"#/4"

#/4"15 "!/2

84 "#/8

56 "#/8

Side Edging

Headboard

Maple

Maple Plywood

T 1 #/4" 14 "#/8 56 "#/8Top Panel Maple Plywood

VWX

212

#/4"#/4"

!/4"4"

2 "#/4

27"

56 "#/8

56 "#/8

75"

Front/Back Rails

Bottom Trim Boards

Mattress Support Panels

Maple

Maple

Maple Plywood

U 2 #/4" 1 "!/2 14 "#/8End Cleats Maple

S 2 !/4" #/4" 56 "#/8Headboard Edging Maple

*Item available at 800-279-4441,www.Rockler.com

FORTH: Drill "hole, " deep

&/8

!/2

LatchShim

Spring-LoadedLatch

BedFrame

CabinetSide

FIRST:Mark latch

locationon frontedge of

cabinet side

SECOND: Set acombination square tomatch center of latch

1 2 3 aINSTALLING THE LATCH

!/16!/16

" hole," from edge

#/16"FenderWasher

Latch Release Handle(1" Nylon Strap,

10" long)

Cord from latch#42 Servalite Spring

Strut

FacePanel

CableTie

#/16

!/2

" Rh MachineScrew, " long

LATCH RELEASEHANDLE

ASSEMBLY

Release Handle Detail

Release Handlepasses through slot

Drill " hole throughstrap for machine screw

#/16

Face Panel



These maple display cases area perfect “side project” to theMurphy bed on page 1. Byfilling the openings between

the bed and the wall, the display casescreate an elegant built-in look.

Sizing the Cases — Actually,the cases don’t fill the openingsentirely. Each case is 1" narrower thanits opening (see Sizing the Case onpage 12). This will make it easy to fitthe case into the opening if the wallsaren’t straight or plumb.Of course, thismeans the case won’t fit tightlyagainst the wall, but any gaps will getcovered by a face frame.

Case Construction — Afterestablishing the case width, you canget started on the sides (A). Theseare tall, narrow panels made of 3/4"plywood.To hold the top, bottom,and fixed shelf (B),you’ll need to cuta rabbet and two dadoes in the sides.It’s best to cut these in an extra-widepanel, and then rip the sides to widthto ensure proper alignment.

Now it’s just a matter of dry-assembling the case to check the fit.This is also a good time to cut a 1/4"plywood back (C). Glue and screw

the case together, andnail the back in place tohelp square up the case.Don’t worry about theexposed screws. They’ll

be covered by the bed.The next step is to add two

mounting cleats (D) which are usedto attach the cases to the wall.Thesecleats are installed inside the cabinet— one below the top and the otherbelow the fixed shelf. Mount thecleats by driving screws through thesides.

To complete the case, drill holesfor the pins that hold the glass shelves.

Face Frames —The next step isto add two face frames to the frontof the case. These frames will bescribed to fit against the wall.Thatmeans they have to start out a bitwider than the opening for the case.I made mine 1/4" wider than theopening, as shown in Sizing the Case.

To simplify construction, the faceframes are assembled with pocketscrews.The lower frame consists oftwo stiles (E), a bottom rail (F), anda ledge (G).The upper frame has twostiles (H) and an upper rail (I). Notethat this frame is topped with a fasciaboard (J),which visually extends thewide band on top of the bed.

Before assembling the frames,there’s one last thing to do.That’s torout a bullnose profile on the bottomedge of the upper rail.This is a purelydecorative element that matches thefunctional bullnose on the bed’s pivotrail, visually tying the two

Part Qty T W L Material

MATERIALS & HARDWARE

ABCDEFGHIJKLM

ON

P

231221

21

1

1112

22

1

#/4"

#/4"

!/4"

#/4"#/4"#/4"

#/4"#/4"

#/4"

#/4"#/4"#/4"#/4"

#/8"#/8"

#/4"

11!/4"

11!/4"

20 "!/2

2"2 "!/4

4"

2 "!/4

2 "&/16

1 "!/2

2 "#/4

2 "!/4

3 "&/16

2"

1 "#/8

2 "#/8

#/4"

84#/8"

19!/2"

84#/8"

19"31 "!/4

21 "!/2

45 "%/8

17"

21 "!/2

21 "!/2

12 "&/8

12 "&/8

31 "!/8

2"2"

19"

Cabinet Sides

Top, Btm., Fixed Shelf

Back

Mounting Cleats

Lower Stiles

Bottom Rail

Upper Stiles

Upper Rail

Ledge

Fascia Board

Upper Door Rail

Lower Door Rail

Door Stiles

Upper Loose Tenon

Lower Loose Tenon

Doorstop

Maple Plywood

Maple Plywood

Maple Plywood

Maple

Maple

Maple

Maple

Maple

Maple

Maple

Maple

Maple

Maple

Maple

Maple

Maple

custom-fitDISPLAY CASES



projects together. After routing theprofile, screw the frames together.

Another visual link between thedisplay cases and the bed is a “shadowline” between the upper face frameand the fascia board (Upper FrameDetail). This line imitates the gapbetween the top of the bed cabinetand the pivot rail.All that’s neededto form this shadow line is to rout asmall rabbet in the top edge of theupper face frame.

Once that’s done, attach the fasciaboard with pocket screws.Then glueand clamp the frames to the case.

Build the Door — The frameand glass-panel door on each dis-play case matches those on the com-puter desk and printer stand. It’s aninset door sized to fit the opening inthe lower face frame with a 1/16" gapall around.The door is assembled withmortise and loose tenon joints (Mortise& Tenon Detail). After constructingthe door frame, rout a rabbet in theback to accept the glass panel.Squareup the corners of the rabbet with achisel, and install the glass with sili-cone adhesive. While the siliconedries, attach a doorstop (N) insidethe case, underneath the front edgeof the fixed shelf.This piece is simplyglued and clamped in place.

Scribe Case to Fit —With thecases complete, it’s time to scribethem to fit against the wall. To dothis, place the case against the wall,check it for plumb, and locate thewidest gap between the face frame

and the wall. Cut a scribing blockthat’s at least as thick as this gap, andslide the block along the wall,holding a pencil against it (ScribingDetail).Then sand, plane, or cut tothe scribe line.

Finally, set the cases in place, anddrive screws through the mountingcleats into the walls.

ScribingBlock

Scribing Detail

B

H

J

G

2#/4

2&/1#/8"roundovers

#/16

!/4

" rabbet," deep

Upper Frame Detail

O

P

K

LM

1 "#/8

2 "#/8

%/16"

%/16"

2"

#/8

#/8

" rabbet," deep

#/8 #/8

!/16

" x 1 "mortise,

1 " deep

#/8 #/8

!/16

" x 2 "mortise,

1 " deep

Mortise & Tenon Detail

Scribe

Display Case

Murphy Bed

Width of Case = Opening minus 1"Width of Face Frames = Opening plus "!/4

Wall

Width ofOpening

Sizing the Case



A

A

O

B

B

B

P

C

D

D

E

F

H

I

J

K

L

N

G

G

M

M

Bottom Rail( " x 4" x 21 ")#/4 !/2

Upper Door Rail( " x 2 " x 12 ")#/4 !/4 &/8Butt

Hinge

Lower Door Rail( " x 3 " x 12 ")#/4 &/16 &/8

Door Stile( " x 2"x 31 ")#/4

!/8

Lower Stile( " x 2 " x 31 ")#/4 !/4 !/4

#/4

!/4"

" dado,deep

#/4

!/4"

" rabbet,deep

Doorstop( " x " x 19")#/4 #/4

Mounting Cleat( " x 2" x 19")#/4

Side( " ply. x 11 "

x 84 ")#/4 !/4

#/8

Upper Stile( " x 2 " x 45 ")#/4 !/4 %/8

Fixed Shelf

Glass Shelf( " x 10"x 18 ")

!/4

&/8

Bottom

Top( " ply. x 11 " x 19 ")#/4 !/4 !/2

Upper Rail( " x 2 " x 17")#/4 &/16

" holes," deep

!/4

!/2

Ledge( " x 1 " x 21 ")#/4 !/2 !/2

TexturedGlass

( " x 13 "x 26 ")

!/8 !/2!/8

Upper LooseTenon

( " x 1 "x 2")

#/8 #/8

Mortise

Lower LooseTenon

( " x 2 "x 2")

#/8 #/8

1 "!/2

2"

2"

10"

Fascia Board( " x 2 " x 21 ")#/4 #/4 !/2

Back( " ply.x 20 "

x 84 ")

!/4

!/2

#/8

NOTE: Left sidecase shown

NOTE: Width of cabinet may vary.See to fit

the case into your opening.Sizing the Case

10"36"

4"

#8 x 1 " FhWoodscrew

!/4

Construction DetailsOverall Dimension: 201/2" W x 111/4" D x 843/8" H



A

A

BB

#/4 !/4" x 8 " x 60" Maple

#/4 !/4" x 8 " x 60" Maple

D

#/4" x 9" x 60" Maple

E

#/4" x 7" x 60" Maple

F

#/4" x 7" x 84" Maple

F

#/4" x 7" x 84" Maple

GG

HI

#/4 !/2 !/4" x 9 " x 84" Maple ("G" is " thick)

J JK K K

LM M

#/4" x 9" x 96" Maple


®

Cutiing Diagram - Murphy Bed



#/4" x 8" x 108" Maple

NO

#/4" x 7" x 96" Maple ("S" is " thick)!/4

#/4 !/2" x 7 " x 60" Maple

W

C

V

V

UU

QS

P

#/4" x 48" x 96" Maple Plywood


®





C

P


T

R


®




!/4" x 48" x 96" Maple Plywood

X

!/4" x 48" x 96" Maple Plywood

X


®


murphybed-dn1117

Documents

female pivot plate

ball stud plates

male pivot plate

lower face frame

upper frame detail

bottom trim board

upper face frame

bed frame detail