Is finishing drawers WITHOUT final fit-up OK?

I finished making eight 8-7/8" x 19" x 17"D drawers all of 3/4", 1/2", and
1/4" birch ply. I am gonna finish all but the front 5 faces with minwax
semi-gloss spar poly. Semi-gloss white oil on the five front and edges. I
used the bottom support side mounted nylon roller slides (not quite full
extensionables). I glued the drawers with a bar clamp for the front face
lock joint, a strap clamp for inward pull all four corners, and two diagonal
homemade drawer clamps (the ones that look like a speed square), each with
two clamps for square. The stock was made w/ a TS and I made a X-cut sled,
and router table, so all were pretty darn good. So was the set-up and dry.
I didn't use any nails, just glue.

After I sand the glue off I am going to prime and paint; then mask and poly

I layed out and screwed the cabinet side of the slides onto the internal
3/4" vertical plywood cabinet frame even before I finished the drawers,
using the top as my Horizontal reference. Couldn't see why not at the time.
I used washer/dryer feet on the dadoed 2x4 select pine bottom supports, and
everything was made correctly, so I have exactly 1/2" each gap as specified.
I know they all slide in and stay on the slides in place without attaching
the drawer side slide to the drawers with any screws. I just randomly stuck
all eight drawers into the frame and they were all the same. Just walked
away.

So I want to sand all the edges of the lock joints flush and finish them.
Then I want to screw the drawer side slides to them, and put them in. Done.
It is the first time I have made drawers. Everything was done by the book.
I was expecting to do more tweaking and fitting of each and every drawer.
It was only a lightbulb moment idea to screw the cabinet side of the slides
onto the internal 3/4" vertical ply frame while they were lying down. I
used a awl. They are centered!! Everything is good. No missing lines on
the tape measure. I am still wondering when the tweaking everyone talks
about is coming. I do not want to tweak!

Since I have no true idea of how it would fit when I used three screw on the
bottom of each drawer slide I didn't pay attention to how flush the faces of
the drawers w/r/t/ each other and the frame. Other than the obvious.
Nothing to complain about. The 9/16" gap was fair top to bottom.

Question1:

Can I just go ahead and sand, finish, then attach the slides to the bottom
without fitting each?. I know the size and fit is theoretically/practically
perfect. Depending on where I took the measurement during glue-up
everything was square. A new experience I may get into later. My drawer
jigs are about 1' square (minus 2-1/2" corner glue clear-out gap). No-fit
paper normal accuracy.

I don't care about a LITTLE off squareness. Hell I have NO face frame. Or
knobs. Storage inside a closet in basement.

Or do I need to screw the drawer side slide to each drawer, number them and
work on them individually before I finish, then use the same screw
holesafter I finish. Because I could cheat/twist/sand whatever them into
virtual alignment. This may be of importance: Although I allowed for the
use of the back (stud wall H-flush-braced with 15 2x4 pieces) to be used as
an integral drawer back stop, these length slides have a pinch stop for the
nylon wheel (the smaller slides don't) The slides length are EXACTLY the
same AS the depth of the cabinet AS the total depth of the drawer (including
nom. 3/4" front). All 17-3/4" . By design. No doubt.

The frame is solid right/square etc.

BTK, I don't think there is much I could do.

Question2: Should I add any filled set finishing nails now that it has
dried for a week? - through the sides and into the 3/4" lock joint fronts,
and 1/2" dadoed rears.

----== Posted via Newsfeeds.Com - Unlimited-Unrestricted-Secure Usenet News==----
http://www.newsfeeds.com The #1 Newsgroup Service in the World! 120,000+ Newsgroups
----= East and West-Coast Server Farms - Total Privacy via Encryption =----

bb

"bent"