Here’s a really nice and easy kitchen project – dish rack. This kitchen dish rack is super easy to make and will serve you well for many years. This is a perfect addition to your kitchen to get organized.

Tools and Materials

This dish rack can be made with only hand tools. The tools you really need for this project are a saw, a drill, and some sandpaper. I, of course, will be using a radial arm saw, a drill press, and an orbital sander.

Materials are equally simple. I chose to use Maple for this project because it’s a tight grain wood and absorbs water slowly you can use any word you choose you will need two pieces that are about 19 inches long by 3/4 by 1 inch and several dowels 3/8 inch diameter by 36 inches long.

Layout

As with the tools and materials layout is very straightforward. Mark a centerline down each of the support rails. The center line should be at the 1/2 inch mark. Then use the drawing below to layout the hole centers. You can change the hole spacing of course based on the dishes you plan on putting in the dish rack.

Cutting

This is such a simple project. You need to crosscut 20 dowels there are 4-3/4 inch long. Then cut the support rails to 18-3/8 inches long.

Drilling

In this operation I used a drill press, you don’t need to do that. A regular drill motor with the 3/8 inch drill bit will serve you well. Be sure you check the dowel diameter. A 3/8 inch dowel is not always 3/8 inch. Drill a couple of test holes and see how they fit. I had to use 23/64 inch drill bit which was a bit snug for the dowels but it was better than it being too loose.

Sanding

Sand all the surfaces with 220 grit sandpaper either by hand or with an orbital sander. Be sure you break all the sharp edges. Use 320 grit on the dowels and sand the ends. This will provide an nice surface to receive the finish.

Assembly

Assembly of the Kitchen Dish Rack consist of applying a waterproof glue like Titebond III to one end and tapping it into the hole. Wipe up any squeeze out with a wet paper towel. Look down the length to make sure all the dowels are sticking up the same height and all are correctly aligned. Leave it to dry for about two hours then glue on the 1” x 1” x1/4” feet if you are putting them on.