Tools
- Phillips screwdriver, steps 2, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 12
- Hammer, steps 3 and 9
- Pencil, steps 9 and 10
Parts (12)
| Part | Count | Size | Goes in | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Side panel, left | 1 | 202 × 28 × 2 cm | step 4 | The unfinished edge faces the back. |
| Side panel, right | 1 | 202 × 28 × 2 cm | step 7 | |
| Bottom panel | 1 | 76 × 26 × 2 cm | step 4 | |
| Fixed shelf | 1 | 76 × 26 × 2 cm | step 5 | |
| Top panel | 1 | 76 × 26 × 2 cm | step 6 | |
| Plinth (front strip) | 1 | 76 × 8 × 2 cm | step 8 | |
| Back panel, lower | 1 | 96 × 80 cm, 3 mm thick | step 9 | |
| Back panel, upper | 1 | 96 × 80 cm, 3 mm thick | step 9 | |
| Adjustable shelf | 4 | 76 × 26 × 2 cm | step 11 |
Hardware (75 pieces)
| Part no. | Hardware | Count | Size | Used in |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 101351 | Wooden dowel 8 × 34 | ×14 | Ø 8 × 34 mm | step 3 |
| 104322 | Cam bolt | ×8 | Ø 7 × 32 mm | step 2 |
| 118331 | Cam lock | ×8 | Ø 15 × 12 mm | steps 4, 6 and 7 |
| 109040 | Wood screw 4 × 45 | ×4 | Ø 4 × 45 mm | steps 5 and 7 |
| 110630 | Nail 1.4 × 25 | ×24 | Ø 1.4 × 25 mm | step 9 |
| 100001 | Shelf pin | ×16 | Ø 5 × 16 mm | step 10 |
| 102384 | Wall anchor bracket + strap | ×1 | 40 × 20 × 10 mm | step 12 |
Sizes are the blueprint's, as drawn in the 3D: diameter × length for fasteners, in millimetres.
The 12 steps
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Step 1: Check your parts
Lay everything on a soft surface (the flattened box works). Count the panels against the list and tip the hardware bags into bowls so nothing rolls away.
Tip: Put the two side panels unfinished-edge up. That raw edge faces the back when the bookcase stands.
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Step 2: Screw the cam bolts into both sides
With the sides lying flat, holes up, drive the 8 cam bolts into the pre-drilled holes near the bottom and the top of each side. Hand-tight with the screwdriver, no force.
Watch out: Bolts go into the inner face, the one with all the small holes. If you see a plain face, flip the panel.
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Step 3: Tap the dowels into the shelves
Push a wooden dowel into each hole on the ends of the bottom panel, the fixed shelf and the top panel, and into the ends of the plinth. Tap gently with the hammer until they stop.
Tip: Dowels go in the panel ENDS, not the faces. Two per end, plus one in each end of the plinth.
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Step 4: Stand the left side and fit the bottom
Stand the left side panel up (a second pair of hands helps) and slide the bottom panel onto its two cam bolts, dowels first. Drop a cam lock into each round hole on top of the bottom panel and turn it clockwise until it stops.
Watch out: The arrow on each cam lock points toward the side panel before you turn it. Turning the wrong way locks nothing.
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Step 5: Fit the fixed shelf
Line the fixed shelf's dowels up with the holes halfway up the left side and push it home. Drive two wood screws through the outside of the side panel into the shelf.
Tip: Screw from the outside: the holes on the outer face are countersunk so the heads sit flush.
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Step 6: Fit the top panel
Slide the top panel onto the upper cam bolts and dowels of the left side. Drop in two cam locks from above and turn them clockwise to lock.
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Step 7: Add the right side
Lower the right side panel onto the dowels and cam bolts of the bottom, the fixed shelf and the top. Lock the four cam locks, then drive the last two screws into the fixed shelf from the outside.
Watch out: Check both sides sit flush at the front before you turn the cams. A 2 mm overhang now becomes a wobbly back panel later.
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Step 8: Attach the plinth
Push the plinth's dowels into the holes at the front bottom of each side so its face sits flush with the front edges.
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Step 9: Nail the back panels
Lay the bookcase face down. Place the lower back panel with its smooth, finished side facing down into the bookcase (that side shows from the front), flush with the bottom and both sides. Nail every 15 cm along the sides and along the fixed shelf, then repeat with the upper panel.
Watch out: Measure both diagonals before the first nail. Equal diagonals mean the frame is square. The back panel locks in whatever shape you nail.
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Step 10: Place the shelf pins
Stand the bookcase up. Pick the heights you want and push four shelf pins in at each height, two per side, same row front and back.
Tip: Count the holes from the bottom on both sides and write the row number in pencil. Uneven pins are a common cause of a wobbly shelf.
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Step 11: Slide in the shelves
Tilt each adjustable shelf, drop it onto its four pins and push it back until it sits flat.
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Step 12: Anchor it to the wall
Push the bookcase against the wall. Screw the bracket to the top rear edge, then to a stud or a wall anchor, with the strap tight.
Watch out: Tip-over hazard. A tall bookcase can fall on a child in seconds. Anchor it, even if it looks stable.
After the build
Finish it in the app and it parks itself in My Garage with this care guide:
- Re-tighten the joints: 14 days after the build, then once a year, about 5 minutes. Particleboard settles in the first fortnight. One re-tighten then lasts years.
How the reminders work is in the garage post.