Finishing Tip #3: Drying Rack

This simple drying rack made of 2x4's permits stained, oiled, varnished, painted, lacquered, cleaned, stripped, washed, etc. items to dry in a very compact amount of space with virtually nothing but a few knife-edge contact points between the item and the rack.  The parallel sets of notches are approximately 1/8" wider than the item is thick and 1" deep.  The rack is suitable for cabinet doors, panels, cabinet sides, face frames, door frames, drawer faces, and anything else flat, such as the bookshelves shown.  The width of the notch can, of course, be adjusted for thicker stock as was done in the back half of the rack shown, but then refilled for 3/4" stock with little masonite squares.  You want to produce a slight lean sufficient to prevent the item from falling back to vertical.  Even if you were refinishing just one set of kitchen cabinet doors this rack would both increase your efficiency and preclude any marks in your stain or surface coating.  The drying rack also supports my protocol of finishing all sections of piece prior to assembly, a good subject for a future woodworking tip.