Scaling a set of objects I am trying to create a shelf that scales properly. Each board in the shelf must be 1/2" thick and ideally I would be able to scale the depth, height and or length without affecting the 1/2" thickness of the boards. I have been able to achieve my goals by having separate objects for each board, selecting them together and scaling them (with the 1/2 dimension locked).



My question is: can I have a mesh that scales as desired? Or can I link these objects to scale as desired?

I have tried parent/child relationships, but they seem to ignore the 1/2 dimension lock. Also groups just seem to help you select the items within the group. 

Are there any other suggestions?
Thanks
If I got it right, what you could do is using hook to move one side of the shelf, like this


In edit mode, select all vertices of one side of the shelf, then, hook (CTRL+H) them to an empty like this





then you can select the empty





and moving it (here on Y) will "scale horizontally" your shelf like this:






Other setups are possible, this is just to give you the idea