Accidental Woodworker

 

not quite a hmm.......

I like these hinges a lot but they are loose pin hinges. The bottom ball end is threaded - had to make sure the loose pin was facing up. To prevent the threaded ball end from falling off, I put a couple of drops of Red Loctite on the threads. That should do the trick with keeping it on.

I had to do some touch up on the paint. Mostly on the retainer bars - the pin nail heads were shiny. Once that was done it was on to snapping pics. 

glamour pic #1

Not so sure about the painted door now that it is done. The color is what I had on hand but thinking maybe a different color?  I like the divided lites I did and the snap catch. Note to self buy a few more of them.

new first glamour pic

Snapping the pics on the workbench was problematic. The lights were washing out the pic and I am not a photographer by any stretch of imagination.

glamour pic #2

 Got both of the shelves on the 2nd position from the top and bottom. Visually I think this looks better then putting both of them at the top and bottom ones - 1 1/2" between positions.

left side glamour pic

I made sure that the sides were clear - no knots or any other kind of defects.

back side glamour pic

This I like a lot and it will be the way I will do backs if possible.

right side glamour pic

Proud on how well the dovetails came out. I had to fill 3 gaps and I had to search to find them. 

before I forgot again

Swapped out the two blades - they are  double sided and one side was fresh and unused. I just swapped them and Ill have to check on how to do them correctly. Not sure if they are auto setting or not.

hmm......

I couldn't move the knob in either direction. After I let it soaked for a few, I could move it but only with slip joint pliers.

it works

This doesn't work all that differently from a hand plane. With that said, it does have a learning curve and quirks to figure out. Planed the edge and then tried to make a chamfer.  I didn't do too good on that so that will be revisited.

should I?

This belt is the original one and it is over 30 years old. Still feels flexible and I couldn't see any cracks or splits in it. I'll search with fingers crossed that they still have belts available.

upcoming project

This is want my daughter wants. She has the spice containers and she gave me the measurements of the largest one. From the pic it appears to be straight forward. The only thing I see as a headache is the moldings on the top back stop. 

practice one

 Using the stock from the toolbox build to make the spice rack. I'll use this build to work on the flow and any kinks I'll have to iron out.

tails done

 Pins laid out and ready to be sawn. I did them after I got back to the barn post lunch stroll.

off the saw

It was a little fussy getting the  diagonals to agree. One thing I learned so far is my spacing of the shelves needs help.

hmmm......

Using 6mm plywood for the back. Jessica told me that the back of the  one she saw was one piece. I don't want to deal with solid wood issues or the end grain of plywood showing - even though this is going to be painted.

One work step is how to attach the top back? I have a few ideas on that and I'll  think on that overnight.

bit of twist

Not sure this will work but I'm going to give it a try. It was rocking with the high corners about a 16th off the bench. I'll find out in the AM.

accidental woodworker

 Fingers crossed, but I think tomorrow I'll be posting the glamour pics of the latest to come out of Ralphie's shop. I probably could have done it today but I want the paint to dry and eyeball it all over before I pull that trigger.

hmm.....

Sharpened and tested. I could see and feel an improvement over the last time I did this. Now we'll see how well the edge holds up. I remember it dulling quickly.

snap catch done

The top of the catch on the right is slightly above the catch on the left. I'm leaving it as is because the right keeper is not the same size as the catch.

hmm.....

There is a gap at the back. Not sure if I will do anything about it. I doubt a box of cereal will fall down through it.

trimming and fitting next

Cleaned the glass and trimming and fitting the retainers was in the batters box. I didn't use any glazier's points, instead I'm relying solely on the retainers to hold the glass in place.

sigh

Getting better at fitting miters but they still manage to bite me on the arse. I cut this miter in the wrong direction. There wasn't enough length to saw it in the correct one. Too big of a gap to fill with veneer so I'll have to make a new one.

3 of 4 done

I decided to make four new retainers so each one of them would be the same. I used one of the retainers for the last one to replace the one with a gap.

last four

Got two coats of paint on them and went on my post lunch stroll.

forgot this

Part of the thought that went into this compressor. This is the drain for the tank to let out moisture. This one is a ball valve whereas the pancake compressor has a screw in/out valve.

what's my IQ?

My 1/2" nails came in and I felt like I had a single digit IQ trying to open this. After fighting with it for a bazillion years, I cut it with a sheet rock knife. I understand the purpose of the nubs on the part on the towel but I could only pull it out about 3/8" and then nada.

done

The last of the retainers are nailed in placed. All that is left is to paint the tops of them.

will it be sharp enough?

I didn't rough saw the miter but left the end square. I think that will be a better test of how sharp the chisel is.

much better

No problems, hesitation, or hiccups mitering this end in the jig. It mitered this end as effortlessly as the big chisel I used for the door. It feels sharper and easier going through the wood then the last time I tried this. Fingers crossed the edge will hold.

accidental woodworker 

 Not sure that it is the penultimate upcoming, but the end isn't far behind. Door is hinged and it is going to take a couple of rounds of painting before it is done 100%. The completion is coming at the right time as I have already turned my attention to my daughter's spice rack holder thing. 

hinging the carcass

Installing hinges at one time filled me with a fear that almost crippled me. Something little always plagued me that threw the installation off. Mortise gains chopped too deep, notches made too small or too big. Another big headache was misalignment between the door and the carcass hinges. Today no such hiccups or problems. 

Hinging the door went off without a hitch. It was made easier because the width of the hinge matched the thickness of the door edge perfectly. No worries about blowing out the thin web of wood at the edge of the hinge leaf. 

I started the hinging of the carcass with the top hinge first. Many thanks to Paul Sellers for showing this way of hinging doors. Got the hinge notch done and the hinge sitting in it flush and then marked the position the of bottom hinge.

I put one screw in that hinge (middle one) and knifed the 3 edges. So much easier doing the hinges this way. It is almost impossible to screw it up because if it could happen, I would be first in line to do it.

top margin

Most of the wiggle room is at the top. The bottom margin is a piece of paper gap. Something most have slipped on me when I laid out for the top hinge. Not a deal killer as the top margin is good as is.

won't close

I was expecting this - I knew the width might be too wide. The bottom of the door while it clears, the margin there needs to be a few frog hairs wider. 

took 3 plane and fit trips

I had to plane the latch side and the bottom of the door to fit it to the opening. It took 3 tries. It fit after the first planing run but the margins on the side and bottom were still too tight. The 2nd run was good and the third one was for the thickness of the paint to come.

hmm.....

The door swings into the interior too much. It is a 1/4" before it hits the front edge of the shelf. I needed to come up with a door stop that stops the door flush with the cabinet edge.

nope

There isn't enough room in front of the shelves to put a door stop. I will have to place it either at the top or bottom where there aren't any shelf sleeves. 

top door stop

This worked and I temporarily secured it with a couple of brads. The door however, had other ideas as the bottom toed in slightly as the door closed against the top stop.

bottom stop

The first way I thought of positioning it was parallel to the front edge. Nixed that because not only did it look out of place, it could possible be a hindrance. Positioned this way would work and take up less space and much less of a chance of it getting in the way.

better

Cut it down to less than 1/2 the length and secured it with epoxy. I scraped the shellac off down to bare wood first.

came today

You gotta love Prime. This was waiting when I got back from my post lunch stroll.

Makita MAC320Q

I like the look of this compressor. It weighs a little more than 50 pounds. I don't know what the pancake compressor weighed but this one is lighter. It is also easier to pick up and move around. Better balance from the handle and not as awkward feeling moving it around.

command central

Nice layout of the two gauges - left one is tank pressure and the 2nd one is the output. The black knob between sets the output pressure to the tool. The pancake which was a 6gal didn't have twin couplers on the output. Something that I doubt I will ever use.

works

Pin nails shot through a scrap of poplar. Worked flawlessly. The only hiccup is I still can't find a source for pin nails for this gun. It is made in Taiwan and so far I haven't find anyone that sells the gun or pin nails. 

I sharpened it a few years ago but it didn't hold its edge at all. However, I think since that sharpening I've upped my game on sharpening and I'm going to try it again. 

This coupler works differently than my other ones. To disengage you have to push it forward by grasping the red part, then pull back on the black part to remove the coupler from the gun. The part that matters is that it fits the nailer and the compressor. Engaging and disengaging will become commonplace with use.

nice touch

It has built cord storage. All and all this is a well thought out compressor. I didn't see any blemishes or crappy welds. The compressor is also a lot quieter than the pancake one was. That sounded like a diesel with an attitude when cycling. This is easily half as quiet. Even with my hearing I could hear a big difference.

closing in

Got the snap catch on the door installed. First coat of paint on the edges I planed. The plan is to get the 2nd coat after dinner.

storage

Not the one I wanted but I had to use because of the length. Needed it for the tire pressure gauge. The oil is for my Paslode finish nailer. The other 3 guns are oil free.

beater chisel

I have 3 of these Stanley chisels that I use when I don't want to risk my good bench chisels. I sharpened it a few years ago but it didn't hold its edge at all. However, I think since that sharpening I've upped my game on sharpening and I'm going to try it again.

hmm.....

There was a big chip on the left side that ate up a lot of calories removing on the runway. The toe of the bevel had a funny looking edge while doing this. It is hard to describe but it was nothing like I have seen when sharpening my good bench chisels. 

stopped here

Got it square and I raised a consistent burr on the back. I'll finish this in the AM.

accidental woodworker

 Went on my post lunch stroll today for the first time in 5 days. Everything went fine and it was like there hadn't been a lull in the routine. I was expecting to be a little winded but I wasn't. Took me the same 2 hours that it has taken me all summer. Rain is coming again in a few days and I refuse to stroll in the rain. Because after all I ain't Gene Kelly.

hmm....

I thought I was going to put the final coat on the door but it didn't happen boys and girls. I must have pulled out the putty in these tear outs when I wiped them with the damp rag. No dead line on completion but this time I won't wipe it with a damp rag.

glass was ready

Checked that the glass fit in each of the individual lites. The compressor hadn't come in when I snapped this pic. This side is done with painting but the face side will take another day.

compressor cart

This is history mostly because I don't like it (it is tippy) and it won't fit the new Makita compressor. The plan was to salvage as much of it as I could for some other use.

this is it

A dowel, four swivel, lockable casters, and 16 #10 philips head screws. I shitcanned everything else as unusable.

hmmm....

There is the 16th margin at the top and bottom but zero on the width. It is a kinda tight snug fit there. 

latch side

I planed this side just enough for the door to be a slip fit on the latch side. I will do the final planing and fitting after I get the hinges installed.

came as promised

When I checked this AM all it said was the notice to ship was received. It was being set on my front porch just as I got back to barn from strolling.

hinges came too

I was also expecting to get some shelf sleeves from Lee Valley but the UPS guy said they weren't on his truck. I had called Lee Valley to order them because I couldn't find them on line. Turns out that the 'sleeves' were caught up in the tariff wars. The rep told me anything with steel or aluminum in it can't be sold to the USA so that is why it wasn't online. The CS rep checked the US inventory and I bought 400 sleeves from the Nevada warehouse. Paid to call and ask about them.

hmm.....

The tank pressurized and cutout at 135PSI (cutout is 135PSI). The knob to regulate the output to the couplers worked flawlessly. No problems varying the output from 80 to 110 PSI - I usually set it for the pin nailer at 90 and 100 for the 18 gauge nailer.

However, the pin nailer wouldn't fire. The compressor was spitting out air as soon as I hooked the pin nailer up. At first I thought it was leaking/blowing by the couplers on the compressor. This air nozzle gun proved that wasn't so. It seated in the coupler with no blow by and worked flawlessly when I pressed the handle.

wrong rabbet hole

I thought the nipple on the air hose was the problem. It wasn't the problem but the compressor/air hose/nail gun was spitting out air from somewhere.

found it

The culprit was found. I got my money's worth out of this hose. I bought it around the same time I got the compressor. I had zero experience with compressors at the time I bought the pancake one but I instantly did not like the straight line hose that came with it. I got this one from Woodworker's Warehouse (defunct) where I was a manager. (Imagine selling tools and getting paid for it)

fingers crossed

I doubt it but I am optimistic that this is the final coat. Either way I'll be hinging in the AM. The goal will be getting the door hung and fitted then.

accidental woodworker

 Can I get a collective readership ouch? First thing this AM I was at Home Depot returning the defective Dewalt compressor. Done. The HD rep credited my card balance and then my card took a big hit. Ordered a Makita compressor, model MAC320Q for $411 and change. It is a small, oil free, 3 gallon hot dog compressor and it is has a noise level of 60db. It is part of Makita's quiet series of compressors. It has the perfect size/performance for what I will use it for in my shop

Got free delivery and supposedly I'll have it tomorrow. Got great customer service from Donna at HD. Everything went smooth as silk and she even offered to track it for me if needed.

filled in tear out

Did this last night after dinner. Filled in the tearout on both sides. Sanded with 220 grit and wiped down with a damp rag. Ready for paint.

practice pays off

All of the tails look this good. No gaps - the joint lines are all tight. This is something I have wanted to achieve since I saw my first dovetail being  done.

pins

Ditto for the pins. After 15 years (?) I think I finally think I can say I arrived. I'm proud of the dovetails I am doing. Hopefully I won't be eating this hubris the next time I do them.

inside peek

The inside corners are not 100% gap free. I am getting better at it but they aren't as good as the outside is.

need a 2nd one

The one on top is for 21 gauge nails. The one I'm about to make is for 18 gauge nails. I had hard time finding 21 gauge nails. It seems the standard pin nail now is 23 gauge. I found some 21ga 1/2" nails on Wally World's site for $18. I need them to secure the glass retainer bars.

dividers

Clamped all four together and rasped the waste away.

done

Dividers rasped and sanded but still awaiting erasure of layout lines. Flushed the top and bottom of the nail box. Killed the lights here for the day. I'll finish this in the AM.

Didn't get much time in the shop today. But I did manage to get a couple coats of shellac on the carcass and another coat of paint on the door. Checked the fit of the door and it is now too snug. I will have to plane the latch side to get clearance for the door to open/close.

Got the glass ordered for the door and I'll have it tomorrow. Going to HD, a PT appointment, and PM yard work really ate up my shop time today. I should be getting the hinges sometime between the 16th and 18th. Fingers crossed on that happening. There isn't much more to whack out on this cabinet. Glamour pics aren't far behind.

accidental woodworker 

 Got my next project. My oldest, Jessica, wants a spice shelf holder thing. She said she has been trying to buy one but it sells out too quick. It is a fairly straight forward project - she gave me plans for it. No fancy joinery, it is all butt joints. I'll be starting on it next week.

toast

Tried to fire it up and nada. Motor runs, gets incredibly hot, and zero pressure builds up in the tank. I checked on a rebuild kit and although I think I could manage it, I'm not conversant with compressors. The only service center I called that would do it was too expensive. I can buy a new one for almost the same price. This one is off to the land fill this friday.

hmm.....

It is looking like two coats is going to do the trick. However, in raking light some tear out popped out. I found some on both sides that I'll be filling with putty and repainting.

Home Depot run

$170 and I walked out the door with it. It looks a little dumbed down but the price was good. The one pressure gauge should have clued me in.

nada

The pressure gauge is only for the tank pressure. Zero pressure after a bazillion attempts. It also sounded like a diesel engine that wasn't firing on all cylinders. It stated a 78.5 db sound level but I'm pretty sure it was a lot louder than that.

got lucky

There are a lot of different types of quick couplers for tools. The existing couplers on the compressor fit all of my guns. However, I couldn't get the compressor to even generate 20PSI.

a huge negative Houston

Went back to HD and swapped out the compressor. I could get the 2nd one pressurized but it wouldn't shut off nor could I regulate the pressure. If I turned the regulator knob off zero and set it to 90, the tank pressure would bleed off to zero. 

I tried to use the pin nailer with the tank pressure reading 100PSI and nada. No air at the gun inlet at all. Frustrating because I had to fight construction and RTE 2 traffic for two round trips for this fun adventure.

A quick check on Google brought on a litany of complaints. This compressor is total and complete garbage. The two that I tried both exhibited 4 of the problems the google search listed. I'll be returning this and upgrading and it won't be a Dewalt. I'll have to eat it and pony up (>$100 more) for more reliable compressor.

The regulator is supposed to be on zero before turning it on. The pressure got up over 100PSI and when I turned the regulator to 90, the tank pressure dropped. I was expecting a lot better from something with the Dewalt name.

The mitering jig groove was a few frog hairs too tight for the glass retainer bars. I shaved just enough for them to be a loose snug fit.

worked

Clamped the bar at the back and moved the mitering jig back and forth as needed to shave one end of each of them.

2nd compressor

Waste of gas and time. I should of looked it up online before I bought it. But I was going by price and brand name.

proof

The pressure at least built up in the tank with the 2nd one but it didn't trip the over pressure switch neither. This thing is a time bomb waiting to explode.

I did get some work done on the cabinet. Got the 4th coat on the shelves and the first one on the exterior of the cabinet. Got the 2nd coat of paint on both sides of the door. Hinges are scheduled to come the first of next week. That will give me plenty of time to finish the shellac and painting.

Sorry about the post being a bit out of whack continuity wise. I hadn't planned on bringing the compressor back today. I was going to do it in the AM but I bit the bullet and made another same day road trip. Now I'll be returning again in the AM but I am not getting another compressor but taking a charge back on my credit card.  

accidental woodworker 

 The big, bad nor'easter (IMO) was a big bust. It was a wee bit windy, with rain on and off. The rain wasn't that heavy neither and I didn't see any downed limbs when I went for breakfast this AM. The first nor'easter of the year at least it wasn't cold bringing snow/sleet with it. But that fun is yet to come.

fitting the back

Planed the width first for a snug fit and then worked on the top/bottom. I went slow making frequent checks to make sure I wouldn't say '...oops, took too much'.

I'm impressed

I'm also incredibly happy with the fit. I had to tap it flush with the mallet. I like the finished look of it a lot. I think it is much better than plywood (ignore the panel is 6mm plywood).

peek a boo

I believe this may become my go to for cabinet backs.

see the hiccup?

I'm right handed and I wanted the smaller lites to be on the left, not the right. Missed that when I laid out the half laps for the muntins. I might switch the snap catch and put it on the left (if I remember that). I think putting it on the right would make it look crowded with the small lites.

see them?

Happy to write that most of the white snake lines are gone. There are still a few that haven't faded yet. Fingers crossed that will happen before I start slapping shellac on it.

need some shellac

I have switched to using denatured alcohol I get at the paint store. I am no longer using Everclear which is about $20 more for less. I don't see any difference in using Everclear vice denatured alcohol. I don't have enough shellac to finish doing the carcass. I am almost afraid to buy more shellac - the price has been rising steadily over the past year.

hmm......

 I think I should have waited before gluing the back stop on. There is no way I can get fasteners of any type into the top of the back panel.

miller dowels

I am securing the panel with 5 miller dowels on the two long sides and the 3 on the bottom. After eyeballing these I think I don't need any fasteners on the top. All the stress on the panel will be downward and the sides should keep the top from moving in/out.

bottom

Three miller dowels should be sufficient at the bottom. They just need to keep the bottom from shifting in or outward.

need a gap filler

There is one gap on the back panel that I filled. Once this is on a wall it will never be seen but my OCD couldn't let it slide. None of my veneers were thin enough to fit the gap so I planed this scrap until it did.

sigh

Not too bad considering this was the only gap on the entire back panel.

shelf layout

I like to notch the shelves for the supports to sit in. I thought I had made a mistake at first because the notches weren't the same front and back. Forgot the back panel intrudes into the interior 3/4".

done

With the notches, the shelf stays in place as things are dragged across it. Nothing more annoying than having the shelf move forward and then crash and fall as you remove things from it. 

checking the fit

Locked in place. One down and one to go.

done

Maybe I should have gone with fixed shelves. I got the shelves at the lowest spot and the highest one. Experience has taught me that 6-7 inches is a good allowance.

oops

Obviously didn't think this all the way through. The tops of my initials are buried a wee bit.

too sharp

The before on the top and the after on the bottom. I don't like the sharpness of the edge in the before pic. A few strokes with the violin plane followed by sandpaper rounded and smoothed it nicely.

two coats

Two done and two more to go. I am doing four coats on the shelves and the interior of the cabinet. The outside will get 6-7. 

test run

This is my 21ga pin nailer. I tried it out to see if I could get a nail in the thickness/width of my glass retainer bars. Passed with flying colors and I'll be pin nailing them after I get the glass.

retainer bars

Maybe I should have waited but I think I'll be ok. I am not using 1/8" thick glass on this. Instead I'm using the thinner offering. I ripped this out such that I have some wiggle room with the glass thickness.

dead?

The compressor had been cycling a lot more than the last time I used it. After about 15 minutes it was running continuously. Both of the pressure gauges were reading zero. The top of it was so hot I couldn't touch it. 

The life expectancy of oil less pancake compressors is about 5 to 10 years. I bought this in april of 1995. I'll try this again after it has cooled off and see what shakes out then. Thinking ahead, pancake compressors aren't that expensive. Both of the big box stores sell compressors for around $150. That is what I think I paid for this one.

glass retainer bars

Either way, I am using a pin nailer to secure these. I painted the muntin rabbets entirely so I don't have any bare wood to glue them to.

accidental woodworker 

The storm so far has been a dud. Light winds and some light rain with the big stuff yet to come? Weather aside I had productive day in the shop. I got most of the woodworking done (I think) and I am awaiting the hinges. I ordered them on friday and I don't know when I'll get them. Lack of having them puts me dead in the water for the time being.

out of the clamps

Still square and most of the bow that was in the sides is gone.

good fit

The door is dead nuts square and it fits the height with a 16th clearance at the top and bottom. With the door inset in the carcass it laid up square and the bow is almost gone completely. The big gap on the width, however, is still there.

got lucky

Found this scrap and it fills the gap perfectly - snug and self supporting. Decided to glue the filler on the latch side of the door.

dry fit

I ripped this out a wee bit wider and longer than the edge of the door.  After it cooked I planed it flush.

choices

I am using the one the right because it is smaller and the finish matches the hinges I ordered. I think the left one is too large for the scale of this cabinet . This is a arts and crafts snap catch and the cabinet is too plain for it.

dent work ahead

I tried using my 4x24 belt sander to flush the pins/tails and it was a dismal failure. The belt tracking went haywire and it gouged and left snake like tracks on the near end of this side. It took several attempts before most of them were raised. Although I flushed them I could still make them out. It may be a few days before they fade.

shoulda, woulda, coulda, but didn't

Setup I came up with flushing the pins/tails with a #4 handplane. I was surprised by how well this mickey mouse looking thing actually worked.

hmm......

Wish I  had thought of it years ago. Usually I would put the carcass on the floor up against the lally column to plane it. This worked wonderfully and I didn't have to fight gravity or kneel to do it.

adjustable shelves

Made a couple of jigs - one for the pin hole spacing and the square block for the depth stop. The bottom most pin is at 7" up and the top 8" down. I plan to put two shelves in the cabinet.

sigh

Tore out a chunk while flushing the filler. Not to outdo myself I tore out two more chunks on the other side. This is the face side and even though the door is getting painted, this divot is too large to fill with putty.

glued and cooking

It was a little tricky to get it glued and clamped. It wasn't that thick of a tear out but I think I got it aligned and clamped well. I would find out how well in a couple of hours.

two hours later

Happy with how well this cooked. It hadn't shifted when I clamped it.

dry fit

Going with an inset back. 1 3/4" frame with a 6mm panel. The alternative was a rabbet with either plywood or solid wood slats. I made it a 16th larger in both directions and I'll plane it to fit the carcass.

dead nuts

Both diagonals were dead nuts equal. I didn't use a full mortise and tenon. I used a stub tenon to fit in the groove I plowed for the 6mm panel. This frame will not be stressed in any way after it is installed, especially the 'mortise and tenons'.

last shelf

Finished planed both shelves and molded a profile on the front edges. I still have to do notches on the underside of both for the shelf pins.

top back stop

The cabinet could stand on its own without this but I like them. Originally it was almost 3" high but I didn't like the look of that. I cut it down to 1 1/2" and made a 3" radius round over on the ends. After I smoothed the ends I routed a chamfer on the front face.

filling gaps

After gluing the back stop on I turned my attention to filling in 3 pin/tail gaps. None of them were glaring obvious but I dislike gaps. To me they are a pointed finger at a screw up. Filled two on this corner with veneer and the last one on the opposite face bottom corner.

done?

I got the carcass and the shelves sanded up to 220 and I can start applying shellac on the carcass in the AM.

hmm.....

I think this frame and panel would have looked better with a center stile and two panels. I thought of it while doing the dry fit but decided to stay on this road. I didn't want to try and make a center stile to match the frame.

door is done

Had some tear out to fill in with putty on both sides. Used my violin plane to smooth out a few bumps in the chamfers. 

accidental woodworker

 Got the carcass dovetailed and glued up in the PM session. Ran into a few hiccups that I stepped back from to think on. Spent my post lunch stroll thinking about the problems I had with the carcass in the AM session without coming up with a game plan. Didn't stop me from jumping into the headache with both feet after the strolling was done.

hmm....

I've had the Keller dovetail marker on the left for over 25 years and I never used it. When I first got it I could not figure out how to mark dovetails with it. From what I remember about it, one tail is for softwoods and the other for hardwoods. I don't follow that protocol at all. I use the same angle regardless of the wood.

The dovetail marker on the right I had made based on one from Charles Hayward. The angle on it matches the lonesome Keller dovetail marker on the left perfectly. I don't know what this angle is but I have a second one that is a 1 in 7 angle, ala Paul Sellers. That is the one I used on this carcass. At least now I can say I do know how to use the Keller marker it but I doubt I will. Mine will mark the angle and plumb and square.

last six

Had one me-steak in knifing the baselines of the pins on one end. The inside face baseline was a strong 1/8" shy. When I knifed it again I saw that there were two knife nicks. Got lucky that I knifed on the short one and no evidence of it exists anymore.

dry fit

All four corners went together off the saw. I didn't have to trim a single pin to get the tails and pins to mesh like a hand going into a well worn glove. That aside, the fun started here too. I couldn't get the carcass to square up. When I finally got close to squaring it up, the carcass was twisted.

future headache

One problem that needs to be fixed first is squaring up the carcass. The second hiccup is both the right and left sides bow inward roughly at the mid point. 3rd one is the width is too wide. The top/bottom clearance is perfect with about a 16th clearance top and bottom.

this sucks pond scum

When I checked this before doing the dovetailing, the clearance was an 1/8" for both the height and width. Don't know where or how this gap grew and I can't ignore it. Way too big of a margin for a door.

frustrating

I was measuring the diagonals and switched over to my pinch rods. FYI the switch didn't help the squaring headache. I could get one side square but the other would be off a 1/4". Used a quick grip to pull the long diagonal to square the carcass, and that operation would twist the carcass. Plus I also had two corners where I couldn't get the tails to fully seat and stay seated.

good sign

Used 90° squaring clamps and the unclamped side is off a 1/8". Sigh. The good news is that the carcass isn't twisted.

one of the good corners

Just about all the tails came out proud. This corner has most of the tails fully seated except for the top one, which isn't that bad. When I clamped it and seated the tail, it threw the diagonals off.

hasn't improved

The carcass is kind of square but the sides still bow in and the width is still too wide.

fixed it

When I got back from the stroll I did something I rarely do when I dovetail. I relieved the inside of the tails. That helped immensely. The carcass was square within a 16th and the tails fully seating improved a lot. These two corners needed some help closing the gaps. Added benefit of that was I didn't need the quick grip to pull the long diagonal in. The tails fully seating actually helped with getting the carcass square.

I was prepared to do more to square up the carcass but relieving the tails was the trick. I don't know what the next step would have been if this hadn't worked. I'm sure it would have involved a great deal of choice expletives and finger pointing.

sigh

I knew I would have a gap here. I guessed at the knife line - it was faint and I eyeballed it but on the wrong side. After the carcass has cooked I'll glue a shim into this.

3/16"

Gap ended up an 8th inch too much. Since I'm not making a new door or carcass, I started to brainstorm ideas on how to close up this gap. One thing in my favor is I am painting the the door and leaving the carcass natural.

first idea

Glue a strip on the hinge side and plane it to fit. I like this idea as it is an easy fix and the paint will hide the evidence of it.

2nd idea

This one didn't survive at all. I think this is called an astragal - it would cover the gap over laping both on the door and the carcass edge. Even with this partial example it looked like crappola  to me.

3rd idea

This one is a strong contender for over taking the #1 spot. I like the look of beads on both outside edges of the door. There might be a few minor hiccups with fitting the hinges and snap catch but not insurmountable. Employing this fix will involve a couple of precision rips because I don't want to rip anything off the beads and I want to do the minimal amount of planing to fit the door. Something to muse over with sweet dreams tonight.

PM session cut short

There is a big storm (Nor'easter) coming through my part of the universe starting tonight. Lots of rain and winds for the next two days. I cut the PM session short to clean out the gutters on west side of the house. I wasn't expecting the size of the blockage I had to clear in both of the down sprouts. I cleaned out the down spouts on the east side when I painted it last week. I'm ready for the rain to bring it on.

accidental woodworker

 Last night I was thinking about the new cabinet and my initial designs had drawers in it. I drew up several with one to four drawers (liked the 4 drawer asymmetrical layout) but decided to do just a cabinet with a door. Then I went back and forth on an overlay or inset door. In the end an inset door won - trickier to do then an overlay but I think an inset door looks better.

checking the height

I have the two ends together, flushed at the top. With door butted up against them I have about 1/8" at this end. That gives me a 16th of wiggle room at the top and bottom.

wash, rinse, repeat

Did the same for checking the width of the cabinet. Got the same 1/8" wiggle room for the width.

sawing the last half pin

After 15 years of doing dovetails I am getting comfortable with them. Half pins were especially difficult for me to master. I can now look back see that it was mostly my lack of sawing skill. Since then I have upped my skill set with sawing. I still have gaffes now and then but even those are dwindling away to nothing.

tails done

I have been thinking about sawing the waste instead of chopping it out. My dovetailing has evolved and I have changed how I do them over the past few years. I've settled into a routine with them and maybe sawing the waste is the next step in my progression with dovetailing. On the flip side I enjoy chopping them and feel that it helps develops my skill using chisels for other operations. Not going to try it on these but maybe on the next dovetailing adventure.

simple set up block

The piece of pine behind the stock in the vise sets the height of the stock. The set up block is aligned with the top of the outrigger, height set up thingie behind it. That allows the tail board to lay flat and even on the pin board for marking/knifing the pins.

2 of 6

I have 3 gent style dovetail saws and 3 open handle dovetail saws. The right saw is a Lie Nielsen saw and it was my go to for dovetailing until the I got the one on the right (2 years ago?). That one came from Blue Spruce and I use it now for all my dovetailing. I find that the length (12") makes sighting and sawing plumb and square much easier than the shorter length LN dovetail saw.

chopping the pins

Used 3 different chisels chopping the tail and pin waste. My LN 1" socket chisel, Ashley Iles chisels, and my no name 25mm metric chisel. All of them work and do the job without any one of them really outshining the others. I do know that not all of them hold an edge for long and all of them suck at chopping when dull.

hmm.....

The tails are proud in a tapered manner. Maybe I should have made the faces parallel rather than just eyeball flattening the two faces.

square

Both ends of this pin board were fitted off the saw and went in square. It is getting to were I am starting to take this for granted. It is humbling when you screw it up and end up with kindling.

checking the height

Still have my 1/8" to split the top and bottom.

nope

Killed the lights here on the 2nd pin board. Had other life events intervene and I'll do this one in the AM. The goal of getting the carcass dovetailed and glued up didn't happen today. 

hmm....

Played some more with the rabbet plane before I left the shop. The rabbet plane ate up this red knot without a hiccup. Surprised me a lot at how effortlessly it plowed right through it.

took some fiddling

The plane bottomed out but the rabbet needed some remediation. Planed a hump in the middle and inboard vertical wall was wavy. Fixed both of them with the same plane. Gauged my progress with the margins from the stick laid in the rabbet.

accidental woodworker 

  The glass door cabinet and the toolbox are done. Both have taken up residence in the boneyard for now. My wife wants the glass door cabinet and the toolbox is awaiting someone to adopt it. I also have a japanese toolbox that is hoping to be adopted.

muntins cooking

Glued the muntins on after dinner last night. While filling the pie hole I thought about the door. Couldn't think of anything else to do on the door that needed to be done before the muntins were glued on. Ran putting the whole cabinet together in the brain bucket and nada. Didn't see any road blocks or hiccups so I pulled the trigger. 

The muntins were square to the inside of the frame. All four points that the muntins were glued to the frame were tight and secure. I think with the snug fit and the four glue points the muntins will stand the test of time.

name?

Glued the center thing on the horizontal and vertical muntins. I just saw a blog about repairing these but I can't remember what he called them. I let them cook for a couple of hours before removing the clamps.

first toolbox glamour pic

The dutchmen I did haven't popped as much as I thought they would. The through tenons look good IMO.

2nd glamour pic

They didn't pop much more on the interior. 3 coats of shellac on the interior and 5 on the exterior.

3rd glamour pic

The till came out a wee bit smaller than planned. None of my wooden marking gauges fit - the till is too shallow. However, my Glen Drake marking gauges fit.

4th glamour pic

The lid could double as a teeny workbench. I tried but the handle got in the way when I tried to sit on the lid.

hmm.....

The toolbox that inspired mine had the edges of the ends wrapped in metal. One end had an 'anvil' at the top. Perfect for pounding on for straightening bent nails? I thought of copying that but I couldn't even begin to figure out how to do the metal work. Maybe on the next one. BTW, still haven't been able to find the YouTube vid on restoring the original one.

done

There isn't much more to do with the door other than hinges and a knob of some kind. I'm thinking of using a snap catch for this similar to the one I used on the glass door cabinet.

ta da, 1st glamour pic

I had a few hiccups making this but none of that slaps you as you look at it.

I am not a fan of fixed shelving as I prefer adjustable shelves that can be positioned as needed for current storage items. It was too tight for drilling into the stiles for shelf pins. One of the draw backs for this type of cabinet construction.

3rd glamour pic

Glad that I decided to make the back finished. I doubt that it will be exposed but it gives the option to my wife with having it visible.

flattening the new project stock

 The boards all had a slight cup to them. I didn't attempt to get the two faces parallel - just planed both sides flat taking the minimal amount of stock off.

two sides, top, and bottom

The plan is to dovetail the carcass. I'm thinking ahead to the back and how and what it will be. I would like to use 1/2" thick stock and I'm stuck on how to attach said 1/2" thick boards to the back of the carcass.

stickered until the AM

I need time to think more on the build and this will give the stock time to relax and get any stupid wood tricks out of its system.

what a relief

The door laid flat on the tablesaw. Not even the slightest hint of it rocking. Even flipped it and tried it on the muntins. Not dead nuts flat but still almost no rocking neither.

hmm.....

It was too early to kill the lights so I dug out this rabbet plane to play with. I've had it for 4-5 years (?) and it smelled awful when I first got it. After hanging out in the shop that smell is now gone. Tried it as is, the plane hesitated due to the iron being dull a little but no hiccups with making this rabbet.

plane bottomed out

The size of the rabbet is a viable size. This would work on the current build for the back for the 1/2" thick boards I'm planning on using.

freshly sharpened

The blade is laminated. I can see the line across the bevel and on the sides.

yikes

Wicked sharp iron and I didn't even have a chance to start the thought of saying 'aw shit.....'. Weird that this finger was the one the iron drew blood on.

looking better

Scrubbed it first with alcohol and then Simple Green. Looks better and cleaner. The smell hasn't returned. It was the smell that initially made me stick this in the black hole of shop 'to do' things.

accidental woodworker 

 I'll have glamour pics of two more projects - the glass door cabinet and the toolbox tomorrow. Glad to finally putting these two to bed. And I started on the next one which starts with a four lite glass door. I'll be building the carcass to fit the door rather than fitting a door to the carcass.

not a good first pic, eh?

Painted the holidays on the door and the carcass. Barring me finding more hiccups this will done once the paint is dry.

hmm.....

Decided to use one of these picture frames as a door for the upcoming cabinet build. Like I already said, I'll be building the carcass to fit the door.

muntin

For some reason I drew a complete blank on how I had made the muntins for the glass door cabinet. On the bright side the muntin came out perfect for a test piece. The idea is to glue the center thin bar in a notch in the door frame.

making a tenon

In spite of drawing a blank, this muntin will be done in a different way then the glass door cabinet.

sigh

These two are toast. Both of them are from quarter sawn and after ripping out the center bar they curled at the ends.

two new ones

Same problem but not as bad. The board I ripped these out of is bowed at one end. Didn't see that when I sawed them.

sigh

Two more muntins from flat sawn and they are toast too. Both of them slipped in the tenon jig when I pushed it through the saw.

just as well

I sawed for the tenon on the wrong side anyways. The kerf should have been on the left not the right.

2 more plus an extra

I was still trying to understand the echoes banging around in the brain bucket about how to do the muntins. Where to place the tenons, half laps, notches, and not being able to fully see the negative spaces. I was getting a headache.

test pieces

Before I commit to the real thing I'm going to experiment on some scraps to figure it out. The left one is the muntin and the right one, one of the sides of the frame.

notch chopped

Decided to use a notch the same size as the muntin for strength. This will be a larger a glue surface than a skinny center bar. 

self supporting

Got a good fit on the notch and the muntin but it didn't work out. The top and bottom of the muntin are flush with the top and bottom of the frame. I need an offset for the glass and the retainer bars.

2nd attempt

Made the 'tenon' deeper on the muntin so I got an offset on the back. Wasn't expecting the front to lay proud on the front face of the frame though.

serendipitous?

I kind of like this - a step up from the flush look of the glass door cabinet.

small chamfer

This is what I'm going with. The muntin will be proud and have a profile of sorts.

choices

I ripped the test frame piece to the same width as the door frame. Deciding how long to make the muntin overhang on the frame width. I think this is better looking if it isn't run out to the outside edge.

not quite half laps

Setup I used to get the depth of the muntin 'tenon' the same on both ends. The board on the right was the outrigger for the router to keep it from tipping.

true half lap

The horizontal and vertical muntins joined.

muntins done

The blue tape is holding a super glued chip back in place. I used the half laps to determine the 'tenons'on the horizontal muntin. They went together enough so I could knife nick where it crossed the frame on the right and left.

asymmetrical layout

I used thirds for the layout. The inside measurements are 12" x 24". The vertical muntin is set at 4" and the horizontal one at 8".

brown knot

Soaked this with super glue twice. I am going to paint the door and shellac the carcass. Most of the brown knot will be hidden when the door is closed. There is a small brown knot on the face about the size of a pea.

glass retainers

The retainers are square and sit flush in the rabbets. I'll have to thin them after I get the glass for them.

chamfer done

Thought of doing this with a plane but whacked it out with the router.

corners cleaned up

The door is basically done. The hard part of making/fitting the muntins is complete. Before I glue it up I'm leaving it dry for just in case. No worse feeling to be had after glue up then to realize you needed to do one more thing before you glued it.

accidental woodworker 

 Two days in a row with an appointment but at least this time I knew I had this one. It was PT to help me with my right hip - I can't lift my right leg upwards from a seating position. However, it screwed up not only my shop time, it set back my post lunch stroll. All and all it worked to my advantage. Started applying shellac and all the drama with the strolling and the appointment wasn't so bad.

one more day

I got 4 coats on the toolbox and the till (includes post dinners application too). The lid is drying on the tablesaw. Two more days at the most and I'll be snapping glamour pics of it.

accidental woodworker 

Almost made it and I would have too. But, a monkey wrench got throw into the gears today. I use a desk flip calendar as my planner and when I flipped today over an appointment for orthopedics popped up. It really screwed up my agenda for today big time. I would have gotten the toolbox done today but that didn't happen boys and girls but maybe tomorrow......

hmm.....

The spacer strip I glued at the top was proud of the notch for the strap. A minor hiccup fixed lickety split with a few strokes of a chisel. As an aside, I believe chisels, next to saws, are in the top 3 most useful woodworking tools.

dovetails won

If the till had been made with plywood I would have mitered it. Dovetails are a better choice for solid wood. I don't have good luck with solid wood miters holding together.

tails done

This is as far as I got before I had to leave for my doctor appointment. 

dry fit

It was a little looser than I wanted but it was still self supporting. I didn't reach under as much when I marked the pins off the tails.

happy face on

The till slid R/L without any problems. The sliding action wasn't sloppy and it didn't bind anywhere along the length of travel.

flushing the bottom

No twist when I checked but 2 of the corners were proud. Before I ran the groove for the bottom I had to flush it up.

major brain fart

I had looked at my reference labels and when I sawed the groove instead of placing them down, I left them up facing me. Sigh. Flipped them and sawed the groove correctly.

last one

Sawed a couple 1/8" thick strips to fill in the errant grooves. Got a snug fit and it looked pretty good when I planed them flushed.

ta da

The woodworking is done or at least I thought it was done here. Close but no cigar yet.

last one

Had to fill in four holes left from the plowing the grooves.

insurance

Added three #10 x 1" brass wood screws. ACE only had round head, slotted screws so I had to file the center one down flush to the top of the handle.

came this close

This is the last of the woodworking and I still have the other end to sand. As far as I know this is it. After the other end is sanded, I can start slapping on shellac.

accidental woodworker 

sigh....

This paint is sold as a 'one coat coverage' paint. I have tried every trick I learned about painting and I have yet to achieve said 'one coat coverage'. I tried a bazillion different brushes and nada. The only thing I found that worked was to flood the wood and push the paint around with a palette knife leaving a heavy thickness on the wood. On a brighter note, I got the coverage I needed with one primer and two top coats.

rounding the front edge

Quicker, easier, and a whole lot quieter than using an electric router. And it doesn't take that much longer neither.

clearance

Wish this was a wee bit more but it clears the handle. There isn't anything I could do increase it so I'll live with it.

this works

Notched the front and attached the leather strap to the underside of the lid. This will clear the lid and hold it shut. 

bonus

The strap clears the handle and once on the other side it holds the lid open.

everything fits

My 24" level fits too. I could pick up the toolbox (with these planes and the level) with one hand but it was heavy. The handle held - I didn't see any flexing or movement it in when I picked it up which was encouraging. I think when this toolbox is packed it might be a two handed transport.

hmm.....

I was going to start snapping the glamour pics but I changed my mind. There was one more step before I did that.

scratching the bald spot

I want a sliding till. Something shallow that will hold the little things like tapes, pencils, marking gauges, etc etc etc.. Once that is whacked out, then it will be done.

bearers

Wish I hadn't shitcanned all my scraps. The bearers aren't equal but that works in my favor. The larger one will be placed against the side with the hinges. The slight protrusion of the hinges will eat up some of the bearer real estate and the larger bearer will compensate for that.

helpers

These two will keep the bearers at the same point down from the top regardless of the differences between the two.

my opinion

I got these 3 rules because they are the same style that Paul Sellers uses. They are both imperial and metric and I've had them for several years. But I can't get my head wrapped around them. They are visually busy and crowded. I especially have problems with the graduations on the imperial scale. I like 8ths and 16ths and I don't see the necessity of 32nds and 64ths in woodworking. I tried to use the 18" scale to layout the screws on the bearers and gave up. I used my wooden rules laid out in 8ths and 16ths to do it.

no glue

Just screws just in case I change my mind or if I need to repair/replace it.

what to call this?

These two pieces of pine are a wee bit thicker than the hinge plates. That will allow the till to slide past the hinges without binding or rubbing on them.

dumb founded

My wife finally saw and came over to look at this. She asked me who it was for and I said it was for Amanda or her sister Bonnie, who ever wanted it. She said she wanted it which floored me. If you held a gun to my head I would have never said she wanted this or even liked it. I don't know where is going to put it but that is her problem.

hmm......

The opening is tapered. It is wide on the right and it thins a 16th going to the left. There is plenty of room on the bearers to account for tapered wiggle room.

shutters are done

Got the final coat on the back this morning. They will rest here and tomorrow I'll hang them.

till stock

The stock is 1/2" thick but I'm thinking of thinning it down to 3/8". I'll make the command decision in the AM or PM.

sizing the ID

I want the till to be large enough to hold a 12" rule. The height will be 2" roughly - the bearers are set down 2 1/8". Next up is dovetails or miters along with how the bottom panel will be installed? I can figure that out with sweet dreams overnight.

accidental woodworker

 

not looking good

Got the other side primed after dinner and first thing in the AM, I got the first top coat on the back side. Based on the primer coat and what I saw after the first top coat, it is going to take a minimum of two coats.

got fooled

Going on the top coat looked promising. Twenty minutes after applying it I could see the primer coat peeking through. 

toolbox lid

Been in the clamps for two days and no surprises when I unclamped it.

not flush

Used the chisel to scrape off some glue squeeze out. The piece I glued on wasn't flush anywhere along the length on both sides.

done

Flushed on both sides in less than 3 minutes.

flushed on the ends

 I realized that I have been spelling the name of this saw. It is a Ryoba, not Ryobi. That aside I used the Ryoba to flush the ends of the glued on piece. I find this saw is better at sawing off thin slivers vice a western saw. Smoothed the saw cuts with the low angle blockplane.

parallel

Marked the ends of the lid parallel to the ends of the toolbox. The toolbox isn't square across the ends at the top on this side. It is also not straight and square across the long sides R to L. Wee bit of a headache fitting things and it reminds me of when I first started out going down this rabbit hole. Been a while since I've had to deal with something this far out of whack.

tapered

I eyeballed marking the parallel and planed down to and removed the pencil line.

left side

Happy with how this looks - much better than the before one. This gap is now even from front to back.

right side

Right side looking just as good as the left. Now I'll have to deal with the non OCD gap. This will allow all kinds of garbage to fall past it into the bottom.

screwed only

I'm not sure that I will stick with this. It cuts off light sneaking past the gaps and it is a resting place for any debris. But I can't think of another way to deal with it.

it fits

The gap is a frog hair less than a 1/8". I checked Lee Valley where I got these hinges and they don't sell any other, only 3/4". I'm not waiting for the strap hinges and instead I'm using these.

hmm.....

I had been thinking about the best way to install these hinges. It is important that the back edge of the lid be flush with the back of the toolbox. The lid swing arc is tight and it is based on these two being flush.

superglue to the rescue

This worked on the first attempt. The lid barely cleared the handle - I'll round over the top edge of the lid to open up some clearance there. When the lid was fully opened the hinges let go of the bond. Put some more glue on the hinges and left them clamped. I'll check on them after dinner. 

accidental woodworker 

I didn't get much done in the shop on either the toolbox or the glass door cabinet. Errands to run in the AM, 2 hour post lunch stroll, and house work in the afternoon. That felt good because it was actually something that I finished. I have one more thing to finish but no one but the wife and I will know when that will happened.

I like these hinges

These hinges are designed for 3/4" stock and the sides are roughly 5/8". Not a deal killer - a thin piece of veneer will make up any shortfall. Still clueless on where or even who I ordered the strap hinges from. I'll have the same headache with them too - they are meant for use on 3/4" thick stock.

nope

I sawed off the front of the lid. As much as I liked it I knew it wouldn't last. In one day it had already suffered two big chips in the toe. This pine isn't working because the far end dog legs. It is straight and flat until about the 3/4 point where it twists to the left and slightly upward.

better match

The dog leg board was quarter sawn and this one is flat sawn like the lid is. It isn't a color/grain match but it is a better match than the quarter sawn one.

found a use

My small japanese tool boxes have a purpose now. I have four boxes of nails that I can fill them with.

what's inside

Super glued one of the nails to the lid to ID what is inside.

last set of shutters

My wife is/was hesitating about painting these. Rather than wait for her to do, I decided to whack it out. Step one was super gluing all the brown knots including the faces. There is one red knot on one shutter and it is on a side edge. Red knots will bleed through paint but since this one is on the side I'm leaving it unsealed. If and when it bleeds through it won't be noticeable.

primer

I doubt that I will get away with a primer and top coat. I'm betting the odds highly favor at least two top coats. After dinner I plan on returning to the shop to prime the opposite face. Tomorrow I'll try my hardest to get both sides top coated. Any  takers on the odds?

accidental woodworker

out of the clamps

Looks good but it is rocking a lot.

confirmation

Front left and the back right are high - the sticks show 1 1/2 lines out of whack.

box miters

This is the best looking mitered box that I can remember doing. Miters are flush along the toes and at the top and bottom. It laid flat on the workbench with no rocking.

flushing the tenons

The tenons didn't swell when glued and close up as tight as I expected them to. They have acceptable  gaps that I can live with.

wavering again

I had kind of decided on overlay sides last night and I was still driving on that road when I came to the shop. Now that it is time to put the pedal to the metal, I'm questioning myself again. Looking at the inset on the right and the overlay on the left, I decided to go with inset sides. I don't like the end grain look on the overlay. The inset side is cleaner looking and I can accept the 1 1/2" loss of interior space.

another choice

If I put the keepers in the bottom they would have been 3" wide. Keepers in the lid are only an inch wide. Of the two I prefer have them in the bottom but I didn't want to make 3" keepers - I could have made 3 sets of keepers for the lid with them.

first one done

Scribed and planed to the pencil lines. The left side was square and the right side was out of square - the end leaned in a wee bit. The fit is snug and self supporting but there a sliver of a gap. I clamped it and that did nothing for closing it up. I'll live with it.

left side

This is what I wanted to be on the right side but I'll take one out of two.

much better

Opposite side and gapless this time. I left the pencil line this time and that paid off. On the other side I planed it away leaving just a hint of it.

left side

This side is square between the end the bottom. No gaps. I thought of redoing the other side with the teeny gap but nixed it. I didn't want to use another board out of my Gurney sawmill stash.

helping hand

I put 4 Miller Dowels in both ends to reinforce the bottom/end connections.

Container Store haul

The small plastic boxes are no more - haven't been sold for several years. One of the reps there found these for me. They are stackable and twist lock into each other. The glazier points in the pkg above the mouse will go in one of the smaller ones. The others I'll toss into my junk drawer.

nope

Lid doesn't fit in either orientation. It is an almost fit so a little work with 100 grit sandpaper (because it was on the workbench) loosened the fit.

done

A couple minutes work and it fit - snug and only in this orientation. A few more calories and the lid fit both ways.

laying flat

No rocking, not even a teeny bit. No finish as of this typing but that is subject to change.

hmm......

The board had a bit of twist and a cup to it. The original plan was to flatten the outside face and leave the interior face as is. It didn't work because I couldn't get the outside face flush with the ends and the bottom. The inside face which I had flattened was supposed to be the outside face but it had to face the inside due to the scribed and planed end. I had to flatten both faces but I didn't go nutso trying to make the faces dead nuts parallel.

just screws

Went back and forth on glue and screws and decided on just screws. I put five in the bottom and 4 in each end.

fitting the lid

Should I leave it overhanging a wee bit? 

no overhang

This is the clearance I have with the lid opened. With the overhang it wouldn't clear the handle.

potential hiccup

I planed the front edge of the lid to match the slope of the ends. I'm not sure the toe of the lid won't fracture and chip as is. I am thinking now of ripping off the angle and gluing on a new edge piece. Another hiccup is the clasp for the lid - will it clear the handle when the lid is opened?

The strap hinges I ordered didn't come on monday. I deleted the confirmation email so I don't have a way to check on it. Maybe it is coming this monday? I'm already thinking of alternative hinges just in case.

accidental woodworker  

 I haven't forgotten the glass door cabinet. I worked some on it today and I should be snapping glamour pics before the weekend. Made progress on the toolbox too - got it glued and cooking. I'm back to square one on the sides and the lid. I have overnight to decide on what to do, what to do. 

happy with this

Last night after dinner I went back to the shop and shaped the handle. I had glued it before I killed the lights earlier. A simple round over on the top just to knock off the sharp edges. It felt solid and secure but I'm still a bit leery of the dovetail connection of the handle. Time will tell how well that will hold up.

last dry fit run

Used bessey clamps on the middle of the bottom - had enough room between the through tenons to get two clamps to bear there. The top is a bit trickier to clamp. I had tried two clamps on the outside and that didn't apply even clamping pressure across the tails/pins. In fact the clamps pulled the half pins inward 1/4".

last dry check

I like this handle a lot. It feels comfortable to grip and it has a nice balance. It feels substantial and secure and I'm probably over thinking it too much. After all the toolbox I'm using as my inspiration is well over a 100 years old.

glued and cooking

Figured out the clamping headache for the handle. Placed a scrap directly below the baseline and used that to close up the tails and pins. The half pins were in line with the end - they weren't pushed inwards. I'll let this cook until the AM.

clean up

It was difficult to cut up all my small scraps and shitcan them. I'm sure that I could have used them eventually but I don't hang on to them anymore. Cutting them up into smaller bits makes it easier to fit in the shitcan. Garbage pickup is tomorrow.

sigh

The painters said that they would deal with this. Update - they didn't. This is/was the exhaust port for the bathroom fan. That got changed years ago when I replaced the bathroom exhaust fan. The maroon who put this in did it with nails which made removing it a PITA. Got that done and the replacement cover my wife bought wouldn't fit.

I had to push part of the metal tube inward, stuffed it with insulation, and covered it with a shingle. One coat of paint today and the 2nd one tomorrow. Happy face on the wife and me.

survived

Got the door hinges hung again. This door is heavy and I'm glad I went with thick hinges. The door swings open and close easily and smoothly. There are a few spots that I have touch up. The black on the front edge of the shelves and several hiccups on the inside and outside of the cabinet.

new box coming

I got asked why I make so many boxes for whatever? I dislike throwing things like  this into a drawer. I like having boxes that contain/group specific/related items and not having to hunt for them in a crowded drawer.

oversized

This is box is taller than it needs to be. I'm going with a lift off lid for it so the lid space won't usable. Besides it will give me room to add new pushers if I come across any.

dry fit

I got a snug fit with the 1/8" plywood that is the top and bottom. Usually the plywood is a slip fit. 

glued and cooking

The box held together after glue went on and I could have left it as is. The miters were tight because the 1/8" plywood was snug and it was holding the box together. I added clamps for insurance against something getting bumped and to prevent any other stupid wood tricks.

sigh

I thought I had a larger one of these but nada. I searched my 3 junk drawers and I only found the two small ones. I need one to put the large triangle glazier points in. I'll have to make a run to the Container store at Garden City.

hmm.....

Found this while searching for that MIA clear plastic box. The last time I used this I found it to be very frustrating and it mostly centered around on how to clamp the stock in the jig. It is surprising how well something like this will works after a long non use. I know I didn't use a spring clamp in my last use but it worked surprisingly well today.

dead nuts

You can't argue with the results. I still like the wooden one I made. It is larger with a wider reference surface to guide a chisel on.

accidental woodworker 

dry fit

Things weren't going well in Disneyland today boys and girls. The left side leaned inward and I had to clamp these in order to keep it square. The right side gave me fits too.

still scratching my bald spot

The front top stick is a frog hair over a 16th longer than the back one. The diagonals at the top are less than a 32nd off. The bottom left is square - stopped playing with the square here and moved on to playing with the tenons.

making them deeper

I eyeballed the tenons on the dry fit and they were still shy of the end faces. I started correcting it by making the dadoes a few frog hairs deeper.

nope

Awfully close but not proud yet. It took a couple more runs with the router before all six tenons were proud.

back to frustration

Without the spreader, the bottom read dead nuts. However, just above the top of the square, the end runs out to lunch. Not by much but enough to be annoying IMO. I played around with positioning the spreaders in different spots along with clamping some of them that were short on the length.

gave up

Without the spreader, the bottom read dead nuts. However, just above the top of the square, the end runs outward. The board is pretty close to dead flat and there isn't any hint of a cup in it. Residual stress from being thicknessed?

interesting

I sawed the sides to rough length with the Ryobi saw. Almost zero fuzzy wuzzies on both of them. A western crosscut saw would have left it ugly looking.

sides and the handle

Moving right along with these three being the last of the parts. The lid is resting on the shitcan. I think I thought this through and I don't need anything else. But I am thinking of putting a sliding till in it.

hmm......

Changing how I'll attach/do the sides on this toolbox. I like the 3 rabbet idea that I've been kicking around in the brain bucket but things changed. With the square headache I'm going to inset the sides between the ends and the bottom. I will scribe/plane the ends instead. I think I'll have a better fit and easier time doing this vice making out of square rabbets.

This is subject to changing again. The original I'm basing mine off had the sides nailed to the outside of the ends and the bottom. That saves a 1 1/2" of interior space over inset sides.

confusing

These dovetails confused me a lot when I tried to picture them on the movie screen in the brain bucket. They are face dovetails but the orientation is 90° off. I marked the waste before I sawed them. That is something I rarely do.

tails done

Stopped here for a few to think of a way to hold the handle in place so I could mark the pins.

worked

Clamped a scrap on the baseline and marked the pins with a pencil. I marked the pin waste because there were so many extra pencil lines. And I am easily confused.

good fit

I left the pencil lines when I sawed these. If they came out too tight I had meat to trim.

dry fit

Sneak peek says this isn't a tiny toolbox. Looking at this pic has the gears turning in the brain bucket with new roads to do down. No hinge lid but taller sides than planned along with a sliding till or maybe two sliding tills.

nixed

Laid out for the mortise for the handle support. After I took it apart I didn't like where the mortise was. It would be under the center tail and I think that would weaken the handle directly where it shouldn't.

glue up in the batter's box

Did a simple cutout for the bottom of the ends. The original pattern was to fancy for a toolbox. I'll glue this up in the AM.

hmm.....

The handle is quarter sawn and by itself I don't have a warm and fuzzy with it being able to survive picking up this toolbox fully loaded. I will glue the oak to the underside of the handle between the two ends to strengthen it.

accidental woodworker