Rivers Joinery

 Out in the autumn sun, to trim the pegs, and tie in the rails carving to the stiles carving.

I don't need a reason, but happy to have one (to survey a property/job a stone's throw away), to drive down Five Mile Lane to Slapton Ley.

Slapton Ley is a freshwater lake, separated from the sea by a shingle bank. It is a haven for birds in Start Bay, here in Devon. 

The house itself was Grade 2 listed and I always warm to a property with lion head gutters.

It needs the usual box sash repairs and repair work to the porch.

After examining the building I had a look in at Stokenham Church. There were a few nice carving details.

And lots of painted panels. 

This one of a wolf caught my attention.

Then a drive back along the Ley (oh what a pity), to Slapton, to travel back up Five Mile Lane, and onwards to home. 

With all the holes pierced for the pegs, it's finally time for assembly. The rain is holding off, so I'm going to do it outside.

Even with all the pre-fitting, it can still be a struggle to get all the pieces together. The idea is that the offset of the holes will pull all the joints together. I am going to give it a trial squeeze with sash clamps, before I put any pegs in. That way I can see if there needs to be any final adjustment of the shoulders.

All of these parts are from gnarly English oak, and even though they were straight and true when I first planed them, some have moved and twisted. This kind of construction allows for that and as long as you can get the tenons part way into the mortices, once they all tap home, the whole of it miraculously transforms into a straight thing. Sure enough, the shoulders of the top rail/stile joint needed squaring up.

Time to gather the pegs. One final check to makes sure all the holes are in the right place.

And then bang them in. It's a very satisfying process, as the pegs squirm through the offset holes, pulling it all tight.

Then back inside, as the sky is darkening with potential rain.

This chest will be taller than most at 35.5"/900mm, for two reasons. It's going to be a combined tool chest and workbench, with space underneath to slide my other toolbox (which is a WW1 British soldier's kit box, I believe). That height is ideal for me to work at.

Another oddity with this chest, is the brackets; because it's going to be a workbench/toolbox, I've upped the amount of pegs by a factor of 4. Period brackets often had only one peg, these have 4 each. It's going to take a lot of punishment, so I want it to be as strong as possible.

Where the rail carvings run onto the stiles, I have left this unfinished, so I can take those final cuts now the front is joined. I have to trim off those pegs first.

Peter Follansbee is going to be making this box soon. I thought I might beat him to it, but he's much faster at this stuff. Plus the board I need for the top is still a log,

I went to take the photos back in March, and meant to send them to him then, but time slipped away. Anyway, he's got a whole load of pictures winging their way across the Atlantic as I write. Happy carving Peter. I think he's using white oak. When I make it, it will be from this English oak, that rolled in recently.

The box is lovely Exeter strapwork. Our favourite.

At once simple, but complex.

Front carving mostly done. Mortice and groove the back of the stiles, for the side panels and rails, groove the back of the bottom rail, for the floor boards and then ready to drawbore and join.

In England, working on Listed Buildings often needs Listed Building Consent. This is a good thing and means that our heritage buildings are protected from ill-advised building practices by law. Conservation officers are there to advise on best courses of action and help to protect our historic fabric.

Part of the Consent application is providing scale drawings. I was lucky to have been at school at a time when technical drawing was still taught. Technical drawing as a separate subject in English schools was merged into the larger Design and Technology national curriculum in 1989, which was a great shame I think. I have used CAD software, but still get great pleasure from producing measured drawings by hand.

I was good with more academic subjects also (I was being pushed in the direction of becoming an architect), but my favourites were Art and technical drawing. When I finally went to college it wasn't Architecture but 3D design(Exhibition Design) with stage and Museum design, that I studied. Lots of opportunities for visualization, modelmaking and more drawing. We had fantastic workshops at college, and I was able to explore my love for woodworking, metalworking and sculpture. I delved quite deep into lots of woodworking traditions, and more often than not I could be found in the workshops, not the design studio.

Later on I got into framing and carpentry and building; I am glad I took the more practical route; understanding buildings from actually building them, working on them and caring for them. It gives you knowledge, which you just can't get from Architecture college, and hours spent in front of some CAD program. Yet again, doing things by hand, you notice things which machines and computers get in the way of. Stuff Artificial Intelligence, give me real Knowledge any day.

And a hand drawn drawing....

Today's installation. 2.4 x 1.9m window in Accoya. 28mm argon-filled DGUs. It's not listed, but it is a traditionally built barn, with lime mortar masonry, converted to a house. When it was converted, the window that was put here, was sealed with expanding foam and portland cement, causing the window to rot and damp problems inside. This new window has been sealed with Oakum and lime mortar, which should help with the damp issues. Wet hessian outside curtains, to protect the mortar while it cures.

Draining beads to give the window it's best chances against the weather. Osmo + to protect the dark oak stain.

In the main worksshop this week, with the window in production, and a few other jobs on the bench.

My new(old) Multico morticer. If you need to use a machine, use an accurate machine...

....do it once..........and free yourself up for handtool work!

If you use old machines, you need accurate hand tools to maintain them. I love this adjustable spanner, all the way from Buffalo, NY. It stays where you set it!

Talking of tools, making some is getting closer. The forge is now up and running, and what a forge it is! Gas with the possibility of using coal, and with the lid on, a kiln.

This chest is being designed as I go. The panels to each side  need something else to the carving. It's only now, with the trial assembly, that I realise what it is.

Not a huge adjustment; the leaves in the top part, needed more definition, and detail. And of course, having raking light, with the chest front in it's intended, vertical orientation, helps a lot.

And just another gratuitous photo of the central panel.

On with the bottom rail. Chalked out first, with charcoal to show where the joints will be.

In with v-gouge.

Giving us this.

And grounded.

A few adjustments to make, but you get the idea.

With the carving mostly done on the top rail and muntins, time to get the plough plane out, and cut the grooves into which the panels will fit.

Chopping out the mortices.

Tenon sawing the shoulders.

And a trial fit of the parts so far. I would normally have all the parts carved before assembling, but as I don't know exactly how the bottom rail will look, I want to see how the existing parts look.

I am pleased with it so far.

Been very busy of late, but managed to find time at the weekend, to do some carving of chest parts. The top rail roughed out in chalk, inspiration and sketch ideas.

Starting to line out with v-gouge and details.

Grounded with panels.

Then on to muntins. Scratchstock moulding.

Muntin carved and grounded.

I was having a clearout and found this carving the other day. By co-incidence Peter Follansbee posted a box for sale with this motif  a day later. I must have carved this when Peter was here in the UK, because it has his cross stamp on it, and that was the only time I ever had chance to use Peter's stamp. TBH it's a bit rough, and I have no memory whatsoever, of carving it.