General Woodworking

 Almost done with the prototype cupboard. I think I'm done applying shellac and I'm just waiting for the tile to come in. When I checked on them, both were still awaiting further processing before moving to the next facility. Your guess is as good as mine for when they come home to me. All of the hardware came in for the cherry cupboard with a final shipment coming tomorrow. No part hold ups with that one when I start making it.

more than a frog hair

This one slipped by sitting in the clamps.

flushed

This is the bottom of the new sliding lid box. I flushed the corners and ran the #4 a couple of times smoothing it.

no twist

This surprised me because of how much I had to plane to flush the four corners. 

hmmm.....

Flattened and removed the ridge. It is dead flush but I can see the glue line. This is the same board from the first pic. Used this to make some banding for the sliding lid box.

works

I have to admit this one is a wee bit more polished then the homemade one I had. Only needed 4 but I batched out 7. One was shy and didn't want to be in a group pic.

?????

The screw gets pulled up as I tighten the handle on the other side. That expands it and it grips on the outside walls of the miter gauge on the tablesaw. However, I really had to crank on the handle and get it to tight in the groove. Thinking out loud that I might not be able to crank it as necessary as I get older.

new idea

After sawing the banding on the tablesaw I ripped them to width on the bandsaw. The plan was to glue the banding to the outside edges of the plywood and glue that to the bottom of the box.

Previously I would glue the bottom on first and then plane a rabbit and then glue the banding on. This way eliminates the need to do the rabbit.

it worked

No frustration or horrors stories gluing this together. The banding is a wee bit proud and I'll plane/sand it flush after it has cooked. This just worked for me - I wasn't expecting to get the banding glued on in step one. The banding got some added strength by not only being glued to the plywood it is also glued to the box bottom of the box.

didn't work

The jig came with two washers and I added a 3rd one. I had to crank down as much as I had with only two washers to tighten it in the slot. As I typed this I thought that maybe removing a washer might help? Worth a try to satisfy my curiosity.

serious butt scratching

There is no scaring or other marks on the barrel or head of the screw. The screw doesn't fill the countersink neither. Maybe the screw for whatever reason isn't expanding the shiny metal - could be too stiff and the screw is too wimpy.

out of the cauls

The hide glue bled through the veneer and covered this face. I had to scrape it off with the razor blade. Decided to go with veneering one face. I had to scrape the opposite face too removing hide glue drips and drabs.

used hide glue

I had first clamped the box with the quick grips. I switched to band clamps because the middle of one corner was open slightly. The bar clamp slammed it shut.

2nd or 3rd coat?

I lost tract of how many coats I had applied. I like the look after this coat and one more will do it.

feels solid and heavy

These are flush mount hinges that came today. The top and bottom of both leaves are rounded so it wouldn't be easy to fit them as normal door hinges. These are for the cherry cupboard.

thick arse hinges

These are a frog hair thicker than 1/8". These are solid hinges that open/close smoothly and they look like they would easily handle a bazillion ton door. I bought two sets of these.

lid end grain

I basically polish the end grain of the sliding lid box. I start with 100 grit and stop at 220. This makes it looks nicer when the shellac goes on and when I rub it down with 4-0 steel wool between coats.

chamfer

The lid is a few frog hairs proud the box top. I sanded a small chamfer at the box so I won't see the proud so obviously.

wash, rinse, and repeat

Used the same sanding sticks to polish the front end grain.

done

Just needs one coat of shellac to get a check mark in the done column.

interior peek

Not thrilled with how the inside turned out. It works and the jig is protected but there is a lot of rattling around going on. I have more 3/8" and 1/2" stock to whack on version 2. Doing that will depend on how annoyed I get working with this one.

one more step

There is a slight gap on both half pins on the top. I filled them in with wood putty instead of gluing in shims.

only one coat

Got some visual interest in the top with these two. They don't appear to be knots but the shellac did make them pop. I am experimenting with this finish. One coat of shellac and one coat of Feed 'n Wax is all I'm doing. Trying that so I don't have to thin the rabbits on the sliding lid. I have a good fit between the rabbits and the grooves and 3-4 coats of shellac build will cause it to not fit. I will be able to apply multiple coats to the lid avoiding the beads and the rabbits.

these are history

These might be seen depending upon where on a wall this is hung. After I'm done applying shellac I'll swap them out.

gaps

Both the top and bottom moldings have gaps on the sides and the front. One screw isn't up to the task so I'll add two screws to the front and one more on the sides.

screw choices

My first choice was the brass screw but I changed my mind. I am going to use the black oxide screws because they match the other hardware on the cupboard. I will use black oxide oval head screws. I got both of the screws from Blacksmithbolt dot com. I have more than screws enough to do the top and bottom moldings.

accidental woodworker

The only thing I did with the prototype cupboard today was to rub it down with 4-0 steel wool. Hopefully I'll remember to vac it off before I apply more shellac to it. That will happen tomorrow because after whining about yesterday I feel the opposite today. I had a productive day and accomplished something. I worked on a couple of boxes and and I'm this close to finishing both of them. Tomorrow should be as good feeling as today was and with no whining.

better

I played around with the hinge and I think I can position it so the left leaf won't overhang the edge. The barrel is centered on the gap but I think the best way to attach is to do the left leaf first. I'll sleep on it before I do it.
 

it worked

It took trying three pieces of scrap before it fit in the groove and I was able to widen it. I used 180 on the first two and I think when I do the other two I'll switch to 120.

good fit

Got the top and bottom panels fitted. The 45s closed up nicely with hand pressure. I got the panels fitted so I could glue the veneer to the top one. I need that done so I can use it to check the fit in the grooves as I sand to widen them.

top and bottom?

I got a good, snug fit on the two grooves I sanded with only one veneer. Two veneers don't fit. I'll have to decide whether to chance sanding the grooves to fit two veneered faces. I don't want to risk rounding the groove walls or sanding it off square from end to end.

self supporting

Happy with the fit and that I didn't make the groove wonky. I would like the look of having the top veneered on both faces - I want the box to be a wee bit fancy looking. 

glued on one face veneer

Glued the veneer with hide glue and sandwiched it between two pine cauls. This will cook until tomorrow and I'll decide then whether or not to glue veneer on the other face.

new toy

I had one of these before but it was a homemade version. Don't know what happened to it but I saw this on sale and bought one. Now I have to make a box for it because I really dislike cardboard ones.

blood offering

Nicked myself with a chisel while chopping the tails. Been a while since I have made an offering to the woodworking gods and I hope that aren't pissed off with me.

hmm.....

I have a wee bit too much wiggle room on the long dimension. I didn't account for the sides being 3/8" thick - the ends are 1/2" thick. 

perfect fit

I wasn't expecting this and no I won't be keeping the cardboard box. Let me rephrase that - I might keep it as I have a few cardboard boxes from some of the tools I've bought. Trouble is I don't know where I hid them.

not working

Alcohol did nada to the blood stains. I thought it was going to remove them but it didn't. I tried bleach too and got the same negative results.

card scraper

Sandpaper did diddly squat and it took a card scraper to remove the stains. I did the interior faces only. I'll do the exterior stains after the box has cooked and set up.

split

These two were going to be the sliding lid for the bloodied box. Both of them have a split that goes from end to end. It doesn't go all the way through and make two pieces of scrap. Three was the charm as the 3rd one was intact with no splits.

fitting the lid

Needed some clamp help to keep the tails tight and seated. It didn't hinder me from fitting the lid.

99% done

I just have to glue on the bottom and this will be done. I do plan on applying a couple of coats of shellac too. This box took me about 3 hours to get to this stage. I have made about 200 of them and muscle memory kicked it and it was like riding a bike after years of not doing that. I left the lid in place to help it from shifting and throwing the box out of square.

I still remember the first couple of sliding lid boxes I made. Those first ones took me 2 days to finish the woodworking on. Today it was a no brainer almost. It felt seamless and effortless to knock it out. Everything just flowed so nicely from step to step without any brain farts.

first lid cooking

I wanted to use my LAP piggly glue but it took too long to heat up. 30 minutes after letting it warm up it still was in a semi gel state. I switched to hide glue for the box and for these lids. I like the piggly glue because its glue line is clear and almost invisible.

being a PITA

As I tightened this lid it slipped by each other a frog hair. Clamping the ends took some of it out but not all of it. This split was about a 45 so that explains why it wanted to slip by. The first one was a lot closer to 90 and didn't slip by.

came early

 This thumb drive has the latest version of Linux Mint on it. It was supposed to come on the 25th but I'll take early. I have been playing around with my shop computer trying to restore it which went belly up in Feb. I've been trying off and on since then to fix it and I have zero to show for my efforts. 99% of the 'fixes' I found on the internet didn't work for me. Those fixes through terminal didn't match the version of terminal that I have. So after buying 4 books on Linux Mint I'm done.

Bought the thumb drive so I can blow out the old version and breathe the new one in. Besides I don't remember my admin password anymore. I plan on reformatting the hard drive and going with a fresh clean new Linux Mint OS. The instructions are fairly simple and they are almost a clone of what I would have done for a Windows OS install. Although having done a Linux OS install a couple of times I think it is easier doing a Linux one.

accidental woodworker

Looking back over this past week and even the one before, I haven't exactly set the world on fire. My output has been a fraction of what I was doing. Not a game changer and my wife did say that it was what a normal person does. I feel like I'm stuck in a rut. I'm in the finishing stage but it is all hurry up and wait for something to dry. Maybe I should empty out the boneyard and make that a finishing room?

close

The groove is a 1/8" wide made by my tablesaw blade. The 1/8" plywood is a loose fit in it (too loose for just gluing it in place). I was hoping that adding the veneer would make it a snug fit. Turned out to be a wee bit too snug. This is the thinnest veneer I had that I wanted to use so I'll have to find a way to widen it a smidgen.

This 1/8" plywood is a chinese import. I have baltic birch 1/8" plywood that is a slip fit in these grooves. I plan on using the baltic birch plywood for the bottom so I don't need to widen or play with those grooves.

nope and nope again

I tried putting the sandwich into the grooves on every single side. I could get it in some of them but I couldn't get it in any groove from end to end. So far I haven't thought of a way to widen it - it wouldn't have to be much neither.

wenge

This is left overs from the dresser I made for Leo. (That should be going to NC later this month.) I will use it to cover the end grain plies on the plywood. I have more than enough to do both boxes.

hinges or lift off

I'm on the fence about the lid for both boxes. The easiest route is to use these flush mounted hinges. These are also 90° stop hinges. The other choice is to do a lift off lid which I like. If I go down that road I'll have to make a groove on the inside faces of the 4 sides. 

second coat

2nd one on the carcass and the first on the other 3.

the shelf fix

The filler is almost flush with the rest of the shelf. There is a 2 inch run on the left where it is a 1/2 of a frog hair high. I left it as is because it is at the back. I didn't want to disturb the shelf by planing/sanding it dead flush.

hmm.....

I like this bark inclusion and the surrounding grain. I am going to saw this off and keep it for a lid. I will fill in the bark area with epoxy to stabilize it. 

I didn't clean up the two cherry carcass boards. The workbench was being hogged by the prototype drying. Too much of a PITA to move it elsewhere to free up the bench. Used that as an excuse to get it a few more episodes of Elementary. I'm a 3rd of the way through season 4 - 3 more to go.

I've been struggling over the past two months with my diet and weight. In the past 5 weeks I have lost 19 lbs and I have put 16 of them back on. I do good for two weeks losing and on the 3rd week nada. That has been very discouraging to me. I weighed 228.8 at this sunday's weigh in. That is almost 50 lbs more than the lowest weight I got down to. 

I would like to get back to that weight of 182 or closer to it than the current weight. Time to take my head out of my arse and get back on track. I know that as I get older losing weight is not easier. But it sucks pond scum to be taking in less than 900 calories a day and not losing any tonnage. Big sigh.

accidental woodworker

 Here’s the last episode! Both mandolins are now living happily with their new owners!

Things are inching towards the tape covering the finish line. I did have one gaffe this AM first thing but I survived it. The hinges came in and I had a minor brain fart installing them. The snap catches hit a snag and for the second time and the delivery is delayed. I bought two of them and they are supposed to come in now on the 24th. I won't be holding my breath waiting for them. 

sigh

I thought I had only purposely made a gap a the back of the shelf about a 16th. Instead I have almost a 1/2" gap between the back of the shelf and the plywood back. I think the easiest and quickest fix is glue a filler on the back of the shelf.

doesn't match

I cut the filler off of the same board as the shelf but the grain and color doesn't match. And it is about a 32nd thinner than the shelf. These are minor glitches that don't matter here. This is a shelf and it is at the back and won't be visible. All I had to do was to make the top of the filler was flush with the top of the shelf.

just as I have done before

I wasn't expecting any problems with this install. I have used this exact same hinge before. I have two cabinets in my house with these hinges. The plan was to install the hinges on the door with one screw and then attach the door to the cabinet. Get the fit adjusted if necessary then remove them and apply the finish to the door. All didn't go as my well laid out plan.

screw holes

I guess this gaffe was a bit lucky because after filling in the screw holes the new position of the hinge covers the screw gaffe.

thought it was good

I try to center the hinge barrel on the gap between the door and the carcass. It didn't work for this and I had to move the hinge about an 1/8" to right - closer to the right edge of the stile.

The gaffe was the smaller leaf of the hinge was overhanging on the left edge of the carcass. Moving it to the left improves it but a wee bit of the left leaf will still overhang the edge. I already notched the banding for the hinges so I am committed to using these. It won't be a problem with the cherry cupboard edges because they will/should be 7/8" thick. So a gaffe that really wasn't one. It didn't occur to me to check the fit of the left leaf on the edge before hand.

it is dry

Got some big arse drips on the underside of the stone holder. I chiseled off the ones on the feet and I left the ones (by the finger) on. No need to remove them. 

fits

The holder doesn't rock and it feels secure. No sagging or bouncing when I applied pressure to it along the the length of it. It will also be beneath the glass cover too. Glad that worked out and I'll be able to stow the holder in the tub.

secure

The wedge action worked well. I didn't have to go nutso with a hammer to set it. I used hand pressure and that was sufficient. Not sure at this time if I need to apply a second coat of the epoxy. I have to touch up the iron in the LN 51 and I'll evaluate it after that is done.

flattening cherry

This cherry is almost as easy to work as pine. I didn't go nutso with this flattening, I just wanted to remove the rough sawn marks and eyeball the stock. I cleaned up both faces first with the #6 and followed that with the 5 1/2".

beautiful cherry

This is my favorite wood and I wish I could afford to make everything I do out of it. The grain and color is what I like the most about it. I also like the sapwood and I will use it and leave it.

the door stock

I want to use straight grain for the stiles and rails. I think I have enough here to do that. There are some cathedrals but the outside edges are fairly straight. If I can't get all of what I need from this I'll use another board.

semi done

I was going to flatten and thickness the stock for this cupboard by hand but I changed my mind. I planed less than an 1/8" off any of these and I have to plane at least a 1/4" off all of this. I still have to fully clean up one face - flat, straight, and twist free. I think I'll do that and then run it all through the lunch box planer.

for tomorrow

The other boards are semi planed on both faces and these two are the carcass stock. I'll semi plane them tomorrow. I want to then let them do any stupid wood tricks before I go full nutso on them. I'll pick a reference face on them all tomorrow too.

oiled

Got ahead myself and oiled the entire panel (the front) on the door. I should have left a blank spot for the construction adhesive used for the tile. I'll have to test a scrap and see if the adhesive will stick to it.

one coat of shellac

I am still not impressed with the first oil coat. It did pop the pine a wee bit and after the first coat of shellac it looks to me like I already have 3-4 coats of shellac. 3 or more coats of shellac to go.

two boxes

I found these off cuts of plywood in the kitty litter pail of scraps. Decided to make a couple of storage boxes to send out to my sister in Indiana. Thinking of doing some veneer and edge bandings on them. 

accidental woodworker

In a little over a week I’m heading over to London for the London International Woodworking Festival, and I’ll be taking Chris Schwarz’s Comb-back stick char class (still a few spots for the build your own saw class if that tickles anyone’s fancy. If you are around on the Saturday say hello. In other news, I doubt I’ll have time to write a distraction for the next two weeks. I’ll be travelling the next two weekends (great time to give it a try if anyone has any ideas in mind).

 I'm getting close to getting a check mark in the done column. I'm putting the finish on it and it is drying as I type this post. I only need the tile for the door to come in. It has shipped but it is sitting in a sorting facility with no clue as to when it will move on to the next stop in its journey to me. I need the tile before I can do the frame for it on the door. The final part of getting the check mark is the hinges and the snap catch. Clueless as to when they will be on my door step. I'm at the mercy and pace of the USPS.

came last night

Got it this AM and put it on a radiator to warm up. (It spent the night on the front stoop.)

easy peasy

This is not rocket science. The label spells out how easy it is to use this stuff.

feeling better about this

Getting ready to put on the first coat of shellac. I rubbed down the shelf and the drawers with 4-0 steel wool. I could see this AM that there was a finish on these. The shellac enhanced that first coat of oil. No problems with the shellac sticking and the first coat looked pretty good.

one coat?

The finish is already hardening inn the container but the stone holder is still sticky. According to the instructions this sets up all the way down to 40F (4.4C) and you can apply another coat of it even if it is still tacky. I think I didn't mix my batch long enough but I'll wait until tomorrow to check it.

carcass done

I was a little timid with how much oil I applied to the shelf and the drawers. On the carcass I kinda went nutso and I flooded it. The instructions say to apply the oil until it no longer soaks in. That is what I did and I could see a big difference. This looks like it has a finish applied to it even from 8-10 feet away. Tomorrow I can start with shellac. I'll oil the plywood back and the door tomorrow also.

stock break down

This is 5/4 cherry which I wasn't aware of. I thought I had bought 4/4 rough but this measures 1 1/8" thick. I'm pretty sure that I can get it down to 7/8". It hasn't curled, bowed, or cupped in the couple of weeks it has been hanging out in the shop.

sides, top, bottom, and .....

The two short boards will give up the drawer fronts and dividers. The thinner width cherry boards I have will give up the door stiles/rails. I will pick the one with the straightest grain for that.

3 coats on

It is looking good with 3 coats. Although I can see a difference with the first oil coat under the shellac it isn't enough for me to write home about it. These will get another coat at a minimum and maybe two. 

I'm using up the last of my blonde shellac but I mixed up another batch. As of 1430 it appears to be dissolved and ready to go. I brought it up stairs and I'll continue to shake it until I hit the rack. 

Still haven't found a large metal container to mix up a quart of shellac. I tried looking for liter cans but no luck. Imperial goes from one quart to a gallon. Still haven't found that elusive 2 quart can.

accidental woodworker

A friend wrote to me the other day about two of Drew Langsner’s chairs for sale on Facebook Marketplace – https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/1010251304118586?ref=search&referral_code=null&referral_story_type=post&tracking=browse_serp%3A872fe9f5-62cf-45ec-ac55-358d0f852342

First off – I know nothing about Facebook marketplace, nor do I know the seller. But I do know the chairmaker. I wrote to Drew about these and he couldn’t quite remember who he made them for. From the pictures, the date under the seat looks like 2002. So some time ago…

Looks like a good chance for someone willing to drive to New Jersey to get 2 of Drew’s chairs at a pretty easy price. It would be nice if someone who can appreciate them ended up with them. I’d hate to see them eventually put out on the curb. I was reading Chris Schwarz’s new edition of his “Stick Chair Journal” (no. 2) and in it is a discussion about John Brown’s first chairmaking class at Drew’s place in 1995. A reminder that Drew was making these chairs long before many of us knew what they were/are…

Here at my end of things, it’s more of the usual stuff. I just finished up a box a week or so ago – but it sold before making it to the blog

I have another underway – I’ve been making them with carved lids for a few years now. Paul Fitzsimmons of Marhamchurch Antiques showed me a photo of a period box done that way. I have a 2nd box in the work. The box is done, now I’m onto the lid.

The lid is 2 oak boards glued up to get to 15″ wide. And I’ve been carving that in a couple of sessions thus far –

That carved lid takes me a long time to carve. It’s going to be about 12″ x 22″ (plus margins) and a pattern like this tolerates no mistakes -everything has to be right. I’m not done yet and I easily have a full day’s work in it so far.

At the same time, I’m working to finish up a similar, but different, panel that I started before the box I think. This one’s not part of anything – just a leftover wide panel I had around, so decided to carve it.

Then just to keep me going in five directions at once, I started some birch canisters (I bought the bark, didn’t harvest it myself) – and even though I probably have 50 or 60 carving gouges, found I needed a new one to make the joints for these – for carving I hate these deeply curved gouges. But decided I “needed” one for these things.

There’s some chairs too – but that’s enough for now. I’ve not kept this blog going much lately, but I have been writing a lot still, just over on the substack blog. I know many of you have seen my posts there. But if you’re new to this or that blog – there are thus far 8 posts this month over there. And sure to be more. At least two of them are free to all subscribers. The other posts have a free “preview” – where you get to read the beginning of the post, then the rest is for paid subscribers – i.e. behind a paywall. I structure them that way because of the people who have been supportive by purchasing a subscription – and I want to make sure it’s worth it to them.

https://peterfollansbeejoinerswork.substack.com/

End of the season

We’ve got two courses left this season; it draws to a close at the end of October. After that it gets a bit chilly in the workshop!

We’ve had a fantastic year so far: our first in our new workshops. Thank you so much to everyone who has attended. We’ve enjoyed every minute of it (except for that bit where StJohn cracked a tenon in a student’s stool! Don’t worry… all fixed.)

Course Dates: 2025

Loads more courses and more spaces on each course. Our course schedule for 2025 is now on our website. There might be a couple of tiny changes but if you book a course we won’t change that date.

Last year our March and April courses booked up over Christmas but we had spaces later in the summer.

Shows next year

We’ve got one show left this year: the London International Woodworking Fair on the 1st and 2nd November. It’s going to be a good one; we hope to see you there.

We exhibit at craft and country shows about once a month during the Spring and Summer. It’s a lovely way of meeting potential new chairmakers! If you’d like to have a chat about our courses and see some of the chairs, stools and benches you can make come along to a show next year and we can meet.

We don’t have exact dates for next year’s shows yet but this is our rough plan:

We look forward to seeing you there!

• March Eadenstone Craft Fair, Cambridge
• June Cambridge Town and Country Fair
• 12/13th July Strumpshaw Tree Fair, Norwich
• August Cambridge Country Show, Stow Cum Quy
• September The Wonder of Wood Fair, Burwash Manor, Cambridge
• November London International Woodworking Festival, LDE UTC, Royal Docks, London

If you think there’s a craft show within an hour’s drive of Cambridge that we should attend please drop us a line. We’re always grateful for new opportunities.

Tools

We’ve finally managed to put up a tool list on the website!

It’s a work in progress but it’s most of the way there. If you’ve been on a course with us and spot something that’s missing please let us know.

On which note…

Christmas List

It’s almost acceptable to talk about Christmas in October so we’re taking the opportunity to publish The Quiet Workshop Christmas List 2024. This might become an annual event! Five gifts for the chair maker in your life at a range of prices:

Under £10

Olfa Slimline knife. Our favourite marking knife for when a pencil isn’t precise enough. Also good for any number of other workshop tasks and as the blades are snap-off it doesn’t need sharpening.

£10 to £20

Folding rule with depth gauge. StJohn has been carrying one of these for years. It has survived the washing machine but we don’t recommend a fast spin cycle. Over the winter we’re replacing all of the tape measures in the workshop with these because they’re more accurate and easier to use.

£20 to £50

Ray Iles Rounding Plane. Ridiculously satisfying.

£50 to £100

Diamond sharpening stone. We sharpen with oil stones in the workshop but if we were starting from scratch we’d buy a double sided diamond stone and never have to flatten it.

Over £100

The Quiet Workshop Bench screw and nut: £150. We make these and you can order them directly from us. Everyone who takes a class at our workshop knows how quick these are to use and how tightly they hold. We have about ten left in stock but won’t be making any more until after Christmas. If you’re planning a workbench build this is a great place to start.

What’s for lunch?

Since this was so popular last time here are some pictures of Bryony’s gorgeous food!

As always, if you’re interested in coming on a course please give us a ring (07778 397328) or drop us an email. You can book all of our courses through craftcourses.com

Enjoy your time in the workshop.

StJohn & Bryony

 Took the day off in the shop. It wasn't planned but it turned out that way. I put the finish on the some parts of the cupboard and that precluded me from working in the shop today. I spent most of it helping my wife out at her storage unit. I thought I might have thought of a interim project but nothing came to mind. I might as well start the cherry cupboard. The wood has been acclimating for a couple weeks so it should be ready to go.

hmmm.....

Not much of a margins on the stiles where as the rails have 3 times it. The rails are 5/8" thick and the stiles are 3/4". I'll have to pay attention when I half lap these. The stiles will overlap the rails. 

now I wait

Applied the finish as per the instructions on the shelf and the two drawers. After applying it I had to wait ten minutes before wiping it down with a clean, lint free rag. I didn't see any eye popping oiled finish look here.

15 minutes later

All wiped down and I still wasn't amazed with the finish. I could tell that it wasn't raw wood and I was expecting more than this. I picked the drawers to do first because they have pitch streaks running along the top edges on both. The finish didn't show any signs of not liking it and the coverage there looked the same as every where else on the drawers. 

The finish didn't soak into the shelf where I had applied super glue. Ten minutes after applying it I couldn't see the spots where the super glue had soaked into the wood. It won't be seen once the shelf is sitting on the pins. It will also further be covered with super blonde shellac - 4-6 coats. I already know that shellac covers and hides super glue.

prepped a piece of scrap

I had to do something with woodworking. I cleaned up the 6 surfaces of this sugar pine board. This sugar pine planes so sweetly. Even going against the grain isn't that bad. Made a small pile of shavings and that gave me my shop fix for the day.

six hours later

The drawers and the cupboard came from the same stock. I can see a difference between the drawer (with finish) and the bare (sanded to 220) cupboard. There is a bit of a sheen to the drawer but it could easily be overlooked and missed for having a finish on it. The instructions say one coat is all that is needed. After 8 hours sand with a high grit sandpaper or 4-0 steel wool before applying shellac or other finish of your choice.

change one

The cherry cupboard will be 24" high excluding the flat moldings top and bottom. The dimensions overall are only changing a few inches in all directions.

subject to further change

The width at a minimum is expanding to 16" and it may go out to 18". These measuremnts are the outside dimensions.

losing some height

The drawer opening width will expand and the height will drop to 4". I don't like the height of these drawers. They look odd to my eye although my wife said they looked fine to her. These openings are 6" R/L and the cherry one will be a couple of inches wider. I think that will help with the look of them.

the last change

The widest cherry boards I have are 9 3/4" wide and I think I can get a finished dimension of 9 1/2". That is what I'm shooting for on the front to back for the cherry cupboard. That will increase both the cupboard space and the interior real estate in the drawers.

None of this is carved in stone but this is what I will start with. I will dovetail the carcass and do the shelf and drawer guides the same. About the only thing to change on the cherry construction is the size. I can't think of anything to improve the construction methods I employed on the prototype.

finally got one

I've been waiting patiently for this book to show up on searches for it. If you want to geek out on anything wood and impress your fellow wine tasters at the next meeting this is the book to get. Bruce goes into incredible minutiae on everything about wood. It is far beyond anything I really have to know or need but I like geeking out on stuff like this.

accidental woodworker

I thought a couple underbed boxes might help with the junk. Searching for underbed boxes I found a lot that match the bedframe and are meant to be visible. That’s not what I was after. I just wanted a step up from the plastic containers with plastic wheels. I found Matthias Wandel’s Under-Bed Drawer post where I took the idea to make recesses inside the box for the wheels, rather than have them on the outside or bottom of the box.

I measured the space under a twin bed and decided about 30″ long, 20″ wide and 6″ high would be a good fit. At 6″ it is low enough to slide under the metal bed frame rails, and at 20″ wide it isn’t too large to manage. If it works well there’s enough room for another.

So I started with a 1×6 (5.5″ wide) with the idea it could be elevated up to 1/2″ off the ground. I found some old plywood and measured its thickness for a rabbet around the bottom edges of the box. This 3/8″ deep and wide rabbet was made with a plow plane.

After rabbeting, the pieces were crosscut to roughly 30 and 20 inches long. The two long pieces had 3/8″ deep x 3/4″ wide rabbets added to the ends to receive the short sides. These rabbets were made with saw, chisel, and router plane. Before gluing I drilled tiny pilot holes for future nails.

The box was glued with liquid hide glue and clamped overnight. I thought it was square when I left it, but it was not square the next day. I cut the grungy plywood to size and shoved it into place, hoping to pull things square. It didn’t work. I thought about steaming the corners to help bend it into shape, but ended up just working with it.

I used scrap white pine to make the interior dividers. They are arranged to make square wheel wells in the corners. I ran a divider piece across the 20″ dimension, than added shorter pieces to wall off a square in each corner. I set the pieces in place on the plywood bottom and traced everything. The plywood corners were cut out, and pilot holes drilled for the nails.

The swivel casters I’m using are the lowest height swivel casters that harbor freight sells (item 41519). I measured they would need a 3.5″ square to rotate. They are also mounted about two inches above the bottom. So these cubbies are created by the long supports, short supports, and toppers. The math on these works out to create a 3.5″ open space using 3/4″ material.

I used tremont ‘clout’ cut nails. I think the diamond head nails look better, but these will work for a less visible project. I drilled pilot holes for all the nails, taking care to not have two intersect in the wood. Surprisingly I left enough room to use the drill and swing a hammer without boxing myself in.

The plywood bottom was a little too grungy for my liking so I primed it before attaching. I left strips unprimed for glue. I didn’t want to use nails on the bottom, worried there wasn’t enough room on the edges. And pneumatic nails sometimes blow out the side and are impossible to remove. So I used glue and screws.

I thought I was done but one corner scraped on the floor. The wheels were too recessed. The casters were not mounted 2″ above the bottom as planned, but 2″ above the rabbet (2 3/8″ above the bottom). So I made some spacers out of thin plywood and added them under the casters. This also required swapping to longer mounting screws. After this the box rolled nicely.

You could add smaller dividers or organizers to this, like a silverware drawer. Or you could add a sliding till on top, like a toolbox. Not knowing what will be put in it, I’ll just leave it open.

In a hurry to finish things, I forgot to install handles. I had planned to make handles out of wood, just screwed into the sides. I also have a box of random cabinet pulls that could be used. For now the handle doesn’t seem necessary, so I won’t install any until the need arises.

If I make more I’ll try to make squarer joints and maybe not use nails for everything. The biggest thing was to practice making wheel wells, which worked out. It was a good project that only took two days.

The heat is on. My wife played around with the thermostat and got the furnace to come on. It was welcomed because the outside temp was 42F (6C) and the inside temp was 64F (18C). As I am aging I'm noticing that I feel cold more than I have in the past. 20 years ago I would have been in a T shirt and shorts laughing at the temp. But not today as I have a long sleeve flannel shirt on with pants and I still feel cold. This is also the earliest I can recall turning the heat on. In the past thanksgiving was the goal day for turning the heat on. 

big oops

I was going to make the half lapped frame for this tile. I thought it was 6" square. It ain't so boys and girls, it is 8" square. This will work for the cherry cupboard but not for this one. I spent an hour on ETSY trying to find this tile but I couldn't. I went through all 20 pages of tiles 3 times. I bought two different 6x6 tiles and I will decide which one to use when they come in.

I found a set of 3 tiles (all the same theme but different) that I really liked and wanted but nixed it. The three tiles were $21. What killed it was the shipping - $41. I absolutely refuse to pay double for the S/H. Although if I bought two sets the S/H only went up $2 more. 

maintenance pit stop

I wanted to make the half lapped frame for the cupboard door but without the tile it wasn't happening. Instead I sharpened the iron on the shooting board #6. I ended up stopping that to do a subset maintenance pit stop. The sandpaper on the runway was dull and wasn't cutting the iron. I replaced the sandpaper on both of the runways.

the messy part

I use a heat gun to remove the sandpaper but a majority of the adhesive stays behind. So far all that I have found that works on removing it is alcohol. Cover the runway and let is sit for a while then scrape it off with a razor blade. And you have to keep it wet or it gums up into a sticky blob.

an hour later

It took a lot of calories to remove the adhesive residue. One of the runways has sandpaper on both faces - 80 on one and 120 on the other. Got the #6 to spit on RML shavings. 

better

Dug a scrap of pine from the shitcanned and shot 45s on both ends. This grabbie thing is worth its weight in gold IMO. Yes the plane will still stall when pushing it through the stock but it is so much easier to keep it on track and resume pushing it all the way through. Both 45s shot dead nuts according to Mr Starrett.

new home

I had this hot dog grabbie thing about where the handle is. Moved it here because that is about the same spot as the grabbie thing is on the #6. This felt better in this position than its previous home. I will have to play with it and tweak it just a wee bit more to get it a 100%.

might as well

I hadn't planned on sharpening this iron but there wasn't anything pressing on the horizon. This is an A2 iron and it sharpens much better on waterstones than it does on diamond ones. I started out doing it in a honing guide and swapped that out and did it by hand.

the before

This is what the plane was producing before I sharpened it. 

sharp and shiny

Got the RML shavings and it was on to shooting the end again. 

nice

The end grain came out ok. It was not as smooth as I thought it would be but it will work as is. This is soft sugar pine and pine doesn't plane smooth and flat well on the end grain. The position of the hot dog would be perfect if the black knob was on the opposite end. I will have to back this up a bit and retry it.

ain't working

This is my Lee Valley water stone tub. I bought this over 20 years ago when I floundering around trying to sharpen my tools. This was pre-internet for me and there just weren't any resources available on sharpening. It was a trail and error with mostly error on my part for years. This tub was just one sharpening set up that I tried and failed miserably at. Just my most humble opinion but before anyone touches wood in any way they should know how and be able to sharpen their tools.

These are water stone holders and they don't grip at all anymore. Time to make a new holder for the tub. The tub itself is adequate and I used it today without any headaches other than holders loosening. Making a new holder out of scraps should not take too long.

an hour later

I have 4 water stones and all are 8" long and 3" wide. There is a shelf in the tub that this holder will rest on and be above the water level in the tub. I ordered a pint of penetrating epoxy finish from Total Boat that I might get this week - Total Boat is a local RI company. I will use this to waterproof the holder. Otherwise the holder wouldn't last that long. 

This was the second one. The first one was only partially done out of 3/8" CDX plywood but it felt flimsy so I ditched it and made it with 1/2" thick plywood. Glued and nailed it together. The epoxy finish will work because I used the same stuff to seal my diamond stone holder and it is holding up just fine a couple years after the fact.

accidental woodworker

Felicity is walking and climbing now and soon she'll need to get up to a sink or countertop.  So I was asked to make a small stool.  I've made a lot of stools and just love these small projects.  I didn't take many photos this time, so here's a quick post.

Here's one that my wife painted for her daughter many years ago. I'm copying the main dimensions of this one.

Here are the sticks for the undercarriage: 4 legs, 2 rails, 1 stretcher

I'm not doing fancy leg turnings like in the first photo.  But I did make them tapered octagonal (with bulge in center), then 16 sided, then tapered round using planes and scrapers.

When time came to bore holes in the seat, I made a jig that I had seen in Aldren Watson's book, "Hand Tools: Their Ways and Workings".  Great book.

Bored a hole through squared-up stock, then cut the bottom at a 17.5 degree angle (resultant).  Cut out top right portion for clamping.

Here's that jig in action.  Stick your auger bit through the jig and put it's point at the boring location.  Then line up the jig with the sightline,  clamp it in place and bore the hole.

I tapered the 3/4" holes in the top and made tapered tenons at the ends of the legs.  The legs were wedged into their mortises with walnut.  The mortises and tenons for the rails and stretcher are all 5/8" and cylindrical.  The 8 1/2" x 13" oval maple top is 7 1/2" off the ground.  The legs, rails and stretcher are pine (or some other soft wood).  The legs max out at 1 1/8" diameter, while the rails and stretcher are 1" at their thickest.

The completed stool

Top view

The plan is to paint this stool, but my wife has to finalize just what she wants.  I'll probably give a sealing coat of shellac before that.  Hopefully that will happen soon.

Working with plywood throughout my career has shown me how versatile of a material it is, how sturdy it is, and how stunning it looks in any space. I think plywood is an incredibly efficient use of natural material that has been engineered to reduce some of the limitations of solid wood, and is now used in almost every facet of our living environments including buildings, cabinetry, furniture – the list goes on. I’m Joel, a plywood geek, and I’m going to take you on a journey and show you why you should be using plywood for your projects too. So pull up a stool (made from plywood, of course) and let’s delve into this world.

Why Listen to Me?

I’ve been working professionally as a cabinet maker and furniture designer for most of my life. I was born and raised on a Mississippi cattle farm but spent most of my professional life in Atlanta, Georgia. After earning my degree in Industrial Design from the Savannah College of Art and Design, I went on to earn my qualification as a cabinet maker. I spent over ten years honing my craft using plywood, and nowadays I work on a freelance basis for various furniture manufacturers. Here’s some examples of my work.

Photo Credit: Joel Anderson Photo Credit: Joel Anderson Photo Credit: Joel Anderson

Why Use Plywood?

Let’s get into the nitty gritty – why should you bother with plywood compared to solid woods, fiberboard, particleboard, or any non-wood materials? Let’s start with plywood’s unique composition – Plywood is made up of cross-laminated layers of wood veneer, and because each layer is in tension with the next it creates a dimensional stability not found in solid wood, while still being a lightweight material. Another unique feature comes from plywood veneers being shaved off the raw timber – a bit like an old-fashioned apple peeling contraption. This makes it possible to have large lengths and widths relative to the thickness of material and still be strong across both dimensions. If you’re building something with a large surface area, plywood is a great choice for uninterrupted wood grain.

Plywood is also very versatile, and this makes it useful for a variety of projects that require curved shapes. Thinner sheets can be formed around a frame, or using another technique called kerf bending, that allows thicker sheets of plywood to be bent. Even compound curves are possible by forming your own plywood in a mold.

Perhaps most important when thinking about furniture – plywood is beautiful. A sanded down sheet of ply used to build a table, chair, or kitchen cabinet creates a look that is both subtle yet striking. Depending on the species of tree used, the natural grains can create a light and airy appearance, or a darker and more contrasted look, which will give your space a natural vibe.

Types of Plywood

There are more types of plywood than I can list here, but these will get you started:

Birch Plywood
A hardwood plywood that has good strength, beautiful visible grain texture, and is easy to finish. It is also known for having nearly no voids, so when you cut into it, no nasty surprises are waiting to be found. This is why birch is the most common plywood used in furniture making.

Photo Credit: Joel Anderson

Maple Plywood
Another great furniture-grade plywood found in North America is maple plywood. It has superior strength to birch but comes at a higher price. For the majority of projects, birch will get the job done but maple is always an option if you want to check it out.

Photo Credit: Joel Anderson

Veneers
Many other species are not great for making plywood or would be prohibitively expensive. This is where veneers come in. Plywood veneers are a common way to apply different species to birch or maple cores so you can get the best of both worlds. This keeps the cost within reason while maintaining the durability and aesthetic strengths of birch and maple. Here are some of my favorites:

Walnut – The dark rich tones make this an excellent choice for anyone who wants to create a cozy atmosphere with their furniture.

Photo Credit: Joel Anderson

Ash – A cooler and more neutral grain pattern means that this veneer is able to fit into whatever space you want, and adds a refreshing natural vibe whether in your kitchen, living room, or bedroom.

Photo Credit: Joel Anderson

White Oak – I’m sure you’ve heard of white oak, as it’s a popular choice among furniture makers. Beautiful warm tones, but is still fairly light in color.

Photo Credit: Joel Anderson

Grades

It can be a daunting experience to go to a lumber store for the first time and be confronted with the different grades of plywood. What do they mean and how do they apply to the project you’re working on? Let’s break it down:

The rule of thumb is – use Grades ‘A’ and ‘B’ for furniture and features that are outward facing, and ‘BB’, ‘C’ and ‘D’ for anything that isn’t going to be seen by many people such as subflooring or interior walls.
• Grade ‘A’ is the highest quality, with very few to no imperfections, and often comes pre-sanded or pre-finished.
• Grade ‘B’ is still good, but may have some small knots and may not come pre-sanded.
• Grade ‘BB’ is often nearly as good as ‘B’ but may have a handful of patched knots.
• Grade ‘C’ will have some noticeable knots and other issues in the wood.
• Grade ‘D’ will have larger knots and voids and won’t look presentable. It’s not pretty.

Sheathing, ACX, and CDX – What Are These?

If you see a plywood with multiple grades, that means it will have one side of each – so ACX will have a clean looking side but also a back with more knots and voids. The ‘X’ stands for the exterior grade adhesive which has glued the A and C sides together. These types of plywood are construction plys and can be a great choice for lining a garage, but aren’t really suitable for furniture making.

Plywood Cores

Veneer Cores

These are typically made using 3 or 5 layers for a 3⁄4” sheet of plywood. The layers are made up of thin strips of wood, or really thick veneers. They are made from a combination of a center and crossband veneers that are alternatively layered. This core has great strength and flexibility, but depending on the board the edge is not always the best looking, and can be prone to warping.

Multiply Cores

Multiply cores are usually made using 13 thin veneer layers for a 3⁄4” sheet of plywood. These thin layers create a beautiful edge pattern. The higher number of layers helps reduce warping of the material which makes it a great choice for furniture making.

Plywood Alternatives

Here are some of the other sheet materials you might come across when looking for material for your project.

Medium-Density Fibreboard (MDF)

This material is known for being consistently thick and smooth, and this makes it a great choice for projects where you’ll be painting and doing detailed work. However, it is heavier than plywood while being less rigid and more brittle. This makes it perfectly fine for panel projects like cabinets, but not great for furniture.

Photo Credit: Elke Wetzig, via Wikimedia Commons

Particleboard

Similar to MDF, this material is made up of small bits of wood that have been glued together and is often covered with a veneer or a laminate on its face. This material is commonly used in flat pack furniture (think IKEA). While it is light and generally quite cheap, it’s not good at taking heavy weight – we’ve all had that one IKEA shelf that finally cracked under the pressure, right?

Photo Credit: Elke Wetzig, via Wikimedia Commons

Oriented Strand Board (OSB)

OSB is commonly used as an alternative to plywood, particularly in structural applications like subflooring or sheathing, as it is durable while also being cheaper. The main drawback is that it is more susceptible to moisture damage. It can also look good as a wall covering for a more industrial look. You can definitely use it for shop projects but the fit and finish leave something to be desired.

Photo Credit: Elke Wetzig, via Wikimedia Commons

What’s the Verdict?

While these alternatives definitely provide their own advantages, and are oftentimes cheaper than plywood, I think it’s clear that plywood is stronger, more durable, and has a better appearance. When you’re building furniture or redoing your home interior, consider whether you’d rather spend a bit more now to have something long lasting and beautiful, or need to spend more money in a couple of years when the material starts to wear down.

What to Consider When Buying Plywood

As well as checking the grade, also take the time to think about what species of wood you want your plywood to come from – this can affect the aesthetics of your furniture. Something important to take note of is your budget. How much are you willing to spend overall? Don’t forget, mistakes happen, and material can be wasted. If you spend all of your budget on the finest ‘A’ grade plywood but then lose half of it to a poorly placed saw cut, will you have enough to start over? You can always contact Highland Woodworking to see if they have a board stretcher in stock.

Where to Buy

The classics of home improvement in the USA are stores such as Home Depot and Lowes, but they tend to focus on construction grade plywood and the alternatives mentioned above. This can be good for prototyping, but is generally not suited for furniture projects. I recommend asking your local woodworking store or a local cabinet maker where they source furniture-grade plywood. If the big box store is your only option I recommend going with Purebond Plywood – found at Home Depot.

The Non-Plywood Stuff

Highland Woodworking has got you covered for all of your other needs, whether you want to cut, sand, or stain your plywood furniture you can find it all here.

A professional cabinet maker and furniture designer – Joel was raised on a cattle farm in Mississippi and has spent the majority of his professional life in Atlanta, Georgia. After obtaining a degree in Industrial Design from the Savannah College of Art and Design, he pursued further qualifications in cabinet making. For over ten years, Joel has specialized in working with plywood, and now operates as a freelance designer for various furniture manufacturers. Find more of Joel’s writing about plywood design and project ideas at Sheet Good.

 I ordered two more snap catches from Rejuvenation - $74 delivered. The prototype and the yet unmade cherry cupboard is getting expensive. I had to dip into my stash for buying wood to pay for these. But on the flip side I think I'm done ordering hardware for the foreseeable future as long as I don't make any changes.....

cooked

No surprises when they came out of the clamps. I tried to twist the miters with my hands and no surprises. All four of them held and the joint line (top/bottom) from heel to toe is tight.

chamfer

I planed a wide, flat chamfer on both. A 5/8" in from the front edge and a 1/4" deep.

sneak peek

No back up project yet but this will give me food for thought. The snap catch isn't coming until thurs/fri. I have made some decisions on what to change and what to keep for the cherry cupboard. I'll give this one away as a xmas present to someone.

the wind blew.....

Opted to attach the top and bottom moldings. Used 3 screws only (no glue) in both just in case I need to remove them for applying the finish. I don't think I will because I finish sanding the cupboard up to 220 yesterday.

curious about this

What attracted me to this finish was one its easy application. Secondly was it supposedly makes the grain pop like an oil finish was applied. Lastly is was the ability to overcoat it with shellac (or other finish) and preserve said oil popped look. I thought I would have been able to start it today but it didn't happen boys and girls. It is on the A list for the AM.

)#&%#()^%)#*)% thermostat

This had a low battery indication so my wife took it off to replace the battery and bent a couple of pins. From what I could see they weren't used and one was labeled as such. The other one I couldn't trace it out fully so I don't know. What I do know is I faffed about with this for almost two hours before I said NO MAS and bought a replacement.

The replacement sucks pond scum. There is absolutely no way to just set a temp and have it maintain it. This is a programmable one and you have to input a starting temp and time and a drop down temp and time. One each for everyday of the week. I ordered a non programmable thermostat and it is supposed to come tomorrow between 0700 and 1100. We'll see what shakes out with that.

I got a non programmable one because I don't like to raise and lower the temp. I couldn't figure out how to program the one above. With this one if I get ambitious I can lower it before I go to bed and turn it up when I roll out of the rack. But I doubt I'll do that.

can't remember

I'm not sure that I snapped a pic of the Willa memorial pic frame and posted it on the blog. If I did ignore it and if not, ta da.

accidental woodworker

Next Tuesday I will be giving a presentation about Arts & Crafts period furniture at the regular monthly meeting of the Olympia Woodworkers Guild in Olympia, Washington. I’ll be talking about the original makers of the early 20th century, the furniture made in that time and how I go about building authentic reproductions efficiently in a modern shop. Because of the time difference my slide show and discussion will be via Zoom on my end to a live audience out on the west coast. Below are a few slides from my upcoming presentation.

In my presentation I will be showing examples of original pieces, including some original sites that are worth a visit. I also hope to dis-spell some myths about a period that is extremely popular but not always understood or presented in context. There are also examples of my own work and the methods I use in research, design, construction and finishing.

I’m honored to be asked to do this, and if you have a similar group, click my signature below to email me and get the conversation started.

— Bob Lang

The post Presentation for Olympia Woodworkers Guild Oct. 22, 2024 first appeared on ReadWatchDo.com.

 I quit the shop at 1511 today and before I left I did a serious eyeballing on the cabinet. I made a couple of more changes because after all this is a prototype. The first change was the hinges. Butt hinges are out and I'm going with flush overlay hinges (ordered them today). The snap latch is history too. It has a coppery finish and I couldn't find any decent looking copper finished hinges to match it. I will use a different type/style of cupboard latch to match the hinges. So far these are the last changes (?) I think I'll make. 

The woodworking on the cupboard is 99% done. I have to attach the top and bottom flat moldings to be 100%. I'm not sure when I'll do that. It will be easier to apply the finish (maybe) if I put them on after that. It depends on which way the wind blows on that day. This puts me dead in the water with the cupboard and I don't have a backup project yet. Maybe a dream project will float across the brain bucket while sleep tonight.

dry fit

These Craftsman corner clamps are the same age as my Craftsman pilot drills. I couldn't pull the miter tight from toe to heel with them. I needed an assist from the clamp. The plan is to glue these up and set them aside to cook until the AM.

using biscuits

Normally I would glue a cross spline at the toe but not today. The finish will be natural and I don't want to see splines so I opted for biscuits. I don't like not using some kind of reinforcements for miters. Did I ever mention that I don't like miters?

I didn't forget

I surprised even myself because I thought of this and doing it before I glued up the miters. Marked the area to remove some meat and sawed and chopped it out.

hmmm......

The grip thingie extends past the sole of the plane. I had to excavate a wee bit more for it.

done

This wasn't the awkward adventure I thought it was going to be. The grab thingie is rounded going in every direction I looked at. There aren't any straight portions to it at all. I figured that would fight me with wanting extra dance steps to remove just a wee bit more.

finished

Now that this is done I made a mental note to touch up the iron. Since I have better control over the plane with this I need to ensure that the iron is sharp. That will ease some of the pressure of pushing the plane through the stock.

new door latch

I got two of these because there is enough cherry to make two cupboards. I will use one of these on the prototype cupboard. The flush hinges I ordered are oil rubbed bronze and they appeared to be just as black as this.

As an aside while searching for hinges on ETSY I came across snap catches that were less than $5. I am tempted to buy one just to see how they are made. They looked like stamped metal construction vice being cast. Maybe next week if I remember to do that.

close

The latch part of it is almost as wide as the edge of the cupboard. Not sure if I will have to remove any of the beading on the door. If I do it will be an arc of removal that I already don't like. This might be shitcanned in favor of a snap catch which means I'll have to buy another of them.

surprise

I had two sets of antique finished hinges. I thought I had forgotten to order them but I was wrong. I looked on the wrong site - I had ordered these from a different vendor than the one I had checked.

bin pull

This was on clearance for $12 off so I bought one (oil rubbed bronze). I intended to use it for the lone drawer on the cherry cupboard. I am now going with two drawers and I got one of the last two left on order today.

needs a shelf

The top to bottom is almost 14" and that leaves a lot of empty space. The bottom peg will be about 6" from bottom and I'm only using 3 shelf peg holes. The top one will be about 6" from the top.

almost done

Got the pin notches on the underside chopped and the shelf fits. I just needed to plane a chamfer on the front edge of the shelf.

now it is done

Chamfer whacked out lickety split. 

oops

I made the front pin far enough from the front edge but I forgot to allow 3/4" for the door.

yikes

There isn't a lot of meat in front of the front shelf pin notch. There isn't anything I can do to fix/move this without having 6 holes to plug and redrill.

on the other hand.....

The door now has room to close.

questionable

I don't have a warm and fuzzy with the shelf. It may or may not be a problem and blow out towards the front. I will keep an eye on it and see how fares until I'm done with the cupboard. I'm sure that I'll be taking it out and putting it in a bazillion more times before the check mark goes in the done column.

worth a try

I saturated the notch on both sides with super glue to stiffen and strengthen the wood fibers. This is sugar pine and it is soft and tiny areas of wood like this are ripe for blowing out. If it does I have an idea that might work. I will rip it off and glue on a piece of maple or poplar.

feels stronger

I pushed against it from the front and it felt stiffer. I really soaked this pretty good. Tomorrow I willgive it another helping.

accidental woodworker

I have found a new series to watch on Amazon Prime Video. It is Elementary which I remember watching one episode over ten years ago. Spending time watching TV is something I don't do much. I would rather be in the shop or reading a book. However, I do like watching prime videos because I can not only pick and choose what to watch but I can watch in on my schedule. I have watched season one (which had 24 episodes) and I'm into season two. I watched three of them today while the TV (muted) had the football  game on. 5 more seasons to go after this one.

older than my children

This is a Sears Craftsmen pilot drill set. I got this when I was 21 and it still performs pretty well. Back when I got this getting tools at Sears was top shelf with me. I wouldn't even consider buying a tool at a hardware store. It is sad that the brand isn't worth what is was then now. Used this today to drill the pilot holes for the knobs.

felt secure

I put two 3/4" #4 screws in each knob. I shook and rapped the handles with a mallet before this and both of them held. I feel better now that I have screws in them.

disappeared

I like that they are not seen with the drawers shut.

first step

Working on the flat moldings for the top and bottom of the cabinet. The first batter was rough sawing the 45's.

it is about time

The second batter was sweetening the 45s on the shoot board. I wanted to use this but I didn't remember how to do it. Grasping this anywhere is difficult along with a whole lot of awkward. Rob Cosman site has a couple of videos on how to do it. I bought this a long time ago and today was the day to get it installed but not right then and now.

change two coming

I was playing around with the overhang I wanted on the molding. I settled on 3/4" after looking at 1/2" and 5/8". The change is the round over and adding a cove molding is history. I am now going with a broad chamfer. I prefer chamfers and I can put chamfers on the top and bottom ones. IMO the chamfers won't look out of place with the overall look of the cabinet.

the first look

This is what killed it for me. I don't like the look of the cove molding at the bottom. I didn't mind how it looked at the top but at the bottom it looks odd to my eye.

new jig

I didn't make two short moldings yesterday so I whacked them out today. I needed this jig to plane the faces smooth. I could have avoided this if I had planed the faces before I did the miters but I didn't. I think this will be a useful jig to have in the shop.

PM session

While I filled my face at lunch I watched a couple of Rob Cosman vids on how to do this. I had totally zoned out the procedure and I found the vids perfect and they explained it all. The first step was to get the set screws installed. I was totally clueless as to what they were used for.

1/8" drill

The 1/8" drill is used to just make a dimple in the cheek of the plane.

dimple

I checked and the 1/4" hole to come will do into the mass of the frog seat. But I doubt my hole which will be 3/16" deep will penetrate it. This is a war time #6 Stanley with thick walls - much thicker and heavier than prewar Stanleys.

depth stop

Drilling in cast iron is like drilling in pine. It is soft and easy and you don't need cutting oil to do it.

done

It was a little nerve wracking doing this. What idiot drills holes in their planes? This is different because this #6 will be used only on this Lee Valley shooting board. I can't think of another reason I would drill holes in any plane (including hang holes).

why did I wait so long

I waited so long to do this because I was chicken shit about drilling into the plane. Now that the deed is done, this grab and grippie thing is tremendous. No problems pushing the plane now. The grip is secure and it isn't awkward where I would lose momentum pushing the plane through the stock.

I positioned my grip thing where Rob recommended it. I thought that maybe it was too far forward and I would have trouble pushing the plane through the stock but I didn't. The weight and length of this plane is also a definite asset for use as a shooting board plane.

one more step to it

I have to take the plane holder down and notch the outside rail for the grip thing. I'll try and do that tomorrow if I don't forget about it. I don't see myself removing and installing this after and before each use. This is a single purpose use plane so there is no need (IMO) to do that.

accidental woodworker

 Had a short day in the shop because my wife didn't get up until almost 1000. My workbench is directly under her bed and I learned a long time ago to not disturb her beauty sleep. She must be allowed to open her peepers when she decides to. After lunch I fell asleep at my desk - that is the A-fib I have. It makes me tired all the time when I shouldn't be or really don't feel tired. Maybe I'll get more time in the shop tomorrow.

crest rail

This is a little short on the length and the design doesn't fit the cabinet but it does give me a hint of what a crest rail might look like. I am not thrilled with the look of a crest rail for this so I'll put these back in the black hole. 

better choice

A large flat molding overhanging the sides and the front with a cove molding underneath it. The flat molding is a 1/2" thick and it doesn't look right. It should be 3/4" minimum.

hmm.....

I thought of this before I did the bead molding on the edges. I will remove the molding so the snap catch can be flush with the edge of the door.

sigh

I was procrastinating about doing the hinges for the door and I got the perfect excuse to not do it today. I don't have any hinges for it. I thought I had ordered a set but I was wrong. I checked my stack of orders and nada. I placed an order for a pair today.

drawer stops

I wanted to put the stops at the back but there is not enough real estate there for them. Thankfully there is a little more than a 1/8" space on the drawer bottom for the stops. I glued them in with hide glue for any future repairs etc.

flush drawer fronts

It had been about 30 minutes and I checked the drawers. Happy with the alignment of the drawers with the cabinet face. After seeing this I was thinking of using the same 'knob' on the door. Maybe.

Forgot to snap any pics of the installation of the drawer 'knobs' (in the AM session). I was going to cock bead the drawers but nixed it due to a lack of beading. I could only find 3 and it would take 2 to do one drawer. I don't have a warm and fuzzy about these being glued in notches. Both of the drawers have streaks of pitch veins  at the top and I'm not sure how well yellow glue adheres to this stuff. I think I'll put in a couple of screws for insurance.

molding stock

Used some of the sugar pine I bought last week. Prepped the stock for the top and bottom of the cabinet. Still mulling over the edge treatment but mostly likely I'll go with a simple round over.

like this

I have left over cove molding and I like the simple round over look. I'll take a look at my collection of molding planes and see any of the profiles say 'pick me, pick me....'.

accidental woodworker

 The first thing to address is my overly optimistic time line for completion. Yesterday I thought I might be done with it by sunday. I must have inadvertently taken the wrong medication because that ain't happening. I made progress today and after assessing that I knew sunday was a fairy tale. Maybe next sunday and that should give me some wiggle room.

door #2 stile

The off cut cheek I glued in has set up nicely. 

big gap

I have about a 1/4" gap R/L and zero T/B. Based on the fit of the mortise/tenon I would have bet a lung the gap would have been same T/B as it is R/L.

the fix

The plan is to band the outside of the door with a 1/8" thick banding akin to cock beading. That will fill the gap, hide the bridle joinery, and give some visual interest to the door.

glued and cooking

The door clamped up square - the diagonals inside and outside were dead nuts on.

making cock beading

Used my 1/8" beading plane to round over the four corners. I then ripped them off on the tablesaw and ripped them 3/4" wide. 

nope

I like the banding but I think it is too short (height). The top of the bead is flush with the top of the door frame. It is almost lost and doesn't fully define the end of the door and the banding.

better

Made five more moldings 7/8" wide and I can clearly see them now. No mistaking that there is a bead 360 on the door.

the back up

I whacked this out real quick to satisfy my curiosity. I put the first moldings I did against a chamfered edge. It is better than the molding up against a square edge but it doesn't look as good as the second, higher moldings. The chamfer draws your eye to the molding and gives separation. I'll save the the first moldings for a future project.

glad I did this

This is an off cut cheek that I used to make a 'knob'. I wasn't sure how this would play out. My first thoughts were this might appear to be too modern but I like it.

doesn't look modern

I had also thought of making this out of metal I had some sheet brass but it was only a 32nd thick and that was way too thin. The wooden 'knob' looks good and doesn't appear to be overly intrusive neither IMO. I think I'm going to go with two of these. I just happen to have another cheek off cut for #2.

hmm......

Thinking out loud - maybe I should use the first set of moldings to cock bead the drawers?

almost

I could probably get the two of them in the gap with a little gentle persuasion from a mallet. The gap has to be wide enough for the molding plus a wee bit of wiggle room for the hinges and the door to swing open/close.

consistent gap

The gap is the thickness of the two moldings plus a 32nd - ish. I'm going to have to be extra anal hinging this door because I don't want to have to plane the moldings. That would destroy the bead on the moldings.

looks ok

 I don't think the beaded molding detracts anything from the door or the cabinet overall. But I do think I need to do something on the top of the cabinet. Some kind of a crest rail or a molding over hanging the front and sides? Plenty of time to sort that and decide on later.

accidental woodworker