Hand Tool Headlines

The Woodworking Blogs Aggregator

With apologies, Norse Woodsmith articles and blog entries are not available online pending some work on the website. The feeds from other sites are all still available.  Also, there may be some graphic issues while I migrate the site to a new host, please bear with me.  Thanks!

Be sure to visit the Hand Tool Headlines section - scores of my favorite woodworking blogs in one place.

Accidental Woodworker

Subscribe to Accidental Woodworker feed
The daily dribble from my workshopRalph Boumenothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10606484453109932074noreply@blogger.comBlogger5278125
Updated: 16 hours 22 min ago

2nd Mackintosh cupboard pt XXVIII........

Fri, 09/27/2024 - 3:29am

Wasted part of the AM looking for the lumberyard. The directions were good (on the cell phone) until I got to a round about. You would think I would have figured it out after the first time but not me. It took me four tries and going down a dead end street twice. I was about to give up on finding it when on the fourth time for the round about I Koszela Lumber. In my defense the sign for the lumber yard was a tiny one.

I went home with $304 of rough sawn 4/4 cherry. They also had some 1/2" pine that I like to use for drawers. Debbie (the yard manager) said that they don't always have it - the batch they had was all there was. She said having it in stock is random. Nice people and a good selection of wood. It reminded me of a lumber hardware store throwback to the 1950's. I'll be going there again for sure.

stopped at 3

The more I thought about this the more I know my wife will not like this being natural. I'm not too sure she will like the shelves behind the doors being natural. I think it is best if I paint this one. That will eliminate any headaches with what shelf goes where.

rails glued in

The super glue (used accelerator too) appeared to grab and hold. A half hour after I glued the rails, I couldn't budge either rail. I'll have to do some clean up because I dripped super glue on the tile and got some of it on the door.

my haul of cherry

The two boards on the left are not quite 6" wide and 6 feet long. There are four of them. The wide middle boards are just under 10" wide - four of them too - all are 5 footers. The last board on the right is a little less than 6" wide and 6 feet long. The cost per BF was close to $10 but I saved over going to Highlands in New Hampshire. Gas alone would have been about $60 and round trip it would be over 3 hours. The BF price was a couple of dollars cheaper at Highlands but I'm happy with what I got here.

This stock is for the next project and it will a change for me. 99% of what I've done has been in pine. I really didn't want this project to be pine and painted. That is why I opted for cherry which is my favorite wood. I ordered the tiles and the hinges for this next project yesterday. I will let the cherry acclimate to the shop for a couple of weeks. Koszela stores their wood under cover but exposed to the elements.

 frame part

I was getting ready to chop the gains for the hinges when I noticed this. If these pieces broke off the paint would show them off. I glued them back on with super glue and accelerator. A trick I learned from watching Jerry Rosa is to wait a few seconds after applying super glue before hitting it with accelerator. Have you noticed if you hit it with accelerator right away it will turn a whitish color? Wait a few secs and the glue stays clear.

top door framed tile

Definitely looks better with rails even though they are kind of hidden. Worth doing it this for both doors. I may have to paint the entire door but I won't know that for sure until after I paint the smudges on the door and tile frame.

 first door hinged

I only put one screw in each leaf for now. I will wait to screw in the others until after I have it hung and fitted.

ditto

Took extra time doing these hinges. It is too easy for me to get confused. I checked myself after doing one hinge to make sure that one it was hinged on the right part of the door. And two that the barrel of the hinge faced out and not in. I did good and got all four hinge leaves flush and the barrels pointing in the right direction.

double triple checking myself

I caught two me-steaks on this door. The hinge on the left was off over a 1/2". I don't know how I screwed that up so bad. But I'm glad that I laid the hinges out and checked it before chopping it.

 I would have cried

I laid out the first hinge wrong(2nd  me-steak). I only caught myself after I had knifed it. I will fill in the knife lines with putty after I chop and fit the door.

bottom door

Marking the hinges was a bit awkward for me. I did it in pencil first and then made a knife nick. I followed that up by laying the hinges on the inside to verify my knife nicks were correct. 

I didn't chop the gains on the inside as it was almost 1500. I didn't want to start this and stop to pick it up tomorrow. I want to do the chopping and fitting all in one sitting. I did go back to the shop after dinner and verified the knife lines on the inside again.

accidental woodworker

2nd Mackintosh cupboard pt XXVII.........

Thu, 09/26/2024 - 3:41am

I have turned the corner on the 2nd cupboard. When I checked this AM on the hinges and tiles they were coming on thursday. Surprise, both came in today along with a few other things I ordered. It shouldn't be too much longer to say this is done. That got me thinking as to where my wife is going to put this?

I still can't get over how ga-ga she went over the frame for the tiles. That got me thinking about the next project and I decided on it. It will involve the two tiles I ordered from Etsy today. I've been searching RI for hardwood dealers and so far nada. I used to go to one in West Warwick (20 years ago) but he is gone. If I can't find a local dealer I'll have to go to Highlands in New Hampshire.

2nd cupboard base

I was thinking of painting this while awaiting parts. After eyeballing it I decided it was easier to remove it, paint it, and then reinstall it.

 thinking out loud

The gap at the top and bottom isn't the same. The top is wider than the bottom. I screwed on the stiles and eyeballed it and then sat on the fence with it. Couldn't decide whether or not to fill them in. I'm not thrilled with the gaps and the top one I can see from a bazillion feet away.

 doesn't too bad

Cut up some scrap to fill in the gaps. It doesn't look out of place - the frame rails blend into the rails of the door IMO.

sans the  gap fillers

If the top and bottom gaps were the same I would leave this as is. I can't get past that I can see the top gap from so far away.

 made new rails

Did a better job fitting these set of rails. I am going to try and use super glue to secure them. I left the back and bottom unpainted so at least one surface should provide a good gluing surface.

3rd shelf

This is for the middle compartment of the cupboard. I don't think my wife will ask for a 2nd one but she still surprises me after 25 years.

just a teeny bit of twist

I have found that shelves that sit on shelf pins will rock. Whether it is due to a twist, cup, or bow in the shelf or if I screwed up drilling the holes for the pins. I can eliminate this one now and the pins will have to wait.

 dead flat

I got full width shavings going across the board on both faces. There was zero light under the straight edge on 99% of the places I checked for it.

notches for the pins

Used one of my small routers to get a consistent depth for the pin notches.

 the last of it

Tile on the right and 2 sets of hinges on the left. No more excuses for getting a check mark in the done column.

 will my gamble pay off?

It looks like it will fit but then I thought the same with the first top door tile frame.

 Houston we have gaps

Not quite a 1/4" R/L.

 top to bottom gap

The top to bottom is a strong 16th and it isn't consistent or parallel from one end to the other.

 checked for square

3 corners on the tile aren't square. There isn't a lot of daylight to be seen and it is mostly right at the corners. The frame in the door is dead nuts at all four corners and from each direction. I am going to glue the frame up and go with it as is. I don't mind a small gap on the sides and splitting the bottom isn't going to be problem. It will be minuscule and you won't notice/see it.

 happy with the match

There is a negligible difference (color wise) between the bin pull, snap catches, and the Horton Brasses antique hinges.

marking the shelves

The bottom shelf will not fit in the middle or top. However, the same can't be said for the top and middle shelves. They are basically the same size but the shelf pin notches aren't. Stamped each respective shelf with its letter - T, M, and B.

started the hinges on the top door

Horton supplies two screws with the hinges. Steel ones for the initial screwing down on the hinges and ones to match the hinges. They also give the option for slotted or phillips head screws.

The screws for the hinges are too long - they are just shy of 3/4". They will fit in the edge of the cabinet but they won't fit in the door. They might but I would rather not try that out. I'll have to snip/file a wee bit off each one. As an aside if the door stock was 7/8" thick the screw wouldn't be a problem.

it was drying quick

I got 3 coats on the middle shelf before it was time to kill the lights. It was dry before I finished getting the first coat on it.  5 should do it. But thinking about it out loud my wife probably won't like it being natural. I like the look of natural against paint but maybe not for this. The other two shelves are behind doors. Hmm..... maybe I should paint this instead of putting on couple more coats of shellac.

 before quitting time

The can said I could recoat in an hour. I waited about 90 minutes between each one. I'll let this set up overnight and glue them in tomorrow.

 need more deep reach clamps

I got a clamp on each corner half laps but one stile didn't get clamp. It had some squeeze out so maybe I got lucky. I was just at Harbor Freight too and I looked at the clamps but I didn't buy any. I shoulda, woulda, coulda, but I'll have to go back.

 

 almost done

The frame around the tile completes this. The bare tile kinda looked ok sans a frame but with one it nails it. My original thought was to use smaller tiles and fill in the entire panel. I didn't do that on this cupboard because I had already made the doors and then ordered the tiles.

accidental woodworker

2nd Mackintosh cupboard pt XXVI.......

Wed, 09/25/2024 - 4:14am

 I didn't get much time in the shop today. I spent the afternoon with my wife helping her out at the storage unit. I did a few things in the AM and I went to the shop after dinner and basically looked around. I swept the deck and emptied the shitcan, killed the lights, and went topside for the rest of the night.

top door frame

I'm not entirely happy with this but I do like it. What I don't like is not having any rails. There isn't enough room between the tile and the door rails to fit in frame rails the same size as the stiles. The gap is too small which works in my favor. The shadow will be on the larger side though.

 bottom door

Made the tile frame different for cupboard #1. The panel depth on these two doors is 9/16" and on #2 is about 1/4". I looked at the frame with the rails off but it didn't look right.

 last of the planing

The rails and stiles were slightly proud of the door frame and I planed them flush on both doors.

using screws

The panel is painted so I can't glue the tile frame to it. I really don't want to scrap any paint for gluing and possibly make more work for myself to do. I am going to secure the stiles and rails with two screws in each one.

 screw markers

I marked the screws with small brads. I then screwed the frame parts to the door to check the fit.

 oval head screws

Used a #4 screw to secure the frame. I got lucky that I was able to avoid screwing through the back frame.

 bottom door

This door is a close match and I like the look. Framing in the tile was worth going back and doing. Etsy has a lot of these tiles to choose from and I might make more projects using tiles.

finally done

Maria has had this for quite a while (7-8 weeks?). She did an awesome job with the patches. They don't look like a jumbled mess - I had given her a pic of what patch went where. I like how the patches have a symmetry and alignment to them now. The frame weighs 16.6lbs. I thought it was much heavier. I needed the weight so I get the right weight rated picture hanger.

 first of ???

Used a foam brush to paint these and the first one doesn't look too bad. No way I'll get away with just one but I was optimistic about getting away with 2.

hmm.....

This is a problem with getting a 2nd quart of paint - you won't get an exact match with the first one. The color looks to be a match but I can see a difference between them. I don't think it will be a problem because the frame parts can be a slightly off in color. If I were painting more of the door it would show.

sawing to length

This is the back for cupboard #2. I ripped it to width on the tablesaw and used a hand saw to get the length.

 a little tight

The length was tight too and after a few strokes with a blockplane it fit. The width has two spots where I need to shave it a wee bit. Here at the bottom for about 18" and at the top.

 top spot

I had to plane about 3" at the top corner before it fit there.

couple of frog hairs

Took less than a minute to shave the back to get it to fit T/B and R/L.

 good fit

I should have made the rabbet a little wider. I plan on painting both the back and the rabbet so I can't use glue. With the rabbet a bit wider I could have used screws T/B. I have a cleat at the top and bottom that I can use screws to attach the T/B of the back to. I'll have to use nails T/B.

another change

Having to wait for hardware allows me to eyeball this every day I wait and come up with changes. Decided to add adjustable shelving for the middle compartment. It is tall which would be wasteful of the space. With at least one shelf it will increase what it can hold. I'll make one now and ask Diane if she wants a second one.

 two coats

It ain't looking good boys and girls. The coverage doesn't look solid after two coats has dried for about an hour. I came back after dinner and put on #3. I waited over 6 hours before doing that to give it more time to set up. The can says you can recoat in an hour.

still no chair

Making a chair is on the bucket A list. I have the patterns for a stick chair and I have a couple videos of Chris making said stick chair. Still haven't made one. I have made a couple of stools and that is the closest I've come so far. However, as long as Chris writes books about making chairs I'll keep buying them.

hmm.....

I was expecting something closer in size to Stick Chair Book #1. Good info in #2 and it does complement it. I just have to get off my arse and jump into it.

accidental woodworker

2nd Mackintosh cupboard pt XXV.........

Tue, 09/24/2024 - 3:43am

 Checked on the MIA tile and after jumping through a sunday of hoops I found out it is supposedly coming on the 26th. What is so damn annoying is that it is spending days moving through the same USPS facility in New Mexico. At least that is what I saw on the tracking site. The bird tile came from California and the flower tile is coming from New Mexico. The joys of S/H are boundless eh?

Houston, we have problem

Can you see the ugly looking me-steak. I don't know how I missed this when I put this together.

not square

The left side of the frame is out of square. It runs down and I had zero problems eyeballing it. Nix the next project and redo this frame went to the head of the line.

 compared side by side

The right looks ok to my eye. The left one is OTL (out to lunch) and there is no mistaking that.

 the back side

The plan was to remove the frame from the front side. If I had any issues with the front, i.e. tear out from removing the frame, I would switch and put the 2nd frame on the back. 

 gone

This looks much better than I thought it would be. The glue adhesion wasn't 100% and I will lay down the 2nd frame over this and evaluate it then. 

what I should have done

I didn't layout the frame for this tile accurately. I cut corners and assumed too much and paid the price. Started off the replacement one by checking the inside of the door square - it was square.

hmm.....

The 8x6 tile ain't 8x6. It is 7 7/8 x 5 7/8. I checked the first cupboard tile and it was 6 x 7 15/16". 

2nd hiccup

I laid out the frame for an interior opening of 8x6. I double triple checked that it was square and parallel to the door rails and stiles. However, the tile is not square. I didn't check the first one for square but the bottom right corner and the top right corners are slightly out of square. Even with the larger 8x6 layout the tile wouldn't fit inside the pencil lines.

 that is a 16th

I laid the tile on pencil lines on the top left going downward to the bottom left. The tile was on the line at the right top and off it a 16th on the bottom right. I ran a new square line from this 16th up to the top. Checked that the tile laid in between the new pencil lines.

fitting the frame

Using the left side of the door as my reference. I marked the door and the frame parts with an X so I didn't lose that.

fits

The frame parts on dead on the line and there is some wiggle room up/down with the tile.

 ditto

Got the same results with these two parts - on the line and some wiggle room.

chopping half laps

On the first frame I didn't make the half laps half laps. I just chopped them out saying that there wasn't any need to chop exactly 1/2 on both pieces. I did do that with these. I fussed a wee bit getting the marking gauge to be dead nuts on center from both faces. Checked each one I chopped with a scrap piece of the frame.

dry fitted

The frame is square to the door and more importantly it looks square. There is also some wiggle room with the tile. There is some movement to be had R/L and T/B. The two bottom half laps are a few frog hairs proud. At first I thought it was because I didn't chop them to depth but I had. The up face of the rail was off square. 

my fault - brain dead me-steak

I shoulda, woulda, coulda, but didn't sharpen the marking knives (plural) before knifing the half laps. The stiles were squirrely and the knife looked like I had done it with a plastic knife. And did I sharpen it after seeing the first one? Nay, nay moose breath, I grabbed the 2nd knife and tore out the knife line just as bad. I also continued to use it to tear out the bottom stile knife lines. As a result of that both the bottom and top stile half laps were slightly (and ugly looking) too wide.

FYI - I managed to unscrew my head from my arse and I sharpened and honed both marking knives.

corrected

My wife looked at my blog and she commented on how much she liked the frame around the bird tile. She didn't notice that the top left was not square. I am going to also frame the first cupboard tiles. Just vertical ones for the top door (no room for rails) and stiles and rails for the bottom one ( have room for them). 

hard to see

This isn't a pic of the ugly half lap gap but the gap between the frame and the tile. It isn't large, maybe a 32nd strong if that. I can see that due to the black border on the tile and the color of the cupboard to come, it will be in shadow and impossible to see.

 better clamp job

On the first go around I used a caul and only clamped the stiles. On #2 I clamped the four half laps and the middle of each rail and stile. I got a pretty good squeeze out all around the frame. I feel more confident that this frame will survive the glue up.

no painting yet

Decided to hold off on the painting until I get the bottom door tile and the frame for it installed. I also want to chop the gains for the hinges before painting. After I get these last things done I'll be free to paint and not worry about messing it up doing said items.

got ahead myself

Forgot to plane a chamfer on the ends of the stiles and rails before I glued them to the door panel. I did the chamfer with a 1" chisel. Had to use super glue and accelerator on two that I blew out.

 sharp chisel

This was not that difficult to knock out. I had to chisel from both sides into the middle to get clean chamfers.

 big helper

I cut a scrap frame part and used it to back up the chamfering to help with the blow out. This worked great and I had enough scraps to do three of them. I did two corner blow out clean ups before thinking of this.

done

Filled in the wide gaps with wood and used wood putty to fill in the knife line tear out. I'll sand this smooth tomorrow.

double triple check again

The frame ain't moving but the tile is. There are a few frog hairs of movement R/L and not so much T/B. This is the way I should have done this the first time. I made too many assumptions with the first one and paid the price. Paul Sellers wrote it again in his blog -'...it isn't what you make, but how you make it....' I must have had my hearing aids charging when he said that.

it was empty

Almost went into panic mode. I was going to call this box done but when I checked the fit of the lid I saw the box was empty. I put the three boxes with the letters and numbers away with rest of the empty box herd. 

 almost done

The box has 3 coats of shellac on it and I rubbed it down with steel wool after the first and second coats. The box still felt rough to the touch like the grain was raised.

Howard's feed 'n wax

The roughness is gone and the box is smooth to the touch all over. Now I can call this done and put a check mark in the done column.

 more the trivia

I have always liked this type of 'knowledge'. Some of it is rooted in superstition but a lot of it is just what was observed, seen, and noted as the seasons changed. If it quacks, waddles, and likes water it is probably a duck. A lot of this country trivia is wisdom and common sense passed down from generation to generation. There aren't many left who are doing the passing down. Besides I like this stuff and geek out on it. I have one more of his books coming in this week sometime.

accidental woodworker

2nd Mackintosh cupboard pt XXIV.........

Mon, 09/23/2024 - 3:33am

 Today I had planned to get the hinges installed on the two doors. News flash - it didn't happen boys and girls. Instead I ordered two new hinges. I got them from Horton Brasses and they ain't cheap. Two ball tip hinges with a dark antique finish, with S/H, was $74. So far on this cupboard I have almost $150 in hardware. On the flip side the hinges are worth the $34 each but at this rate I'll run through my retirement accounts in short order. I might have to learn how to make my own hardware.

As an aside I checked the price of Mackintosh hardware on the Horton site and I almost had a coronary. They only have two pieces - a pull for $67 and H hinges for $110. But the hinges appear to be sold as a pair for that price.

came last night

I got these from Rejuvenation Hardware. Both of them are oil rubbed bronze. Both are substantial and have some weight and heft to them. I was not disappointed in the quality of either of them but I did have doubts on the snap catch.

not what I expected

This snap catch isn't a stamped out piece of imported garbage. It appears to be cast without any thin pot metal parts. And it comes with slot head screws! I'm happy with these and I will buy them again but I still may choke a wee bit on the $23 cost.

setting the bin pull

I had to play with this and I first got the screw holes measured the same out to the ends of the drawer. Squared those lines across the width.

 I like the pull

For this style of drawer pull I center it between the ends but I don't like it centered top/bottom. I don't like it below center and this one is about 3/8" above it. This pull is going to look good against the color of the cupboard.

nice touch

Not only did the bin pull come with wood screws, it comes with 3 different length screws and two tee nuts. I have never seen anything like this before with any hardware I have bought over the years.

couldn't use these hinges

Not only don't the hinges match the bin pull or the snap catches, it is short a screw. Decided here that the best thing to do was to get oil rubbed bronze hinges. These hinges were used because the leaves are oil canned. I had bought them because I needed two sets and this all ACE had. 

home

I nixed the idea of putting these clamps in a 5 gallon bucket. It would annoy me to reach in for a 6" clamp and pull out a 4" one. I had to reroute a couple of wires (for the shop lights) on the back side of this joist to make room the clamps. They are on the other side of the bench but they are close by and visible.

The hinges won't be in until later on in the week so I am once again dead in the water with this. I think I might as well paint it. If I don't paint it I'll probably start a new project to keep busy.

accidental woodworker

2nd Mackintosh pt XXIII.....

Sun, 09/22/2024 - 3:26am

 Weather has gotten crappy for the past couple of days. It has been gray and dreary and today it rained off and on all day. The rain is welcomed because the tree service tore up the yard up and wrecked the grass. I'm hoping that it recovers a little before it goes dormant for the winter. Between myself and my wife we got the everything cleaned up before the rain. I put out 11 yard bags for thursday garbage pickup. I have a pile of branches yet that I have to cut up and get bagged. This will be the last time I'll have to do branch pickup now that the trees are gone.

 cutout time

My first thoughts on doing this was to chisel it out. I was going to saw the angled ends but I couldn't find a way to get the base flat on something so I could chisel it. Ended up using my jigsaw to cut out the waste.

this is history

I don't like the slope of this. It is too steep and I'm concerned that the toe will snap off. I sawed them off straight down.

awkward and a ROYAL PITA

I didn't do the cutout before glue up because I thought the cutout would bend, bow, or move around clamp pressure. The jigsaw was ok but the clean up sucked pond scum. No matter which way I came at the stock, bevel up or bevel down, light touch, or hogging - I got a ton of tear out. 

I even tried a spokeshave and my small violin plane and got the same results. I would have bet I was working with the grain but still tore out. It took a lot of calories to smooth out the torn out areas.

another on the fly change

I wanted to round the top of the vertical cut but I only thought of that after I sawed the ends. Decided to do a chamfer on the cutout. I had to deal with the same tear out crappola as I did on the edge clean up.

 me-steak

I knifed the outline on the face and that was a brain fart. It might have gone better if I had done that at an angle vice straight down. I didn't do it for the other two and relied on working to the pencil lines.

)&%@#_)*@)%(_+__)_)%# tear out

This drove me bonkers. One instance the chisel is leaving behind a pristine surface and then it rips out a chunk of wood. No warning or anything else. I thought the short vertical ends with end grain would have been the problem area but they weren't.

better

Used the sides for practice. The 2nd one was better than the first one but I still had to deal with the chamfer tearing out. I used a 120 grit sanding stick to smooth out the chamfer. I still think that I may have to use some wood putty on a couple of spots though.

front cutout

I took my time with this trying to take the lightest of shavings that I could. For the most part it worked and I got minimal tear out. However, it took me twice as long to do the front as it did the other two sides. 

 done

My back was killing me here. It has been kicking my arse since I did the yard work. My hamstrings finally are feeling better. They don't hurt anymore when I go up/down the stairs. I didn't do anymore bending at the workbench today.

easy work

Planed a chamfer on the top of the base. I was able to do this one entirely with a plane.

attached

Screwed the base on. The first time I did it backwards. Super glad that I didn't use any glue on it. I can't see the chamfer detail on the top of the cutout standing 5 feet away from it. It is also hard to pick out the chamfer on the top of the base too. One last quibble is I think I should have made the base cutout taller. I made this small to keep the height of the cupboard down. I do like this one better than the cutout on the first cupboard.

right side gap

Minimal amount at the front and it goes to zero at the back.

left side gap

The gap on the left is at the back. I should be able to close up both the R & L gaps with paint. If the paint doesn't do it I'll leave it as is as it should be in shadow.

forgot I had these

I have 18 of this style of clamps - ten 6" and eight 4" ones. These I kept in a box out of sight and I forgot all about them. I keep the 4" above my workbench on the floor joists. I don't have any more free space up there for these 6" clamps. Thinking of buying a 5 gallon pail from the box store to keep all 18 of them in. Anyone with a pro and con input?

accidental woodworker

2nd Mackintosh cupboard pt XXII.........

Sat, 09/21/2024 - 3:26am

 I spent almost 4 hours today in a fruitless search. I was looking for a non smart TV either an LED or an older tube one (nonexistent). I went to a couple of Walmart stores, a Best Buy (the clerk was clueless about non smart TVs), and a bunch of department stores. I just want a TV that I can turn on select a channel and watch it. I don't want to surf the internet through it, stream Netflix, check on my emails, or watch YouTube. The only surfing I want to do with said TV is channel surfing. I found non smart TVs on amazon but all their non smart TVs still require an internet connection. Why I ask is that needed? The only connection to it should be cable TV or an antenna.

The TV I have now is a 'smart' TV and it has 6 direct inputs (3 of them I have no idea what they are) other than TV channels. I am constantly fighting with it to stay on a TV input. It is also incredibly slow to to turn on - it takes over 3 minutes from on to watching a TV channel. It is constantly defaulting to Netflix for some reason. I am hesitant with buying a non smart TV unseen but so far I haven't found one in public. My patience is wearing thin with the one I have now so I may bite it hard and buy it from amazon. Although Walmart says they have non smart TVs in store I couldn't find one to eyeball.

 waited

I was a good boy and waited until the next day to take this out of the clamp. I was curious as to how this did - I don't have good luck with gluing miters.

 couldn't handle the stress

It popped off while I was sawing it. I need this to fill in what would be a noticeable gap. I used super glue and accelerator on the second go around. It seemed to be a good connection and where it will live it won't be stressed.

drawer stops

Got one on both sides and I had to fiddle and faddle with this one. I had to plane the edge against the drawer 3 times before the it worked - the front of the drawer being flush with the front edge.

 yikes almost

I dry fitted the frame and the tile wouldn't fit. I don't think I put the frame together the way it was when I fitted the tile yesterday (didn't label it). I planed the inside edges of the top/bottom rails until it fit again.

initials

Hopefully this will key the memory as to what I have in this box. 4 coats of shellac and this will get a check mark in the done column.

bottom door frame

This might bite me on the arse hard but I'm going to do it anyways. I measured the bottom tile on cupboard #1 and it is dead nuts square at 8" long on each side. I wanted to do something towards finishing this cupboard. If it goes south on me I can easily make another frame - I have a lot of scraps.

 used a square this time

On the upper door I didn't use a square to set the stiles and rails. I used one on the bottom door and it came out square this time. The top rail was a few frog hairs longer than the bottom one. I referenced both the stiles and rails off the left side of the door (the top rail was a wee bit longer than the bottom one). I also penciled in the tile and frame parts on the plywood panel.

 hmm.....

I thought I had made the inner dimensions of the frame an 1/8" longer T/B and R/L. I got the 1/8" on the R/L but the T/B is barely a frog hair over an 1/8". I made a blood offering but it didn't change anything. I'll have to wait and check it when the tile comes in.

I glued up the first frame and put the tile in it when I clamped to ensure that it didn't drift out into La La Land. I checked it again 6 hours later and the tile fit but the top left corner was a wee bit tight. I may have to do some judicious shaving with a chisel.

 Blue Spruce mallets

The far left one I bought 15 years ago(?) and I have used it only for dovetails. I have had it repaired once by Blue Spruce and I epoxied a big chip back on it. Recently the handle loosened and the head moves when striking with it. Annoying having it bounce when striking. I bought the middle one as a replacement for it.

There is a slight difference in the size of the heads and the handles. Other than that they are the same. I noticed a teeny difference using it chop dovetails. They feel the same weight wise but the new felt lighter using it?

The far right one I ordered by mistake. I chopped some dovetails with it and it worked but it felt funny. I missed the extra weight of the bigger one. I intend to use this one for hinges and any other finesse chopping needed other than dovetails.

accidental woodworker

2nd Mackintosh cupboard pt XXI.........

Fri, 09/20/2024 - 3:19am

Had a short day again in the shop. I spent a chunk of the PM with my wife at her storage unit. She is/was a little creeped out with a couple of the tenants. Both of them seem to be living in their storage units so I went with her just to be a presence for others there. Today neither one of her neighbors were home. I told her that I will go there with her until she and I feel comfortable with her being alone there. 

Tomorrow is going to be another short AM session day. My wife is giving a presentation on the web with over 1500 people signed up to watch. Of course she is freaking out about it and is getting nervous and bitchy too. I've learned that the best thing for me is to vacate the premises and return after she is done. Which I will do and I'm sure I can find something to amuse myself with for 90 minutes or so.

 last night

After applying the 5th coat of shellac I screwed the back of the base in place. No glue again, just screws for just in case......

 it fits

It is a loose slip fit and the gap is negligible. I'm extremely happy with it and I'm sure the paint will bridge the teeny gap.

 cutout #2

The first one was basically the same as this one. The only difference is the inward slant on the ends was higher. Doesn't matter because this is toast. I like the slanted ends but not the curve between them. The cupboard has zero curves or arcs and this looks out of place to my eye.

 have to move the back

The back is too far inward and it is interfering with the slant on the end. I had to unscrew it and put it on the opposite face of the vertical block.

3 times was the charm

Decided to go with straight lines but in a somewhat of an arc. The base now matches all the chamfers on the cupboard. 

half laps done

Made the frame for the 8x6 tile on the top door. I did all the half laps with the saw and chisel. I was going to use a router plane to get the depth but I didn't need it. The half laps for this aren't critical nor require there be a perfect between them.

new mallet came

I can't find the first large Blue Spruce mallet I bought is but this one seems to be smaller? I guess it cab vary size wise because the mallets are sold by the weight of the head. Both the same - cherry handles with a maple head.

 fits

I nixed the different thicknesses of the rails and stiles. I am going with them both being the same thickness. Will the tile fit?

no it will not

Had a brain fart and didn't mark for the half lap correctly on the rails. 

fitted the long way

Got a slip fit between the stiles. I thought of making the half lap wider and filling it in with a dutchman but nixed it. There would be an outline that might show through the paint. Sawed out a new set of stiles and rails.

 still doesn't fit

Got the half laps done correctly this time but the tile doesn't fit yet. The inside of the door is square but the frame is a few frog hairs off that. I also thought I had fudged and added a few extra frog hairs for wiggle room T/B and R/L. It would appear I didn't fudge enough.

 more plane and fit

I penciled the frame where the tile was strong and I planed the stiles and rails between the half laps. 

 where I found the frame wasn't square

The pencil line is tapered with the wide end on the left tapering away to nothing on the right. The top opposite corner had about the same amount of tapered error. Planed down to both pencil lines removing them.

 fits

There is a small tapered gap on both of the 8" sides but they are in shadow and hard to see. I think once the paint is on the gap will be impossible to see.

matching chamfer

Glad it was past quitting time. I didn't like the square look of the frame parts proud of the door. Planed a chamfer on the ends and planed one of them on the wrong side.

 sneak preview

I like this framed look better than the first cupboard. I'm not going to frame that one because there isn't any room for a frame on the top door. I have room on the bottom one but I don't think it would look good doing only one of them.

glued and cooking

Filled in the errant chamfer. I'll square this up in the AM after it has cooked overnight. 

I should be getting the bigger tile in tomorrow or maybe saturday. The snap catches and the bin pull are supposedly coming sometime next week. I will probably start a new project in the interim.

accidental woodworker

2nd Mackintosh cupboard pt XX......

Thu, 09/19/2024 - 3:34am

How many more parts are there to come? I don't think there are too many more as I got the base almost done. All I need are the snap catches for the doors and the bin pull for the drawer. Fingers crossed that the paint job will go better this time around. In spite of having to run around doing errands I got a lot done in the shop today. Every little bit helps to make the light at the end of the tunnel larger. Oh and I almost forgot, the letter box is 99% done.

 letter box

Got two problems with the box. There are gaps on both partitions and the cross one is proud of the rabbet on both long sides. The keepers will hide the gaps and I will shave the proud with a chisel.

 base dry fitted

Happy with the fit of this and it went together off the saw.

 fits the cupboard

It is a loose fit with about a 32nd gap on each side. I can live with that.

the back

The back of the base will be inset from the back of the cupboard a couple of inches. It will be a butt joint with the sides. 

 poof, no more gaps to be seen

Decided to cover the tops of the partition walls to hide the gaps.

 lid fitted

Took a while planing the keepers with the small rabbet plane but eventually I got it. The downside is it fits flush this way but 180 out it doesn't fit flush. I could plane more so it would fit either way but I run the risk of making it too loose and sloppy. Then the lid would look like crap. I'm ok with having the lid fit flush only one way. 

glued, cooking, and filled

I haven't ordered another set of the laser cut letters yet. I need to get some glue (hide & yellow) and something else I can't remember. I have time for it to bubble up to the surface for me.

chamfered

It looks better with the chamfer. I still have to work on the bottom to clean up the miters but this is basically done.

cupboard back

This has a 'white coating' on both faces. According to the blurb at Lowes it is paint grade. I picked it because it is thicker and stiffer than the 5mm plywood I used for the first cupboard. It costs about $8-9 more than the 5mm stuff.

small cove molding

3 foot long and $4 each. I will use it for the lid on the letter box and I might use it on the cupboard too. The cupboard use will depend upon the size of the gap between the cupboard and base, if any.

 sawn to rough length

I made the top too deep - it is a 1/4". The vertical between the top and plywood looks like an abyss to my eye. This cove molding will soften the transition between the top edge and the plywood panel.

glued and cooking

No need for clamps because I got a snug friction fit will all four pieces. After it has cooked for a couple of hours I'll flush the top edge of the molding to the top of the lid.

 flushing the tails

I don't understand this because I used the tail and pin boards to layout and mark for each of them. Both corners had the tails proud by about a 32nd.

 2 1/2" split

When I drove this screw home (far right one) it split the bearer. I filled the split with glue, clamped it and drove the screw home again. I'll let this cook until tomorrow. I screwed the bearers on with no glue. They are set down from the top a 1/4". If I don't like the reveal between the base and the cupboard I can unscrew it and move up/down to my liking.

 back sawn to length

I made the back the same length as between the sides at the front. That way the sides are parallel and square to the front.

 curve for the back

Sawed a curve in the back so it doesn't bear on the entire length. The curve starts 1 1/2" in from each end the the peak at the center is 1".

one tile arrived

Now that I have the tile I can play with the 'framing' of it. The rails and stiles are different thicknesses and I have to decide with one will be the fat one. As of now I'm leaning towards the rails fat and the stiles skinny. The will be half lapped where the cross each other.

came in super early

I ordered this one the day after the first ones I ordered. This was supposed to come in between the 25th and 27th. I like this one more than the oil rubbed bronze snap catches and bin pull. However, I couldn't find a drawer pull that was the same as this or something similar. 

four coats

They shelves will get one more coat. I got the 4th one on this AM at 0730. After dinner around 1930 I rubbed them down with 4-0 steel wool, vacuumed them, and applied the 5th and final coat.

might as well

This had four and it got a 5th one too. The bottom of the cupboard only got 3 coats of the gossamer shellac. I didn't see any need to keep slathering shellac on it after the 3rd coat.

 drawer stops
I have about 3/4" of real estate at the back of the drawer for a drawer stop. I will get two of them from this scrap and screw them in place. Seems there are still a couple of woodworking steps left. 

accidental woodworker

2nd Mackintosh cupboard pt XIX......

Wed, 09/18/2024 - 2:45am

 Missed that I had one more woodworking step to go on the cupboard. Forgot that it was sans the base. #2 will have the same base cutout as #1 but I'm dovetailing the front corners together. And it will sit higher up in the base then #1. Just a few changes that I think improve it a wee bit.

 last night

I went back to the shop to play with the letter box after dinner. I couldn't get it out of my mind running through the steps to make/fit the partitions. Got the dadoes done on the long sides and I was puzzling over how to measure between them. Then it dawned on me that it the length had to be the same as the width of the bottom panel.

 when the light came on

At first I was doing some serious butt scratching. I came up with a couple of different ways to measure it with rules, adjustable squares, and two pieces of scrap pine. I sawed it to a measured length and it was too long. It was after this that I saw it had to be the width of the bottom. Duh. I complicated a month of sundays for nothing.

 fitted

First cross partition set and the second one could be now be marked and chopped.

 used a 6" combo square

The 6" square was just long enough to reach from the center cross one to the groove in the short end. Made my knife tics and started to chop them out.

 AM work

I had to remake the short partition wall again. I mistakenly sawed the cross partition to the length of the short one. I had to go back to square one, thickness some scrap and chop two more dadoes. The short ended up being a 16th short but I kept it. The keeper for the lid will cover it and it won't be seen.

Last step before glue up was to do a dry fit and check the joinery. The miters didn't close up as tight as I would have liked but the plywood panels and partitions being glued will help to keep the box together.

 needed some extra help

When I had checked the miters with the combo square they looked good but the miter faces were wavy. The toes all looked and read good and it was the heels that varied. When I glued this up the middle of miters were slightly open at the toes. The top and bottom of the miters were all tight due to the band clamps but the middles needed an extra clamp.

not getting paint

Instead of painting the bottom of the cupboard I am going to use shellac. I have half a quart of gossamer that I want to use before it goes south on me.

base parts

Found when measuring the bottom that it is almost square. The side to side measures a little less than 17" and the front to back is 17 1/16". I plan on dovetailing only the front corners. The back may or may not happen. Depends upon how I view the base and cupboard when I get to that step.

FYI

I couldn't understand why it was taking so long for my handles to come in from McMaster. It turns that I never clicked on the 'place order'. Not doing that tends to add to the time before you receive things. Two handles and 100 safety razors. 

I used to buy the razors from Lee Valley but they don't sell them (couldn't find them) anymore. The sell plastic ones that are colored. 100 razors usually lasts me about 2-3 years. This one McMaster came with a dispenser.

 hmm....

Push down on the gray button and up pops a razor. I am going to like this.

 hmm.....

You unscrew the handle from the back with an allen wrench. I started to unscrew it and the screw broke off. I had to break the plastic sleeve on the handle with my 3lb sledge hammer which was satisfying. Then I used some slip joint pliers and unscrewed it all the way off.


mounted

The dispenser comes with two keyhole mounting slots. Put it here on the hammer and mallet station. The dispenser is too large to fit where I used to keep the LV safety razors.

6 1/2 hours later

Used some walnut from the vanity drawers that I rehabbed for my wife. They are the keepers for the lid. Left compartment is for upper case letters, the right bottom is for lower case letters and the upper right for numbers.

 too wide

I filled in this gap with the shavings from flattening the lid and bottom after sawing it apart. I sanded the corners coming into the toe from both directions closing up any remaining gaps.

 too tight

I will have to play with the keepers sanding and thinning them down until the lid is a slip fit. That will happen tomorrow because the keepers aren't glued in yet.

 good fit sans the keepers

The lid seats on the bottom with no gaps. There is zero rocking at any of the corners. The lid is slightly smaller than the bottom due to the sanding I did concentrating on the corners. That should change once I do the same treatment on the bottom. Either way the wind blows this I will plane a small chamfer on the lid and bottom to blend the two together.

I got two coats of shellac on the drawer and the two shelves. After dinner I went back to the shop and got #3 on. Maybe one or two more tomorrow and they will be done.

accidental woodworker

2nd Mackintosh cupboard pt XVIII.........

Tue, 09/17/2024 - 3:11am

 Moving along with the cupboard build. I am almost done with the sanding so I could paint it maybe starting on wednesday? Also started a new project - the box for my laser cut letters. I am making it large enough to keep all the letters in one box. I am hoping to get that glued and cooking by lunch tomorrow. 

I checked on my parts and everything is still 'shipped' with no firm delivery dates. I ordered a bin pull (oil rubbed bronze) that matches the snap catches. They are all estimated to be here sometime between 9/20 and 9/27. That completes the hardware needed for the cupboard.

out of the clamps

I am a wee bit proud on the top and more so on the right side. More importantly the faux front appears to be solidly attached. No gaps anywhere 360 on the drawer.

 how much I have to shave

Put the drawer in the opening and penciled the overhang on the right. The dance steps start here - this is my gauge on where I shave the drawer overhang.

 sneaking up on it

I am forcing myself to go slow and make frequent checks and less plane strokes. I know I have a tendency to think just one more will be perfect. 

fitted

The drawer slides in/out smoothing and doesn't hang up or bang on the right overhang. I over rode myself and I took two more shavings after this. I didn't like teeny gap at the top - it wasn't consistent and parallel top to bottom.

better looking

This is better visually then the first fix I did. I am not enamored with this but of the two this is acceptable IMO.

 shelf pin dutchman

I had some gaps that I filled with putty yesterday. Sanded it smooth and I'm calling this done. The pin cups will cover any unevenness on the holes and paint will hide the rest of the sins.

 paying the Piper

I forgot to clean up the interior of the drawer before I glued it up. It took me about an 30 minutes to clean up the four corners of the glue and pencil marks. I changed the fasteners I used on the drawer bottom. I had used 3/4" brads but I noticed that the back was bowed/separating and the  nails weren't keeping it tight. Used 1" box nails (they have a head) and those appear to be working much better.


 

 shelf pin notches

Made the two adjustable shelves and marked for the shelf pins. I make notches for them to keep the shelf from moving.

 front edge

I put a bevel on the front edge of both shelves that matches all the other bevels on the cupboard.

 eraser time

Planed the shelves removing all the pencil layout lines. I got lucky with the shelves and especially with the bottom one. I used the first middle shelf that I screwed up for it. It was still nice and flat in all directions. It didn't take much to plane both faces smooth. 

finishing the doors

Planed the bridal joints flush on both faces first and then I sanded them and the cupboard.

 done

Decided to leave the shelves natural. This pile is sanded up to 220 and it is ready for shellac. Didn't think of it but I can shellac all of this while awaiting my supplies to come in.

came this close

99% of the cupboard is sanded up to 220. Saw a couple of dings and some tear out that I had to fill with wood putty. Saw two more on the middle shelf that required filling. I'll be done with the sanding of the cupboard tomorrow in the AM.

branded

I did the drawer first and then I did the bottom of the cupboard. If the drawer got waylaid somehow, the brand would be history. Hard to conceive of the bottom going south in the life of this cupboard.

next project

This is a PITA just looking at them. Which box has the letter/number I want? I played around with the 3 boxes and came up with a plan of attack for the solo box to come.

 flimsy

One corner was blown out and one short end had separated. I super glued it back together and ??? This is a sorting box that came with the letters and numbers. I don't see this surviving for long in my shop but we'll wait and see.

 box parts

Thinned left over pine from the cupboard down to a 1/2" for the new letter/number box.

 repeat

I am making the new box like the one for my router. The corners will be mitered with a plywood top and bottom. I plan on gluing the plywood in the grooves 360. That will lend a lot of strength to keeping the box together.

 short ends

Shot the miters on the jig. As soon as the toe extends to the bottom I'm done. So far I haven't had any problems getting the short and long sides to be a match.

dry fitted

Got a good fit with a minimal amount of run out and gaps on the the miters. When I go to Lowes and get a 4x8 sheet of 5mm plywood for the cupboard back I'm going to buy some small thin molding for the recess in the top of the box.

 internal dadoes

This is something I struggled with getting aligned. I have to make two dadoes on the inside of the box. The first one is relatively easy to lay out but the second one ain't IMO. It runs 90° to the first one - I have to account for the first one being in a dado while on the opposite side I have to account for a miter. At least I only have to agonize about aligning it all on just one end.

hmm.....

Looking at this I think I don't need the piece on the right to be a 1/2" thick. I could use 3/8" and that would give me a teeny bit more room for the two compartments there. One will be 2/3 for the small case letters and the remaining 1/3 for the numbers. 

Stayed in the shop late and I didn't kill the lights until 1610. I didn't realize that I had worked past 1500. I'll pick this back in the AM.

accidental woodworker

2nd Mackintosh cupboard pt XVII.......

Mon, 09/16/2024 - 3:21am

I think I'm done with the woodworking on the 2nd cupboard for now. I'm dead in the water awaiting parts. The tiles won't be here until wednesday/thursday. I bought hinges for the doors today and I need a knob/pull. I found the snap catches I wanted on the Rejuvenation site. I was barely able to squeeze off the involuntary bowel movement I experienced when I saw the price of them - $73 delivered. They are the right size for the cupboard doors and the parts will fit on the stiles and the cupboard edges. I might not get these two until the week after next.

I don't have enough left to do on the cupboard to keep me busy for a week or more. I am done sanding with 120 grit and the next outing will be with 180 finishing up with 220. That shouldn't take more than half of a AM or PM session. That's a fun item on the to do calendar.

 hmm.......

Rethinking the door stop on the left side. Because I'm using a snap catch I need a stop to keep the door from in swinging in too far. 

it is moving

I'm putting the door stop on the right hand side of the cupboard. I naturally reach with my left hand to open doors - no matter what type they are. I open with my left and reach in to grab with my right. Changing this to reflect that habit.

 change #2

I don't like the fix I did on this drawer yesterday. It was bugging me that the half blinds were half covered up by the fix. I am painting the front with the rest of the drawer getting shellac. Found this piece of 1/2" thick pine that is a 16th wider than the drawer front. Plenty of real estate going R/L.

too thick

I am liking the faux front on the drawer but this is too thick. The combined thickness of the two 'fronts' is an inch. I have extra depth in the opening to allow for this but it looks like crap to my eye. I think it will be better if it a 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick. I will also be able to inset the drawer - IMO it looks better than an overlay drawer.

 glued and cooking

I would have bet a lung that I had snapped a few pics of me sawing it to width. I sawed it partially on the tablesaw (too high for the bandsaw)  then sawed it apart with the ryobi saw. Planed it smooth and flat with the 5 1/2. The thickness ended being 3/16". I was shooting for 1/8" but I didn't have a warm and fuzzy with it not chipping or breaking off on the right side. 

 adjustable shelf pin time

Made two separate jigs for the pins (top & bottom). There 5 positions for each opening that are 6 inches from the bottom and about 6 inches down from the top.

 fits

I like using cups for the shelf pins especially so in soft pine. With a lot of weight on the shelf the pins tend to snag and elongate the hole and eventually fall out. Checking that shelf pin is fully seated in the cup.

 brain fart

I positioned the jig wrong. Instead of setting the bottom of it against the bottom of the opening I set the top tight against the top. The pins are off about a 1/8" from the ones opposite it - just enough that would cause the shelf to teeter on the pins.

 the fix

I didn't have any 7/32" dowels nor would I have used them if I had them. I don't like drilling new dowel holes in ones with dowels in them. Instead I routed out a groove and filled it in with a piece of pine.

 glued and cooking

Got a good fit with the dutchman and the new shelf pin holes will be in solid wood again.

3 hours later

Plenty of time for this to have set up so I could saw it flush. Used the ryobi because it was close at hand and it worked as well as my flush cut saw. I didn't get any sawing marks on the side of the cupboard.

double, triple checked it first

The front pin holes are 2" in from the front edge and 1 1/4" in from the back edge. I thought of pushing the front ones in another 3-4 inches but I stuck with 2.

I have a project in mind while I await parts to arrive for the cupboard. I will make a box for the wooden letters I got last week. As of now they are in 3 separate boxes and I want them all in one box. That shouldn't take more a day to whack out so I may have to think of something else to keep me occupied.

accidental woodworker

2nd Mackintosh cupboard pt XVI.......

Sun, 09/15/2024 - 3:26am

 My saturday didn't start on a good note. In fact it was rather sour and the after taste lingered all day long. When I tried to leave in the AM to go grocery shopping I couldn't due to a flat tire. The short end of the story ended 5 hours later and cost me $195. 

Both the front tires had nails in them. One could be patched and the other couldn't due to the nail being in the sidewall. I don't know where the nails came from but I've had problems with the driver side front tire holding air for months. I was going to have all four tires inspected for the upcoming winter season anyways so that happened sooner than later for me.

Didn't get much time in the shop in the AM session and zero in the PM session. The tree service cleaned up the big stuff pretty well but there was a ton and a half of small leaf and bark debris strewn all other the yard. My PM session was spent cleaning up that mess. Not used to that type of work anymore. I'm sore and achy and tomorrow will probably be worse. The upside is I am sure that I will sleep well tonight.

fitted

It took a few dance steps getting the drawer fitted. I took it slow over riding the urges to plane away. Instead it was plane a few swipes, fit the drawer, eyeball where I thought it hanging up, and repeating it until the drawer slid in/out smoothly.

The gap on the left is good and the right is ugly looking. I'm thinking now I should have made the right side square and proud there. The time to plane the right side to fit the opening should have been after the drawer was made. Decided not to make another drawer but come up with a way to fix the gap.

 the fix

 The fact that this will be painted works in my favor. I am not crazy about this hiding the dovetails on this this but the look of the front face is more important than this side is. I used super glue on the end grain and yellow glue on the long grain.

done

It is much better than the before pic. Initially I was ok with it and I didn't notice any hiccups pushing the drawer in the opening. I thought the 'fix' might hang up and keep the drawer from going in. It didn't but it could be to that I was aware of it and was compensating for it. 

The thought of using an overlay drawer danced through brain bucket. The overhang above the drawer is a 1/2" for the faux drawer front can't be that thick. It would look odd IMO if it extended past the top overhang.

top door fitted

The door was easy to fit. I planed the four outside edges first mostly to clean up and flush the bridal joints. After I had done that the door fit like a hand in a glove.

stuck

This door didn't go as well as the top one. After cleaning up the bridal joints it didn't fit. It took about 6-7 plane and check before it fit freely. I got done today what I had wanted - both doors and the drawer fitted to their openings.

 stop

I am not using the the same door and drawer hardware on this cupboard. I don't know what the hardware I want to use is called but it will need a door stop. No magnets are required neither. I got the top one nailed only and I won't permanently secure it until after I hinge the doors. 

One last detail for the cupboard will be adjustable shelves. I will put one in each in the top and bottom. The middle compartment will remain as is - no shelves.

accidental woodworker

2nd Mackintosh cupboard pt XV.......

Sat, 09/14/2024 - 3:26am

I think today is the last of my abbreviated shop sessions. Today I went to lunch with my wife to a new (to me) seafood restaurant. Of course I had fish 'n chips and it is the best I've had in a very long time. The batter was light and crisp with no greasy oil leaking out of it. I'll go there again for sure. 

After lunch I went to my wife's storage unit and helped her to get some books ready to ship out. We stopped at the Post Office but it was packed with people all with multiple things to mail. I was the sixth person in line and only one clerk working the counter. I waited a few and left. My wife can go back tomorrow and maybe have a better experience than me.

 filling in the holes

Found a piece of pine scrap that fit the hole almost. I few swipes of the plane and I got a snug fit. Before I did anything else in the shop I wanted to get the doors glued up and set aside to cook.

 good snug fit

I really didn't need the clamps due to the fit I got. However, clamping them gave me a warm and fuzzy. I do think the clamps on the bridal joints was a good thing.

left side

Happy with the fit of the half blinds. The half pin on the left is gappy but the rest of it is a good snug fit. 

 ditto

The right side fit is as good as its sibling on the left. Both the half pins have hairline gaps but fingers crossed, they will swell shut with glue.

 chunk missing

This is at the bottom and I'm not sure what if anything I'll do with it. I'll evaluate it after the drawer is fitted to the opening. 

hmm.....

Not at all what I was expecting. Yesterday without the sides attached this right end of the drawer matched the taper of the drawer opening. With the sides on I get this crappola. I don't want to make another drawer and I'll have some time to ponder what my next move with it will be. This dry fit is just with the front and sides - I still hadn't done the tails/pins for the back.

 done

Drawer is dry fitted and squared up dead nuts on the diagonals. I'll be using slips for this drawer. I like them because I don't have a groove in the sides weakening them nor do I have the headache of ensuring the groove aligns all the way around on the inside.

nope

The drawer shrunk on me. When I fitted the drawer front I thought I had a smaller gap - basically a paper width. I think the proper thing to do is suck it up and make a new drawer. However, I am brain dead about some things and this so close. Maybe tonight as I'm checking the inside of my eyelids for light leaks, I will get a massive brain dump solution.

should have waited

I had this sawn correctly if they were going to be the opposite side of where I had sawn them. They will still work but I won't have the back end overhang the back.

sigh

I like having an overhang at the back. I don't think it missing will have any effect on the plywood bottom. It is the glue bond between the slip and the side that provides the strength.

 all at once

Glued and clamped all 3 slips. I'll let this cook until tomorrow. This is where I killed the lights for the day. Tomorrow I'll try to fit the doors and the drawer. 

accidental woodworker

2nd Makiintosh cupboard pt XIV.......

Fri, 09/13/2024 - 3:31am

They started around 1000 and were finished by 1330. The 3 trees we had in our backyard are no more. I have 3 stumps and I'm ok with that. It would be $600 each to grind them 6" below grade. Two of the them were maples and one was an ash (I think). Fingers, toes, and eyes crossed that the )_&^@($&%^@O$%&*()(Q@%$ maples don't sprout from the stumps. I'll be searching the WWW for ways to kill them.

started the doors

I thought I had done this right but of course I screwed it up. The tenon on the right is OTL (out to lunch). Instead of being 2 1/2" it should have been 2". I went out into La La Land with where the tenons and the slot mortises should have been.

oops

The slot mortises are off. There should be two short ones and two long ones. I eyeballed this for a while and I thought I could salvage it.

 made a bigger slot mortise

Because the tenon was off there is a gap but it doesn't matter. A plywood panel is going in the grooves and it will hide it. No one will ever see it unless they take the frame apart.

a few frog hairs

I made the frame  a wee bit larger so I could plane it to fit the slightly out of square opening. Glad I was able to save the frame and not have to make a new one.

double, triple checking it

Got my sample on the right and I penciled what goes where. More importantly I have the size at the corners for the tenons and the slot mortises. The first me-steak was making the tenons the same on both ends. It has to be one long and one short.

nope

Screwed it up again and this time I can't salvage it. The lower right corner has a gap between the tenon and slot mortise. Can't cover this one up because it is on the outside faces.

hmmm......

Hadn't noticed this on the first door frame. I took that one apart to see why it got saved and this one got tossed in the kindling pile.

 door frame #2

I had a scrap of pine that gave up the new door parts with some left for another oops.

got confused again

I studied what I thought I had to do based on the first two doors I attempted. I thought I had pulled my zipper down so I could at least see where I was walking because my head was buried in my arse. I had a handle on where the slots and the mortises were to go. 

another golly gee whiz........

I had the slots and tenons done correctly except for one tiny, teeny detail. When it came time to saw the slots for the bottom rail (2 3/4") I confused myself royally and cut it short. Instead of making it the width of the rail, I made it the width of the tenon. I thought I had to make it the height of the rail minus the depth of the groove. Turns out I was wrong.

plywood panel fitted

Like the first one I have gaps but they are in the inside of the grooves and also on the outside of two of the joints.

 out square

I don't have as much wiggle room for planing the door to match the opening. I'm hoping that whatever gap I do have will be small and consistent.

 tapered gap

The back of the top and bottom openings are square. The front isn't. Fitting to an out of square opening isn't difficult. It is a PITA but it is doable.

shaving time

Time to thickness the sides and back for the drawer. I got all three done in less than 20 minutes.

start with the #6

This is my only bench plane with a cambered iron. I only use this to hog a lot of wood in a hurry. I criss cross it first, then go straight across, and lastly with the grain left to right.

done

All three are within a frog of each other. For a drawer it really doesn't matter that the sides and back all be +/- 2 atoms of thickness. When I dovetail this I will use each individual board to mark the pins and tails.

what a pile

The deck was clean when I started and this is what thicknessing 3 boards produced. I shouldn't be but this still amazes me what a pile of shavings boards being thicknessed can generate.

ready for chopping

Got the right side of the half blinds sawn out. I forgot to plane a small rabbet on the tail board but I didn't have any problems knifing my pins off the tails. Killed the lights for toady. Tomorrow I should get the door glued and cooking. Might even get it fitted in the PM session.

stump #1

I'm glad this maple is gone. It was close to the back of the house and with every wind storm branches would come down.

 stump #2

Second maple and this one had a lot of rot and dead limbs. It didn't lose limbs like the other maple in wind storms. Go figure on that.

 big ash tree stump

I really thought this ash would be hollow. There are a lot of ash trees in my neighborhood that are/were diseased. I thought this would be one of them. In 25 years 3 humongous limbs have broken off. Luckily none did any damage to my property or a neighbors. This one had the potential to wreck a lot havoc on the neighbor's house (it was close to it). I miss the trees but the liability of keeping wasn't worth it.

wish I had a sawmill

The logs with the rotten cores are all maples. The Ash had no rot and the cores to sapwood are solid. Sure hope that they plan on coming back to haul these away.

accidental woodworker

2nd Mackintosh cupborad pt XIII..........

Thu, 09/12/2024 - 3:25am

I have ceded that I am not going to get a full day in the shop this week. So this AM I went at it balls to the wall and I even swept the deck twice. Daughter #1 and her husband left today to spend a few days on Block Island. The SIL leaves for New York on saturday morning. Talked it over with the wife and we are thinking of going to Aunt Carrie's for lunch on friday. Traditionally fish 'n chips was a friday staple here in RI but I don't like Aunt Carrie's fish 'n chips. It reminds of chicken tenders. If we go I'll have to look over the menu and decide then. I usually always know what I want to order when we go out to eat.

speed bump

I forgot about this and I had to stop sanding to fix this. Sawed it off proud and planed it flush.

 surround for the middle compartment

I made a sample upright with a 1/4" bead on the outside edge. Although I liked it I don't think it fits with this cupboard. Instead of the bead I went with a chamfer that matched the other two.

I also chamfered the top rail. On the first cupboard I didn't do that. I thought of chamfering the inside of the uprights and mitering it to return to the top but nixed it. I eyeballed it as is and I was ok with how that looked.

glued and cooking

Just glue on all three - no nails and no screws. The glue should be sufficient to keep them in place.

One thing that keeps walking across the brain bucket is adjustable shelves. The bottom one definitely would benefit from one due to its height and depth. The top could too and shelves would increase the storage capabilities.

 not square

The left side is square but the right is off. It is just shy by a tapered 1/8".

yikes

I squared the right side of the drawer on the waste side of the taper. I will plane it to fit the drawer opening.

 3 sides fitted

I didn't plane the fit for a snug one. There is about a sheet of paper gap on the top/bottom and right side. Sneaking up on the right side at little bit at a time.

 it fits

Or rather the angle of the right side matches the out of square of the drawer. I marked the front unto the back and planed the right side of it flush and even with the front.

drawer parts

I checked and corrected all the drawer parts for twist. I will let them sticker overnight and then I'll thickness the sides and back to 1/2".

paint shop run

Painting the 2nd cupboard the same color as the first one. I am going to roll the paint on this one and see what, if any, effect it has on coverage.

top door parts

I intend to use bridal joints on both doors. The top opening is almost square - the top to bottom is a 1/8" more than the R/L.

 bottom door

The bottom opening is not square. I found that out when I fitted the top rail and found it was short by a 16th. I sized both of them off of the bottom rail. Guess I have my built in gap already figured out.

I planed all the edges and faces of the door frames. The drawer parts don't need any attention until after I thickness them.

 tile frames

These will be used to frame in the tiles within the door panels. I planed all of these smooth on all edges and faces. The left ones are an 1/8" less thick than the right ones. The right ones will be the stiles and the thinner ones the rails. If I don't like the look of the two being unequal I'll make four new stiles or rails. 

accidental woodworker

2nd Mackintosh cupboard pt XII........

Wed, 09/11/2024 - 3:14am

 Making progress but another short day. The cottage my sister in law rented is right on the bay. I would love to have a house on the water like this one. Maybe someday when I hit the lottery. That would come after building my dream shop though. I mean, you do have to maintain your priorities, don't you?

 wasn't the elves

I came back to the shop before I hit the rack and glued this piece on. 12 hours later I'm ready to shave and trim it.

 voila

This is fine because it is going to be painted. If it were being left natural I would exercised more care in matching grain and color. And I wouldn't have added on the small broken piece. I would have taken it all off and started fresh again from square one.

 hmm.....

I'm impressed with this. Yesterday the front edge was curling up and today with the clamps off, it is laying flat. I had clamped the front edge down but I didn't expect it stay that way. I'll take them as they come.

 two small ones

I was going to put one large one at the end but switched to using 2 small Miller dowels. 

last panel glued and cooking

I got lucky using the bessey clamps on the panels. One side had a cup and the depth of the besseys were sufficient to flatten the offending side.

 Mr Lumpy

Getting the last panel in was causing me to have a massive panic attack. I was using my mallet to drive the panel down and it was going slow and slower. I think I got a wee bit of glue freeze but Mr Lumpy just laughed at it. 

the 3rd one

I need this stop (?) for the back panel. I didn't continue the rabbet into the top and bottom. I screwed it in place flush with the bottom of the rabbet. The first two I did were short where this one fits snugly between the sides. I didn't glue this one to facilitate any future repairs or changes.

 what would you call this?

It took a lot of dance steps before I go the top edge of it flush and even with the top of the panel. Glue only, no nails or screws.

chamfering the middle shelf

Planed the same chamfer on this edge that I did on the one above. Hope doing this now survives the rest of the time it will be in the shop.

I didn't forget it

I wasn't going to bother putting a dutchman on this because it is at the back. It was hard to see that it was even there when I stood the cupboard up. Glued this and held it for about a minute and let it go. There wasn't anyway that I could possibly clamp it. I glued the other ones without any problems the same way.

tails are proud

This is too much to plane the tails and pins flush. It is the top outside edge and it will be visible. Decided to fill them in with solid wood.

 step one

Making a boatload of tail 'dutchmen'.

 what saw cut is this?

I made several saw cuts trying to vary the thickness of the tails to come.

pile of dutchmen tails

I only need 3 so the others will be for any oops.

 dry fitted

The dutchman tails will have face grain showing rather than end grain. I tried to make a end grain tail and it disintegrated on me.

super glue

I sealed the end grain with a liberal amount of super glue. After it had dried I applied another coat of it and attached the dutchmen.

 hmm......

This one looks like it might need a bit of love. Not sure if I'll do anything about this one. It is at the back and at the top. I did the other 3 because those discrepancies/gaps could be seen. I will evaluate it after I trim and flush the dutchman on the side.

 done

I put another one in the second one in from the left. After planing and sanding them I am happy with the results. The dutchmen are on the top and it is difficult even for me to eyeball the top (looking down on it).

accidental woodworker

2nd Mackintosh cupboard pt XI.......

Tue, 09/10/2024 - 3:27am

I only got the AM session in today but I was surprised by how many pics I snapped. At first I thought I had missed deleting yesterday's pics but I didn't. I got a lot done before we left to go visit in the PM. Next up on the hit parade is making doors. I'll have to get the tiles on order and get the paint because that isn't that far off.

nailed off

I had some 2" penny nails but I went with the shorter 5D because they have a head. My thoughts were that these would be better with holding the tails down to the baselines.

all seated

Happy with how the nails performed. There are no gaps between the tails and baselines on either side.

no nails needed

All these tails seated without nails. These top ones mated a little bit more snugger than the bottom ones.

flushing the bottom

Flushing the bottom wasn't the nightmare I thought it would be. I had to use the 5 1/2 with one hand and even that wasn't too bad. Got the back flushed with the sides.

 half tail

Sawed this out to fill in the missing half tail behind it.

 cooking

I was going to leave this proud but after about twenty minutes I sawed it off closer to the side.

 the other side

The right side needed a full half tail and the left only needs about 1/2 of the 1/2 tail.

 sawed another half tail

I sawed this one off proud and used the blockplane to shave it to fit.

wasn't easy

I just sharpened this blockplane but it wasn't up to shaving the end grain end needed to fit it. I used my LN 102 to do it.

good fit

This won't be seen because this will hidden in the base. It is good practice though for where it might be visible. I glued and let it cook. The fit was snug and didn't need any clamping pressure.

this one ain't going to be so easy

This defect is at the top left front of the cupboard. I'll have to eyeball this one some more before I decided on a plan of attack.

last one to fix

Fingers crossed that this is last of the boo boos I have to address. Again this one is at the top right front on the right.

the 2nd middle shelf

I planed the glue line flush on both sides and cleaned up both faces.

 almost a 1/4"

Flattening and squaring one end. The square line is tapered with it high on the right going left. Used the scrub to remove most of the waste.

 see the knife lines?

I scrubbed until I saw the knife lines on both sides from end to end. I purposely knifed them deep so I could easily see them after I did this.

done

I use the Lee Valley bevel up jack 99.99% of the time just to plane end grain for squaring. IMO it is hands down the best plane on the planet for this purpose.

not yet

There was a bit of a hump in the middle that was keeping this end from being square. Used my LN low angle blockplane to shave the hump until Big Red said square.

 took 3 trips

The hump wasn't large (length wise) and I shaved a wee bit, checked it, and repeated these dance steps until Big Red said it was square.

both ends square

I ran the opposite end through the tablesaw squaring that one up. I lightly planed it just to clean it up and smooth it out end to end.

need a center line

Used the dividers to find the center line.

 double checking

The LV mortise guide showed that the two ends were off about a 32nd. I penciled a new line on either end.

double, triple checking

Visualizing negative and positive spaces plays havoc in my brain bucket. I put this shelf against both sides eyeballing it repeatedly. I was pretty sure I laid it out correctly and it was time to put on my big boy pants and bite the apple.

test piece

I made a test cut in some scrap after setting up the bandsaw. The length of this is dead nuts with the shelf.

 it fits

There was much joy, rejoicing, and dancing in the streets of Mudville.

 I was confident it would fit

The only I wasn't sure of was if it would fit in the dadoes. I planed the shelf but only enough to clean/smooth it. This is the first check of the fit between the dadoes and if the shelf would fit in them.

 even more joy in Mudville

I have almost an inch overhand on the sides and 1 1/4" at the front. I trimmed that down to a 1/2". I don't need/want that much overhang over the drawer front.

wow

Another fantastic serendipitous toy. This worked unbelievable well to spread glue in the dadoes and on the ends of the interior panels. As a bonus the glue easily peeled off it.

a 16th off

I'm happy with this. A 16th (IMO) is insignificant and easily adjusted and worked around. The middle opening was a frog hair less than a 1/8" off and it is almost twice the size of the top one.

 Miller Dowels

This is a end grain to long grain connection. I will use 3 Miller dowels on each side. I might use one bigger Miller at the front. It depends on how the shelf lays after the clamps come off.

one more to go

I didn't have enough time to get the last panel glued in. I'll have to do it in the AM tomorrow.

 fixing this first

This is the 2nd to last boo boo to fix. I planed it flat so I could glue a scrap of pine to it.

 sawn out oversize

 glued and cooking

I held this in place for about a minute and then we left for the cottage. The time I'm gone I won't be tempted to play with it. 

 no elf work

It was almost 1800 and I resisted the urge to remove the clamps. I was a good boy and let it cook until tomorrow.

 however,.......

This one I couldn't resist playing with. I placed a scrap under the saw so I wouldn't risk sawing it too low.

had to take one more swipe

Shoulda, woulda, coulda, but didn't. It was a frog hair high and I took a shaving - end grain mostly - and broke out the corner. I'll deal with it in tomorrow. Killed the lights for the day and headed back upstairs.

accidental woodworker

2nd Machintosh cupboard pt X........

Mon, 09/09/2024 - 3:53am

 Sunday is my do a little of this and even less of that. I did some work on the cupboard and right after breakfast this morning I was in the shop painting the Willa memorial frame. Barring it being dry, I'm putting a check mark in the done column. The cupboard is going to take a few more days. I still have to order the tiles and get a quart of paint. #2 isn't going to get a light. I'm regretting putting one in the first cupboard.

almost there

First thing in the AM I was checking the frame. I had sanded the wood putty last night and painted it too. After eyeballing it 360 it needed one more coat of black. Did that and headed back upstairs to do battle with the daily sudoku puzzle.

what a mess

Both sides of the cupboard were dinged pretty good with the right being the worse one. I used the green mallet which is encased in a green spongy, soft material. It didn't matter because it left a ding for every whack I made. 

serendipity

The outside banding is proud of the frame while the inside one is flush with it. Not something I planned on, it was due to the different sizes of them. I like the look of it and how it draws the eye downward into the picture.

fitting

Planed and sanded the top panel until it slid into the dado nicely. It was still snug and didn't require me to use a mallet to seat it.

done

All four edges of these two needed to be planed and sanded. These are done and I have the one I glued up yesterday to fit yet.

dry fit

This was mostly to check that I got the length of the two panels correct.  I had no problems with fitting all 3 with the top and bottom on. The middle panel is the one I messed up the notches but its length between the dadoes matches the other two panels.

hmm....

The diagonals were off by over a 1/4" and I thought I was screwed. However, there was enough slack (?) when I pushed the high corners together and shifted the carcass. I didn't think I would have been able to do that. A little playing back and forth and I got the diagonals to agree dead nuts.

glue up

This is the way I plan to glue up the carcass. I will put the first panel where it is now and glue on the top and bottom. The top is a snuggish fit and doesn't appear to need any clamps. The bottom tails don't all fully seat to the baselines and they will need some helping hands from clamping. That is going to be a bit awkward and why I was thinking of nailing the pins. The bigger concern I have is gluing and keeping it square. 

dry

The frame is ready to go to Maria and I'll do that on tuesday. The miniature dresser is going to my sister Donna out in Indiana. I found a box (that isn't too oversized) at Wally World and when I went back to buy one they were all gone. According to the clerk a new shipment comes in on wednesday.

I remembered to paint a second coat on the Willa letters before I killed the lights. No PM session because it was visiting time. Diane's sister came down from New York and rented a beach cottage . Daughter #1 came up from Baltimore also. I might not get much time in the shop this week but I'll do what I can.

accidental woodworker

2nd Mackintosh cupboard pt VIX..........

Sun, 09/08/2024 - 3:20am

 I thought today that I would get the carcass glued up. Sad news boys and girls, it didn't happen and maybe for a good reason. Putting aside why it didn't glue up, I'm thinking of painting the interior of it before glue up. Painting the interior of the first one was awkward in certain spots. We'll see what shakes out with that. At the least I'll sand it first. 

first interior banding

I came back to the shop after dinner and started on the banding. I got all the inside ones cut and fitted - dry. I won't be gluing the bandings on to the frame, the inside or outside ones. 

 looking good IMO

I don't know what it is about this style of banding but I like it a lot. The black goes well with the deep sea green (the name of the color) well. I taped these with blue painters tape to hold them in place overnight. On the first one I labeled and took them off. When It was time to attach them they were gaps at the corners.

 thought this was too small

This is the shelf for the middle compartment of the cupboard. I was looking at it and I thought it was going to be short front to back. It isn't - it overhangs the outsides by 1 1/4" and a 1/2" at the front. Glad I didn't have to make up a new panel.

 squaring up the shelf

I squared one end by hand and the opposite end on the tablesaw.

notches time

I needed to find the center between the dadoes. I have to make two notches on the shelf and I will line up the story stick center line with the center line of the shelf.

 lining up center lines

I marked the ends of the dado and that will be what I have to saw the notches out to.

 hmm......

Something was amiss when I measured the notches on each end. The left one was 1 1/2" and the right one was 1 5/8". I had measured for the center line on the shelf and I did it the 2nd time with the dividers. That gave me the 16th I was off.

 practice cut

I had to make an adjustment to this after I made the first test  cut. The kerf didn't line up on the layout line. The second one was right on the money.

 simple and easy

The bandsaw made quick work out of sawing this long notch. It was 16 3/4" long.

 will it fit?

The other two fit and I used the same story stick to get this one.

 yikes

I obviously had my head stuck in my arse and royally screwed up my negative and positive spaces. I will be making a new shelf. I thought of adding a filler but even with painting it, it would still look like crappola.

where the notch should have ended

I really missed the mark sawing this notch. It is evident to me where I erred with this in place. On the flip side of the coin I got the width of it dead nuts on. I will use this one when I glue the carcass up. After that I can use it to make the door frames for the top and bottom openings.

 good feeling

This part of the  cupboard is dead nuts square. The diagonals were less than frog hair off each other.

 bottom ain't

This opening is off square slightly. The diagonals were off a shade less than an 1/8". I'll probably leave this as is and make any adjustments for it when I fit the door.

 making a new shelf

Made this oversized by a couple of inches more than the first one. I don't want any surprises with it being too small.

glued and cooking

I flattened the two boards a little. Both had a small curling up on the outside edges. I will do the final planing tomorrow after it comes out of the clamps.

 nailing it off

There are a few spots that I'll have to touch up with black paint. Once the banding is attached this frame is essentially done. I'll have sunday and monday to do any paint touch up before bringing it to Maria.

 wood putty

I attached the bandings with my pin nailer and the hole was small. I could pick them out so I filled all of them with wood putty. I also saw a couple of spots of the green that needed some attention. I hit them with paint before I killed the lights.

experiment time

The nail on the left is a cut nail and the one on the right is a finish nail. I'm thinking of nailing the tails and I was going to use one of these for that. However, I couldn't get consistent results in a couple of test boards. One would nail in fine and the next two would split. I definitely don't want to split the tails. The bottom wouldn't be a big deal because it will mostly be hidden in the base. 

didn't matter

I tried nailing with the head at 90 and in line with the grain. The results were the same - some ok but mostly splits.

 I'll have to rethink the nail thing

I thought I could sneak up on it by pounding in home gently and taking my time. A big negative on that boys and girls. I also played around with predrilling the hole - I tried several different size bits and none seemed to be the panacea. Thinking out loud - what about screws? Or a different scrap of pine?

accidental woodworker

Pages