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40K views 401 replies 38 participants last post by  DavePolaschek 
#1 ·
Planning and cutting

I looked at my braces as I was unpacking, and discovered I have four, plus a couple eggbeaters, plus another brace I've bid on on eBay… It's time to build a till. Also, I'll have a place to keep my bits if I do that.

So the first step was to get out the graph paper and sketch out what I think I'll need. I figure I'll eventually have braces of 6-14 inch sweeps, probably doubling up on 8 and 10 since they're more common. So I sketched a till that could hold those plus a couple eggbeater drills.

Rectangle Font Pattern Parallel Design


This is a first for me. Most of the time I just start building and then realize afterwards that I've underbuilt, so it feels kinda weird making a plan, but I think I'll survive. Also, the Bad Axe magnet is handy for holding my plan to the whiteboard so I don't lose it in a pile of sawdust.

Given that, I decided I'd use pine I have on hand for building my bookcases. I've got a lot of S4S 1Ă—8s, so I started with those. That should give me enough depth that I can put doors on the till and still get a 14 in there. Plus it means my existing boxes of bits can fit in the cubbyholes at the bottom.

I started by cutting boards to length. All of my lumber on hand is cut to 4 foot lengths, so it worked out pretty well. The 38 inch long pieces had an offcut that gave me two pieces that were not quite 5 inches long, so I was efficient in my lumber use.

I've also got a new ECE dovetail plane so I've decided I'll put the shelves into the case with sliding dovetails and put the uprights between shelves with sliding dovetails as well.

Wood Rectangle Floor Wood stain Flooring


Wood Hardwood Wood stain Plank Lumber


I put the dovetails on the ends if the boards and called it a day. Tomorrow I'll start joinery on the carcass, and hopefully get the dovetails cut in the four exterior joints and maybe get started on the sliding dovetails for the shelves. We'll see how it goes!
 

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#2 ·
Planning and cutting

I looked at my braces as I was unpacking, and discovered I have four, plus a couple eggbeaters, plus another brace I've bid on on eBay… It's time to build a till. Also, I'll have a place to keep my bits if I do that.

So the first step was to get out the graph paper and sketch out what I think I'll need. I figure I'll eventually have braces of 6-14 inch sweeps, probably doubling up on 8 and 10 since they're more common. So I sketched a till that could hold those plus a couple eggbeater drills.

Rectangle Font Pattern Parallel Design


This is a first for me. Most of the time I just start building and then realize afterwards that I've underbuilt, so it feels kinda weird making a plan, but I think I'll survive. Also, the Bad Axe magnet is handy for holding my plan to the whiteboard so I don't lose it in a pile of sawdust.

Given that, I decided I'd use pine I have on hand for building my bookcases. I've got a lot of S4S 1Ă—8s, so I started with those. That should give me enough depth that I can put doors on the till and still get a 14 in there. Plus it means my existing boxes of bits can fit in the cubbyholes at the bottom.

I started by cutting boards to length. All of my lumber on hand is cut to 4 foot lengths, so it worked out pretty well. The 38 inch long pieces had an offcut that gave me two pieces that were not quite 5 inches long, so I was efficient in my lumber use.

I've also got a new ECE dovetail plane so I've decided I'll put the shelves into the case with sliding dovetails and put the uprights between shelves with sliding dovetails as well.

Wood Rectangle Floor Wood stain Flooring


Wood Hardwood Wood stain Plank Lumber


I put the dovetails on the ends if the boards and called it a day. Tomorrow I'll start joinery on the carcass, and hopefully get the dovetails cut in the four exterior joints and maybe get started on the sliding dovetails for the shelves. We'll see how it goes!
Oooh this should be good. I've got a bunch that could use a home too
 

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#3 ·
Planning and cutting

I looked at my braces as I was unpacking, and discovered I have four, plus a couple eggbeaters, plus another brace I've bid on on eBay… It's time to build a till. Also, I'll have a place to keep my bits if I do that.

So the first step was to get out the graph paper and sketch out what I think I'll need. I figure I'll eventually have braces of 6-14 inch sweeps, probably doubling up on 8 and 10 since they're more common. So I sketched a till that could hold those plus a couple eggbeater drills.

Rectangle Font Pattern Parallel Design


This is a first for me. Most of the time I just start building and then realize afterwards that I've underbuilt, so it feels kinda weird making a plan, but I think I'll survive. Also, the Bad Axe magnet is handy for holding my plan to the whiteboard so I don't lose it in a pile of sawdust.

Given that, I decided I'd use pine I have on hand for building my bookcases. I've got a lot of S4S 1Ă—8s, so I started with those. That should give me enough depth that I can put doors on the till and still get a 14 in there. Plus it means my existing boxes of bits can fit in the cubbyholes at the bottom.

I started by cutting boards to length. All of my lumber on hand is cut to 4 foot lengths, so it worked out pretty well. The 38 inch long pieces had an offcut that gave me two pieces that were not quite 5 inches long, so I was efficient in my lumber use.

I've also got a new ECE dovetail plane so I've decided I'll put the shelves into the case with sliding dovetails and put the uprights between shelves with sliding dovetails as well.

Wood Rectangle Floor Wood stain Flooring


Wood Hardwood Wood stain Plank Lumber


I put the dovetails on the ends if the boards and called it a day. Tomorrow I'll start joinery on the carcass, and hopefully get the dovetails cut in the four exterior joints and maybe get started on the sliding dovetails for the shelves. We'll see how it goes!
Thanks, Mos! I forgot to mention, the dovetail plane is pretty slick. Took me a while to get the fence set right for a half-inch deep sliding dovetail, but once I did, I spent more time grabbing a new board and whacking the holdfasts than I did planing. There's a little spelching on the pine, but I lightened up the cut a little, and that took care of the worst of it.

We'll see how cutting the dados goes tomorrow. Or the next day. Still haven't found my 1:4 dovetail marker, so I might end up just eyeballing the dovetails on the outside corners. Or I might try to cut mitered dovetail corners like I want to do on my bookcases.
 

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#4 ·
Planning and cutting

I looked at my braces as I was unpacking, and discovered I have four, plus a couple eggbeaters, plus another brace I've bid on on eBay… It's time to build a till. Also, I'll have a place to keep my bits if I do that.

So the first step was to get out the graph paper and sketch out what I think I'll need. I figure I'll eventually have braces of 6-14 inch sweeps, probably doubling up on 8 and 10 since they're more common. So I sketched a till that could hold those plus a couple eggbeater drills.

Rectangle Font Pattern Parallel Design


This is a first for me. Most of the time I just start building and then realize afterwards that I've underbuilt, so it feels kinda weird making a plan, but I think I'll survive. Also, the Bad Axe magnet is handy for holding my plan to the whiteboard so I don't lose it in a pile of sawdust.

Given that, I decided I'd use pine I have on hand for building my bookcases. I've got a lot of S4S 1Ă—8s, so I started with those. That should give me enough depth that I can put doors on the till and still get a 14 in there. Plus it means my existing boxes of bits can fit in the cubbyholes at the bottom.

I started by cutting boards to length. All of my lumber on hand is cut to 4 foot lengths, so it worked out pretty well. The 38 inch long pieces had an offcut that gave me two pieces that were not quite 5 inches long, so I was efficient in my lumber use.

I've also got a new ECE dovetail plane so I've decided I'll put the shelves into the case with sliding dovetails and put the uprights between shelves with sliding dovetails as well.

Wood Rectangle Floor Wood stain Flooring


Wood Hardwood Wood stain Plank Lumber


I put the dovetails on the ends if the boards and called it a day. Tomorrow I'll start joinery on the carcass, and hopefully get the dovetails cut in the four exterior joints and maybe get started on the sliding dovetails for the shelves. We'll see how it goes!
Looking forward to watching this develop. lookin' good, Dave
 

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#5 ·
Planning and cutting

I looked at my braces as I was unpacking, and discovered I have four, plus a couple eggbeaters, plus another brace I've bid on on eBay… It's time to build a till. Also, I'll have a place to keep my bits if I do that.

So the first step was to get out the graph paper and sketch out what I think I'll need. I figure I'll eventually have braces of 6-14 inch sweeps, probably doubling up on 8 and 10 since they're more common. So I sketched a till that could hold those plus a couple eggbeater drills.

Rectangle Font Pattern Parallel Design


This is a first for me. Most of the time I just start building and then realize afterwards that I've underbuilt, so it feels kinda weird making a plan, but I think I'll survive. Also, the Bad Axe magnet is handy for holding my plan to the whiteboard so I don't lose it in a pile of sawdust.

Given that, I decided I'd use pine I have on hand for building my bookcases. I've got a lot of S4S 1Ă—8s, so I started with those. That should give me enough depth that I can put doors on the till and still get a 14 in there. Plus it means my existing boxes of bits can fit in the cubbyholes at the bottom.

I started by cutting boards to length. All of my lumber on hand is cut to 4 foot lengths, so it worked out pretty well. The 38 inch long pieces had an offcut that gave me two pieces that were not quite 5 inches long, so I was efficient in my lumber use.

I've also got a new ECE dovetail plane so I've decided I'll put the shelves into the case with sliding dovetails and put the uprights between shelves with sliding dovetails as well.

Wood Rectangle Floor Wood stain Flooring


Wood Hardwood Wood stain Plank Lumber


I put the dovetails on the ends if the boards and called it a day. Tomorrow I'll start joinery on the carcass, and hopefully get the dovetails cut in the four exterior joints and maybe get started on the sliding dovetails for the shelves. We'll see how it goes!
Thanks, Doug. I think I'm going to stick pretty closely to the plan. The big question remaining is whether I'm going to build drawers for the cubbyholes or just stick boxes of bits into them.
 

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#6 ·
Planning and cutting

I looked at my braces as I was unpacking, and discovered I have four, plus a couple eggbeaters, plus another brace I've bid on on eBay… It's time to build a till. Also, I'll have a place to keep my bits if I do that.

So the first step was to get out the graph paper and sketch out what I think I'll need. I figure I'll eventually have braces of 6-14 inch sweeps, probably doubling up on 8 and 10 since they're more common. So I sketched a till that could hold those plus a couple eggbeater drills.

Rectangle Font Pattern Parallel Design


This is a first for me. Most of the time I just start building and then realize afterwards that I've underbuilt, so it feels kinda weird making a plan, but I think I'll survive. Also, the Bad Axe magnet is handy for holding my plan to the whiteboard so I don't lose it in a pile of sawdust.

Given that, I decided I'd use pine I have on hand for building my bookcases. I've got a lot of S4S 1Ă—8s, so I started with those. That should give me enough depth that I can put doors on the till and still get a 14 in there. Plus it means my existing boxes of bits can fit in the cubbyholes at the bottom.

I started by cutting boards to length. All of my lumber on hand is cut to 4 foot lengths, so it worked out pretty well. The 38 inch long pieces had an offcut that gave me two pieces that were not quite 5 inches long, so I was efficient in my lumber use.

I've also got a new ECE dovetail plane so I've decided I'll put the shelves into the case with sliding dovetails and put the uprights between shelves with sliding dovetails as well.

Wood Rectangle Floor Wood stain Flooring


Wood Hardwood Wood stain Plank Lumber


I put the dovetails on the ends if the boards and called it a day. Tomorrow I'll start joinery on the carcass, and hopefully get the dovetails cut in the four exterior joints and maybe get started on the sliding dovetails for the shelves. We'll see how it goes!
I should really get a secoind brace. I took mine to work and use it there more than I ever did at home.
 

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#7 ·
Planning and cutting

I looked at my braces as I was unpacking, and discovered I have four, plus a couple eggbeaters, plus another brace I've bid on on eBay… It's time to build a till. Also, I'll have a place to keep my bits if I do that.

So the first step was to get out the graph paper and sketch out what I think I'll need. I figure I'll eventually have braces of 6-14 inch sweeps, probably doubling up on 8 and 10 since they're more common. So I sketched a till that could hold those plus a couple eggbeater drills.

Rectangle Font Pattern Parallel Design


This is a first for me. Most of the time I just start building and then realize afterwards that I've underbuilt, so it feels kinda weird making a plan, but I think I'll survive. Also, the Bad Axe magnet is handy for holding my plan to the whiteboard so I don't lose it in a pile of sawdust.

Given that, I decided I'd use pine I have on hand for building my bookcases. I've got a lot of S4S 1Ă—8s, so I started with those. That should give me enough depth that I can put doors on the till and still get a 14 in there. Plus it means my existing boxes of bits can fit in the cubbyholes at the bottom.

I started by cutting boards to length. All of my lumber on hand is cut to 4 foot lengths, so it worked out pretty well. The 38 inch long pieces had an offcut that gave me two pieces that were not quite 5 inches long, so I was efficient in my lumber use.

I've also got a new ECE dovetail plane so I've decided I'll put the shelves into the case with sliding dovetails and put the uprights between shelves with sliding dovetails as well.

Wood Rectangle Floor Wood stain Flooring


Wood Hardwood Wood stain Plank Lumber


I put the dovetails on the ends if the boards and called it a day. Tomorrow I'll start joinery on the carcass, and hopefully get the dovetails cut in the four exterior joints and maybe get started on the sliding dovetails for the shelves. We'll see how it goes!
I find them very handy, Dave, so I think you should, too.
 

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#8 ·
Planning and cutting

I looked at my braces as I was unpacking, and discovered I have four, plus a couple eggbeaters, plus another brace I've bid on on eBay… It's time to build a till. Also, I'll have a place to keep my bits if I do that.

So the first step was to get out the graph paper and sketch out what I think I'll need. I figure I'll eventually have braces of 6-14 inch sweeps, probably doubling up on 8 and 10 since they're more common. So I sketched a till that could hold those plus a couple eggbeater drills.

Rectangle Font Pattern Parallel Design


This is a first for me. Most of the time I just start building and then realize afterwards that I've underbuilt, so it feels kinda weird making a plan, but I think I'll survive. Also, the Bad Axe magnet is handy for holding my plan to the whiteboard so I don't lose it in a pile of sawdust.

Given that, I decided I'd use pine I have on hand for building my bookcases. I've got a lot of S4S 1Ă—8s, so I started with those. That should give me enough depth that I can put doors on the till and still get a 14 in there. Plus it means my existing boxes of bits can fit in the cubbyholes at the bottom.

I started by cutting boards to length. All of my lumber on hand is cut to 4 foot lengths, so it worked out pretty well. The 38 inch long pieces had an offcut that gave me two pieces that were not quite 5 inches long, so I was efficient in my lumber use.

I've also got a new ECE dovetail plane so I've decided I'll put the shelves into the case with sliding dovetails and put the uprights between shelves with sliding dovetails as well.

Wood Rectangle Floor Wood stain Flooring


Wood Hardwood Wood stain Plank Lumber


I put the dovetails on the ends if the boards and called it a day. Tomorrow I'll start joinery on the carcass, and hopefully get the dovetails cut in the four exterior joints and maybe get started on the sliding dovetails for the shelves. We'll see how it goes!
Dave, your right about doubling the 8 & 10.

I just bought the Ulmia dovetail plane so I'm glad to hear your comment on using them.

Looking forward to this project, my braces and accessories fill a drawer in my chest!
 

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#9 ·
Planning and cutting

I looked at my braces as I was unpacking, and discovered I have four, plus a couple eggbeaters, plus another brace I've bid on on eBay… It's time to build a till. Also, I'll have a place to keep my bits if I do that.

So the first step was to get out the graph paper and sketch out what I think I'll need. I figure I'll eventually have braces of 6-14 inch sweeps, probably doubling up on 8 and 10 since they're more common. So I sketched a till that could hold those plus a couple eggbeater drills.

Rectangle Font Pattern Parallel Design


This is a first for me. Most of the time I just start building and then realize afterwards that I've underbuilt, so it feels kinda weird making a plan, but I think I'll survive. Also, the Bad Axe magnet is handy for holding my plan to the whiteboard so I don't lose it in a pile of sawdust.

Given that, I decided I'd use pine I have on hand for building my bookcases. I've got a lot of S4S 1Ă—8s, so I started with those. That should give me enough depth that I can put doors on the till and still get a 14 in there. Plus it means my existing boxes of bits can fit in the cubbyholes at the bottom.

I started by cutting boards to length. All of my lumber on hand is cut to 4 foot lengths, so it worked out pretty well. The 38 inch long pieces had an offcut that gave me two pieces that were not quite 5 inches long, so I was efficient in my lumber use.

I've also got a new ECE dovetail plane so I've decided I'll put the shelves into the case with sliding dovetails and put the uprights between shelves with sliding dovetails as well.

Wood Rectangle Floor Wood stain Flooring


Wood Hardwood Wood stain Plank Lumber


I put the dovetails on the ends if the boards and called it a day. Tomorrow I'll start joinery on the carcass, and hopefully get the dovetails cut in the four exterior joints and maybe get started on the sliding dovetails for the shelves. We'll see how it goes!
Thanks, Kevin. The plane was usable out of the box, but I really ought to have spent some time sharpening before using it on pine. But at this point, I'm done using it except as a guide while sawing the sockets.

I currently don't have a drawer for the braces, so they're hanging on the wall or (more often) laying on my bench in the way of something else, so I'll be happy once this is built and hanging on a cleat on the wall.
 

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#10 ·
Planning and cutting

I looked at my braces as I was unpacking, and discovered I have four, plus a couple eggbeaters, plus another brace I've bid on on eBay… It's time to build a till. Also, I'll have a place to keep my bits if I do that.

So the first step was to get out the graph paper and sketch out what I think I'll need. I figure I'll eventually have braces of 6-14 inch sweeps, probably doubling up on 8 and 10 since they're more common. So I sketched a till that could hold those plus a couple eggbeater drills.

Rectangle Font Pattern Parallel Design


This is a first for me. Most of the time I just start building and then realize afterwards that I've underbuilt, so it feels kinda weird making a plan, but I think I'll survive. Also, the Bad Axe magnet is handy for holding my plan to the whiteboard so I don't lose it in a pile of sawdust.

Given that, I decided I'd use pine I have on hand for building my bookcases. I've got a lot of S4S 1Ă—8s, so I started with those. That should give me enough depth that I can put doors on the till and still get a 14 in there. Plus it means my existing boxes of bits can fit in the cubbyholes at the bottom.

I started by cutting boards to length. All of my lumber on hand is cut to 4 foot lengths, so it worked out pretty well. The 38 inch long pieces had an offcut that gave me two pieces that were not quite 5 inches long, so I was efficient in my lumber use.

I've also got a new ECE dovetail plane so I've decided I'll put the shelves into the case with sliding dovetails and put the uprights between shelves with sliding dovetails as well.

Wood Rectangle Floor Wood stain Flooring


Wood Hardwood Wood stain Plank Lumber


I put the dovetails on the ends if the boards and called it a day. Tomorrow I'll start joinery on the carcass, and hopefully get the dovetails cut in the four exterior joints and maybe get started on the sliding dovetails for the shelves. We'll see how it goes!
Hey Dave, so far - so good.
Like you here, I too use graph paper for any drafting I might need. I don't know AutoCAD and don't want to take the time to learn it, and I feel a full fledged paper & pencil drafted drawing is not necessary for my accomplishing my task in constructing a project. My graph drawings are not always to scale, ( once in a while I'll do a full scale sketch of a detail section - for more accurate measurements), and these drawings are simply used to show known dimensions and use math to calculate unknowns.

In case you need it, I've found a very handy app called Geometry Pad that is easy to use and can be helpful. I mentioned it in my posting of my headboard project should you want to see it: https://www.lumberjocks.com/projects/188122

Well, have a nice day, stay safe ….
 

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#11 ·
Planning and cutting

I looked at my braces as I was unpacking, and discovered I have four, plus a couple eggbeaters, plus another brace I've bid on on eBay… It's time to build a till. Also, I'll have a place to keep my bits if I do that.

So the first step was to get out the graph paper and sketch out what I think I'll need. I figure I'll eventually have braces of 6-14 inch sweeps, probably doubling up on 8 and 10 since they're more common. So I sketched a till that could hold those plus a couple eggbeater drills.

Rectangle Font Pattern Parallel Design


This is a first for me. Most of the time I just start building and then realize afterwards that I've underbuilt, so it feels kinda weird making a plan, but I think I'll survive. Also, the Bad Axe magnet is handy for holding my plan to the whiteboard so I don't lose it in a pile of sawdust.

Given that, I decided I'd use pine I have on hand for building my bookcases. I've got a lot of S4S 1Ă—8s, so I started with those. That should give me enough depth that I can put doors on the till and still get a 14 in there. Plus it means my existing boxes of bits can fit in the cubbyholes at the bottom.

I started by cutting boards to length. All of my lumber on hand is cut to 4 foot lengths, so it worked out pretty well. The 38 inch long pieces had an offcut that gave me two pieces that were not quite 5 inches long, so I was efficient in my lumber use.

I've also got a new ECE dovetail plane so I've decided I'll put the shelves into the case with sliding dovetails and put the uprights between shelves with sliding dovetails as well.

Wood Rectangle Floor Wood stain Flooring


Wood Hardwood Wood stain Plank Lumber


I put the dovetails on the ends if the boards and called it a day. Tomorrow I'll start joinery on the carcass, and hopefully get the dovetails cut in the four exterior joints and maybe get started on the sliding dovetails for the shelves. We'll see how it goes!
Thanks for the tip, Tom. I've downloaded it, though I'm not sure if / when I'll actually need it.

I used AutoCAD back in version 1.0 to do layout of gates within a FPGA back in the day, but it turns out it's changed a wee bit since then. And it's pretty dang expensive.

Got a bunch of errands this morning (we're actually going to the bank!) so it'll probably be afternoon before I get to start making sawdust. I'm hoping I can at least cut the dovetails for the four corners of the carcass today.
 

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#12 ·
Planning and cutting

I looked at my braces as I was unpacking, and discovered I have four, plus a couple eggbeaters, plus another brace I've bid on on eBay… It's time to build a till. Also, I'll have a place to keep my bits if I do that.

So the first step was to get out the graph paper and sketch out what I think I'll need. I figure I'll eventually have braces of 6-14 inch sweeps, probably doubling up on 8 and 10 since they're more common. So I sketched a till that could hold those plus a couple eggbeater drills.

Rectangle Font Pattern Parallel Design


This is a first for me. Most of the time I just start building and then realize afterwards that I've underbuilt, so it feels kinda weird making a plan, but I think I'll survive. Also, the Bad Axe magnet is handy for holding my plan to the whiteboard so I don't lose it in a pile of sawdust.

Given that, I decided I'd use pine I have on hand for building my bookcases. I've got a lot of S4S 1Ă—8s, so I started with those. That should give me enough depth that I can put doors on the till and still get a 14 in there. Plus it means my existing boxes of bits can fit in the cubbyholes at the bottom.

I started by cutting boards to length. All of my lumber on hand is cut to 4 foot lengths, so it worked out pretty well. The 38 inch long pieces had an offcut that gave me two pieces that were not quite 5 inches long, so I was efficient in my lumber use.

I've also got a new ECE dovetail plane so I've decided I'll put the shelves into the case with sliding dovetails and put the uprights between shelves with sliding dovetails as well.

Wood Rectangle Floor Wood stain Flooring


Wood Hardwood Wood stain Plank Lumber


I put the dovetails on the ends if the boards and called it a day. Tomorrow I'll start joinery on the carcass, and hopefully get the dovetails cut in the four exterior joints and maybe get started on the sliding dovetails for the shelves. We'll see how it goes!
Lovely to make a home for them all.
Congrat on the beutiful plane.
Look forward to see it.
Best thoughts,
Mads
 

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#13 ·
Planning and cutting

I looked at my braces as I was unpacking, and discovered I have four, plus a couple eggbeaters, plus another brace I've bid on on eBay… It's time to build a till. Also, I'll have a place to keep my bits if I do that.

So the first step was to get out the graph paper and sketch out what I think I'll need. I figure I'll eventually have braces of 6-14 inch sweeps, probably doubling up on 8 and 10 since they're more common. So I sketched a till that could hold those plus a couple eggbeater drills.

Rectangle Font Pattern Parallel Design


This is a first for me. Most of the time I just start building and then realize afterwards that I've underbuilt, so it feels kinda weird making a plan, but I think I'll survive. Also, the Bad Axe magnet is handy for holding my plan to the whiteboard so I don't lose it in a pile of sawdust.

Given that, I decided I'd use pine I have on hand for building my bookcases. I've got a lot of S4S 1Ă—8s, so I started with those. That should give me enough depth that I can put doors on the till and still get a 14 in there. Plus it means my existing boxes of bits can fit in the cubbyholes at the bottom.

I started by cutting boards to length. All of my lumber on hand is cut to 4 foot lengths, so it worked out pretty well. The 38 inch long pieces had an offcut that gave me two pieces that were not quite 5 inches long, so I was efficient in my lumber use.

I've also got a new ECE dovetail plane so I've decided I'll put the shelves into the case with sliding dovetails and put the uprights between shelves with sliding dovetails as well.

Wood Rectangle Floor Wood stain Flooring


Wood Hardwood Wood stain Plank Lumber


I put the dovetails on the ends if the boards and called it a day. Tomorrow I'll start joinery on the carcass, and hopefully get the dovetails cut in the four exterior joints and maybe get started on the sliding dovetails for the shelves. We'll see how it goes!
Another busy morning. A hat I bought from Stetson to protect me from the sun is 1/4" smaller than the size marked in it. But I wore it, so no return. I'll buy future hats from another company, I think.

Also it was time to bake another loaf of bread. It's rising now, and will go into the oven to be done for lunchtime, I think.

There's always something!
 

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#14 ·
A little detour

I was asked to finish moving my tools from the garage to the shop the other day, so I did that. Still haven't found and unpacked all of my tools, so I took a little detour to build a dovetail marker so I could lay out the dovetails nicely. In the course of making that, I needed a bench hook, so I slapped one of those together, too.

Wood Rectangle Wood stain Grass Plank


I think I can start laying out the dovetails now, but since I'm planning on doing mitered dovetails (as practice for the corners on the bookcases I need to build), I might need to study up on those first.

--

And the next day, further detour to make a clamp rack.

Wood Machine Hardwood Electric blue Engineering
 

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#15 ·
A little detour

I was asked to finish moving my tools from the garage to the shop the other day, so I did that. Still haven't found and unpacked all of my tools, so I took a little detour to build a dovetail marker so I could lay out the dovetails nicely. In the course of making that, I needed a bench hook, so I slapped one of those together, too.

Wood Rectangle Wood stain Grass Plank


I think I can start laying out the dovetails now, but since I'm planning on doing mitered dovetails (as practice for the corners on the bookcases I need to build), I might need to study up on those first.

--

And the next day, further detour to make a clamp rack.

Wood Machine Hardwood Electric blue Engineering
wow kewl dovetails :<))
 

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#24 ·
Dovetails and sliding dovetails

Today was dovetail day, and I'm still not done, but I made a lot of progress.

As I'm doing mitered shoulder dovetails on the carcass (to practice them for the bookcases I'm building next), I took my time laying them out and cutting them. Spent all morning just cutting the tails.

After lunch, I headed out to the shop to cut the pins. That went pretty well, so I got started on the sliding dovetails for the shelves as well. They're not sure hard, but I took pictures along the way, so I'd be better able to remember what I did and any improvements I found along the way.

First step is to layout your lines. Make sure the width is the width of the narrow part of the dovetail (cut in part 1 of this blog).

Brown Table Rectangle Wood Beige


Then saw the two angled lines. As with normal dovetails, start on one end, then angle to the other end. I started on the near side, since it was easier for me to see.

Wood Rectangle Wood stain Hardwood Flooring


After cutting the two angled lines, cut a straight line between them. This will make is easier to chisel out the waste. Note that the depth of this line you're sawing is your depth-gauge, so try to cut it to the line, but no further.

Wood Natural material Composite material Hardwood Plank


Then chisel our the waste. I did half from the front, turned the board around and did another half (to 3/4 of the final depth) from the far side, and about an inch to full depth, then turned the board around again, and finished up from the front.

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Flooring Varnish


Wood Door Rectangle Beige Flooring


And that's where I finished the day. I still need to saw out the ten sliding dovetail sockets for the vertical pieces between the two shelves, and also the slots to hang the braces in. And I need to cut rabbets in the rear of the sides and top for the back, so there will be a couple more entries before I'm finished with the carcass.

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Flooring Plank


Thanks for following along!
 

Attachments

#25 ·
Dovetails and sliding dovetails

Today was dovetail day, and I'm still not done, but I made a lot of progress.

As I'm doing mitered shoulder dovetails on the carcass (to practice them for the bookcases I'm building next), I took my time laying them out and cutting them. Spent all morning just cutting the tails.

After lunch, I headed out to the shop to cut the pins. That went pretty well, so I got started on the sliding dovetails for the shelves as well. They're not sure hard, but I took pictures along the way, so I'd be better able to remember what I did and any improvements I found along the way.

First step is to layout your lines. Make sure the width is the width of the narrow part of the dovetail (cut in part 1 of this blog).

Brown Table Rectangle Wood Beige


Then saw the two angled lines. As with normal dovetails, start on one end, then angle to the other end. I started on the near side, since it was easier for me to see.

Wood Rectangle Wood stain Hardwood Flooring


After cutting the two angled lines, cut a straight line between them. This will make is easier to chisel out the waste. Note that the depth of this line you're sawing is your depth-gauge, so try to cut it to the line, but no further.

Wood Natural material Composite material Hardwood Plank


Then chisel our the waste. I did half from the front, turned the board around and did another half (to 3/4 of the final depth) from the far side, and about an inch to full depth, then turned the board around again, and finished up from the front.

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Flooring Varnish


Wood Door Rectangle Beige Flooring


And that's where I finished the day. I still need to saw out the ten sliding dovetail sockets for the vertical pieces between the two shelves, and also the slots to hang the braces in. And I need to cut rabbets in the rear of the sides and top for the back, so there will be a couple more entries before I'm finished with the carcass.

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Flooring Plank


Thanks for following along!
Tried out sliding dovetails on a project several years ago. wish i'd seen your approach back then. much easier! nice work.
 

Attachments

#29 ·
Horizontal bits

I started cutting sliding dovetail sockets in the horizontal bits today. More of the same, but I had a little blowout on the third socket I was cutting, so I glued that back together and decided to work on the part that will hold the braces.

I started by laying out marks 3½ inches apart, and drew marks four inches from the edge of the board (or 3½ from the other edge). Picked out the 12/16 bit, chucked it in my brace, and started drilling holes. I picked the ¾ inch bit because it had relatively sharp spurs (I think I touched them up before we moved), and it's big enough to fit the brace I was using into. The fat part of the handle is closer to an inch, but if I have to enlarge the holes a little bit later on, I'll deal with that then.

Wood Tool Table Floor Wood stain


Bicycle fork Bicycle handlebar Wood Plumbing valve Bicycle part


With everything laid out and drilled, I took my square and drew lines more or less to the edge of each hole. If I was off a little, I didn't worry too much.

Calipers Ruler Wood Office ruler Rectangle


I put the board in my face vise and started sawing. I was using my Veritas tenon saw, as it had enough reach to make the cuts without bottoming out the back. It's filed hybrid, and I'm cutting pine, so it made pretty short work of the cuts.

Rectangle Wood Wood stain Floor Flooring


Once that was done, I took my knife and chamfered the edges of the slots, and used my spokeshave to chamfer the front edge of the board. Then it was time to sweep up for the day and go start cooking dinner. Hopefully tomorrow I can finish up the remaining two shelves and ponder putting the carcass together.

Wood Composite material Hardwood Brickwork Bench


I also should think about some sort of reinforcement on the board that'll be carrying the braces. Three inches of pine between holes will probably mean that I'll snap something off eventually. Maybe I'll start tomorrow by digging through my scrap bucket and see what I have that I can glue under that board with the grain running front to back to strengthen things up.
 

Attachments

#30 ·
Horizontal bits

I started cutting sliding dovetail sockets in the horizontal bits today. More of the same, but I had a little blowout on the third socket I was cutting, so I glued that back together and decided to work on the part that will hold the braces.

I started by laying out marks 3½ inches apart, and drew marks four inches from the edge of the board (or 3½ from the other edge). Picked out the 12/16 bit, chucked it in my brace, and started drilling holes. I picked the ¾ inch bit because it had relatively sharp spurs (I think I touched them up before we moved), and it's big enough to fit the brace I was using into. The fat part of the handle is closer to an inch, but if I have to enlarge the holes a little bit later on, I'll deal with that then.

Wood Tool Table Floor Wood stain


Bicycle fork Bicycle handlebar Wood Plumbing valve Bicycle part


With everything laid out and drilled, I took my square and drew lines more or less to the edge of each hole. If I was off a little, I didn't worry too much.

Calipers Ruler Wood Office ruler Rectangle


I put the board in my face vise and started sawing. I was using my Veritas tenon saw, as it had enough reach to make the cuts without bottoming out the back. It's filed hybrid, and I'm cutting pine, so it made pretty short work of the cuts.

Rectangle Wood Wood stain Floor Flooring


Once that was done, I took my knife and chamfered the edges of the slots, and used my spokeshave to chamfer the front edge of the board. Then it was time to sweep up for the day and go start cooking dinner. Hopefully tomorrow I can finish up the remaining two shelves and ponder putting the carcass together.

Wood Composite material Hardwood Brickwork Bench


I also should think about some sort of reinforcement on the board that'll be carrying the braces. Three inches of pine between holes will probably mean that I'll snap something off eventually. Maybe I'll start tomorrow by digging through my scrap bucket and see what I have that I can glue under that board with the grain running front to back to strengthen things up.
Dave, I used thin luan ply to reinforce my brace/drill till in my DUTCH chest. I broke the first iteration since it was pine so glued it back together and veneered both sides with the ply. It's been good for a number of years
Can post a pic if you want.
 

Attachments

#36 ·
Reinforcement, part 1

Spent the past few days with a mix of yard work and thinking about how to reinforce the rack that'll hold the braces. With the grain running across, the slots cut into it leave some very weak tongues, which will be almost certain to snap off over time. I've seen this happen with my chisel till, and I'm going to have to rebuild that at some point.

Wood Composite material Hardwood Brickwork Bench


So I thought a bit, and dug through my various piles of shorts. I found a chunk of walnut and decided that running pieces of that from front to back under the tongues would strengthen them in compression, and then I could put some veneer on top (running the same direction) to strengthen the rack in tension. Or looking at it another way, I'm making plywood, with a dang thick core.

Wood Red Wood stain Hardwood Gas


My first few test pieces went well yesterday, and I finished cutting them and gluing them up today. I'll give the glue time to dry overnight, and I can plane the ends smooth and chamfer the edges of the holes nicely tomorrow morning. And some 1/16" thick bubinga veneer I ordered should be here in tomorrow evening's mail, so I can glue that onto the top on Thursday.

Rectangle Wood Font Wood stain Hardwood


I also finished cutting all the sliding dovetail sockets today, and will do a test fitting of the carcass tomorrow. I may be able to glue up some sub-assemblies, but we'll have to see how the test fitting goes.
 

Attachments

#37 ·
Reinforcement, part 1

Spent the past few days with a mix of yard work and thinking about how to reinforce the rack that'll hold the braces. With the grain running across, the slots cut into it leave some very weak tongues, which will be almost certain to snap off over time. I've seen this happen with my chisel till, and I'm going to have to rebuild that at some point.

Wood Composite material Hardwood Brickwork Bench


So I thought a bit, and dug through my various piles of shorts. I found a chunk of walnut and decided that running pieces of that from front to back under the tongues would strengthen them in compression, and then I could put some veneer on top (running the same direction) to strengthen the rack in tension. Or looking at it another way, I'm making plywood, with a dang thick core.

Wood Red Wood stain Hardwood Gas


My first few test pieces went well yesterday, and I finished cutting them and gluing them up today. I'll give the glue time to dry overnight, and I can plane the ends smooth and chamfer the edges of the holes nicely tomorrow morning. And some 1/16" thick bubinga veneer I ordered should be here in tomorrow evening's mail, so I can glue that onto the top on Thursday.

Rectangle Wood Font Wood stain Hardwood


I also finished cutting all the sliding dovetail sockets today, and will do a test fitting of the carcass tomorrow. I may be able to glue up some sub-assemblies, but we'll have to see how the test fitting goes.
Looking forward to seeing this Dave. I'd like to build one this year.
 

Attachments

#57 ·
Cleanup and test fitting

I started my shop time today cleaning up the walnut I glued to the pine rack for the braces. I used a spokeshave to get the lengths consistent and round over the ends, as well as to surface plane the walnut. If I skew it enough, nearly 45 degrees in some cases, I could plane even against the grain and get it fairly smooth.

Wood Hardwood Wood stain Plank Font


Table Wood Wood stain Flooring Hardwood


With those smoothed, I wanted to clean up a few spots of tear-out, plus remove the pencil lines that were still on the pine. I cut a card scraper to make a narrow tip, filed the edge square, and scraped things pretty.

Wood Automotive exterior Automotive tire Bumper Fender


Wood Blue Wood stain Line Floor


Wood Table Finger Wood stain Hardwood


I also used a knife and my new scraper to clean up the edges of the slots.

Wood Rectangle Table Wood stain Flooring


Table Wood Trunk Wood stain Flooring


With that done, it was time to test fit things. All of my sliding dovetails were a little fat, so I tested each one, then adjusted it either with the dovetail plane or a chisel. The dovetail plane earned its keep here, since I still had the fence set to the right depth, so in most cases it was just a matter of making a pass or two and then everything fit.

The one down side of the dovetail plane is that it's apparently easy to rock it a little, leading to sliding dovetails that are thick in the middle and thinner on the ends. Nearly all of my dovetails were fat in the middle. Oops!

With the three horizontal pieces in, it was time to test the fit of the carcass. I popped one end of the top on, and it fit well. Then I looked at the other end, and the board was 1/2" too long.

Table Rectangle Wood Desk Natural material


Table Rectangle Wood Floor Wood stain


Crap.

I figured out what I did wrong. I had bad math at some point, and the inner shelves that are dovetailed into the sides are 38" long. The dovetails are a half inch on either end, so the outsides of the sides are 38 1/2" apart (everything is 3/4" thick). I cut the top and bottom to 39" initially, thinking I'd trim them back once I'd tested the sliding dovetails for the shelves, but then I cut the dovetails on the carcass because I was eager to try the mitered dovetail corners.

So now I'm cutting a half-inch off the end of the tail boards and re-cutting the dovetails. At least it's pine, and I've got a lot of scraps, so when I need small pieces to patch up the old dovetails, I can do so.

And that's today. I got one corner re-cut, and I'll finish the other tomorrow, then I can test the five uprights that divide the areas between the drawers. It looked to me like I managed to line everything up, but if I have to move a sliding dovetail socket a quarter inch or so to one side, I think I'll be able to do that without weakening things too much.

Plus my veneer gets here this evening, so I'll be able to finish the top shelf too. First time veneering! Wish me luck!
 

Attachments

#58 ·
Cleanup and test fitting

I started my shop time today cleaning up the walnut I glued to the pine rack for the braces. I used a spokeshave to get the lengths consistent and round over the ends, as well as to surface plane the walnut. If I skew it enough, nearly 45 degrees in some cases, I could plane even against the grain and get it fairly smooth.

Wood Hardwood Wood stain Plank Font


Table Wood Wood stain Flooring Hardwood


With those smoothed, I wanted to clean up a few spots of tear-out, plus remove the pencil lines that were still on the pine. I cut a card scraper to make a narrow tip, filed the edge square, and scraped things pretty.

Wood Automotive exterior Automotive tire Bumper Fender


Wood Blue Wood stain Line Floor


Wood Table Finger Wood stain Hardwood


I also used a knife and my new scraper to clean up the edges of the slots.

Wood Rectangle Table Wood stain Flooring


Table Wood Trunk Wood stain Flooring


With that done, it was time to test fit things. All of my sliding dovetails were a little fat, so I tested each one, then adjusted it either with the dovetail plane or a chisel. The dovetail plane earned its keep here, since I still had the fence set to the right depth, so in most cases it was just a matter of making a pass or two and then everything fit.

The one down side of the dovetail plane is that it's apparently easy to rock it a little, leading to sliding dovetails that are thick in the middle and thinner on the ends. Nearly all of my dovetails were fat in the middle. Oops!

With the three horizontal pieces in, it was time to test the fit of the carcass. I popped one end of the top on, and it fit well. Then I looked at the other end, and the board was 1/2" too long.

Table Rectangle Wood Desk Natural material


Table Rectangle Wood Floor Wood stain


Crap.

I figured out what I did wrong. I had bad math at some point, and the inner shelves that are dovetailed into the sides are 38" long. The dovetails are a half inch on either end, so the outsides of the sides are 38 1/2" apart (everything is 3/4" thick). I cut the top and bottom to 39" initially, thinking I'd trim them back once I'd tested the sliding dovetails for the shelves, but then I cut the dovetails on the carcass because I was eager to try the mitered dovetail corners.

So now I'm cutting a half-inch off the end of the tail boards and re-cutting the dovetails. At least it's pine, and I've got a lot of scraps, so when I need small pieces to patch up the old dovetails, I can do so.

And that's today. I got one corner re-cut, and I'll finish the other tomorrow, then I can test the five uprights that divide the areas between the drawers. It looked to me like I managed to line everything up, but if I have to move a sliding dovetail socket a quarter inch or so to one side, I think I'll be able to do that without weakening things too much.

Plus my veneer gets here this evening, so I'll be able to finish the top shelf too. First time veneering! Wish me luck!
What technique are you going to use to apply the veneer? I learned to "hammer" with hot hide glue and it is a great way to go IMO. There is something very gratifying about the crackle sound as you hammer it down.
 

Attachments

#69 ·
Reinforcement part ii

Time to reinforce the other side of the rack that'll carry the braces. As you might remember, the grain in the pine board that makes up the core of the rack runs left to right, which means that the grooves cut to hold the braces weaken the board, leaving tongues which can easily snap off. I reinforced the bottom of these tongues with strips of walnut.

For a more finished look, I'm reinforcing the top with some 1/8" bubinga veneer, with the grain running front to back. Rather than attempt to cut this to size/shape for each four-inch-wide piece, I cut them all to rough length, then glued them on. It's 1/8 inch thick, so no special techniques were needed, just glue it on and clamp it with a long board running the whole length to distribute the force from the clamps.

Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring Wood stain


Satellite phone Toy Wood Recreation Electric blue


And now I'm cutting them to match the pine board with a coping saw.

Wood Sports equipment Boats and boating--Equipment and supplies Bicycle handlebar Floor


I also trimmed the ends of the pieces with a spokeshave. The low angle makes this relatively easy. The only trick was remembering to skew the blade and to work from both ends to the middle. The spokeshave will ride along the wider pine board, making it pretty easy to stop when the boards are flush.

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Plank Varnish


Next it was time to clean up the edges of the grooves. Knife and rasp took care of that.

Table Wood Rectangle Wood stain Stairs


Wood Hardwood Wood stain Metal Composite material


Next up is re-cutting the bottom board of the carcass because when I trimmed it shorter, I took from the wrong end, leaving the sockets for the sliding dovetails offset about 3/4 inch from the board above it. Easier just to start over on that.
 

Attachments

#70 ·
Reinforcement part ii

Time to reinforce the other side of the rack that'll carry the braces. As you might remember, the grain in the pine board that makes up the core of the rack runs left to right, which means that the grooves cut to hold the braces weaken the board, leaving tongues which can easily snap off. I reinforced the bottom of these tongues with strips of walnut.

For a more finished look, I'm reinforcing the top with some 1/8" bubinga veneer, with the grain running front to back. Rather than attempt to cut this to size/shape for each four-inch-wide piece, I cut them all to rough length, then glued them on. It's 1/8 inch thick, so no special techniques were needed, just glue it on and clamp it with a long board running the whole length to distribute the force from the clamps.

Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring Wood stain


Satellite phone Toy Wood Recreation Electric blue


And now I'm cutting them to match the pine board with a coping saw.

Wood Sports equipment Boats and boating--Equipment and supplies Bicycle handlebar Floor


I also trimmed the ends of the pieces with a spokeshave. The low angle makes this relatively easy. The only trick was remembering to skew the blade and to work from both ends to the middle. The spokeshave will ride along the wider pine board, making it pretty easy to stop when the boards are flush.

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Plank Varnish


Next it was time to clean up the edges of the grooves. Knife and rasp took care of that.

Table Wood Rectangle Wood stain Stairs


Wood Hardwood Wood stain Metal Composite material


Next up is re-cutting the bottom board of the carcass because when I trimmed it shorter, I took from the wrong end, leaving the sockets for the sliding dovetails offset about 3/4 inch from the board above it. Easier just to start over on that.
Sort of like very fancy plywood!

We don't make mistakes. We just create opportunity for practice!
 

Attachments

#78 ·
Re-cutting the bottom and more test-fitting

Got some shop time again today, and I cut a new bottom piece for the carcass of my brace till, replacing the one I cut wrong when I shortened it.

Going back to the plan:

Rectangle Font Pattern Parallel Design


The pieces I had as 39 inches are now 38.5 inches long. Otherwise, everything is the same. Oops. Scratch that, the 5" pieces are now 4.5 long. More bad math.

Anyway, with all the pieces cut and test-fit together, except for the two bottom uprights (I'll get to those as my first order of business tomorrow), I put a coat of linseed oil on all the pieces. I've found that one coat of oil before I glue up the carcass keeps me from worrying as much about getting full coverage with the finish I put on after everything is glued together. Less stress is good.

So here's almost all of the wood:

Wood Wooden block Floor Wood stain Hardwood


The rack that'll hold the braces has the walnut on the bottom of it, and the bubinga veneer on the top.it looks pretty darned nice. The rest of the pine has pencil marks and scuffs on it, and those probably will remain. It's shop furniture, and I don't want to worry about accidentally putting things together wrong when I start gluing things together tomorrow.

Next up, glue-up. That'll probably be two or three separate glue-ups, and while I'm waiting for glue to dry, I'll start selecting lumber for the drawers and doors. I think I have a nice piece of elm which might be all the drawer fronts, and I've got some poplar for drawer sides, but I'm not sure if I have quite enough. But I also still have a dozen boxes of wood to unpack.

Until next time!
 

Attachments

#79 ·
Re-cutting the bottom and more test-fitting

Got some shop time again today, and I cut a new bottom piece for the carcass of my brace till, replacing the one I cut wrong when I shortened it.

Going back to the plan:

Rectangle Font Pattern Parallel Design


The pieces I had as 39 inches are now 38.5 inches long. Otherwise, everything is the same. Oops. Scratch that, the 5" pieces are now 4.5 long. More bad math.

Anyway, with all the pieces cut and test-fit together, except for the two bottom uprights (I'll get to those as my first order of business tomorrow), I put a coat of linseed oil on all the pieces. I've found that one coat of oil before I glue up the carcass keeps me from worrying as much about getting full coverage with the finish I put on after everything is glued together. Less stress is good.

So here's almost all of the wood:

Wood Wooden block Floor Wood stain Hardwood


The rack that'll hold the braces has the walnut on the bottom of it, and the bubinga veneer on the top.it looks pretty darned nice. The rest of the pine has pencil marks and scuffs on it, and those probably will remain. It's shop furniture, and I don't want to worry about accidentally putting things together wrong when I start gluing things together tomorrow.

Next up, glue-up. That'll probably be two or three separate glue-ups, and while I'm waiting for glue to dry, I'll start selecting lumber for the drawers and doors. I think I have a nice piece of elm which might be all the drawer fronts, and I've got some poplar for drawer sides, but I'm not sure if I have quite enough. But I also still have a dozen boxes of wood to unpack.

Until next time!
Looking good, coming along nicely. I'll be looking for the next post.
 

Attachments

#81 ·
Gluing it up

I finished test-fitting all the pieces of the brace till today. Turns out a dovetail plane is super handy for this part of the project. For the uprights that go between the sections in the bottom, I needed to take from one to three passes with the plane on each to make them fit. But that's nice and easy todo with the dovetail plane.

Shelving Wood Rectangle Interior design Floor


I then took everything apart again, and went to glue up the outside of the carcass. I did that, and put clamps on it to hold it together, but with all the sliding dovetail sockets cut in the sides, as soon as I pulled the joints tight, the sides bowed alarmingly. I quickly released the pressure and put the rest of the parts in. The uprights went in last and it took a little mallet work to get everything together a second time, but I did, and then put a couple clamps on to hold everything together. Worked better this time.

Wood Floor Flooring Wood stain Hardwood


With he case completely together, I planed a 45 degree edge on a 1Ă—3 for a cleat for the till, and pulled a couple 2'x4' pieces of 1/4" maple plywood out to be the back of the case. I still haven't figured out exactly how I'm going to do the doors yet, but it looks like I need to widen the slots for the braces a little for the larger sweep braces, and once I do that, I'll figure out how much added room I'll need to fit them inside the case.

The piece of elm that I think will make nice drawer fronts won't work as-is. I either need to resaw it in half and make the upper drawer fronts book-match the lower drawer fronts (which would look nice, but be a lot of work, and leave me with thin fronts), or I need to find a bigger piece of wood, so I'm pondering that, too.
 

Attachments

#82 ·
Gluing it up

I finished test-fitting all the pieces of the brace till today. Turns out a dovetail plane is super handy for this part of the project. For the uprights that go between the sections in the bottom, I needed to take from one to three passes with the plane on each to make them fit. But that's nice and easy todo with the dovetail plane.

Shelving Wood Rectangle Interior design Floor


I then took everything apart again, and went to glue up the outside of the carcass. I did that, and put clamps on it to hold it together, but with all the sliding dovetail sockets cut in the sides, as soon as I pulled the joints tight, the sides bowed alarmingly. I quickly released the pressure and put the rest of the parts in. The uprights went in last and it took a little mallet work to get everything together a second time, but I did, and then put a couple clamps on to hold everything together. Worked better this time.

Wood Floor Flooring Wood stain Hardwood


With he case completely together, I planed a 45 degree edge on a 1Ă—3 for a cleat for the till, and pulled a couple 2'x4' pieces of 1/4" maple plywood out to be the back of the case. I still haven't figured out exactly how I'm going to do the doors yet, but it looks like I need to widen the slots for the braces a little for the larger sweep braces, and once I do that, I'll figure out how much added room I'll need to fit them inside the case.

The piece of elm that I think will make nice drawer fronts won't work as-is. I either need to resaw it in half and make the upper drawer fronts book-match the lower drawer fronts (which would look nice, but be a lot of work, and leave me with thin fronts), or I need to find a bigger piece of wood, so I'm pondering that, too.
Looks good Dave!
 

Attachments

#90 ·
Back and cleat, hanging it up

First order of business today was putting the back on the carcass. This involved cutting plywood, so I got out the saw horses and circular saw. Three cuts to get the 1/4" maple plywood to size (or between 1/16 and 1/8 oversized, I'm not accurate enough with a circular saw to cut any closer than that), then glue onto the carcass and screw the plywood in place.

Table Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor


I set some scrap wood on the ply to push it down onto the horizontals in the carcass while the glue set. They don't provide a lot of structural strength, but by gluing them to the back, they'll be supported by it a little. And then when I put on the cleat and spacers on the bottom, those will be screwed into two of the three horizontals, stiffening and strengthening the case even more. Will I need all that strength? Probably not, but I've never been disappointed overbuilding shop furniture, and when I've built it without thinking about future overloading, I've had problems, so best to overdo it now.

With the back on, it's time to trim the three oversized sides down to flush with the carcass. I use a jack plane for that, and set heavy, it didn't take many passes before the back was trimmed down and smoothed to match the sides.

Wood Wood stain Table Rectangle Hardwood


Brown Wood Table Flooring Floor


You get funny looking shavings trimming the edge of plywood this way, but it gets the job done quickly, and actually leaves a pretty good edge.

With the back trimmed to size, it was time to install the cleat. The cleat is behind the rack that holds the braces, and is glued to the back, and screwed into the vertical sides of the carcass and into the rack. The two spacers that are the same thickness as the cleat (so the case will hang level on the wall) are screwed into the sides and the shelf between the two rows of drawers.

Cabinetry Shelving Shelf Wood Rectangle


That done, it was time to hang the case on the wall and start filling it up. I still have one or two braces I haven't unpacked yet, plus a couple eggbeater drills to hang up. And I need to build the seven drawers to hold various bits. Spoon bits are in the upper left, with two sets of bits below, a modern Jennings pattern set, and an older Irwin pattern set. Plus there's at least one tool roll of bits somewhere, and miscellany like the hollow auger (in the 14" sweep brace on the right) and the tapered reamer in the 8" sweep to the left of it. I'll start pondering drawer materials tomorrow, I guess.

I also will need to get a coat of oil on the back, and a couple coats of shellac on everything, plus ponder the doors one of these days, but it's done enough for now, I think, and I can take my time building drawers.

Oh, I also widened the rightmost slot in the rack. My 14" sweep brace has a thicker handle than all the others, so it needs a wider slot. A planemaker's float and a cheap rasp did the job pretty quickly.
 

Attachments

#91 ·
Back and cleat, hanging it up

First order of business today was putting the back on the carcass. This involved cutting plywood, so I got out the saw horses and circular saw. Three cuts to get the 1/4" maple plywood to size (or between 1/16 and 1/8 oversized, I'm not accurate enough with a circular saw to cut any closer than that), then glue onto the carcass and screw the plywood in place.

Table Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor


I set some scrap wood on the ply to push it down onto the horizontals in the carcass while the glue set. They don't provide a lot of structural strength, but by gluing them to the back, they'll be supported by it a little. And then when I put on the cleat and spacers on the bottom, those will be screwed into two of the three horizontals, stiffening and strengthening the case even more. Will I need all that strength? Probably not, but I've never been disappointed overbuilding shop furniture, and when I've built it without thinking about future overloading, I've had problems, so best to overdo it now.

With the back on, it's time to trim the three oversized sides down to flush with the carcass. I use a jack plane for that, and set heavy, it didn't take many passes before the back was trimmed down and smoothed to match the sides.

Wood Wood stain Table Rectangle Hardwood


Brown Wood Table Flooring Floor


You get funny looking shavings trimming the edge of plywood this way, but it gets the job done quickly, and actually leaves a pretty good edge.

With the back trimmed to size, it was time to install the cleat. The cleat is behind the rack that holds the braces, and is glued to the back, and screwed into the vertical sides of the carcass and into the rack. The two spacers that are the same thickness as the cleat (so the case will hang level on the wall) are screwed into the sides and the shelf between the two rows of drawers.

Cabinetry Shelving Shelf Wood Rectangle


That done, it was time to hang the case on the wall and start filling it up. I still have one or two braces I haven't unpacked yet, plus a couple eggbeater drills to hang up. And I need to build the seven drawers to hold various bits. Spoon bits are in the upper left, with two sets of bits below, a modern Jennings pattern set, and an older Irwin pattern set. Plus there's at least one tool roll of bits somewhere, and miscellany like the hollow auger (in the 14" sweep brace on the right) and the tapered reamer in the 8" sweep to the left of it. I'll start pondering drawer materials tomorrow, I guess.

I also will need to get a coat of oil on the back, and a couple coats of shellac on everything, plus ponder the doors one of these days, but it's done enough for now, I think, and I can take my time building drawers.

Oh, I also widened the rightmost slot in the rack. My 14" sweep brace has a thicker handle than all the others, so it needs a wider slot. A planemaker's float and a cheap rasp did the job pretty quickly.
Looks like it will get the job done
 

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#105 ·
Starting on drawers

Nineteen months ago I said I needed to get started on the drawers for my brace till soon.

Hand tool Wood Tool Snips Set tool


I guess it was finally soon!

I had resawed a bunch of pine down to about ÂĽ inch. First up was cutting it to size and flattening it.

Wood Rectangle Hardwood Wood stain Flooring


Then I laid out the tails.

Rectangle Wood Yellow Road surface Asphalt


Cut the tails.

Wood Rectangle Font Composite material Brick


Laid out the pins.

Wood Rectangle Grey Composite material Brick


Wood Table Natural material Flooring Wood stain


Cut the pins. And remember to mark the waste before cutting out the wrong bits.

Rectangle Wood Grass Road surface Composite material


Wood Brickwork Glove Hardwood Flooring


Wood Rectangle Flooring Hardwood Wood stain


And test fit each corner.

Wood Gesture Finger Table Natural material


Then I marked where the grooves for the bottom will go before I got something worng.

Table Wood Rectangle Wood stain Flooring


And got a little groovy.

Wood Flooring Floor Rectangle Wood stain


After cutting out a piece of ÂĽ inch plywood to fit in the bottom of the box, I test fit everything, and glued together the first box. This one will fit in the lower right drawer slot, and will contain my set of long brad-point auger bits (I think). The drawer fronts and handles go on after all seven boxes are done. I'll also put in runners on the sides of the cubbies to hold the drawers level. But next up, is building six more drawers and then fitting out something to hold the bits in place in each of them.

I'll try to remember to show the setup for the combination plane and how I mark the size of the drawer bottom when I'm doing one of the next drawers. I think I may also need to put some slips under the bottom in some of the drawers, as I can only cut about a â…› inch deep groove for the bottom, which may not hold great if I've got heavy stuff in the drawer.

Stay tuned!
 

Attachments

#106 ·
Starting on drawers

Nineteen months ago I said I needed to get started on the drawers for my brace till soon.

Hand tool Wood Tool Snips Set tool


I guess it was finally soon!

I had resawed a bunch of pine down to about ÂĽ inch. First up was cutting it to size and flattening it.

Wood Rectangle Hardwood Wood stain Flooring


Then I laid out the tails.

Rectangle Wood Yellow Road surface Asphalt


Cut the tails.

Wood Rectangle Font Composite material Brick


Laid out the pins.

Wood Rectangle Grey Composite material Brick


Wood Table Natural material Flooring Wood stain


Cut the pins. And remember to mark the waste before cutting out the wrong bits.

Rectangle Wood Grass Road surface Composite material


Wood Brickwork Glove Hardwood Flooring


Wood Rectangle Flooring Hardwood Wood stain


And test fit each corner.

Wood Gesture Finger Table Natural material


Then I marked where the grooves for the bottom will go before I got something worng.

Table Wood Rectangle Wood stain Flooring


And got a little groovy.

Wood Flooring Floor Rectangle Wood stain


After cutting out a piece of ÂĽ inch plywood to fit in the bottom of the box, I test fit everything, and glued together the first box. This one will fit in the lower right drawer slot, and will contain my set of long brad-point auger bits (I think). The drawer fronts and handles go on after all seven boxes are done. I'll also put in runners on the sides of the cubbies to hold the drawers level. But next up, is building six more drawers and then fitting out something to hold the bits in place in each of them.

I'll try to remember to show the setup for the combination plane and how I mark the size of the drawer bottom when I'm doing one of the next drawers. I think I may also need to put some slips under the bottom in some of the drawers, as I can only cut about a â…› inch deep groove for the bottom, which may not hold great if I've got heavy stuff in the drawer.

Stay tuned!
I don't think the nineteen months were a lost cause, you've completed a lot of woodworking in the mean time.

You probably covered this elsewhere but my memory is shorter than a gnats whiskers, how do you go about resawing to obtain the quarter inch boards?
 

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#129 ·
Another day, another drawer

First, a photo of how the till looks today.

Shelf Shelving Wood Hand tool Fashion accessory


That's yesterday's drawer-box in the lower right corner. I took it to the belt-sander to bring the dovetails down to level. I had cut them so the pins and tails protruded just a little, and it's a lot easier to fix that on the belt-sander than with a plane. Normally I cut dovetails so the flat surfaces are slightly proud of the end-grain, which is easier to plane flat. Maybe tomorrow's blog will cover that…

Todays update will fill in some blanks in yesterday's drawer construction. If I were a better person I'd go back and edit them into that blog.

As there are some variations in the carcasse, I'm measuring each drawer individually. No idea how many inches each is, but they should fit pretty good…

Wood Rectangle Wood stain Hardwood Flooring


Writing implement Office supplies Wood Tints and shades Beige


So that's how I measure them. I also noticed that yesterday's drawer has the dovetails the wrong way around for greatest strength, so I switched things up today and cut the tails on the sides (which are the shorter boards).

And here's a picture of using the combination plane to make the grooves. I clamp the board to my new small bench (because there's room) with the edge just over the edge of the bench so the combination plane can index off the edge of the board.

Wood Hand tool Tool Gas Engineering


And here's a completed board (either the left or the right of the drawer, don't remember which)

Wood Flooring Floor Beige Rectangle


To mark the size of the bottom, I set the (test-fit) drawer on the piece of ÂĽ inch plywood, with the outside of two edges on two edges of the plywood.

Wood Rectangle Wooden block Wood stain Plank


Then I mark along the inside of the box.

Wood Wood stain Flooring Floor Hardwood


Since I set the depth-stop of the combination plane to about half the thickness of the boards, this will work out to be about right.

And sure enough, it fits pretty well. The bottom was maybe tighter than ideal, but it's close enough that I won't worry about it unless I move the till to somewhere more humid.

Yellow Wood Gas Toy Machine


Took about 90 minutes from cutting the first board to length to shutting off the lights with the next drawer-box in the clamps.
 

Attachments

#130 ·
Another day, another drawer

First, a photo of how the till looks today.

Shelf Shelving Wood Hand tool Fashion accessory


That's yesterday's drawer-box in the lower right corner. I took it to the belt-sander to bring the dovetails down to level. I had cut them so the pins and tails protruded just a little, and it's a lot easier to fix that on the belt-sander than with a plane. Normally I cut dovetails so the flat surfaces are slightly proud of the end-grain, which is easier to plane flat. Maybe tomorrow's blog will cover that…

Todays update will fill in some blanks in yesterday's drawer construction. If I were a better person I'd go back and edit them into that blog.

As there are some variations in the carcasse, I'm measuring each drawer individually. No idea how many inches each is, but they should fit pretty good…

Wood Rectangle Wood stain Hardwood Flooring


Writing implement Office supplies Wood Tints and shades Beige


So that's how I measure them. I also noticed that yesterday's drawer has the dovetails the wrong way around for greatest strength, so I switched things up today and cut the tails on the sides (which are the shorter boards).

And here's a picture of using the combination plane to make the grooves. I clamp the board to my new small bench (because there's room) with the edge just over the edge of the bench so the combination plane can index off the edge of the board.

Wood Hand tool Tool Gas Engineering


And here's a completed board (either the left or the right of the drawer, don't remember which)

Wood Flooring Floor Beige Rectangle


To mark the size of the bottom, I set the (test-fit) drawer on the piece of ÂĽ inch plywood, with the outside of two edges on two edges of the plywood.

Wood Rectangle Wooden block Wood stain Plank


Then I mark along the inside of the box.

Wood Wood stain Flooring Floor Hardwood


Since I set the depth-stop of the combination plane to about half the thickness of the boards, this will work out to be about right.

And sure enough, it fits pretty well. The bottom was maybe tighter than ideal, but it's close enough that I won't worry about it unless I move the till to somewhere more humid.

Yellow Wood Gas Toy Machine


Took about 90 minutes from cutting the first board to length to shutting off the lights with the next drawer-box in the clamps.
Your miles ahead of me Dave, I've never attempted a dovetail drawer.
 

Attachments

#154 ·
Drawer clean up

Took yesterday's drawer out of the clamps this morning and checked it for fit. As I expected, it was a bit tight, due to the bottom being a hair large.

Wood Wood stain Floor Flooring Hardwood


So I scribbled on the sides with a pencil and hauled the belt-sander outside to clean things up. The belt started out as 60 grit, but I've been using it long enough that it's probably more like 120 now. Still plenty good for cleaning up drawer sides.

Furniture Wood Plant Asphalt Gas


After a few minutes, the sides were cleaned up, and the drawer fits much better. Maybe a hair loose, but plenty good for my purposes.

Rectangle Wood Gas Hardwood Wood stain


And it looks pretty good, too.

Rectangle Wood Wood stain Hardwood Composite material
 

Attachments

#155 ·
Drawer clean up

Took yesterday's drawer out of the clamps this morning and checked it for fit. As I expected, it was a bit tight, due to the bottom being a hair large.

Wood Wood stain Floor Flooring Hardwood


So I scribbled on the sides with a pencil and hauled the belt-sander outside to clean things up. The belt started out as 60 grit, but I've been using it long enough that it's probably more like 120 now. Still plenty good for cleaning up drawer sides.

Furniture Wood Plant Asphalt Gas


After a few minutes, the sides were cleaned up, and the drawer fits much better. Maybe a hair loose, but plenty good for my purposes.

Rectangle Wood Gas Hardwood Wood stain


And it looks pretty good, too.

Rectangle Wood Wood stain Hardwood Composite material
Hi Dave, It looks like it is fitting now!!!!!!!!!!!!

Cheers, Jim
 

Attachments

#170 ·
More drawers

Yesterday I was busy building and didn't stop to take pictures.

Had one drawer box all ready for glue-up when I walked into the shop, so that was the first task. Got it together and started cutting the next box, which went well, and the first box had spent a little over an hour in the clamps, so I could remove them and reuse them on the second box of the day.

And then I started on the third box, and was done and ready for glue in under an hour. Apparently practice still makes me better! So I found four longer clamps and a couple shorter ones to hold the box together, since I'm pretty sure the glue wants at least an hour to set before I remove the clamps. I had a brief thought that I should be using hot hide glue, since the cold at the shop floor near the door won't bother that as much, and I could almost go clamp-free, but I haven't been setting up my glue-pot in the mornings, so Titebond II use will probably continue.

In any case, that was enough for the day, and I'll knock out the last two drawer boxes today, and maybe get the previous batch of three sanded and fitted today, and can get started on designing storage for the bits tomorrow.

Edited to add: here are the three drawer boxes in place, after cleaning them up on the belt sander:

Wood Bag Gas Shelving Hardwood
 

Attachments

#171 ·
More drawers

Yesterday I was busy building and didn't stop to take pictures.

Had one drawer box all ready for glue-up when I walked into the shop, so that was the first task. Got it together and started cutting the next box, which went well, and the first box had spent a little over an hour in the clamps, so I could remove them and reuse them on the second box of the day.

And then I started on the third box, and was done and ready for glue in under an hour. Apparently practice still makes me better! So I found four longer clamps and a couple shorter ones to hold the box together, since I'm pretty sure the glue wants at least an hour to set before I remove the clamps. I had a brief thought that I should be using hot hide glue, since the cold at the shop floor near the door won't bother that as much, and I could almost go clamp-free, but I haven't been setting up my glue-pot in the mornings, so Titebond II use will probably continue.

In any case, that was enough for the day, and I'll knock out the last two drawer boxes today, and maybe get the previous batch of three sanded and fitted today, and can get started on designing storage for the bits tomorrow.

Edited to add: here are the three drawer boxes in place, after cleaning them up on the belt sander:

Wood Bag Gas Shelving Hardwood
Well, at our age you can't remember everything. (At least that's the case for me)

HAPPY NEW YEAR.
 

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