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Dovetail box number seven in my recent box making venture.

I'm calling this one "Knotty but Nice".

It is custom fit with inserts to hold my routers and the various cutters and components that come with them. It is made of poplar and pine and the insert is made of American Cedar. I had a hard time with the finish on this one. I ended up using very diluted provencial minwax stain mixed with mineral spirits and minwax poly. The stain really "pitted" the poplar, maybe I should have used a sealing coat first, maybe next time. I followed that with amber shellac and then Johnson's Paste Wax.

I left the cedar insert unfinished. I did that because I am curious if the cedar will absorb moisture the way it is used to absorb moisture from humidors. I started a post about this because I really wanted some feedback from everyone here and I got great replies. Here is a link to that post
Cedar Inserts for Preventing Rust

UPDATE!!! I went back and sealed the insert with poly and JPW. Unfinished cedar is corrosive to iron. Thanks to Lazyman and Swirt for sharing that info with me… read the update below.

I think I have set my tools up for rust by accident in the past by tossing in those little silica bead packets to absorb moisture. In an airtight container that would work but in a tool drawer or non-air tight box/chest they absorb the moisture from outside of the box/drawer and then slowly release it into the drawer. I think.

Anyway…. the untreated cedar inserts may do the same thing but I am hoping they will not. I am using CRC 3-36 to treat my tools and JPW. I also bought some ZeRust Plastabs that I will be trying in this box and some other recently built chisel boxes.
Thanks for everyone's thoughts on that Cedar Insert post. If this does not work the way I intend for it to work, then I will take the insert out and seal it with polyurathane.

Thanks for looking.
Jon

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A very nice case for a great tool. Well done.
Not trying to repeat myself here so see your other post about cedar and that it causes rust.
 

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UPDATE!!!

I'm reading this right now. http://www.vam.ac.uk/content/journals/conservation-journal/issue-04/corrosion-of-metals-associated-with-wood/

"Oak, sweet chestnut, Western red cedar and Douglas fir are the woods most commonly associated with corrosion of metals in contact with them under damp conditions. Iron and steel are much more susceptible to the corrosive influence of wood than aluminium, copper or brass."

I hate to do it but i might need to add a finish to those inserts.
Just when I thought I was finished.

Thanks to LumberJock Swirt!!!
I guess I had to hear it twice for it to sink in. I'm glad to be part of a community where people share their experience, good and bad. And thanks again for being persistant enough to tell me again.

A half hour later and I'm into the first coat of poly. Another in the morning then a little JPW and I'll call it done.
Thanks again for saving me from creating my own rust issues. You might have saved someone else from the same trouble. I'm going to update my two other posts that have this topic in it.

Jon
 

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Excellent design and build!

Something else you might consider for future builds is Kaizen Foam. It's certainly not as nice as your wood insert but, it would eliminate the rust issues, it's highly and easily customizable and it's simply replaced if you decide you want to change the layout down the road or add new accessories etc. Just a thought. Your's is much nicer though :)
 

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Thanks Kenny,
I may do that in the future. Cedar is not a great wood to work with and I did not know it is corrosive to iron.
That Kaizen Foam would be great in my machinist's toolbox.
jon
 

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great box for a great tool,exactly what i need for my exact same plane.thanks for the inspiration jon.
 

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Oh you are such a "naughty" boy Jon, I know what it means …we have one "just up the road a bit"

Anyway back on track now… nice work on the box and accessories.

I am sure it will attract a lot of interest because of its stand out apperance then the additional information regarding rust inhibiting, ... of which everybody is interested in.

Keep up the good work and awaiting No 8

Now:- Get to work Pottzy !!!

Another great item unavailable in Australia.

 

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Oh you are such a "naughty" boy Jon, I know what it means …we have one "just up the road a bit"

Anyway back on track now… nice work on the box and accessories.

I am sure it will attract a lot of interest because of its stand out apperance then the additional information regarding rust inhibiting, ... of which everybody is interested in.

Keep up the good work and awaiting No 8

Now:- Get to work Pottzy !!!

Another great item unavailable in Australia.



- robscastle
it's on my list rob,i think a combo of this and the ducks will get me the ultimate planer box.
 

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