custos
16th November 2008, 07:03 PM
Hi Guys. I haven't posted in a while but thought you might like to see my latest project just finished. SHMBO wanted a buffet for the dining room. The brief was 8 drawers (ugghh) and a cupboard for taller stuff. The result can be seen below.
I started out with a Tassie Oak carcase. I use Tas Oak from Bunnings because I like to choose the pieces myself. The sides and cupboard internals I made out using 19mm Tassie Oak floorboards from Bunnings. Why? Because it's actually cheaper than buying the same 19mm boards from the normal dressed timber, and the tongue and grooves help in gluing up the panels. Handy hint there.
All the major joinery I did using loose tenons. The mortices I made using the Mortice Pal jig from the US - a beautiful piece of kit, highly recommended for ease of use and precision. For the smaller joinery I used dowels, using a dowel jig. Okay, I like things easy.
The drawers were a bit of work as always. I have a Eurojig for doing half-blind dovetails which makes the going easier, but it's still a lot of sawdust. For drawer bases I used 6mm MDF veneered with Tassie Oak. Looks good and wears well. I use the same stuff for the back of the cabinet.
The cupboard doors have glass inserts (SHMBO's requirement) held in place with silicon and finished with 5mm Tas Oak quad at the back. The hinges are brass 65mm hinges fitted into recessed joints. The drawer pulls were chosen by the boss - but I liked her choice. Quite modern and clean looking.
Then there's the top. I went to Aussie Choice Timbers in Melbourne's eastern suburbs. I asked the (really helpful) guys there if they had any red gum with fiddleback grain. They said they occasionally got some in each pack of red gum, and that they would keep a look out for me. A couple of weeks later they supplied me with this beautiful timber (machined down to 19 mm, 250 grit, edges jointed and ready to glue up). The fiddleback is magnificent - photos don't do it justice. I glued the boards up using biscuits for alignment and polyurethane for strength. Scraped it level and then sanded down to 1200 grit before two coats of Danish oil (Organoil) over the lot and then waxed two weeks later. The top is so silky smooth I get slightly aroused just touching it. :B
I started out with a Tassie Oak carcase. I use Tas Oak from Bunnings because I like to choose the pieces myself. The sides and cupboard internals I made out using 19mm Tassie Oak floorboards from Bunnings. Why? Because it's actually cheaper than buying the same 19mm boards from the normal dressed timber, and the tongue and grooves help in gluing up the panels. Handy hint there.
All the major joinery I did using loose tenons. The mortices I made using the Mortice Pal jig from the US - a beautiful piece of kit, highly recommended for ease of use and precision. For the smaller joinery I used dowels, using a dowel jig. Okay, I like things easy.
The drawers were a bit of work as always. I have a Eurojig for doing half-blind dovetails which makes the going easier, but it's still a lot of sawdust. For drawer bases I used 6mm MDF veneered with Tassie Oak. Looks good and wears well. I use the same stuff for the back of the cabinet.
The cupboard doors have glass inserts (SHMBO's requirement) held in place with silicon and finished with 5mm Tas Oak quad at the back. The hinges are brass 65mm hinges fitted into recessed joints. The drawer pulls were chosen by the boss - but I liked her choice. Quite modern and clean looking.
Then there's the top. I went to Aussie Choice Timbers in Melbourne's eastern suburbs. I asked the (really helpful) guys there if they had any red gum with fiddleback grain. They said they occasionally got some in each pack of red gum, and that they would keep a look out for me. A couple of weeks later they supplied me with this beautiful timber (machined down to 19 mm, 250 grit, edges jointed and ready to glue up). The fiddleback is magnificent - photos don't do it justice. I glued the boards up using biscuits for alignment and polyurethane for strength. Scraped it level and then sanded down to 1200 grit before two coats of Danish oil (Organoil) over the lot and then waxed two weeks later. The top is so silky smooth I get slightly aroused just touching it. :B