Thread: Orkney Box WIP1

Nice work Fletty. great WIP.

Nice work Fletty

Cheers
Michael

Originally Posted by fletty

Hi Tony, no, still just a diversion from work!

How have you settled in to the highlands, are the locals talking to you yet?

fletty

Good to hear you are able to find some time to be diverted.

Life is great here at lovely Bundanoon and yes the locals are a talkative mob, a real delight!

Great job Fletty! I really like this design.

I would love to know the original size of the timber used, the final dimensions and the bit that you used to get that outside edge profile. Beautiful boxes... I just can't get the size prespective from the pics...

what a great idea! looks unreal!

Originally Posted by AlanS

I would love to know the original size of the timber used, the final dimensions and the bit that you used to get that outside edge profile.....

Hi Alan (from another Alan),
I don't know how 'international' you are so I'll translate dimensions into 'old money' as I go.
The sides were made from a length of 90mm (31/2") x 40mm (11/2") Australian Red Cedar which was machined to a U section with 15mm (5/8") mm wall thickness and a 6mm (1/4") inside radius. After the boxes were glued up but the lid not separated, the outside was radiused with a 15mm (5/8") radius router bit. By accident rather than design, this gave a U section with a constant 15mm (5/8") wall thickness even at the corners.
The final box size is 300mm(12") x 210mm(81/4") x 90mm(31/2"). Although this sounds very organised, most of my woodwork is done 'by eye' with no drawings so the symmetry of the dimensions above is pure accident!
I have made a few boxes since these using traditional sides and tops but they just don't have the tactile sensation that the 'thick wall' method gives.

fletty

Beautiful box - very different.

Just discovered this box thread.

An amazing box, Fletty, absolutely beautiful. Loved the curves and the simple inlay. And what a clever way of making sure the grain was continous

What timber did you make the top and the splines out of, please Fletty?

Originally Posted by JillB

...... What timber did you make the top and the splines out of, please Fletty?

Thanks and Hi Jill,
The sides and inlay are Australian red cedar, the faces and splines are huon pine.
On the same trip I discovered that I have a 16th Century family crest and the design of the inlay comes from that crest.

fletty

Great Job Fletty, Love the way you hollowed out the interior.

Cheers


Steve

Trying to raise this thread again

When channeling it the sides is it advisable to do it in stages, there is a lot of material being removed?
How long would you leave it to relax before takning the finishing cuts?

Hi Clint,
I removed the timber in stages only because, as you say, I was removing a large pecentage of the total mass of the timber with each pass. I think I took 3 passes with the dado set at increasing depths and a single cut each side with the round nose bit to make the inner radius.
To be honest, I didnt take any precautions such as letting the section rest and destress before cutting it and assembling the box. The piece of ARC that I used seemed quite dry and stable. I imagine however that another piece of timber might move and twist a bit but this piece didn't.
Thinking back, my only concern at the time was that the piece I was channelling was very heavily figured and I didn't know if that masked any flaws or fractures so, as I was hogging out with the dado blade, I made sure that my hands were never directly over the blade in case the workpiece shattered or split. It was quite disconcerting to hear the blade chomping away but, as it was always inside the channel, it was invisible.
The boxes are still here, I haven't been back to the Orkneys ... yet .... and there is absolutely no sign of distortion but, if you think of the geometry of a channel section, it is very unlikely to be able to twist but could be vulnerable to the channel closing up a bit?

fletty