Thread: Solid box inserts

Not stupid, it can be done quite effectively. (Although many who make boxes prefer to make the inserts as jointed boxes as well. After all, they like making boxes! )

It depends on the style of box the insert is intended for; will the rounded inner corners left by a router look 'right'? You can always pare them square with a chisel, of course, but that takes time and care.

Oh... and it depends on the timber. Some woods just aren't good for this sort of thing unless you want half inch thick sides.

If you're after relatively thin sides, I'd suggest making the insert longer than needed in the long-grain direction so that when routing the end-grain sections there's a bit of thickness to help avoid taking chunks out. Then cut the box to appropriate length after routing. This won't work for internal dividers, of course, so you need a good, sharp bit, a modicum of luck and remove only a mm or two with each pass as you get closer to final thickness.

If you haven't done this before, I recommend a routing test piece or two before committing to the final piece.

I make my insert trays exactly the same way as i make the box.

I haven`t made any boxes yet, but I did make an insert tray for the cutlery drawer from a solid piece of Sheoak ( I hear you say "what else would he make it out of" ).
The block was 400 x 250 x 60, two sections so the router had support, routed to a depth of 50 mm.

I think it's really a matter of aesthetics.

box inserts made from solid wood might look chunky beside a jewelry box's contents which IME tend to be fine and delicate.

Originally Posted by double.d

I make my insert trays exactly the same way as i make the box.

Ah, but you're a better box maker than I am, so my inserts won't come out as nice either!

Personally, I think that as well as looking better, inserts made the same way as the box are probably easier to make.

Hi Danny,

Most of my jewellery boxes have walls of 12mm or 10mm thickness. With these carcasses I like to use 4mm stock for the trays, either using mitres on the corners or half lap joints.

The base of the trays/inserts are 3mm ply veneered on both sides so 4.2mm (ish) total. Most of my trays are 20-25mm in depth with the base sitting in a 1.5mm deep channel routed in the tray walls. Dividers are glued in place with CA glue, pinned through from the outside with brass pins which are left 1mm proud so the head can be snipped off and the brass pins carefully filed flush with the outside of the tray.

If the corners are mitred I use slipfeathers made from 3 layers of veneer as shown here. Just to prove me a liar this tray was made from 5mm stock but this is unusual as it is too chunky for my taste. Channels for slipfeathers are cut on the router table using a 2mm bit.

D2065E1B-5202-45E6-B67F-746F0BBB9218.jpeg

Trays are lined with suede, microsuede or sometimes velvet. Colour of lining is usually darker as jewellery can leave dirty marks that show on light colours.

Hope this helps,

Brian

Routed out an insert this afternoon and so far I think it looks respectable. The cutouts aren't very deep, just enough to help with organisation. Only issue so far is that sanding a contoured surface like this is going to be seriously annoying!

Originally Posted by rtyuiop

Routed out an insert this afternoon and
snip
only issue so far is that sanding a contoured surface like this is going to be seriously annoying!

maybe there's a construction hint right there

Originally Posted by ian

maybe there's a construction hint right there

Quite possibly! It's not so bad, just needs to be hand sanded which I hate. Think today is going to be too hot to spend time sanding, so took a photo instead:



Cheers,

Danny