My first blanket box

[lewisc]

Hey!

I'm about to start planning my first blanket box. I've got some redgum/bluegum or something like that which is approx 5m long, 250mm wide and 50mm thick.

For those who have made one(and anyone else), what is the maximum and minimum thickness you would use for the sides and ends? I'm also unsure if I want to do a solid timber and dovetail box or a frame and panel box. Any suggestions would be awesome.

I want it to be strong but not look too chunky.

Thanks in advance!

Lewis

[Hermit]

What size will the box be?
Sound like awesome chunks of wood.

[corbs]

If you make the whole thing out of 50mm thick boards it's going to be a very heavy unit when finished. Have you got the ability to resaw and dress the timber?

[lewisc]

The size would be 1m x 500mm x 500mm.

Yep, I can resaw and dress. I was looking into trying to get some 19-20mm boards out of it but I'm not sure how much I would lose once it's sawn and dressed.

[Lumber Bunker]

You'll get 19 mm after re-sawing.
If you want it light going the frame and panel will allow you to go down to about 15mm on the sides.
Thus saving about 20% in weight.

[Robson Valley]

Just as certain as the sun comes up in the East (last time I looked), somebody will find it exactly the right size to sit on or better yet, stand on. IMHO, A contrasting frame and panel would be interesting to look at.

[LGS]

Hi Lewis,

Assuming you are using a well set up bandsaw for resawing, you should only lose about 5mm in the cutting and probably another 2mm in the planing. Even 18mm will give you a strong box. I am also assuming that you have rough sawn timber, which means you will have to take the loss for planing the flat surfaces and edges into account.

I used lock mitre joints on my blanket box. These joints are hairy to make, but really strong.
So, if you end up with 10m of 18mm Gum, you will use the following: (Again I am assuming you have a full 250mm width of usable timber.)
Front and Back: 4 metres
Sides: 2 metres
2 metres
?Bottom: 2 metres.
It'll be tight, allowing for kerf when cutting to length. Maybe a slightly smaller box?
Here's mine, anyway. It's Jarrah and is 1000mm x 500mm x 500mm. The lid is slightly oversize to give a "lip".

Regards,

Rob

[pal]

If you can re saw with a band saw you would end up with approximately 24 mm thick you could then dress this down to your 19/20 mm boards.I personally would go with the dovetails or finger joint but this is really just a personal preference that would suit me. I have made 6 toy/blanket boxes over the years and have used every thing from miter to the dovetail and finger joints. The side and ends from solid to V joint the v joints set in a dado top and bottom and a 90 degree v joint for the corners.The attachment is a rough sketch of how i did the corners.

Regards
Harold

[Chesand]

I made a blanket box with frame and panels between solid legs.
The frame pieces were 19 -20mm and the infill pieces about 10mm thick.
All cut from old red gum fence posts using my band saw.
I don't know how to link back to my thread about it but if you do a search under Blanket Boxes and my name it should come up for you to see.

Hope that helps

[Robson Valley]

What the Hello kinds of bandsaws do you OZ people play with?
I'd like a big (to me) saw but you cut 50+cm in one pass?

[pal]

Hi Robison,

You have mm (millimeters, 10 of these to the centimeter) and the cm (centimeters 5.8 of these in 2 inches) mixed up. But if you check one of the other forums on here you will see that some of the guys use large band saws for cutting the trees into usable timber.:D

Regards
Harold

[Hermit]

centimeters 5.8 of these in 2 inches

Harold, I'm sure you meant 5.08.:D

[lewisc]

Thanks for your wisdom.

Rob, I really like those those joints but I'll probably being trying finger joints(they might be a bit advanced for me at the moment). I've attached a simple plan of the box.

The only trouble I'll have with the timber is that it's reclaimed. I was told that 99% of nails are pulled from it but there is a small chance there might be some left. I'll be getting a metal detector in the next week so I'll be able to check thoroughly. I read a blog from a guy who uses magnets to search for nails. I might give that a go as well.

I might have enough timber to try a frame/panel box as well, I'll be looking into finding some contrasting timber to go with it.

[lewisc]

A bit of a progress report.

This has been a fun learning curve,. I started with the idea of finger joins and somewhere along the way I decided to go with some dovetails. Apart from doing some practice ones, these were my first attempt. There will be a few gaps but I'm pretty happy for a first attempt.

Someone has suggested to me to mix sawdust and glue together to fill the gaps. Thoughts?

The pictures show what I started with, after dressing and joining the timber and cutting out the dovetails.

Tomorrow I should have everything cleaned up and ready to glue. I'm pretty excited thats it's coming together!

[Hermit]

Looking good. It's coming along nicely.

Sawdust + glue works well.

I use PVA with lighter-coloured sawdust for things like that and Araldite with dark, reddish (Jarrah) sawdust for borer holes, cracks etc.
Be aware, though, that if you're staining, stain won't soak into the glue. I think that at least some commercial fillers are stainable, though, if you are going that way.

[lewisc]

I'll look into the saw dust and glue idea. I've been using titebond ii for most things lately, will this work instead of white pva?

The timber has heaps of nail and borer holes. I was planning on leaving them as is. The finish will be Sam Maloofs one. I've had great success with it in the past.

[Hermit]

I'll look into the saw dust and glue idea. I've been using titebond ii for most things lately, will this work instead of white pva?

The timber has heaps of nail and borer holes. I was planning on leaving them as is. The finish will be Sam Maloofs one. I've had great success with it in the past.

I haven't used Titebond, but I think any glue should do if it sets hard. Been meaning to try Titebond to try, sooner or later, but I like the water cleanup of PVA, (if you're quick).

Edit: Is Titebond clear?

[lewisc]

Done! Almost...I just need to find a good system for a lid support. There are a few areas which could be better but overall, I'm pleased with it.

I did some reading on the glue and sawdust filler - I found one quote on this forum saying - that's not fine woodworking, that's carpentry.
For some of the bigger gaps, I glued some wedges in. You can barely see it unless you look really close.

[Hermit]

I found one quote on this forum saying - that's not fine woodworking, that's carpentry.

Thanks. I try to help, you slap me in the face.
A blanket box with gaps big enough to drive wedges into isn't fine woodworking either.

[lewisc]

Sorry, didn't mean to offend. Thanks for your advice but I didn't go with it. As far as fine woodworking goes, I'm still learning and I'm pretty sure I'll never stop.
Lewis

[Christos]

....I did some reading on the glue and sawdust filler - I found one quote on this forum saying - that's not fine woodworking, that's carpentry.......

It does work well on the smaller gaps. There are many solutions to a problem and finding one that works for you is what wood working is about.

I want to also say well done on your box. What is the next thing you are going to tackle?