Rose Alder Box

[AlexS]

Quote: From the CraigB's wood thread
Originally Posted by MajorPanic
Mind you, I'd be disappointed if Alex produced a bad piece......... as if that's gonna happen!

Reply:
Oh Major, I wish you hadn't said that. I have a disaster just waiting to be posted for educational purposes.

Well here is the disaster.
Earlier this year, Major Panic gave me a piece of Rose Alder, so I decided to make a nice box with a couple of trays, and an inlayed strip if banksia wrapped around it.

All turned out nice. Test fitted the hinges, gave it a coat of shellac & 1st coat of oil. Had to leave it for a couple of days, & when I came back, the carcass & lid had both twisted, leaving a huge gap between the two, and the box wobbling on its legs.
Doh! Because the inlay is only on the outside, differential contraction has caused the twist. I've tried clamping and steaming, which works for about a day before the wood has its way.

I can't think of any way to salvage it short of cutting it up and thicknessing it back to get rid of the inlay.

Hmmmph!:mad:

[gazaly]

Thats a real pity Alex :(

The twist aside, the box is beautiful :)

[Barry F]

Beautiful craftmanship. Doesn't deserve such a cruel lesson

Are you game to try another inlay lengthwise? You never know it might create a reverse twist to cancel out the problem

Aren't boxes so character building?

Best regards

Barry

[MajorPanic]

Alex, Alex, Alex,

To see those images is like ripping the heart from my chest! :eek: my sympathies are with you. http://www.ubeaut.biz/mecry.gif

If ya need some more Rose Alder just let me know & I'll send it your way.
After all, ya can't let the bastard win!! ;) :D :D :D

[ss_11000]

thats cruel. it looks so nice. hope you get it fixed:(

[RufflyRustic]

Bugger - yep, that bites, especially when it's such a lovely box. Any chance of another photo of the inside and the trays? What was the rose alder like to work with?

cheers
Wendy

[Phil Spencer]

Bugger!!!!!!! :(
Deserves a greenie for the try and good workmanship any way:)

[AlexS]

Thanks for the sympathy & suggestions.

Major, thanks for your offer. Next time I'm up that way I may take up your offer (with suitable compensation of course), but I hate to see this lot beat me so will try to rescue it somehow.

Wendy, it was very nice to work with and come up well with its 1st coat of shellac. It also seems pretty stable until it's subjected to unreasonable forces.

[RufflyRustic]

Thanks Alex

cheers
Wendy

[Scally]

What a major pain.
The inlay looks great. It would be a shame to lose it.

I would have to try to salvage it somehow. I hate getting beaten.

Do you think it has stopped moving?

Could you flatten the base and the join between the lid and the box again?
or do you think it will just twist again?

Keep at it. I am sure you will get it sorted.

[Auld Bassoon]

Hi Alex,

I agonise for you over this. Such a fine box, and then - warp!

I hope you can find a way to overcome this - and I'm sure you will :)

[zenwood]

This box is so good it deserves some TLC. The curved inlays are brilliant, and the way the top inlay flows into the handle is a wonder.

I'd try to flatten the lid to the base by sanding or handplaning. The gap is after all quite small, and the minor grain misalignment in the inlay will only be at the back. Any misalignment at the front is unnoticable because of the handle. If you are unable to flatten the bottom of the base, perhaps feet of different heights will stabilise it?

The other approach would be to make a feature of the twist: exaggerate it and turn the whole box into a sculptural form.

[Gecko]

Twist or not, that is a beautiful piece. Very creative inlay design. Just curious, how thick was the inlay that caused that.

[AlexS]

Twist or not, that is a beautiful piece. Very creative inlay design. Just curious, how thick was the inlay that caused that.

About 1mm. The lid & bottom are about 5mm, and the sides about 9mm.

Thanks for all the suggestions.

Unfortunately, I can't just knock the high spots off, as that will remove the half pins. I fear I may have to dismember it and re-use the wood. Pity, as I really liked it.

Wendy, I'll post some pics of the trays next time I'm putting up some pics.

[Gecko]

Dimember it! :eek: Why not send it my way. I would love to own it twisted or not. I could set it on my bench and dream of doing something like that someday..... minus the twist of course. :D

[Sculptured Box]

why not put a house brick, or two on top, for a couple of months?

[AlexS]

why not put a house brick, or two on top, for a couple of months?

I steamed it and clamped it for a while, and it stayed OK for about a day. I'd be afraid that even if I did get it flat, it would eventually go back.

[AlexS]

Pics of the trays as requested. The humidity has increased with the rain here, and the lid almost fits again.:cool:

I'm toying with the idea of trying to duplicate the inlay on the inside - it'll be a fiddly job, but the little sod's not going to beat me!

[MajorPanic]

I'm toying with the idea of trying to duplicate the inlay on the inside - it'll be a fiddly job, but the little sod's not going to beat me!
Go Alex!!!

Have ya finished yet??? :rolleyes: ;) :D

[AlexS]

Well, six months down the track, and after steaming and clamping for a couple of weeks, the box seems to have returned to its rightful shape and stayed there. We've had a few temperature and humidity changes, and it seems pretty stable. Here's hoping!
Thanks for all the suggestions and commiserations when it looked like a disaster.

[Boxinator]

Glad it worked out Alex, that's a beauty!

corey

[gazaly]

Congrats Alex. Glad to see all has gone well. :)

[jow104]

Pleased it has worked out Alex.

I'm wanting a change from making boxes with mitred corners and your dimensions of 9mm thicknesses for sides appeals to me.

Was it the inlay that caused the original problem or thinness of material and timber stress.

[AlexS]

Was it the inlay that caused the original problem or thinness of material and timber stress.

Both, John. If the main carcass had been thicker, the differential movement of the inlay wouldn't have caused the problem, at least not to that extent. If it had inlay on both sides, I don't think there would have been a problem.

[jow104]

Thanks alex, I am going out to my workshop in a moment and going to resaw some black walnut. At the moment 30mm thick.
and have a go if you don't mind at a copy of your box,

I have never put a bottom or top into(onto) a dovetail jointed corner. Any chance of a sketch or instruction what to do with the rebate or dado?

[AlexS]

Thanks alex, I am going out to my workshop in a moment and going to resaw some black walnut. At the moment 30mm thick.
and have a go if you don't mind at a copy of your box,

I have never put a bottom or top into(onto) a dovetail jointed corner. Any chance of a sketch or instruction what to do with the rebate or dado?

Cut the rebate on a table router. Set up stops so that when you drop the wood onto the cutter & take it off, (1/8 straight cutter) it starts and ends inside the length of the wood and doesn't go out the end. Best not to have it going into a thin half-pin. If its lined up so it's within a tail, it will go into the cut-out between pins - that's OK.

On the RA box, the top & bottom are mitred to the sides and ends, but I don't think I'd do it that way again. On a small box, you could get away with gluing it straight to the sides and ends, but that's not really my favourite way.

[jow104]

Thanks, and then I am wondering whether to inlay a light coloured insert on lid

[BobR]

Ashame Alex as the box looks great. But thanks for sharing the experience as it is a learning experience for more than just yourself.

[RufflyRustic]

Hi Alex,

It's a beautiful box. Those little trays are neat and look even better with the lining.

Thanks for those photos.
Cheers
Wendy

[zenwood]

Very nice looking box, with pleasing proportions. I wonder if the trays would have been better with a single central handle; the way the two handles butt up together in the middle of the box might make them awkward to remove - ?

Glad the twist went away: a rare example of recalcitrant wood changing its mind!

[AlexS]

John, I think any contrasting wood with an interesting figure would look OK.

I wonder if the trays would have been better with a single central handle;



I'm inclined to think you're right.

[Lignum]

Love the idea of the foam as a back drop for the photo:)