Thread: A William and Mary Walnut Chest of Drawers

That doesn't look too bad WW, with a little more practice you'll do a lot better with the next one. Can't wait to see it with some finish on it Excellent as usual mate.

Originally Posted by Blue-deviled

Three pairs of jocks - luxury!

I only have one pair, I can keep them fresh for four days, on the fifth its commando.

Your veneer looks very slick. I'm interested in how you prepare it.

Would you mind describing you veneer cutting process and setup?

Do you scrape, or otherwise cleanup the underside, prior to toothing? Do you re-surface your stock between slices?

Cheers

Originally Posted by Too Many Clamps

Your veneer looks very slick. I'm interested in how you prepare it.

Would you mind describing you veneer cutting process and setup?

Do you scrape, or otherwise cleanup the underside, prior to toothing? Do you re-surface your stock between slices?

Cheers

If you search the forum for 'veneer' under my user name, you should find a couple of threads where I've described the process I use.

I'm in awe at the crispness of the whole thing. WW has I think said power is always a couple of steps removed from the finished article. Looking at the rebates on the picture of the drawer stops as well as the evenness of the veneers, I wonder where I'm going wrong with my techniques. My rebates look like the cat clawed them out and don't even mention my attempts at hand smoothing panels.

I think I need to spend a lot of time doing training exercises rather than attempting to make something.

Originally Posted by Fuzzie

I think I need to spend a lot of time doing training exercises rather than attempting to make something.

Making something is exercise, if only I could get into the garage.

Just simply beautiful.
It has been a pleasure watching this WIP

)(.......not bad.

Prior to applying the stain and finish, the whole chest was washed over with hot soapy water to remove any fingerprints and remnants of glue. The finish itself was built up over a period of days to allow it to harden and develop the required depth.

The brass escutcheons and pear drop handles I purchased for this chest are investment (lost-wax) cast using original seventeenth century examples. They are what the antiques trade use by the thousand, but they require a significant amount work before being fit for use.

Investment casting is very convenient for the likes of jewellers who want a multitude of identical rings etc., but when reproducing period furniture and restoring antique furniture, one doesn't want a set of brasses that are exact replicas of each other. If the original has a flaw or other distinguishing mark, every item cast from it will inherit the exact same features – which in this instance, were diamond patterned indentations from when the original pear drop had, at some time, been tightly gripped in the jaws of a metalworking vice!

I spent some four hours fettling the brasses to eradicate the embossed diamond pattern and better replicate the almost-identical-but-not-quite sand-cast examples that would have adorned a commensurate chest at the end of the seventeenth century. The originals would likely have been either gilt or lacquered, but not wishing to prematurely curtail my existence on the auld sod, I decided not to attempt gilding these particular lilies: Instead, I opted to lacquer the brasses in imitation of gilt. As William Shakespeare famously wrote, "All that glisters is not gold…" [1]

Gold-lacquered pear drop handles.

This gold-lacquer is very thin and not at all like the clear 'plastic' lacquer that is so often found protecting modern brass fittings. The image below shows one of the gold-lacquered pear drops beside a new brass hinge with its protective clear lacquer partially rubbed off.

Gold-lacquer vs. clear lacquer vs. polished brass.

In the seventeenth century, common drop handles were attached either by narrow brass, round iron wire or flat iron staples. The staple was looped around the drop's pivot bar, then passed through the centre of the back plate, through a hole in the drawer front and secured on the inside of the drawer.

One variety of brass staple had a small hole in each end through which iron or brass pins passed, securing the staple ends to the drawer. The ends of iron staples were simply bent at right-angles and hammered back into the drawer front.

Apart from changes in fashion, one reason drop handles were frequently replaced with other types of handles is because of their fragility. I want to give these handles the best chance of survival: Brass staples work-harden with frequent flexing, become brittle and then fail; round steel wire is tougher, but the small diameter and contact area will eventually cause the wire or the drops' pivot bars to fatigue; flat steel staples spread the load more efficiently and won't flex as much as wire or brass staples.

I cut a 5/32 in. wide strip of sheet steel into ten suitable lengths, tapered their ends and formed them into staples.

Flat, and formed staples.

I marked out the hole centres on the drawer fronts and drilled them to be a tight fit round the staples. The handles were fitted and the staple ends clinched into the drawer fronts.

Steel staple from inside of drawer.

The finished chest front...

… side…

…bun foot, bottom moulding and…

… top moulding.

[1]The Merchant of Venice, act II, scene VII.

Great WIP Woodwould, and a pleasure to watch, thanks for sharing your vast experience.

Mrs Phil said WOW LOOK AT THAT. As usual WW incredible workmanship and attention to detail. Work to aspire to,

Most impressive. I have really enjoyed this WIP . Could you be persuaded to do a mini WIP on your finishing process please .

Beautiful Love your work Woodwould. Thanks.

Originally Posted by Peter36

Could you be persuaded to do a mini WIP on your finishing process please .

'Old Ambience No. 5' Antique Finish

Take one firkin of Don't Try This At Home and heat gently in a large copper pan. Slowly stir in one gill of Rub This On The Neighbour's Cat and bring to a rolling boil. The instant the mixture becomes nacreous, strain off the liquid into a clean carboy and immediately add a glass and a half of This Will Take Care Of The Mother-In-Law, a pennyweight of Well Sodden Impropriety and the merest pinch of Promise You Won't Tell Mum And Dad. Swirl the carboy anti-clockwise until cool and then drop in a fresh lump of Leave Well Alone. Cork the carboy tightly. Over the period of a few days, the Old Ambience No. 5 will become quite clear.

Have patience; it will clear.

Stand the furniture to be treated in a sealed room. Place the un-corked carboy in the centre of the room and leave the furniture to absorb Old Ambience No. 5 for a month of Sundays or until the concoction has evaporated. Stand back in wonderment and congratulate yourself on a job well done.