Thread: How do you make these boxes?

I'd hazard a guess that careful cutting with a bandsaw or even very careful cutting with a jigsaw would work to cut the curves. A little sanding to get rid of the rough edges, continually checking the fit to ensure you don't take too much off and bob should be your uncle.

The drop down lid looks like it is attached with a piano hinge, readily available from your local hardware store. you could even use some butt hinges, the ones that fall back further than 95 degrees.

sorry, no books or plans, but hopefully enough of a rough idea to help your thinking along.

cheers
Wendy

yeh i agree! careful marking out, bandsawing and faring perfectly to the line should do the trick!

Cut to the red line (3 sides) on the table saw, One side will be a drop cut, as in- carefully dropping the box onto the blade and then feeding it through. Not as dangerous as it sounds if the front edge of the box is firmly anchored on the saw table, and just make sure the teeth are only a few mm higher than the timber thickness. Then with a fine tooth blade in the jig saw carefully cut the curve.

Edit - Forgot to add, do the drop cut first, then the top, then the other side- stopping about 5mm before the curve starts.

Also, when you mark out the curve, draw two parallel lines the exact same thickness of the kerf of the table saw blade. Then when you jig saw, cut smack bang in the middle of those two lines, that way you can clean up by hand and get as close to a perfect mate as possible.

Wendy, how do you run a box that size through the bandsaw to do the curve? You would be running it sitting on its end and you would need a bandsaw with tremendous depth to do this, maybe I have misunderstood?

I don't because I don't have a bandsaw (or tablesaw) and so because I don't, I would have to cut the curve in the sides before putting the box together. So no, you haven't misunderstood at all. I did in assuming it was cut before being put together.

Yes, my way could well give a lot of trouble in fitting it all together perfectly, but Lignum's method would be the best way and give the best result.

cheers
Wendy

They probably put the two side boards together one on top of the other with the line and curve drawn on and do the cut on a bandsaw before the box is assembled. Then the sides would be perfectly matched.

What Len said. If you use the table saw for part of the cut, its kerf will be wider than the kerf produced by the bandsaw or a jig saw. Yuck!

In general, if the bandsaw tower interferes with complete motion of the workpiece, you'll need to back out of the cut, and restart from another edge, and possibly flipping upside down if necessary. Do this (backing out) with the saw NOT running, so that it doesn't widen the kerf on its return.

Cheers,
Joe

Originally Posted by joe greiner

If you use the table saw for part of the cut, its kerf will be wider than the kerf produced by the bandsaw or a jig saw. Yuck!
Joe

Thats why i said

Originally Posted by Lignum

Also, when you mark out the curve, draw two parallel lines the exact same thickness of the kerf of the table saw blade. Then when you jig saw, cut smack bang in the middle of those two lines, that way you can clean up by hand and get as close to a perfect mate as possible.

Cutting on the bandsaw is a great idea, especially if your not confident with dropping a box onto a saw blade, but you will need more clean up than the table saw, then the added hassle of joining two separate frames.

Thanks Lignum and others for clearing that up. I'd love to see a video of how this is done and will see if there's anything on youtube. It does sound like a fairly precise operation and just hope that I'm up to it .

Originally Posted by Tiger

. . . It does sound like a fairly precise operation and just hope that I'm up to it .

That's what timber offcuts are made for - practice!

- Michael

NO Bandsaw involved at all..........

The timber is usually 1/2 to 5/8 thick. 7 to 8 inches wide.
Rebates are run along each edge for the plywood sides.
The timber is dovetailed with mitres at each corner so a gap does not appear due to the previously cut rebates. The dovetail positioned where the lid is to be cut is 1/8 inch wider than the others to allow for the lid cut.
The box carcase is assembled and cleaned up.
Lid is then marked out with the curve and straight lines. At each edge where the curve is, two hinge rails must be dovetailed into the rebate to hold the ply edges. After each socket is cut the curve is cut with a coping saw then each rail glued in place and the ply faces attached. The straight lines to complete the lid are then cut with a panel saw or table saw or spindle moulder. The hinges and catches are then fitted. The hinges or piano hinge can be fitted also before the straight lines for the lid is cut. Either way is acceptable. The hinge rails can be glued into the sockets as one piece this way.

It is hard to write a clear description of the process. Much easier to show in person. I have my original here in the shed if you want to see it.

I made one of these when I was an apprentice and made a few more with some of my students when I was teaching woodwork in a previous life.

Col
Hoppers Crossing Vic.

Originally Posted by Col

.It is hard to write a clear description of the process. Much easier to show in person. I have my original here in the shed if you want to see it.

A pictures worth a thousand words.
It's difficult sometimes to explain something so it can be understood easily especially for those as thick as me.

You could make a side template in thick paper or board, transfer it to masonite etc. and use a pattern follower in the router table. Whether it's worth the effort probably depends on how often you want to repeat the process and how perfect you want the joint.

These boxes were made by every apprentice doing block 1 of the old apprenticeship system. I don't remember it being at all complicated. We just made the box complete then cut the lid of with a tenon saw. I think we got to break out the jigsaw to cut the curves.