Thread: I Still Love Small Boxes, But...

beautiful boxes as usual don, and the ant is in picture 2 at 11 o'clock

Bloody hell Don!!

Slow down! you are making me feel old & slow. I'm still working on the dining chairs I started @ the begining of the year. :eek: :eek: :eek:

Fantastic work, as usual though!!

Beautiful work, as usual.

Usual high standard, Don. I also like box joints. Also like the rounded corners on the inside of the lid frame of the hinged box.

I know how you feel about needing a break from boxes. Just finished a run of them, so doing some coffee tables for a change.

Good looking boxes there. The rounded edge on the inside of the hinged one is an interesting touch. It has my mind working on an idea already.

Don, these are great boxes. I really need to try a few small ones soon as these other large ones are trying my patience.

I really like the contrasting materials. Have you ever done a 1/8 inch box joint? And if so, how did it come out?

Thanks a bunch,

ICN,

Bill

Very nice boxes! I like these alot. Thanks for the photos.

Corey

Originally Posted by Bwillie

Have you ever done a 1/8 inch box joint? And if so, how did it come out?

ICN,

Bill

Yes, I have. I couldn't make it work. The tolerances are just too exacting. I tried it on some scrap Tassie Oak, just two pieces and found it impossible to get all of the fingers inserted into each other. I'm not surprised, because even on these 3/8" joints, it's often a very snug fit requiring some gentle persuasion from my rubber mallet.

Nice work as usual Don, what are you tempting to make now your all boxed out?

What did you cut your 1/8" joints with? I tried with a 24T rip blade of all things worked out very well.

Originally Posted by DPB

Yes, I have. I couldn't make it work. The tolerances are just too exacting. I tried it on some scrap Tassie Oak, just two pieces and found it impossible to get all of the fingers inserted into each other. I'm not surprised, because even on these 3/8" joints, it's often a very snug fit requiring some gentle persuasion from my rubber mallet.

Bill and Harry, come to think of it, it wasn't 1/8th, it was 1/4" joints. Just too much inconsistency between fingers. I could hammer them together, but I reasoned over the four corners of a box I wasn't going to have success.

Admittedly, I was in a hurry and didn't take the time to fine tune my set-up. I am using an Incra Jig; if anything is going to be precise, it's the Incra. More patience and some more experience might be required.

Originally Posted by Harry72

Don, what are you attempting to make now your all boxed out?

After Christmas, I'm starting on a couple of bedside tables.

Originally Posted by DPB

Bill and Harry, come to think of it, it wasn't 1/8th, it was 1/4" joints. Just too much inconsistency between fingers. I could hammer them together, but I reasoned over the four corners of a box I wasn't going to have success.

Admittedly, I was in a hurry and didn't take the time to fine tune my set-up. I am using an Incra Jig; if anything is going to be precise, it's the Incra. More patience and some more experience might be required.



After Christmas, I'm starting on a couple of bedside tables.

Don....thanks for the reply....those 1/8th ones are a bugger. I've given up on them

ICN,

Bill............PS take a look at my Work in Process (Holiday Jewelry box ..really Christmas Jewelry box, ) as I've added more posts.

Beautiful boxes, Don. Thought I was doing well with my run of 4: your 7 must've felt like a production line.

The precision of the joinery here looks absolutely perfect. Were they done on the tablesaw or the router table?

I very much like the contrasting woods here too. I have some similar contrasty designs on my drawing board, that I may tackle after my current major project.

One of the handles looks like it has a subtle curve on the underneath sides. Does it? If so, very nicely done

The hinged box looks fine to me, though, like you, I think the 12mm thickness looks better on boxes of this size. Any chance of a photo of the backwood's interior?

Thanks, Zenwood.

Yes, the handle, cut from Ebony, has a gentle curve as you point out.

The interior sides and the top edge of the sides are lined with Beech. You can see that here.



Other small details I failed to highlight earlier are the contrasting trim in the handle, and a new product that I'm trying for the first time, 'dust corners' from Lee Valley. Their purpose is to keep dust and grime out of those hard-to-reach corners. (They are a little difficult to photograph.)

http://urlzip.org/dust_corners8

Oh, one other thing, I've started using 4mm birch ply in the bases of my boxes. I use Ubeaut's non-toxic water dies to match the colour to the dominant timber. As you can see here, it's difficult to tell it from the Beech.

Beauiful work, Don. I'm particularly impressed with the grain in the box in the third picture. And I agree, the box joints look really good on small boxes like these. Dovetails are great but they tend to overwhelm small boxes. Proportion is everything!