Thread: WIP - A trio of boxes - is mass production quicker?

Looking good mate. What finish are you planning to use?

thanks for the journey

learning stuff is good

Originally Posted by groeneaj

Looking good mate. What finish are you planning to use?

Hi Andy,

Minwax WOP satin finish, with wax over.

how is your new workshop going?

cheers,

ajw

It's going good. I'm just building some storage cabinets at the moment. My dusty has stopped working which slowed me up a bit but I'm getting there. I got a long list of projects to build so hopefully in the next 6 weeks I can start.

I look forward to seeing your boxes finished. Who's the lucky recipients?

On the home stretch now.

Trimmed the mitre keys and sanded them flush. A couple hadn't seated fully, so I recut them and did them again. After sanding, I applied a coat of WOP. Photo show the wet finish looking very glossy.

Img 29 Mitre keys sanded and a coat of WOP.jpg


Next comes separating the lid. I use blue tape to help prevent any tearout.

Img 30 Cutting off the lid.jpg


To prevent the lid from collapsing into the sawblade, I use a packing piece to keep the gap open. Tape holds it in place.

Img 31 Packing out to prevent blade getting jammed.jpg


The PU glue on the blackwood foams a bit, and left a mess inside the box. Hopefully the finish I applied before glueup will make this easy to remove. Next time I will use tape to mask the area if I'm using PU glue.

Img 32 PU glue squeezeout on interior.jpg


Lids separated, and a very small chamfer applied to create a shadow line.

Img 33 Lids separated.jpg


I will be using SmartHinges on these boxes, but that will have to wait until next weekend. In the mean time, I'll start building up the finish.

I hope somebody is getting some use out of this WIP. Comments welcome!

cheers,


ajw

AjW

That is a beautiful jewellery box.

Many thanks for this WIP. My wife has asked me to make a jewellery box for her mothers 80th birthday this december and I have learnt so much from your work in progress.

Much appreciated

Cheers

Woody1

I like the look of the WOP. I might give it a try some time.

I'm a big fan of the smart hinges also - simple to install yet very classy.

You've done well on the boxes. Nice choice of timbers too!

AJW,

Definitely getting ALOT out of this WOP. As you know I am a new woodworker and have started with boxes. I often post here and your replies are always welcome.

I love the sanding block idea, its great to see how you do the lids and I also love the idea of a spacer and blue tape when taking the lid off to prevent tear out and the lid collapsing in on itself.

So in answer to one of your above posts- defintely learning a lot and getting a lot of out of this wop.

Really appreciate your time and sharing of technique.

Cheers

Andrew

Hellofellow, thanks for the kind feedback. Boxes are fun to make, but can be much more difficult to complete than people imagine. Even small errors seem to be magnified on boxes, and if your woodworking journey is anything like mine, you will wonder if you'll ever get one to be "perfect".

All three of these boxes have minor issues to my eye. Woodworkers will spot them, but others won't see any defects hopefully!

keep at it, and keep asking questions. This forum is a fantastic resource.

cheers,

ajw

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder (that's me.)

Thank you for such a richly illustrated lecture series on box making.
I can't get past an umbrella stand that's pegged together!

Ajw

May I ask what is the thickness of the sides and Lid. What is the height of the lid when cut off.

Thank you

Originally Posted by ajw

Boxes are fun to make, but can be much more difficult to complete than people imagine. Even small errors seem to be magnified on boxes, and if your woodworking journey is anything like mine, you will wonder if you'll ever get one to be "perfect".

All three of these boxes have minor issues to my eye. Woodworkers will spot them, but others won't see any defects hopefully!

Very true words!

I cant remember a single thing that I have ever made where there has not been at least one small thing that I am not too happy with. But the recipients either arent as picky as I am about my work or are just too appreciative and polite to point it out.

I have been following your WIP as I too , make boxes in batches and have always found that you save so much on setup doing it that way, even with Incra gear which allows you to re-position the fences exactly to a predetermined setting.

But as Skew said, you can just as easily repeat the mistakes as the accurate cuts.

Looking forward to the rest of your WIP.

Cheers

Doug

After a bit of a break, I got back into the garage and fitted the hinges. I use a router to cut the hinge recess. I've used the SmartHinge, which opens to around 95 degrees and holds the lid upright. I use a spacer and stopblock to get the length of the recess right. The other important dimensions are the distance from the router fence, and the height of the router bit. I use scrap pieces to ensure it's spot on. Care at this step makes fitting the hinge much easier.


Img 34 Setup for hinges.jpg


A dry-fit of the hinges is completed. to ensure the lids fit squarely and that the lid closes fully.

Img 35 Hinge test fit.jpg


The holes for the screws are drilled, and then tapped using a steel screw. The brass screws are very soft, and I find using a steel screw with the same thread pattern makes the installation of the brass screws much easier. I learnt this the hard way...

Img 36 Steel screw.jpg


Hinges fitted, and screws in place.

Img 37 Hinge fitted.jpg


I just love the combination of Blackwood and Sassy.

Img 39 Blackwood and Sassy.jpg

Final step is to put the lining into the bottom of the boxes, and to apply wax and buff.


I've enjoyed making these boxes, and have identified recipients for each of them. At the start of this process, I wondered how much more efficient it would be making 3 rather than 1. Intuitively, I knew it would be more efficient, but I was surprised how much time I actually spend in setting up each step. The actual cutting and assembly doesn't take that much time, so making 3 didn't take all that much longer. I'm not sure I'd want to make 10 at a time, but when I'm next in the mood to make a box, I think I'll do the same and make 3.

Thanks for following along. Comments welcome, as usual.


cheers,


ajw

Thanks very much for a beautiful WIP.
I agree, I tend to make 3 boxes at a time now, only because it increases the production rate.
I also like the lid assembly method.
regards