Japanese Toolbox

Don't you love the council's general rubbish roadside pick-ups? I do.

Last Sunday, I was helping my son with some home maintenance and we needed some bits and pieces from the hardware store. On the way I noticed a pine shelving unit on the kerbside. Needless to say, I picked it up on the way back.

The next day I broke it down into its parts and decided to make a few Japanese Toolboxes. I'd been watching YouTube and came across a few videos showing the construction of this style of box. Here's one of the videos I watched:

YouTube

None of the half dozen or so videos I watched explained the construction of the lid and placement of the locking slide. In the end it wasn't that hard to fathom it out.

I made three boxes from the shelving unit. One box (not photographed, varnish was still wet) had a couple of sheoak plugs installed to cover the screws. The others I left with the screws in plain sight. The secondary wood, mainly on the lids, is marri. The marri was also a kerbside find from a few years ago. It was good fun.


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I’ve not seen that type of box before. The lid “lock” is very clever.

You should be pleased with your boxes, they look like they turned out very nicely. Do you have specific plans for them, or just to be used as general boxes?

Kind regards,
Lance

Thanks Lance. I was going to use one as a toolbox and the other two I was going to give one each to my sons.

The lid lock is clever. I cut an angle on the wedge as suggested by (at least) one of the YouTubers.