# WIP Competition Entry "Chess Table" FINISHED



## Lord Nibbo (27 Apr 2009)

Well I've started to design a chess table that I'm entering in the competition. I'm happy with the actual table top which incorporates a drawer but I'm undecided with the this design for the legs. I might remove the cross brace and add stretchers or rails just a little lower than the top rails.





Here's a pic showing the drawer open.





The materials planned are American Black Walnut because it's got to match existing furniture and I've got several planks that have been stored in the house for months, so no problems with it acclimatising. The lighter squares will be sycamore, and sycamore & ebony inlaid stringing. 

Here in the Mk 10 version I've added Ebony stringing and Sycamore around the actual chess squares to see what it looks like.





No doubt the will be a Mk 11 coming to this screen soon 


In the rules it states
------------------------

*Appendix A – Design Brief

It is appreciated that design is a fluid process and that original intentions may change. *

-----------------------

I just hope the finished table resembles the planned design I better get on with the MK 11 now while I got time


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## Night Train (27 Apr 2009)

Nice.

You could consider replacing the leg cros bracing with semicircular stretchers to reflect the quarter circular curves in the top of the rails under the drawer.


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## Mr Ed (27 Apr 2009)

Looks good LN.

Since I cannot post in the other thread, I'll post here. I wasn't complaining about the clash of pieces you and I were intending - just observing the coincidence  . Yes I could go with my original idea, but as it happens the planes were more or less an equal option for me so it just pushed my decision that way.

Plus, this way I can nick all your best ideas for when I get round to making my non-competition chess board! :lol: 

Cheers, Ed


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## head clansman (27 Apr 2009)

hi 

round tapered legs with flutes :wink: 8)


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## OPJ (27 Apr 2009)

I like how the top appears to be 'free' at the corners. One improvement I particularly like in this competition is that there's no obligation to submit an official design and stick to it. :wink:

...You're gonna run out of walnut one day, right???


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## MikeG. (27 Apr 2009)

OPJ":1mr0f5b7 said:


> One improvement I particularly like in this competition is that there's no obligation to submit an official design and stick to it.



Damn good job! In fact, it appears you never have to submit a design at all, unless I've missed something.

At the moment I haven't got a Scooby Do what my furniture is going to look like........and I'm guessing that half-way through the build it will only be very slightly clearer. All I know is that it will be at the other end of the spectrum to Lord N's marvellous looking chess table, and will involve sand-blasting.

Mike


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## Calpol (27 Apr 2009)

Really like the design Lordy but I'd have to agree with you on the cross brace, think your higher stretchers would look better... Also they'd open up the space under the table for yer feet :-k


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## Karl (27 Apr 2009)

Nice looking project LN.

Glad i'm not in the Advanced competition.... :lol: 

Cheers

Karl


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## stef (27 Apr 2009)

erm, you will find that chess boards arent 8x8 these days.
They are mostly 10x10 due to european normalisation.


(what ? who said we couldnt play dirty in that competition ?)


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## JonnyD (27 Apr 2009)

Looks Good Your Lordship.

One consideration I have just thought of is that there is no room around the chess board to keep the pieces that have been taken or are you planning to keep the drawer open whilst playing.

Are you planing on making the chess pieces as well? A set based on woodworking tools might be a nice touch.

Jon


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## stef (27 Apr 2009)

here is the poor "advice" i can possibly contribute:
Room/provision for a chess clock would be nice (a hidden drawer on the side maybe ?), i seem to observe sloppy sides to the ches board, which would make standing a clock difficult.
And joking apart, do not make the silly mistake of having naything else than black on the bottom left corner. I played for years without knowing this basic convention.


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## Ironballs (27 Apr 2009)

How the hell are you going to string this one out till October  You'll have it done next week won't you. Looking good though

Mike you do realise that Rob is one of the judges don't you, sandblasting, driftwood, I can hear his teeth grinding already :wink:


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## Lord Nibbo (27 Apr 2009)

JonnyD":3in84dus said:


> One consideration I have just thought of is that there is no room around the chess board to keep the pieces that have been taken or are you planning to keep the drawer open whilst playing.
> 
> Are you planing on making the chess pieces as well? A set based on woodworking tools might be a nice touch.
> 
> Jon


 
No I'm not going to make the chess pieces, I've got a set of Staunton pieces already. 

The drawer is right through, i.e. one drawer that will open both playing sides of the board, so when either player takes a piece it will be easier to put in the drawer. My first drawings did have a 3" space all around but it made the table too big, so I had to compromise and make it smaller.


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## Lord Nibbo (27 Apr 2009)

Ironballs":1jgdl2fp said:


> How the hell are you going to string this one out till October  You'll have it done next week won't you.



I won't be starting it until after August has gone, cos I'll be off sailing soon  and I've still got eleven doors to buy and fit before I think of starting this project.


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## Lord Nibbo (27 Apr 2009)

So here it is the Mk 11, with new rails instead of the cross braces.







Yes I think I like it better than the Mk 10.


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## big soft moose (28 Apr 2009)

JonnyD":1px0hu80 said:


> Are you planing on making the chess pieces as well? A set based on woodworking tools might be a nice touch.
> 
> Jon



dont joke - swimbo wants me to make one of these with the pieces based on sheep and cows :shock:


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## Racers (28 Apr 2009)

Hi, Lord Nibbo

Can you still get your knees under? that brace looks like it will be in the way, I liked the cross brace. 
You could do a H shaped one low down.


Pete


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## Chems (28 Apr 2009)

I get so excited by LN threads, sure this one won't disappoint either!


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## Lord Nibbo (28 Apr 2009)

Racers":11bs13oz said:


> Hi, Lord Nibbo
> 
> Can you still get your knees under? that brace looks like it will be in the way, I liked the cross brace.
> You could do a H shaped one low down.
> ...



I should of posted a pic with dimensions  

It''s only 20" or so tall and just under 20" square, I think I said in the "Design Brief Thread" It's going to second as a coffee table as well as a chess table. those legs are only 1" square at the top.


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## Lord Nibbo (28 Apr 2009)

To make it clearer and to give some idea of the size here's a pic with some measurements.


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## motownmartin (28 Apr 2009)

This design looks tremendous, not sure if its practical though, I would be inclined to make it a little taller.


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## MikeG. (28 Apr 2009)

What on earth is 1'-7&15/16"s???? 

Surely you meant 507mm???  

Ducking for cover.......

Mike


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## Lord Nibbo (29 Apr 2009)

motownmartin":3q6xy795 said:


> This design looks tremendous, not sure if its practical though, I would be inclined to make it a little taller.



Well the size of the squares are 2" which is the smallest allowed for match play size rules, this dictates the overall size of the top. I tried adding an apron around it but it made it too big for where it will eventually live and it upset the overall aesthetics. As already said it is going to be used as an occasional coffee table so at this height it's spot on.


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## Lord Nibbo (29 Apr 2009)

Mike Garnham":30n6m0qm said:


> What on earth is 1'-7&15/16"s????
> 
> Surely you meant 507mm???
> 
> ...



No need to duck for cover :lol: I find most people instantly know or can imagine how big 18" is, but to state 450ish mm is difficult to imagine or understand. Now the beauty of using sketchup is I will change it to mm to actually make it. :lol:


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## rkchapman (29 Apr 2009)

Looks very nice. I'm not convinced of the practicality of a through drawer that can open either way for putting captured pieces in though - would a drawer each side be worth considering?


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## Lord Nibbo (18 Aug 2009)

Well I got off my butt and made time to make a start before I run out of time to make it 


So I sorted some wood from this piece on the bench






I cut two lengths off the plank and in this pic you can see I'm getting it ready to rip it down to get all the pieces needed for the whole table






These were the only two cuts I needed to make using the table saw at this stage, most of the other cuts will be made on the band saw. 






First cut made on this piece, these two pieces will become four when sawn again and will eventually become the cabinet sides.






Nearly all the parts, just a few more pieces to rip out of the boards to the right in the pic






Most of the parts with one face and one edge planed flat and square, next job is to run them through the thicknesser to size them all. You might just see in this pic I've written all the finished sizes needed when they reach the thicknesser. Some of the thinner wider pieces will be sized using the table saw and cut slightly over size to allow a final planing to size.


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## Lord Nibbo (19 Aug 2009)

Everything has been thicknessed and planed to final dimensions, except the four side pieces of the main cabinet two of which need the drawer fronts cut out. When that job is done the final width can be cut for all four pieces.





The real woodworking starts here.
I cut all the legs to length using a scrap piece of MDF as a backer.





With all the legs clamped together it's easy to mark them up exactly the same.





All marked up for where the taper will start.





Setting up the taper jig using the mitre slot as a guide





With the jig set it's easy to slide it all across to the blade ready to start cutting.





All four legs now have the tapers cut only on what will be the inside faces when assembled.





A final pass over the planer finishes the legs off. Next to do on the legs will be cutting the mortices.





All four pieces that will become the top edges of the chess table have had the curved part cut using two passes on the router table, here is the resulting pic after cleaning up with the vac.


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## OPJ (19 Aug 2009)

LOL - Is that featherboard made from American Black Walnut as well??? 

Looking good, keep the progress coming!


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## devonwoody (20 Aug 2009)

Looks a good project. April first post, work commenced August, you've been sailing again.


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## Lord Nibbo (20 Aug 2009)

OPJ":15z7kzji said:


> LOL - Is that featherboard made from American Black Walnut as well???



No it's a scrap bit of iroko


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## Lord Nibbo (20 Aug 2009)

devonwoody":1a6tidwn said:


> Looks a good project. April first post, work commenced August, you've been sailing again.



Sailing! :shock: What in this weather you must be joking, You may have it sunny in Devon but in Cornwall the weathers rubbish again just like last year


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## Lord Nibbo (21 Aug 2009)

Cutting the shoulders on all eight rails starts here.







After cutting the shoulders the next step was cutting off the wider cheeks on all the rails.







The upper rails radius cut tight to the line freehand on the bandsaw and the remaining small cheeks of the tenons were also removed on all the rails here.







All the radius cuts were sanded down to the marking line.







Nearly ready for a dry fit, just needs the tenons cleaning up with a block plane and a good sanding and the base is ready for glue up


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## Chems (21 Aug 2009)

I do love a LN build thread they are my favorite!


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## big soft moose (21 Aug 2009)

I'm impressed by that freehand cut - i always wind up having to tack a bit of scrap wood to the waste and use a pivot jig to get anywhere near a perfect circle.


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## TheTiddles (21 Aug 2009)

Is that the Axminster wood rack on the wall? If so, what spacing do you have them at?

Aidan


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## Lord Nibbo (22 Aug 2009)

TheTiddles":p0ttwzxd said:


> Is that the Axminster wood rack on the wall? If so, what spacing do you have them at?
> 
> Aidan



I think I got them from Rutlands, it was a long time back and I can't remember :? 

They are about 3ft centres.


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## Lord Nibbo (24 Aug 2009)

Well after two days out because of my back I eventually got to assemble the base this morning.

Marking the tenons to cut a mitre on the ends of all the rails. I've also sanded everything ready for glue up.





Cutting the mitres on all the rails.





Starting the glue up, the third clamp is just to make sure everything is level, one side glued up, the other just dry fitted.






Glue up and assembly done, I prefer to do the assembly on my table saw top to make sure there is no wind from one side to the other, of course it makes it 100% sure all the legs are level


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## Chems (25 Aug 2009)

Looking very good of course, such speed of building as well.

What do you think of your table saw, is it the 10¨ version as I'm thinking of buying on in the next few months. Is it quite in use?


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## Lord Nibbo (25 Aug 2009)

Chems":1i9gnrav said:


> What do you think of your table saw, is it the 10¨ version as I'm thinking of buying on in the next few months. Is it quite in use?



Yes it's the 10".... How quiet? About the same as my Trend T11 Router!  maybe a little quieter.


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## Lord Nibbo (25 Aug 2009)

Cutting the two drawer fronts. 

Yes cutting two fronts for one drawer  for the upper part of the table. The fronts were all sized and sanded along with the two sides before cutting.






Glue up of two fronts finished. Just after this pic I also cut the fronts and sides to length, cutting the mitres on my compound mitre saw.





I would have carried on today but we got family visiting so I got forced out of the workshop to go sight seeing.....  ](*,)


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## Lord Nibbo (26 Aug 2009)

Doing a test using Posterous.....

Cut some biscuits in the mitred sides and did a glue up I used so many clamps  I had to break out Steve Maskery's unique square to test how square it was from the inside of the glue up as I couldn't do my normal diagonal measuring using a tape.


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## Ironballs (26 Aug 2009)

Good looking build so far - as usual


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## Chrisp (26 Aug 2009)

Nibbo, sun in Devon? can't remember the last time? maybe 20-30mins today, well out weighed by the rain though!.....


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## Lord Nibbo (27 Aug 2009)

The bottom of the drawer unit is 3/8" maple veneered mdf and is simply glued on directly to the frame of the drawer unit. But as I only had 1/2" I had to thin it down to 3/8" using my belt sander. In the first pic you can see two pieces of scrap in the foreground which when thicknessed will become the moldings. 







After thicknessing to 1/2" they were passed over a 1/4" radius cutter on my table router to make a half round, then this was cut off on the table saw leaving perfect half moon moldings for edging the mdf base. 






Ripping off the half moon molding 





Molding pinned and glued in place 





All the moldings applied, You may have noticed the varnish on the mdf, well I only had some mahogany stain varnish  but I thought it more prudent to seal the mdf before it gets a chance to warp. :lol:


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## Waka (27 Aug 2009)

Certainly making good progress there, its starting to come together nicely.


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## Alex (27 Aug 2009)

Looking good L.N. Another beautiful piece of fine furniture. 
I must say i really appreciate your workshop lay out. :mrgreen: 
I mean look at this little forethought.... 




A square off cut bin built in, now that's class. My trip hazard round bin doesn't like square off cuts.


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## Lord Nibbo (28 Aug 2009)

Drawer runners and gussets fitted




A close up of a drawer runner





Close up of a gusset. The drilled hole in the gusset is to fix the top, directly below that hole in the bottom of the unit is another larger hole enabling me to get to the screws when I position the top.





Directly below the left hand clamp head you can see the larger hole that will allow me to fix the top on later.


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## Lord Nibbo (28 Aug 2009)

*Fitting the legs to the top*


Holes drilled to take the base, (the unit is upside down) the big holes are the ones to get a screwdriver through to attach the top.







The drawer unit gets screwed to the legs.







*Starting The Drawer.*

Half blind dovetails started. Extreme care needed on the length of the drawer because it has two fronts to line up, so using half blind dovetails adds to the chaos. 







Two down, another six to go.







Dry fitting the first joint, three more to go.


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## Waka (28 Aug 2009)

Coming along, by the way nice drive by.


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## Lord Nibbo (29 Aug 2009)

All four corners done and here I'm dry fitting the sides to the fronts. 






Grove dado or housing joint call it what you like  cut in all the four sides for the bottom panel, using the router table. The grove on the fronts are blind so you can't see them when assembled.






All glued up and ready for a sanding.






Sanded and in place, I added a chamfer to the lower edge and sides of the front to give the illusion of a gap all round.


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## Chems (29 Aug 2009)

Lord Nibbo":hmj7l8hc said:


> Sanded and in place, I added a chamfer to the lower edge and sides of the front to give the illusion of a gap all round.



Illusion of a gap, I'd just be happy to have smaller gaps in my work!

Looks so good LN.


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## Lord Nibbo (31 Aug 2009)

Chems":2vb2bshl said:


> Illusion of a gap, I'd just be happy to have smaller gaps in my work!
> 
> Looks so good LN.



 


I'm at a point now to add some string inlay to the sides and I'm undecided if not to add lipping in contrasting wood around the drawer fronts. 

Adding the lipping is going to hide the half blind dovetails :shock: Then thinking about it it all about the aesthetics of what it looks like with the drawer shut  :? 

What does the forum think?


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## Waka (31 Aug 2009)

LN

Personally I'd leave the drawer without the cock beading, the way it looks at the moment is excellent.

You could use a lighter wood for the CB but I'm not so sure that the drawer wood is dark enough to show off the two contrasting colours. Only my opinion.


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## Lord Nibbo (31 Aug 2009)

Thanks for your opinion Waka, but after much deliberation and soul searching I'm afraid to say I've already planed 3mm off the ends of the fronts, so there is no going back now, what ever the forum thinks :lol: 

*Anyway the purpose of this posting*

Take a look at this......

Is ABW allergic to water based acrylic lacquer?





Yesterday I grabbed a load of scrap pieces and thought I'd test some acrylic lacquer on top of some acrylic sanding sealer, I've used acrylic sanding sealer on ABW loads of times but never finished with water based acrylic lacquer before, The pic shows how it reacted to the ABW :shock: 

So it's back to my tried and tested method of using acrylic sanding sealer and three or four coats of danish oil. 8)


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## Paul Chapman (31 Aug 2009)

I would think it's more likely that the acrylic lacquer is reacting with the acrylic sanding sealer rather than the wood. The Danish oil won't react like that because it's not water based.

Cheers :wink: 

Paul


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## Lord Nibbo (31 Aug 2009)

Paul Chapman":22fbv8o3 said:


> I would think it's more likely that the acrylic lacquer is reacting with the acrylic sanding sealer rather than the wood. The Danish oil won't react like that because it's not water based.
> 
> Cheers :wink:
> 
> Paul


 I think your right Paul.

I've just checked what I tested, the sanding sealer is cellulose based the lacquer is acrylic. In the past just wiping glue off with a wet/damp rag made the ABW get black marks, so I guess its the water based acrylic lacquer thats the problem especially on ABW.

I wonder if *Terry Smart *is about?


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## Lord Nibbo (1 Sep 2009)

*It's too late now* :lol: the deed is done

Once upon a time it was part of the drawer fronts :lol: 





Now the deed is done so no going back :? 

Rebated all around the drawer fronts ready to take a holly or sycamore lipping.


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## Lord Nibbo (5 Sep 2009)

*Making a start on the chess board*

Maple veneered mdf cut to 18" square.





American Black Walnut edging for the top that's been routed to shape ready for gluing to the mdf board.





*Lipping the Drawer*

The Sycamore board has been thicknessed to 20mm thick and in this pic I'm ripping strips of 6mm strips.






Next thing was to sand both sides of the strips sanding them to a final 4mm thick.






Then to round off the front edge I passed all the strips across part of an ogee cutter using just a tiny bit of the cutter blade. Just a little hand sanding needed to finish them off.





Finally with all the strips cut to length and the ends mitred I glued them in place one at a time to the drawer fronts using just glue, no pins.





I just need to wait a while, sand it down a fit the drawer.


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## Imperial (5 Sep 2009)

The devil is in the detail, lovely work LN. The cockbead can be replaced with just a string see below, just makes the drawer look a little more special IMO. Where did you get the Jet sander and what did it cost if you dont mind me asking?


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## OPJ (5 Sep 2009)

Bloonose":261919zp said:


> Where did you get the Jet sander and what did it cost if you dont mind me asking?



He got the sander off eBay - there's more info. on that here. :wink:


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## Lord Nibbo (5 Sep 2009)

Bloonose":1p7wepk4 said:


> The devil is in the detail, lovely work LN. The cockbead can be replaced with just a string see below, just makes the drawer look a little more special IMO.



With the stringing in your pic it's flat to the face, I didn't want it flat I wanted it rounded. Ok I could have done it like yours showing the dovetails and have rounded raised fronts to the lipping, I just never thought of doing it that way. :lol:


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## Lord Nibbo (5 Sep 2009)

The drawer is now what you might describe as air tight 






A closer view


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## BigShot (5 Sep 2009)

I saw your design for this a while back and have been looking forwards to the real thing.

Looking really nice so far.


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## Imperial (6 Sep 2009)

LN, did not mean the flat looked better, I was saying that a bead round the edge does over a plain drawer :wink: The photo was just easier to explain what I was talking about, not as a slur on your work far from it..


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## Lord Nibbo (6 Sep 2009)

Bloonose":2y28ihvw said:


> LN, did not mean the flat looked better, I was saying that a bead round the edge does over a plain drawer :wink: The photo was just easier to explain what I was talking about, not as a slur on your work far from it..


 Don't worry I never took your comment as a slur, far from it. Like I said, it never occurred to me to do it your way. :lol:


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## Lord Nibbo (6 Sep 2009)

The wood that will become the squares of the top. All pieces have been thicknessed to 1/2" but will eventually end up nearer 3/8" or less.





All the sycamore and walnut has been cut to width, I decided to glue them up in two sections to stop any bowing.





The two halves get glued together.


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## Anonymous (6 Sep 2009)

Comng on very well LN. I rather like that cock beading despite originally thinking it wouldn't work - but this was coloured by my general displike of mouldings and beading
Looking forward to seeing the completed piece


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## Lord Nibbo (6 Sep 2009)

Tony":2fukwp35 said:


> I rather like that cock beading despite originally thinking it wouldn't work - but this was coloured by my general displike of mouldings and beading
> Looking forward to seeing the completed piece



I know exactly what you mean. I think most American furniture is quite ugly because of an over use of moldings, and being rather minimalistic as you know from my drawer and cupboard units I was a little reluctant to add moldings, but this being so small just gets away with it IMHO.


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## Lord Nibbo (7 Sep 2009)

*Making the checqured squares*

Cutting the strips off.











Dry fitted to check everything is good.







As before I glued up in two halves to stop any bowing.







Both halves glued together, next a very light sanding on the bottom and it can be glued to the mdf panel for extra strength.


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## Paul Chapman (7 Sep 2009)

Looking very good, your Lordship  

Cheers :wink: 

Paul


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## OPJ (7 Sep 2009)

Nicely done. That board looks very tidy.


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## Lord Nibbo (8 Sep 2009)

*Starting the stringing*

As the stringing is only 3mm square I needed to give it a base, here I'm adding the first piece of the base. 







Base done, you can see in this pic I've already glued ebony to some sycamore and this in turn now needs to be glued to the base.







Shooting a mitre on the stringing.







First piece glued in.







All four pieces of stringing fitted.







During all this glue up and being an impatient type I thought I might as well give the table a coat of cellulose sanding sealer.
So here's a glimps of what it might look like when finished properly, next job is to wire wool it off


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## devonwoody (8 Sep 2009)

LN,. I have found if I sand a dark and a light timber face (like your squares) the dark can penetrate or drag over to the lighter timber, might be different for you.


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## Lord Nibbo (8 Sep 2009)

devonwoody":2p58e3hy said:


> LN,. I have found if I sand a dark and a light timber face (like your squares) the dark can penetrate or drag over to the lighter timber, might be different for you.



It's no different with me either DW  

I've just finished sanding it now, I had no problem with the walnut staining the sycamore but the bloody ebony went like coal dust  

Anyway I've cleaned it up with a combination of course wire wool and a hand scraper. :lol: 

It's now been coated with cellulose and cut back with wire wool, next step is to add the outer moulding.


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## Lord Nibbo (9 Sep 2009)

*Two pieces of molding fitted to the base for the top. *


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## Chems (9 Sep 2009)

Its like a master class in woodworking via pictures :shock:


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## Karl (9 Sep 2009)

Really nice work LN - it's going to look fantastic once oiled up.

Cheers

Karl


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## Lord Nibbo (10 Sep 2009)

The top edge is 1/2" thick and I need to add a molding to match what is fitted the lower edge of the drawer unit.
But I want to leave a clear distinct line of the upper edge.






So I thicknessed some off cuts to 3/8" and used part of an ogee cutter to get as near a radius to match a 3/16" radius as I could.






After ripping the edges off and a little light hand sanding, job done.






I needed to knock up a heath robinson style jig to hold the moldings so I could shoot the mitres






First piece gets glued into place, you can clearly see the distinct upper edge I wanted to leave.






The checquers have been glued in and the molding around the edge is fitted and all have received a coat of cellulose and been rubbed back with fine wirewool. next step is to either fit it to the base or start putting the danish oil finish on.


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## big soft moose (10 Sep 2009)

Lord Nibbo":2byondmu said:


> *Making the checqured squares*
> 
> Cutting the strips off.
> 
> ...



very uselful your lordship - I have to make a chess board/ set in the near future and had resigned myself to using ceramic tiles - but I reckon i could do this (probably not as well as this though).

Are you turning/carving/making the pieces , LN ? (as is my intention - swimbo wants them based on sheep :roll: ) or are you buying a staunton set ?


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## Lord Nibbo (10 Sep 2009)

big soft moose":1e1vx926 said:


> Are you turning/carving/making the pieces , LN ? (as is my intention - swimbo wants them based on sheep :roll: ) or are you buying a staunton set ?



I've bought a set of Staunton set from India on ebay :shock: yes you heard me right.... :lol: India!

They took less than a week for delivery too :lol: 

I looked at quality English suppliers but £200+ put me right off.

Anyway the set from India was £60 + postage and I must say I was most surprised how good they are in fact they are perfection. 

If anyone is interested this is the set I got. CLICK HERE


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## Chems (10 Sep 2009)

That looks super LN, I don't play chess but If I saw that in a shop I'd buy it!


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## neilc (10 Sep 2009)

LN it looks fantastic, outstanding workmanship.
Neil


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## Lord Nibbo (11 Sep 2009)

*Fitting the top * 

With a long phillips screwdriver going right through the drawer cabinet I'm marking the top where to drill pilot holes.







*Applying the finish*

Top attached and first coat of danish oil applied.


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## Lord Nibbo (13 Sep 2009)

*Taken outside just to show the true colours*











The finish of one coat of cellulose sanding sealer cut back with 0000 wirewool, Then two coats of danish oil both cut back with wire wool, lastly a thick coat of paste wax (Black Bison) applied with wire wool then buffed off with a clean cotton cloth. 




















*With the Drawer Open*





*Check Mate*
The Last Picture


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## Imperial (13 Sep 2009)

How does the drawer open, push to open? perhaps this is mentioned earlier? Otherwise a lovely piece of workmanship, it may be easier for somebody else to do the chessboard part with veneer, if they fancy having a go at copying your project :wink:


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## Boz62 (13 Sep 2009)

Thankyou LN, I've really enjoyed watching this come together and, as usual, I've learned a lot. A truly lovely piece of work . 

Boz


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## Lord Nibbo (13 Sep 2009)

Bloonose":3giu0gwp said:


> How does the drawer open, push to open?



I have bought some very small bronze knobs to fit but I'm undecided whether to fit them and as the drawer is right through it's no problem just to push the drawer whichever way.


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## Lord Nibbo (13 Sep 2009)

Bloonose":y3jx33ps said:


> A lovely piece of workmanship, it may be easier for somebody else to do the chessboard part with veneer, if they fancy having a go at copying your project :wink:



I think the method I used is easier than doing veneer, I did think about using a veneer especially because of the cross grain situation, and because of that I kept the checqured area as thin as posible it was less than 1/4" before it was totally glued to the mdf.


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## devonwoody (13 Sep 2009)

My compliments in addition to above remarks, perhaps one day we can pop down and have a game on your table.
(I would have to read up on opening gambits again etc.)


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## OPJ (13 Sep 2009)

Very well done indeed, it looks flawless.  Makes me feel like it's not even worth me _starting_ my competition entry, having seen this now!!  ...I think I know where my vote may be going! :wink:


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## stevep (13 Sep 2009)

in a word : stunning.


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## Ironballs (13 Sep 2009)

Beautifully made and finished


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## big soft moose (13 Sep 2009)

very nice LN - one point , i had envisioned that you would have had a little compartmented drawer to take the pieces - any reason why you decided against that ?


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## Escudo (13 Sep 2009)

Well done Nibs, excellent. 

So glad you remembered to put the white square in the bottom right corner (in relation to the draw).

Cheers, Tony.


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## Chems (13 Sep 2009)

Those finished pictures should come with a sound clip of someone hitting a high soprano note. 

Super!


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## Harbo (14 Sep 2009)

Very nice and excellent workmanship - glad I did not enter!  

Rod


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## Lord Nibbo (14 Sep 2009)

big soft moose":6e8wughu said:


> I had envisioned that you would have had a little compartmented drawer to take the pieces - any reason why you decided against that ?



I still might do that by adding a lightly made frame inside the drawer, a bit like a noughts and crosses grid.


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## Lord Nibbo (14 Sep 2009)

OPJ":2tg373qq said:


> Very well done indeed, it looks flawless.  Makes me feel like it's not even worth me _starting_ my competition entry,



I think there are quite a few including yourself who rather than post a WIP thread are going to mind blow us with the high standard of their finished entries, lets just say there are a lot of dark horses out there. :wink:



OPJ":2tg373qq said:


> Having seen this now!!  ...I think I know where my vote may be going!



:shock: Is it not down to the judges, who have to keep quiet :lol: 

I'm sure your table entry will be a worthy contender you little dark horse you.... :lol: :lol:


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## woodbloke (14 Sep 2009)

Lord Nibbo":2of4ow8k said:


> Is it not down to the judges, who have to keep quiet :lol:


Yes...no voting, judges decide - Rob


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## Lord Nibbo (17 Sep 2009)

*Addendum to the chess table drawer*

So I decided on making a divider for all the chess pieces.
Here in this pic I've knocked up a jig to use a 6mm cutter to slot all the wood, the wood is all 6mm thick.






All the pieces cut and ready for a dry assembly.






How it looks assembled dry.






Fitted in the drawer still unglued it was obvious that it need not be as deep.






So I ripped 1/2" off the depth, here still unglued I'm trying it out for size. 






The grid in this pic is glued up but not glued to the drawer, however the little blocks you can see in this are glued to the drawer, these are to hold all the chess pieces level. 
Next step is to remove the grid and flock the base of the drawer.





For those who are unaware of flock here is a box I made some time ago using flock to line it. In this pic the box was still unfinished.


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## dicktimber (19 Sep 2009)

Excellent!!!
Attention to detail is out of this world.
A great piece.

Mikee


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## Lord Nibbo (20 Sep 2009)

So I've finished the drawer dividers.
*
It's finished or is it ?*

Divider back in place, I decided to add a chamfer to the top edges before applied some danish oil for a finish.







A close up of the dividers, chamfered and finish applied






So this is what it looks like all finished with pieces in place, and guess what?.....




I don't like it  I mean I don't like the colour


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## Chems (20 Sep 2009)

Still looks good. Is it possible to lay a new colour flock over the old one, as theres no way your getting that out is there?


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## Lord Nibbo (20 Sep 2009)

Chems":2s0tz70i said:


> Still looks good.



Not in my eyes, it really is bothering me  





Chems":2s0tz70i said:


> Is it possible to lay a new colour flock over the old one, as theres no way your getting that out is there?



No, I've already started scraping it off. :shock: #-o


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## Chems (20 Sep 2009)

If its really bugging you you'll just have to start again. 

I take it from your earlier post is all glued together? At least if you remake the draw you can fix that beading so your dovetails show. Which In My Honest Opinion it was a mistake to cover up those lovely hand made dovetails. I hope this makes it easier for you to restart!


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## planetWayne (20 Sep 2009)

Lord Nibbo":debsm7pj said:


>



I'm loving this project! - I only wish I get as half as good as this!

btw - have you got one 'extra' white piece on that piccy by chance? or am I having a thick at counting the pieces here?

Wayne.


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## devonwoody (21 Sep 2009)

Two queens, that interesting. ummmmmmm.


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## big soft moose (21 Sep 2009)

devonwoody":2n43ng3a said:


> Two queens, that interesting. ummmmmmm.



its standard in staunton sets to have two queens in case you queen a pawn while the original queen is still in play


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## Lord Nibbo (21 Sep 2009)

Chems":2nnkwuv0 said:


> If its really bugging you you'll just have to start again.
> 
> I take it from your earlier post is all glued together? At least if you remake the draw you can fix that beading so your dovetails show. Which In My Honest Opinion it was a mistake to cover up those lovely hand made dovetails. I hope this makes it easier for you to restart!


 I can't start again, because of the matched fronts to the drawer. Ok I could have sawn the fronts off much like a veneer and stick it on a new drawer but I'm happier now cos I've done it, I've scraped off the flock best as I could and stuck on this burgundy felt.





:lol:


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## Chems (21 Sep 2009)

Ahh that does look much nicer! Good job LN.


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## frugal (21 Sep 2009)

devonwoody":26ns94e9 said:


> Two queens, that interesting. ummmmmmm.



If you get a pawn all the way across the board you can promote it to any piece you want, this is typically a queen. Which means if you are good you might have two queens on the board at any one time.


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## devonwoody (21 Sep 2009)

I reckon they should change the rules and let you have another king, that would be interesting. (mind you, what do you do if you want the knight for a particular killing move?)


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## Lord Nibbo (21 Sep 2009)

devonwoody":2p1zhozi said:


> I reckon they should change the rules and let you have another king, that would be interesting. (mind you, what do you do if you want the knight for a particular killing move?)



Two kings....





What are you on DW :lol: Surely the king is the weakest piece in the game.


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## BigMac (21 Sep 2009)

Only because you only have one and can't let him be taken?

He's surely at least a bit better than a prawn.


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## devonwoody (21 Sep 2009)

Yeah, but to trap two kings check mate at the same time would make things more complicated :wink: 

So if you got a second king it would be difficult to loose?


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## Lord Nibbo (21 Sep 2009)

BigMac":gjeifek6 said:


> Only because you only have one and can't let him be taken?
> 
> He's surely at least a bit better than a prawn.



Not IMHO a king is very limited to where it can move and can easily be put into check by a pawn and if the pawn is covered by another piece it can't be taken by the king so I do believe the pawn is stronger than the king. Interesting thoughts though.


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## devonwoody (21 Sep 2009)

Back to your table LN.


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## Lord Nibbo (21 Sep 2009)

devonwoody":2zma2g80 said:


> Back to your table LN.



Yes, it's so easy to be side tracked :lol: 

I'll be back in a few minutes with the final final pics.


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## Escudo (21 Sep 2009)

Take a look at this game I am playing at the moment.

http://www.chesshere.com/game_old.php?id=1077677&act=

I am hoping to promote my pawn on the D file to exchange this for a queen. I suspect my opponent will have to sacrifice their rook to avoid this scenario.

It is extremely unusual not to take a queen when promoting a pawn. This is why there is always two in most sets. In the event you did want a queen it is odds on that the other piece would be available having been lost earlier in the game.

Back to the woodworking.............


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## Lord Nibbo (21 Sep 2009)

*So this is it peeps*

That's it the drawer in finished and I'm happy with it 





*
The final pic of the build*

Finished, Mission accomplished, achieved, all over, all over but the shouting, concluded, done, done with, ended, fini, terminated, that's it, through. 





8-[


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## Ironballs (21 Sep 2009)

Very good and you left a little space in the drawer to put the Bourbon biscuit prize for the winner of the game. Most considerate


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## devonwoody (22 Sep 2009)

Looks perfect to me.

Here we go again, how do you push the drawers open, over time surely a pressure area will show up?


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## Lord Nibbo (22 Sep 2009)

devonwoody":etfn3ra3 said:


> Looks perfect to me.
> 
> Here we go again, how do you push the drawers open, over time surely a pressure area will show up?


 Well I did intend to add some knobs, I have bought some very small bronze ones that I like but Swmbo don't like then so It's stale mate, excuse the pun :lol: I have found it's actually easier to remove the drawer completely to play a game, and as each piece is taken it's easy to put back in the drawer.


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## Lord Nibbo (23 Sep 2009)

After seeing Woodblokes new thread for "Competition Entries" I've been trying to write the submission up. I thought 350 words would be plenty. :shock: First attempt 659 after heavy editing I got 495 :shock: So rewriting it got it down to 385.... nearly there, so with some more editing I have finally got it to 350 words exactly. :lol: It could have done with the 380 to be complete but rules is rules as they say.


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## OPJ (23 Sep 2009)

Well then, if you're all done we'll let you set the example to follow with the first post in the Competition thread! :twisted: :wink:


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## Lord Nibbo (24 Sep 2009)

OPJ":1v2vau6h said:


> Well then, if you're all done we'll let you set the example to follow with the first post in the Competition thread! :twisted: :wink:


 I don't mind posting first :sign3: :wink: I've got to do the couple of pics with no background clutter, so expect the submission later today :lol: 

Having to edit it so heavily means I lost a lot of detail on how it was made, things like sizes how I made the mouldings, how I made the drawer insert. My first attempt was very informative the final script is more like an Ikea flat pack instruction, i.e. bloody useless.  :roll:


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## Wood Monkey (26 Sep 2009)

I'm so impressed. The design, speed of build, quality of build and the finished result.

LN, you and your workshop should be on the telly. I'd watch.

Jon


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## Lord Nibbo (26 Sep 2009)

jyates":3sueuvhq said:


> I'm so impressed. The design, speed of build, quality of build and the finished result.
> 
> LN, you and your workshop should be on the telly. I'd watch.
> 
> Jon



"You and your workshop should be on the telly."




Which program then? Oops or Youv'e been framed? :lol:


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## big soft moose (26 Sep 2009)

Lord Nibbo":30gbbr6c said:


> jyates":30gbbr6c said:
> 
> 
> > I'm so impressed. The design, speed of build, quality of build and the finished result.
> ...



it could be real time like 24 - one hours cabinetry a week


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## OPJ (26 Sep 2009)

big soft moose":3ouyustu said:


> it could be real time like 24 - one hours cabinetry a week



I like that idea, as long as we don't lose fifteen minutes of each hour to adverts! :x Split-screen could work well - Nibbo on the planer in one, dust swirling in the extractor in another corner... Now, we just need two more shots!  And, of course, as is obligatory in the world of 24; when Nibbo leaves the workshop, the sh*t hits the fan!!  :wink:


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## Lord Nibbo (27 Oct 2009)

At the request from Rob "Bump"

I'll bump it again late Saturday if I remember


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## Waka (28 Oct 2009)

Another masterpiece for the competition.


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## NewtoWood (28 Oct 2009)

A stunning piece of work =D> and as others have said a masterclass of woodworking by pictures.


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## newt (28 Oct 2009)

Superb work, this sets a very high standard.


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## Lord Nibbo (31 Oct 2009)

Bump


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