NEW COMPETITION - FABULOUS PRIZE!

[Midnight]

Tony wrote

Personally I would like to see a degree of creativity (and possibly a little flair) in the design element of the task as well as a demonstration of competence/craftsmanship in the make.

Interesting joints, and choice of wood(s) I feel, will be key to success from my point of view + I would like to see something to inspire myself and others to have a go.

aaaawwwww c'mon Tony, geez-a-break. Deadlines are bad enough; you want inspirational too....????????

<getting increasingly frustrated at being barred from the shop....

nice competition.... a prize like that oughta get the creative juices flowing...

 

[Anonymous]

Sending the 'cubic foot of Brazilian Mahogany and a flitch of Walnut burr veneer' to me might help but I can't promise :wink: :lol: :lol: :lol:

Mike, sorry about the inspiration thing :roll:

 

[Chris Knight]

Tony,

Sorry, forgot to say that I like your box! A few details would be nice - and they may help someone win that fabulous prize!

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the compliment Chris To be honest could do with a few of 'em today - been a tough one :?

Wood is Beech. Quite highly figured which surprised me as I thought Beech was always fairly even grained. Sides 10mm thick and base 8mm thick. Top is 12mmm thick in middle and 5mm thick where it meets the top of the box sides. I routed most of the material away from the lid underside and then finished it off with the LN Rabbet and my shoulder plane. I put a bevel on the bottom of the lid using a block plane.

I cut the corner joints on my router table with the new finger joint jig i recently posted. Also cut an 8mm stopped dado for the base to sit it.

The 'feet' were router out and finished with a full round hand file followed by 240 grit 3M sand paper wrapped around a pencil.

I hand sanded the box before finishing as I find power sanding rounds the edges which I wanted to keep sharp. 240 grit 3M paper (the new stuff doesn't clog and I highly recommend it - lasts ages) glued to a flat piece of wood.

Finish was two coats of Tung oil 24 hours apart. I applied a coat, waited for 15 minutes and then wiped off the excess. Nice colour and mat finish

I have now given the box a coat of Black Bison wax to bring it to a satic sheen - I don't like glossy finishes.

I am considering one of two options and have made two lids to help me decide

a: A handle in the middle of the lid as Alf recently did in her box

b: Inlaid 5mm wide Mahogany strip to form a rectangle about 10mm in from the edge of the top

 

[Chris Knight]

Tony,
Thanks for the info. Your jig seems to have made a great job of the jointing.

I do like a handle in a box lid and I know it's basically old hat but a recess with a strip of contrasting wood over/through it is something I really go for.

Again, it's old hat but a nicely defined recess with pronounced vee cuts down the sides of the "crater" look great. In white wood an ebony or ebonised handle looks terrific.

I can't follow why you imply the inlaid strip is an either/or thing. What has it got to do with a handle?

 

[Anonymous]

Hi Chris

I am not sure that the handle and inlaid strip will be too much for this box? The construction is fairly simple looking and i dopn't want the top to appear 'fussy'.

Tell me more about the 'v'. I routed the slots for the inlay last night at 5mm wide, 1.5mm deep and 10mm from the edges. I trimmed the corners with chisel and am pretty pleased with the result. Mahogany should be cut and planed to fit tonight.

This 'v' approach. Do I need to cut before inlaying mahognay of after?

 

[Anonymous]

Adam some of us dont need a blindfold to hit the wrong nail (hammer)

 

[Chris Knight]

Tony,

I see your point about two things being too fussy.

The handle arrangement I am think of has a recess ( circular or oval in shape) and looks rather like a shallow crater. Down the sides of the crater, the use of a fine curved gouge or vee tool makes correspondingly shaped gouges, all pointing to the centre - I will see if I can find a picture somewhere.

The handle itself can be either a strip of wood arching over the recess and let into its edges (where the sides meet the top surface) or a small knob in the centre.

 

[houtslager]

ok then Alf try this then -
bandsawn - done it - chainsaw - done it
hewn out - done it made a loud speaker from a tree trunk
Shaker - Georgian - Victorian - Modern - done all - Georgian is my fav !
Chip carving - hmm possible :wink:
Covered in - nah ! to fragile and imo UGLY
Hooper shape - done it - aka - tool tote Shaker style present for a distant relative
Tusk tenons - hmmmpf fine for a refrectory table but a box
collapsible - ridiculous one would lose some if not all the parts :lol:
fingerjoints - done it for my sample boxes
wooden hinged hmmm there's an idea though
Mitred - done it [ my favorite way ]
Dovetailed - done it usually all the time when being PAID to make a box and secret mitred too
As to the types of finish it depends on the materials used - So for most WOOD constructions with out silly coverings -
I have used shellac,varnish, lacquer, oil, wax, milk paint, ordinary paint too ,
faux marble done it though a colleague did the finish
So there you have a brief summary of my box making :roll: ,
still got a few years left to make a few.Mind you I still got to finish one for a niece that got married and has had her first child too , maybe I 'll enter this one.
all the best from HS[/i]

 

[Adam]

Adam some of us dont need a blindfold to hit the wrong nail (hammer)

Ahh, if it's HS though, perhaps we'd better blindfold him and make him stand on one leg. And he'll still make a nicer box than me.

Are you out in the states yet HS?

Adam

 

[Anonymous]

If a box has drawers and no lid does it become a chest and if so does that count? I know you say with lid, without lid, with drawers etc but thought I better check...

 

[Anonymous]

UniB

I defer to Alf who is running this competition but would have to say that IMO what you describe is in fact a chest rather than a box and thus not really eligible

As I say though, I defer to alf.......

 

[Anonymous]

You see - it's a good job I didn't start hacking up that walnut just yet!

 

[J.A.S]

What a great competition.

As a recent beginner, everything for my entry would be pretty much new, so I doubt "flair" or "creativity" etc. would be much in evidence . In fact, it would be my first 'proper' project, apart from a mock-up of a gate :? .

Still, a crack at some through dovetails and a splash or two of boiled linseed oil might be worth a try, if the great and the good of the membership are able to stifle their giggles when viewing the result .

Alf, does a newbie stand a chance, if only as a rank outsider?

Jeremy

 

[frank]

Where did alf leave that cube of brazilian mahogany and the walnut veneer :twisted: i might just be able to make a match box out of it ,and a nice box for the wife :wink:

 

[Alf]

uniB, well it's a tricky one, isn't it? If it's small enough then I suppose it becomes a "box of drawers" instead of a "chest of drawers" doesn't it? :wink: My main policy is one of encouraging the most entries, so make it small enough and we'll turn a blind eye :lol: I think "portable" is probably the key definition here. So 12 drawer linen presses are unlikely to count... :lol:

Jeremy, go for it. You've as equal a chance as the next guy, you have my guarantee.

Cheers, Alf

 

[Anonymous]

As I said I defer to Alf

Go for it. You've as equal a chance as the next guy, you have my guarantee too.

 

[Alf]

As I said I defer to Alf

Sorry, Tony. Was that you I just trod on..? :wink:

Cheers, Alf

 

[Anonymous]

Nearly finished (this week i hope) a realy big tool box .I think it may be a bit big to enter .Materials list = 1300 concrete blocks ,25 tons concrete, 6 tons sand, 40 bags cement, 350m 4X2 , 30m 9x3, 50 sheets chipboard, 20 rolls fibreglass, 4 rolls vapour barrier, 2 rolls DPM, 17 4m box section roofing, 2 doors, 20ltrs floor paint, 30ltrs elmusion, 70m 2.5mm cable, 50m 1mm cable, 20m 4mm, RCD ,consumer unit , 25m 10mm SWA, 15 sockets, 3 16a sockets, 6 strip lights, 6 batten lamp holders, 4 way light switch, too many fixings to list and tons of elbow grease.
PS somepeople call my tool box a workshop (hammer)

 

[Alf]

AP, erm, "portable"...? :roll: :lol: Sounds good though; will we be getting a tour?

Folks, I forgot to mention (well I was giving him the opportunity to change his mind in fact :wink: ), Aragorn has kindly volunteered to be an additional judge. I dare say his list of acceptable bribes is available on request... (just kidding, natch :wink: ) So I think we're now okay for judges.

Cheers, Alf