Ed Sallee
06-20-2011, 10:03 AM
With all the boxes I've made... I have always shyed away from quadrant hinges.... The only thing I could find on the internet about them were all the horror stories....cuz they have to be lined up....just so, etc., etc., etc...
Well.... I have a client that ordered 20 humidors and quadrant hinges were the hinge of choice... so, I had no option but to figure it out.....
So, I thought I would share my experience and hopefully help somebody out who has been wondering about these things....
As you may or may not know.... when you order these things, they come in a plastic bag... not one stitch of paper, let alone instructions.... So, after a lot of head scratching and procrastionaton..... Here is my first attempt.
First things first... the jig.
I built this little jig. My boxes are mostly 1/2" stock. This quadrant hinge is 10mm, so I used a 1/2" OD collet for my router, leaving just enough room for the 10mm bit on the ID. If your hinges are 3/8" or 5/16", I think the process would be the same.....
I used 1/2" stock throughout, except for the 1/8" hardboard. The hardboard basically separates the lid from the box and helps with "snapping" the jig in place.
http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/DSC01554.jpg (http://s302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/?action=view¤t=DSC01554.jpg)
I built a little box using 1/2" stock out of scrap.... just four sides, really, to use as my test piece. After I tried it and made the adjustments (hardboard pieces glued on the inside of the jig), I tested it again and it seemed to be good to go.
http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/DSC01555.jpg (http://s302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/?action=view¤t=DSC01555.jpg)
So.... I "snapped" the jig in to place, adjusted my router depth to where I thought it needed to be..... clamped it all down..... and...
http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/DSC01556.jpg (http://s302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/?action=view¤t=DSC01556.jpg)
...decided I needed to have some support under the lid... so, I cut these spacers....
http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/DSC01557.jpg (http://s302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/?action=view¤t=DSC01557.jpg)
Then, about 15 seconds later.....
http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/DSC01558.jpg (http://s302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/?action=view¤t=DSC01558.jpg)
Flipped the jig over to the other side and....this time, I figured I would put a piece of hardboard on the other end to equalize the spacing... I didn't do that on the first pass... but, will do from now on.
http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/DSC01559.jpg (http://s302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/?action=view¤t=DSC01559.jpg)
...about 20 seconds later (had to take off the clamps)
http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/DSC01560.jpg (http://s302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/?action=view¤t=DSC01560.jpg)
Now, over to the drill press to make a hole for that swing arm thing..... Accuracy is not a biggie here, as the hinge will cover up the hole. Just make sure it's deep enough a wide enough for the hinge to work freely. I was back and forth a couple of times....
http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/DSC01561.jpg (http://s302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/?action=view¤t=DSC01561.jpg)
...but, I got it.
http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/DSC01562.jpg (http://s302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/?action=view¤t=DSC01562.jpg)
So....there ya have it.... easy peasy.
http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/DSC01563.jpg (http://s302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/?action=view¤t=DSC01563.jpg)
I will, however have to adjust the depth of the router and snap it all back together and make another pass... but, for the most part.... it worked like a charm.
http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/DSC01564.jpg (http://s302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/?action=view¤t=DSC01564.jpg)
PS: Never mind all the sweat droplets on the wood.... it's 100 degrees at 9:30am in Charleston, SC today.... feels like double that in the shop.
Well.... I have a client that ordered 20 humidors and quadrant hinges were the hinge of choice... so, I had no option but to figure it out.....
So, I thought I would share my experience and hopefully help somebody out who has been wondering about these things....
As you may or may not know.... when you order these things, they come in a plastic bag... not one stitch of paper, let alone instructions.... So, after a lot of head scratching and procrastionaton..... Here is my first attempt.
First things first... the jig.
I built this little jig. My boxes are mostly 1/2" stock. This quadrant hinge is 10mm, so I used a 1/2" OD collet for my router, leaving just enough room for the 10mm bit on the ID. If your hinges are 3/8" or 5/16", I think the process would be the same.....
I used 1/2" stock throughout, except for the 1/8" hardboard. The hardboard basically separates the lid from the box and helps with "snapping" the jig in place.
http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/DSC01554.jpg (http://s302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/?action=view¤t=DSC01554.jpg)
I built a little box using 1/2" stock out of scrap.... just four sides, really, to use as my test piece. After I tried it and made the adjustments (hardboard pieces glued on the inside of the jig), I tested it again and it seemed to be good to go.
http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/DSC01555.jpg (http://s302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/?action=view¤t=DSC01555.jpg)
So.... I "snapped" the jig in to place, adjusted my router depth to where I thought it needed to be..... clamped it all down..... and...
http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/DSC01556.jpg (http://s302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/?action=view¤t=DSC01556.jpg)
...decided I needed to have some support under the lid... so, I cut these spacers....
http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/DSC01557.jpg (http://s302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/?action=view¤t=DSC01557.jpg)
Then, about 15 seconds later.....
http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/DSC01558.jpg (http://s302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/?action=view¤t=DSC01558.jpg)
Flipped the jig over to the other side and....this time, I figured I would put a piece of hardboard on the other end to equalize the spacing... I didn't do that on the first pass... but, will do from now on.
http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/DSC01559.jpg (http://s302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/?action=view¤t=DSC01559.jpg)
...about 20 seconds later (had to take off the clamps)
http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/DSC01560.jpg (http://s302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/?action=view¤t=DSC01560.jpg)
Now, over to the drill press to make a hole for that swing arm thing..... Accuracy is not a biggie here, as the hinge will cover up the hole. Just make sure it's deep enough a wide enough for the hinge to work freely. I was back and forth a couple of times....
http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/DSC01561.jpg (http://s302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/?action=view¤t=DSC01561.jpg)
...but, I got it.
http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/DSC01562.jpg (http://s302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/?action=view¤t=DSC01562.jpg)
So....there ya have it.... easy peasy.
http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/DSC01563.jpg (http://s302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/?action=view¤t=DSC01563.jpg)
I will, however have to adjust the depth of the router and snap it all back together and make another pass... but, for the most part.... it worked like a charm.
http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/DSC01564.jpg (http://s302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/Quadrant/?action=view¤t=DSC01564.jpg)
PS: Never mind all the sweat droplets on the wood.... it's 100 degrees at 9:30am in Charleston, SC today.... feels like double that in the shop.