Simple bookcase

[Jeff Wittrock]

Simple bookcase I just finished.

I wanted trying for something small and light. One of the first projects I did with (mostly) all hand tools. Joinery is mortise and tenon. I was going to pin the joints with walnut pegs, but the wife thought she would like it better without visible pegs.

Material is all Red Oak. I was lucky enough to find a few pieces with some nice figure.

[Brett Robson]

Very nice - clean and elegant! I love the figure on the bottom shelf!

[Gordon Eyre]

You did well, I like it a lot.

[Jim Rimmer]

Very nice - clean and elegant! I love the figure on the bottom shelf!

+1 - I would have been tempted to make the bottom shelf the top if you had enough of it. Great project.

[George Bokros]

Very nice.

[Bruce Page]

Well done! I like how you matched arched grain to the bottom end rail.

[Prashun Patel]

Really nice. Great figure. Are those side panels red oak also?

[glenn bradley]

That came out great Jeff. Clean lines and a light visual feel.

[Paul Cahill]

Very elegant. I like it.

Paul

[Mark Valsi]

wow !!! t hat's the best looking red oak I have ever seen !! Beautiful !! great job !!!

[Sam Murdoch]

Very lovely little bookcase. Nicely done!

[Jeff Wittrock]

Thanks all for the comments.


+1 - I would have been tempted to make the bottom shelf the top if you had enough of it. Great project.
Jim. Yeah, I wish the bottom shelf had been wide enough to use on the top. The board was only about 1/16" over the size I needed for the shelf.


Really nice. Great figure. Are those side panels red oak also?
Prashun. Yep. All red oak. It always amazes me what kind of variation exists even withing a single species of wood. The side panels with the straight grain and some striping only existed along one narrow (3") edge of a board, so I re-sawed this narrow piece and glued two strips up to make each side panel. Luckily the grain was straight enough that the joint isn't too obvious.

I was lucky enough to find the nice bottom shelf piece within a stack of very bland looking red oak. I have to say it was a bit tricky to plane without tearout.

It may sound a bit strange.... but I think I can smell a piece of oak that will have nice figure. I mean that literally. When I plane a piece of oak like that bottom shelf, it has a smell that is very distinct from oak that is very plain looking. I can't really describe it, but it has a very definite "earthy" smell to it. I know, I know.... my wife looked at me a bit oddly when I told her this as well, but I'm pretty sure I'm right. I first considered that maybe the difference in smell was that some white oak was maybe mixed in with what was purchased as red oak. In looking at the ray length, I'm pretty certain that it is not white oak. Anyone else ever notice the difference in smell?