All Neander Curly Maple Chest

[Mike Allen1010]

It's been a lean year in our house -- I've had way more time than work. By necessity, Christmas presents this year for my two college-age boys will be shop built rather than store bought. Not quite the new iPhone's they want, but I know they understand.


Attached are some pictures of a Curly Maple chest (the legs are Pacific Maple) I built for our oldest – 36” long x 19” high x 15” deep, inspired by a beautiful chest Chris Griggs posted here. Since I found myself with some extra time, I tried several things that were new for me;


1) Hand planing the Curly Maple. I struggled avoiding tearout, but the suggestions I got here in the Creek really helped - what made the most difference was going for the thinnest possible, "whispery" shavings. With those I had no tearout, just a tiny bit thicker and the tearout returned.


2) Hand planed the moldings using an assortment of old molding planes (thanks Mark Wyatt!). This was a real struggle -- I ended up throwing out half the molding I attempted. I confess, the next Curly Maple moldings I make will be with an electric router -- unless I hit the lotto and buy some of Matt Bickford's molding planes.

3) Also my first inlay; I printed out a paper pattern and cut the inlay pieces from veneer with an X-Acto knife and use the same pattern to rout out the recesses. I'm sure this is not the way you're supposed to do it, because it took forever and the eyestrain was brutal, but I was surprisingly pleased with the result.


I've wanted to add some personalized details like names and dates etc. to my furniture for some time but never had the courage to give inlay a try. I don't think I'll be doing a lot of it in the future, but it was doable and I thought I would share these pictures to encourage others who might be thinking about inlay.

You may be wondering why the side of the right-hand drawer is walnut, while the other drawer sides/backs are Poplar, -- it's a hint/reminder of the hidden compartment between the two drawers that is revealed by sliding out a pressure fit piece of the carcass front. Since they were small, a hidden compartment is always my Boy's favorite part of any furniture I build them.



Thanks for looking. Best wishes for great holidays!

All the best, Mike



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[Jim Stewart]

Nice chest it should mean a lot to him for his life! Hidden compartments are so fun. Jim

[Chris Griggs]

Beautiful Work Mike! You've got some serious talent my friend. Gotta love anything with a hidden compartment. I like the feet a lot. Can you describe how you went about cutting and shaping them? Were those cut out by hand? - I don't recall if you have a bandsaw or not.

I always enjoy your posts Mike!

[Jim Koepke]

Very nice work.

Your son will be a very proud owner.

jtk

[David Weaver]

Very nice. Your son will have it far longer than an iphone would ever last.

[Mel Fulks]

Nice work.Beautiful wood .What I like best is its country individuality,don't like formal tool chests.He will be happy.

[Klaus Kretschmar]

Lucky son to have this father! Many congrats Mike, you've built an outstanding Christmas present for your first born. He will cherish it. And -echoing David- it still will be used and cherished when nobody will remember an iphone.

There are many things to like on this chest as there is the inlay work and the hidden compartment. I like especially the layout of the dovetails. You did it with an eyeballing process and that is how it should be to my understanding.

Best
Klaus

[Jack Curtis]

The only thing that would annoy me about having that chest is that the directions would be wrong most every way I put it down. :) Very nice job.

[Paul Saffold]

Very, very nice, Mike. Something he will always treasure.

[Frank Carnevale]

Awesome chest nf will mean much more, much longer than an iPhone. I hope to build things half this nice for my son someday! Again, awesome!

[Paul Murphy]

Mike, the design, craftsmanship, and wood are all outstanding! I would take that chest over a lifetime supply of phones.

[Jim Matthews]

Like Frank said, one iPhone is much like the next.

How many people have something their Father made, for them?
It's more than an artifact - it's a legacy.

Well done.

[Peter Pedisich]

Wow, that is nice. Thanks for sharing the pics. My favorite parts are the top view and the cedar, what a great gift.

[Philip Duffy]

Good Show Mike!! Love the piece and your commitment to hands on work. Phil

[Deane Allinson]

Great piece, Beautiful wood! Maple can be a bear to work, much less curly. Outstanding job!
Deane

[Jeff Heath]

A timeless gift that can be cherished by generations to come. Beautiful work, and so much more meaningful than a cell phone.

He'll love it......and if not now, later, for sure.

Jeff

[Patrick McCarthy]

Mike, very, very nice.

[Jeff Hamilton Jr.]

Awesome job Mike. I've had two iPhones; I trade both for that beauty in a hot second!

[Mark Wyatt]

Very nice Mike. I like the drawers and hidden compartment.

[Christopher Charles]

You can put my iPhone in the secret compartment. Really.

Nicely done!

C

[Mike Allen1010]

Thanks a lot guys for the nice comments -- they mean a lot coming from the talented folks here in the cave and have been a nice "pick me up" when I can really use some positive energy.

[QUOTE=Chris Griggs;2021441] I like the feet a lot. Can you describe how you went about cutting and shaping them? Were those cut out by hand? - I don't recall if you have a bandsaw or not.

Chris, I am a terrible designer and really struggled trying to lay out the bracket feet. I finally ended up using PowerPoint to insert some circles and arcs so the curves would flow together in a reasonably symmetrical way. PP turned out to be much easier for me than trying to draw all the curves freehand, even working from some patterns.

I cut the curves out reasonably close to the line with a Gramercy bow saw after drilling some pilot holes. Getting the final shape was done with rasps, files and card scrapers (first time I can ever get those to make shavings instead of dust!).

I have to say the Pacific Maple I used for the bracket feet (left over from a bench build), was waaaaaay easier to work with hand tools than the curly maple used for the rest of the project. My next project will definitely be built out of a softer wood that is more hand tool friendly than the CM! Too bad most of my favorite hand tool woods are so expensive (walnut, cherry, mahogany, etc.), especially here in Southern California.

I just read Thomas Moser's book about Shaker furniture and all that cherry looks gorgeous! The newest addition has a section about Cabinet woods and he recommended yellow birch as a good choice for the small cabinet shop. I have never used any but was wondering how others liked working it with hand tools? I'm not sure it's readily available here in Southern California? Any suggestions for other woods available in Southern California that are hand tool friendly and reasonably affordable?

Thanks, Mike

[Randall Houghton]

Hi Mike
I just wanted to say that I really like your chest and that it is a pleasure to see your skills and craftsmanship produce a family heirloom that is unique in today's world of consumerism. It will be enjoyed by generations to come without question. I do a lot of work with highly figured woods with interlocked grain and over the years I have found the high angle frog of 55 degrees to be very effective when used with a tight mouth and a razor sharp blade that is slightly cambered. The card scraper is perfect for small touch ups and I seldom sand a planed surface. On occasion I will burnish the surface with shavings to improve its appearance.
With your skills you should sell the router and buy Larry Williams DVD and some plane iron blanks From LN and make some hollow and rounds. Hand made moulding is like every other skill in that it takes practice but it is capable of producing mouldings that can't be created with a router. This is an area that is within your reach and is one of the hallmarks of hand made furniture. I have found that a pair of readers from the local pharmacy to be excellent in combating eye strain for fine detail work such as inlay in my advancing years. Try a pair they are about 10 to 12 bucks.
I look forward to seeing more of your work in the future and Klaus is right, your son is a very lucky individual. His friends will be jealous. I have that same hardwood problem as hardwoods do not grow in the desert.
Regards
Randy

[Phil Thien]

(1) That is one beautiful chest!

(2) If you were my father, that would make my wife your daughter-in-law. And as soon as I unwrapped that piece, she'd jump to her feet, run across the room, and proclaim "THANK YOU FOR THE BEAUTIFUL BLANKET CHEST! I LUV IT I LUV IT I LUV IT!" If I said "it is a tool chest" she'd come back with "no way are you putting tools in that, you fool." It would be downhill from that point on. No way would it ever appear in my shop. I wouldn't even try to lock horns with her on the issue.