building a box

[Casey Carr]

Long time lurker, infrequent poster.

I'm working on a flag case. Figured a rectangular box to sit the triangular flag box on top would be a nice touch. Now how the heck to deal with it?!?

Basically I just want to build an open top box, flip it over and put the flag case on top of it. I was thinking box joints on the corners, then got to thinking about the top (bottom) and how to attach it without wood movement tearing it apart. The box will be walnut, guessing about 2-3" tall, 16-18" long and about 4" deep. Do I need to worry about movement with a piece that's only 4" wide? Normally a bottom would be set in a groove, but I want the top to stick up higher than the sidewalls.

My only thought is to pin the front edge and put some of the little expansion hooks that people normally use on table tops that have a lot more movement. Or am I going overboard with this and just need to run some glue around the entire top edge?

Thanks for any help.

[Lee Schierer]

If your grain runs the same direction all the way around the sides, you won't have any issues with wood movement. Make your back or bottom from plywood.

[Dave Richards]

Maybe instead of inverting your open-topped box, think about standing it up on one side with the back open. make the "bottom" as a loose panel. I would also add a back panel but that could be inserted after attaching the flag box on it.

A sketch could be made if needed.

[Casey Carr]

The grain will run the same direction all the way around the sides, but I need the top to be solid wood, not plywood as all the edges will be showing. I want the top to be a little longer and wider than the box itself so there's a lip that runs all around the top. I modeled it last night to see what it would look like, it's basically a table top with four solid sides for legs. I think the expansion tabs are what I need.

The open back thought is interesting, may do something with that in the future. I tend to have very narrow vision, that thought would have never crossed my mind. Would definitely work though.