Cabinet build

[Brian Holcombe]

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/EED073EA-725D-4ABC-970A-A43F42D02FEC_zpsgamorkdu.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/EED073EA-725D-4ABC-970A-A43F42D02FEC_zpsgamorkdu.jpg.html)

Hello Walnut!

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/307F45BD-0CBD-4A76-A057-CD9DABF94451_zpsbuf0fw2x.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/307F45BD-0CBD-4A76-A057-CD9DABF94451_zpsbuf0fw2x.jpg.html)

....Never again!

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/A713CF7D-A6E0-4134-8A28-AC8EABA90A58_zpskicg1nii.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/A713CF7D-A6E0-4134-8A28-AC8EABA90A58_zpskicg1nii.jpg.html)

Not flat

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/24461F8E-8206-4083-913C-FFBEC58A341C_zps6poksbsj.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/24461F8E-8206-4083-913C-FFBEC58A341C_zps6poksbsj.jpg.html)

Flat.

I plan to bias the centerline away from the sapwood. I don't mind sapwood but I do try to minimize it on more formal work.

[Stew Denton]

Brian,

Extremely nice looking stuff, and a very nice rip job.

Stew

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks Stew.

I think I'll find another method for ripping this big stuff though (10" wide), I was cutting between other work and it took me literally the entire day. I wasnt sawing for 8 hours straight, but it was pretty slow going.

That pic labelled not flat is after a bit of work with the jack plane to level it out, but all in all I was happy with the result since I was able to maintain the .75" I was shooting for.

[george wilson]

Can you come and clean my shop out?:)

[Brian Holcombe]

Lol! I'll trade services for all of the planes I uncover :p

[Winton Applegate]

it was pretty slow going.

Beautiful wood !
As far as the speed problem . . . walnut is pretty friendly stuff. It is nice to cut
So I have to ask or mention maybe a change in the teeth geometry is in order and the have to ask part
pardon the stupid question
but
is the saw passably sharp ?

Probably the teeth are too fine for that much plank and the saw was floating on all the saw dust.
Once you work out what the problems are you will enjoy cutting a plank like that in walnut again / don't give up.

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks Winton, I cannot wait to see how the other boards bookmatch.

I'm sure there is much I can improve upon, sawing is something I've got to improve. I can work tenons and such, but when it comes to long rips I have much to work on. I would like a coarser saw with a more aggressive tooth to start, so I may pick up a Disston and get to work.

[lowell holmes]

I was surprised to see you used a panel saw to rip with.

It is a gorgeous saw though.

I wonder if they would sell you a handle to put on your own saw plate.

I don't use my rip saws that much, but I could make a handle to put on one that I have.

[lowell holmes]

I was inspired by the handle on the rip saw, so I created a similar handle in AutoCad. The attached jpg is shown below. If anyone wants a copy , I can send you pdf file of it. PM me if you want a copy. It is a panel saw size.

[Steve Voigt]

Brian, what is the length and pitch of that saw?

[Mike Allen1010]

Beautiful wood Brian – I love the purple highlights! Thanks for posting. I look forward to seeing the rest of the project.

As R&R after completing a recent project, I am in the process of restoring a few of the old saws that have been hanging in the rafters for way too long. I think I have a few nice Disston 26"-28" rippers in the lot –#16, #7 and maybe a #12 (I can't remember off the top of my head). I would be thrilled to send one your way if you're interested. A longer plate and coarser pitch will make re-sawing a lot easier, although still not fun. I'll send you a PM and some pictures.

All the best, Mike

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks guys! Mike, I appreciate the offer!

Steve, the saw is 20" with a pitch of 10 degrees, so it's not so aggressive.

[Christopher Charles]

If my last name was Schwarz, I'd make a pithy comment about your nice looking crotch in the first photo. And then it would go downhill from there...

Looking great,
Chris

[Steve Voigt]

Steve, the saw is 20" with a pitch of 10 degrees, so it's not so aggressive.

I think if you use something that was 26"-28" and around 4 tpi, you would find the job much easier! It would take a fraction of the time.
By "pitch," I meant tpi (I should've just said that), but yes, going with 5° rake will also make a difference.

[Tony Shea]

As you're fully aware that is certainly not the right saw for the job. I assume that is LN's rip panel saw they sell which is a great saw and one that I use a lot on the bench for small rips and even a large tenon. But you really should be on the lookout for a 5tpi saw and sharpen it up, I promise you that you'd wonder what took you so long to get this tool in your arsenal.

[Brian Holcombe]

If my last name was Schwarz, I'd make a pithy comment about your nice looking crotch in the first photo. And then it would go downhill from there...

Looking great,
Chris

hah! Indeed, thought I appreciate the sentiment.


As you're fully aware that is certainly not the right saw for the job. I assume that is LN's rip panel saw they sell which is a great saw and one that I use a lot on the bench for small rips and even a large tenon. But you really should be on the lookout for a 5tpi saw and sharpen it up, I promise you that you'd wonder what took you so long to get this tool in your arsenal.


I think if you use something that was 26"-28" and around 4 tpi, you would find the job much easier! It would take a fraction of the time.
By "pitch," I meant tpi (I should've just said that), but yes, going with 5° rake will also make a difference.

Thanks guys, the LN is Definelty too small for this task, working on a solution. Mike has a few saws in mind.

Sorry Steve, 7 TPI. It moves through 4/4 with ease, but this saw is even challenged to cut through 8/4 rapidly.

[Brian Holcombe]

Dimensioning by hand (mostly) with exception to some saw cuts with a track saw. Jointing and thicknessing by hand.

I've been mindful to keep the sequence in tact as I cut to retain the ability to bookmatch these parts. I enjoy that effect on the work I see, it sets apart craftsman made furniture in my opinion.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/904026FE-AFEA-48F8-B468-254591301EAC_zpsrmcl57pw.jpg

I have not edge jointed or cut the side rails to thickness yet. I will be doing a frame and panel type door and the panels will be book matched walnut burl;

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/531C009E-EC84-4C2B-AB19-E7D9CE7A3639_zpspornzaw8.jpg

The sections I need are tall and thin, so those knots will be cut out.

I'm working on some paneling for the bar in my house as well which is a tiny project, so I dim'd mostly everything for that yesterday as well.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/3C4222A2-962C-4398-AB71-027F4358EE67_zpsohlwzcw2.jpg

This will be contemporary style cleat hanger panels, I found 17" wide flat sawn veneers for those.

[Prashun Patel]

I'm jealous of your dimensioning skills.

Sap rarely seems to make its way into finer furniture. However, some of the nicest color changes can happen at that line, as in your first panel. I love a little cream in my coffee.

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks. The way I prioritize the cuts on a flitch usually puts the interesting wood to the far edges of a panel so that I can cut the structural members out of the straight grained stuff, which is an effect that I like in both cases.

I have experience with this same log, and the sap wood turns a medium brown over a year or two. I try my best to get everything out of one flitch for a project of this size so that all of the material is a color match.

[Brian Holcombe]

So I had planned on band sawing these side panels to thickness, Jointed them by hand on 3 side and my father kerfed them on his table saw. Low and behold the bandsaw is too short for it, so I went at it with the Disston....whoa this made short work of it. I think it took me a total of an hour to rip both of these in half.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/019E764F-D9FD-43AD-AE15-4046B2688DCD_zpsymm1h2qc.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/133D9424-FC31-44FE-BB72-6D0EBB9D61F7_zpsbrsmmgiv.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/17CBBAF3-774C-4E4D-B114-BED0DA24C3EC_zpsffqhhabo.jpg

You can see the area which was kerfed and what was hand sawn. The saw tracked perfectly throughout so I did not have to flip the board and cut from either side.

[Harold Burrell]

Can you come and clean my shop out?:)

Yeah, me too!

Good grief! My living room isn't even that clean!

[Brian Holcombe]

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/E250D7B6-F52C-46DF-BF44-5490D53DB095_zpswieeta0z.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/E250D7B6-F52C-46DF-BF44-5490D53DB095_zpswieeta0z.jpg.html)

Actually a bit further along at the moment, since I've been working on the web frames.

The web frames are being dovetailed in (sliding dovetails), so while I enjoy the result, the process is a bit nerve-wracking.

[Pat Barry]

Nice job on the grain matching and continuing the grain as it wraps around.

[Robert McNaull]

Beautiful and inspiring work Brian. Thanks for sharing.

[Mike Allen1010]

So I had planned on band sawing these side panels to thickness, Jointed them by hand on 3 side and my father kerfed them on his table saw. Low and behold the bandsaw is too short for it, so I went at it with the Disston....whoa this made short work of it. I think it took me a total of an hour to rip both of these in half.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/019E764F-D9FD-43AD-AE15-4046B2688DCD_zpsymm1h2qc.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/133D9424-FC31-44FE-BB72-6D0EBB9D61F7_zpsbrsmmgiv.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/17CBBAF3-774C-4E4D-B114-BED0DA24C3EC_zpsffqhhabo.jpg

You can see the area which was kerfed and what was hand sawn. The saw tracked perfectly throughout so I did not have to flip the board and cut from either side.

Beautiful work Brian! Thanks for sharing the picks. I can't wait to see the rest - your care in selecting the figure will make make for a special result!
Best, Mike

[Brian Holcombe]

Nice job on the grain matching and continuing the grain as it wraps around.


Beautiful and inspiring work Brian. Thanks for sharing.


Beautiful work Brian! Thanks for sharing the picks. I can't wait to see the rest - your care in selecting the figure will make make for a special result!
Best, Mike

Thanks fellas! I appreciate the comments on the grain! I did my best to do the same on the doors as well. It was quite a difficult endeavor to locate a good board for this without going to a 'slab'. It was alot of extra effort, but I'm glad I did it.

[Brian Holcombe]

Moving along with the web framing, planing the thin parts has proven tedious, so I have setup a makeshift shooting board;

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/576C40A0-8FC0-4FC1-9B95-97A28BD160A1_zpsrnfud4rx.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/BA7B276E-43CE-4853-8ACF-5779862963DA_zpsfuk6z9ka.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/683DBBC5-3A71-45FB-B330-154D7552B4C5_zpsgeu68gu7.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/9C4F26BC-66B3-4DEE-9413-CFE59A5EBBBA_zpsqpkyg40o.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/A6B52EBC-1433-4A92-A00B-C5F8088215F5_zpsqw7g2uwy.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/285EB7A8-C522-4162-BA2A-3CB11DFC3194_zpsdedet8jw.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/432B9244-47F5-4D30-B511-D035F31353E8_zpsxwwhm8a3.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/77865C5C-B19B-4E84-A388-56F2EAEB9739_zpsvpw3kupe.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/E59A9C5A-0C22-4EBC-B41C-61E83B9C2A8F_zpspnk9rux6.jpg

[Brian Holcombe]

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/012D1D05-551E-4641-AAD0-541120BD3C80_zpsmv9zeyj8.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/144DB3B4-C769-4B6B-9A7C-DF87F0632F55_zpslghybfr4.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/3FA26602-4AB0-46B2-99BC-A0A4FA55AA8E_zpsqyrqnrmu.jpg

[eric burns]

Beautiful work. As stated before, awesome grain matching.

How wide is your bench?

[Sam Murdoch]

Nicely done. I don't mind admitting to being humbled by your handwork skills.:cool:

[Reinis Kanders]

Looks great.

Why did you clamp frames to the table?

[Phil Thien]

I just want to say: This thread delivers, and you can rip w/ a handsaw almost as good as I can with a bandsaw.

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks gents! I should have more photos a bit later.

Reinis, I am gluing up the half laps in that photo.

[ken hatch]

Brian,

It is really looking good. So does the shop. I agree with Harold, cleaner than my office other than for the first 5 minutes after after a MsBubba visit.

ken

[Phil Stone]

How incredibly satisfying and inspiring. Thanks for posting these photos.

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks Fellas, as they say 'a little OCD goes a long way'. lol.

Cruising along here with the walnut face strips;

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/1FBEE8EC-E7A4-435E-9CEE-18A56729ABEA_zps0fhbibew.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/1FBEE8EC-E7A4-435E-9CEE-18A56729ABEA_zps0fhbibew.jpg.html)

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/47A62DCF-3DA0-4FC2-B4FA-2EA293B5E28F_zps6up4dxmu.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/47A62DCF-3DA0-4FC2-B4FA-2EA293B5E28F_zps6up4dxmu.jpg.html)

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/DF55B75E-3747-455B-B935-BAAA201102E9_zpslxjokwgw.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/DF55B75E-3747-455B-B935-BAAA201102E9_zpslxjokwgw.jpg.html)

Trimming the assembly to width

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/6AB9A61B-1003-4E66-8C0E-96A866BA0349_zpsv7s0odi8.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/6AB9A61B-1003-4E66-8C0E-96A866BA0349_zpsv7s0odi8.jpg.html)

Onto sliding dovetails, I've been making these to maintain a straight edge, it's pretty easy to get out of flat with a DT plane

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/D05C7AE5-7ECE-4492-9F11-6439F6331207_zpsqwd45dvg.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/D05C7AE5-7ECE-4492-9F11-6439F6331207_zpsqwd45dvg.jpg.html)

Marked out the depth then relieved the corners with a big chisel.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/1893B0FF-65E6-4B2A-BD58-0AAFE36DF246_zpsjjlbkrcg.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/1893B0FF-65E6-4B2A-BD58-0AAFE36DF246_zpsjjlbkrcg.jpg.html)

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/877F27C7-772A-491F-963F-073ED0EB97B6_zpsq3vafzb7.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/877F27C7-772A-491F-963F-073ED0EB97B6_zpsq3vafzb7.jpg.html)

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/6847A5B7-8209-419E-82FD-C40B1E1B0446_zps7nqgtz6b.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/6847A5B7-8209-419E-82FD-C40B1E1B0446_zps7nqgtz6b.jpg.html)

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/E78DC000-CBEF-40E4-9AC5-66AD5558C710_zpsybi6xtbj.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/E78DC000-CBEF-40E4-9AC5-66AD5558C710_zpsybi6xtbj.jpg.html)


I then fit the dovetails into their respective slots.

Onto the inner panels

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/C7396BF5-786B-4B21-84E8-428173AB17F9_zpsjzmqu0su.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/C7396BF5-786B-4B21-84E8-428173AB17F9_zpsjzmqu0su.jpg.html)


http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/B7CAE751-207B-45E9-8256-A864BF92C5E2_zpszodtmjrr.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/B7CAE751-207B-45E9-8256-A864BF92C5E2_zpszodtmjrr.jpg.html)

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/1A611C32-96FA-40A3-9190-905BBBE633C7_zpsh8pbok7m.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/1A611C32-96FA-40A3-9190-905BBBE633C7_zpsh8pbok7m.jpg.html)

[Brian Holcombe]

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/19BAEDD6-CD96-48EE-A07C-4DCBEA2ACD54_zps2sebysdc.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/19BAEDD6-CD96-48EE-A07C-4DCBEA2ACD54_zps2sebysdc.jpg.html)

Here's the overall so far.

Couple things I'm still working out, one being how the web framing will be located, trying to avoid screws. Likely I will pin it to the oak floating panels then dovetail those into the jamb strip.

Also have to consider my options for the base.

[Christopher Charles]

Looking fabulous. Curious to see the purpose of the chamfer on the bottom rail.

cheers,
c

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks Christopher!

The chamfer is the first of the recesses which will allow the drawer above it to be pulled from the bottom ledge.

[Prashun Patel]

I'm with Phil T. Your hand skills put my machine skills to shame. But it's your eye that I truly admire/aspire to most. Beautiful.

[Mark Stutz]

Thanks so much for letting us follow along. I'm somewhat in awe. A couple of questions.

I'm not sure I've seen "inner panels" of contrasting wood to line the carcass. Is there a functional reason, or is it aesthetic. And I'm not sure what you are dovetailing. Are the web frames attached to the sides with sliding dovetails. I've never attempted a project like this with all the drawers, so perhaps it would be obvious if I had.

[Brian Holcombe]

Thank you both!

Mark, I've not seen an example like this either, but I decided to put it to use so that I could use thinner material on the carcass. The outside carcass finished at 5/8" so I decided to use sliding dovetails on the web frames, they help maintain the carcass in addition to holding the drawers.

The liner in oak is not for looks since it will be hidden. I cut shallow rabbets into the web frames with a dado plane, this allows a very flat interior panel and also allowed me to work in the interior jamb.

All of this could have been accomplished without the complications by using heavier stock, but it seemed excessive to source two 8/4 slabs for this project and nothing sequenced was available in lighter stock.

The dovetail I'm referring to would be to cut a 1/2 lap dovetail on the leading edge of the liners and on the edge that meets them at the jamb. The jamb is actually captured into the frame at the top with the interior liner (top panel) by way of a dado, so I have been debating a way to avoid laminating the jamb. The bottom of the jamb will be mitered and I can add a locking joinery to the part which meets the webframe, but I will have to find a way to mount it two-three times along the length.

I could just use screws, but I feel they're not a great way to go after all of this avoidance of them.

[James Pallas]

Very nicely executed. Your work and organization skills must be far above the average. It shows in the work and the planning. Can not wait to see the finish. I did not see that you mentioned the purpose of your cabinet maybe I just missed it. Do you charge to get into or shop or to look at your tools maybe just a peek from the door?
Jim

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks Jim! I appreciate the compliment.

This is for my mom, she wanted something for her jewelry and delicates. So I proposed that something like a plan file would do better for jewelry than whats typical. The bottom drawers for delicates.

The doors will have hangers and battens that will serve as a catch for necklaces.

I have some black leather left over from the desk I built a few years ago, so I'll likely line all the drawers in that.

Safe to say that when it's finished my wife will see it and I'll be building another.

[Mark Stutz]

Thanks Brian. I love that you take the time to document the build. I am learning a lot.

[Brian Holcombe]

I appreciate the sentiment! I may have another instalment soon, or it may be a while. My wife is due tomorrow, but the baby seems uninterested in moving out, so it may not be until the end of next week.

[Malcolm Schweizer]

Excellent build. I love the way you are doing the recess in lieu of drawer pulls. Congrats on the baby. Is this your first? I have a daughter that just turned two. It's an awesome thing.

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks Malcolm! This is our first, we're very excited. I think I can start him off with slick chisels pretty soon, or maybe block planes.

[Mark Stutz]

Hearty congratulations Brian. Holding my first child was maybe the second happiest event in my life, surpassed only by holding my first grandson for the first time!

[Brian Holcombe]

Thank you! We cant wait, my wife has accused me of 'nesting' since i've come up with about 10 things to build for his room.

[Mark Stutz]

I can relate! I hope to get enough time in the shop this weekend to finish a cradle I'm making. I had sent a link to plans and suggested chery since that was what I had the most of. Perfect was the reply!

We were visiting a couple of weeks ago and the discussion turned to the next piece. Turns out my son and daughter in law have become big Stickley/Craftsman fans, so I have books on order from amazon and have started sourcing QS white oak!

[Christopher Charles]

Congrats! My oldest son turned 14 today. We were living in a small rental house when he was born and had a great landlord. Right after congratulating us on my son's birth, he remarked that "kids make the days long and the years fly by".

Curious--will the cabinet be on a stand, sit on a table or be wall mounted?

Good luck with the new arrival :)

Cheers,
C

[Brian Holcombe]

Nice Mark, Stickley pieces will keep you busy! I'd love to see the cradle when it's finished, I may end up building a crib.

Thanks Christopher! Hah, I'm sure thats true, they days seem very short now, it will be a welcome deviation from the day escaping me.

On the cabinet, I'll be making a base for it. It's a pretty hefty piece, the overall is going to be 48"~ x 29" x 18". I think it's huge, but I'm sure it will be packed full within moments of arriving.

[Brian Holcombe]

Taking a short break from inner case work to build the lower panel, supports and stand for the base;

I built the lower panel in strips, it was unnecessary to use wide panels for the bottom as it will remain mostly unseen and a glue up offers slightly more stability; I resawed strips from a piece of 8/4 and used those glued up to form the panel.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/D8102AB2-A0D7-40B7-9671-1105D9600998_zpslg7reeal.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/D8102AB2-A0D7-40B7-9671-1105D9600998_zpslg7reeal.jpg.html)

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/4A2DB4FB-BADC-484F-97D3-A91712581569_zpssni0mlki.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/4A2DB4FB-BADC-484F-97D3-A91712581569_zpssni0mlki.jpg.html)

This is how I've been shooting the sides of these thin panels (5/8" thick) to square them up, it has been working very well....and yes that is a #7 plane that is turning out nice end grain shavings, hehehe.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/376A2A11-58F5-4224-9186-057AD1EC362D_zps71l5yhfi.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/376A2A11-58F5-4224-9186-057AD1EC362D_zps71l5yhfi.jpg.html)

Didnt take many photos of how the base members were dimensioned and constructed, I was in the heat of the moment;

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/3F1A392F-BEA6-45CA-8BA4-0C6FC14AED4B_zpsiljtmtmw.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/3F1A392F-BEA6-45CA-8BA4-0C6FC14AED4B_zpsiljtmtmw.jpg.html)

Smoothing

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/29906783-89F1-437A-A85C-E42351B4E483_zpspajzmpcm.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/29906783-89F1-437A-A85C-E42351B4E483_zpspajzmpcm.jpg.html)

Layout for the base through tenons, rabbets, housings and dovetails;

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/5934B289-53EB-4A78-BDF6-2EB67F30B496_zpsuow7sm8y.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/5934B289-53EB-4A78-BDF6-2EB67F30B496_zpsuow7sm8y.jpg.html)

All dimensioning on this panel, including resawing, jointing and bringing to final dimension has been entirely by hand.

Using this for the lower trestle, though I may not since it has some interesting grain in it. I plan to see how stable it remains then decide if I will use it.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/3AAAD65C-2DC7-4987-88A3-DA9CF0E17384_zpsdh3jmraw.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/3AAAD65C-2DC7-4987-88A3-DA9CF0E17384_zpsdh3jmraw.jpg.html)

[Barry Dima]

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/307F45BD-0CBD-4A76-A057-CD9DABF94451_zpsbuf0fw2x.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/307F45BD-0CBD-4A76-A057-CD9DABF94451_zpsbuf0fw2x.jpg.html)


I barely made it past this picture, but I'm sure glad I did. Hoo boy, there's some craftsmanship in here, Brian. Thanks for the inspiration and motivation.


I just want to say: This thread delivers, and you can rip w/ a handsaw almost as good as I can with a bandsaw.

However, I have to diverge with Phil from here. While your cuts are nearly immaculate, where are the burn marks, I ask? You lay out your project, sapwood and all, gorgeously, but where are sporadic, unintentional dark lines from poor bandsaw rips? Where's the chaos? entropy? cats and dogs living together?


Thank you! We cant wait, my wife has accused me of 'nesting' since i've come up with about 10 things to build for his room.

... I feel like there's a deep pun somewhere in here about a dovetailed nest. But still, congrats to you and your growing family! If you're like me (and you seem much, much better), projects for the kid will become consuming. My wee one just got a mallet so she can help me pound joints together—and take all of the blame for any shoddy work. (It's the poorest workman who blames both his own tools and his kid's tools, yea?) Please, share any projects you do for your little one.

[ken hatch]

Brian,

As always, you do good work. I didn't see a post on the new baby....Did I miss it?

ken

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks Fellas.

Ken, we ran off topic for a bit, no formal announcement on the board. Once he can crawl I think I'll get him started with a block plane and a small bench, hehe.

Barry, lol, I appreciate the humor. You can tell i'm hard at work in that picture, with both the espresso cup and the ipad nearby.

[Barry Dima]

Barry, lol, I appreciate the humor. You can tell i'm hard at work in that picture, with both the espresso cup and the ipad nearby.

To kinda echo others in the thread, the workspace is terrific; I hardly needed to see more.

Now please excuse me while I steal at least five ideas from your shop.

[Brian Holcombe]

Thank you!

Please, by all means. A great deal of the shop related ideas been borrowed from something I've seen elsewhere and modified for my specific use, in fact I did build threads on the small benches.

[Christopher Charles]

Looks good Brian and glad to see you keeping up the woodworking even with a growing family :)

Keep the posts coming; I'm stuck in armchair spectating for a while yet...

Cheers,
C

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks Christopher! Lucky enough young Henry seems to enjoy the soothing sounds of saws, chisels and planes, so the more woodwork the better....hehe or so I say to my wife.

[Brian Holcombe]

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/5413026B-5608-4AAB-9D7D-B08BAF2CC596_zpszvyttz9z.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/5413026B-5608-4AAB-9D7D-B08BAF2CC596_zpszvyttz9z.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/CBAF3572-E2B1-455D-ACD3-9677393AEE6F_zpsudlzjd1w.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/CBAF3572-E2B1-455D-ACD3-9677393AEE6F_zpsudlzjd1w.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/FF4765B4-56AF-456D-8372-236134550DB5_zps8wyeesqc.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/FF4765B4-56AF-456D-8372-236134550DB5_zps8wyeesqc.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/5F30F11A-C085-40DE-A6D5-EF68964B6C8E_zpsmoa3vhu5.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/5F30F11A-C085-40DE-A6D5-EF68964B6C8E_zpsmoa3vhu5.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/9D3D9BF1-792C-4BDA-8594-564EACE914DB_zpszrce0xoy.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/9D3D9BF1-792C-4BDA-8594-564EACE914DB_zpszrce0xoy.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/630FF80D-FA02-4510-95FC-0E8A77C817C2_zpsvzhqy5qe.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/630FF80D-FA02-4510-95FC-0E8A77C817C2_zpsvzhqy5qe.jpg.html)

This panel is for the bottom of the case, and so I'm doing half blind dovetails and spanning a good distance between the tails which gets wider as it goes toward the edge.

The span in the center is so that these dovetails will cover my joinery for the battens which will be above the panel inside the case and this probably wont make a whole lot of sense until it starts coming together.

I decided to make the base with those massive tenons because it will pass through the panel and through the batterns, then they will be wedged. I decided to take this approach over using screws on the inside of the case. I'm going through all of this extra effort because I plan to have a false back on this cabinet and so the back will not contribute to the rigidity of the case as much as it would otherwise.

[Judson Green]

Jez Brian a sport coat really!? Lol

Love seeing your WIP keep em coming.

[Brian Holcombe]

LOL, that's a good catch, but actually a robe. I put in some time before getting ready for the day and usually I'm too lazy to change.

[Mike Holbrook]

Nice Brian! We have a few of the same tools, including iPad covers. Nice woods too.

[glenn bradley]

Brian, I have really been enjoying tagging along on this one. Thanks for taking the time to show so many of your steps. I'm with you on the early morning shop time. I hit the shop on the alternate mornings of my workouts. I enjoy the shop mornings more ;-)

[Phil Thien]

LOL, that's a good catch, but actually a robe. I put in some time before getting ready for the day and usually I'm too lazy to change.

I'm imagining a reality show focused around your casual woodworking life.

It would be better than 99% of what is on the tube.

[Brian Holcombe]

Nice Brian! We have a few of the same tools, including iPad covers. Nice woods too.


Brian, I have really been enjoying tagging along on this one. Thanks for taking the time to show so many of your steps. I'm with you on the early morning shop time. I hit the shop on the alternate mornings of my workouts. I enjoy the shop mornings more ;-)


I'm imagining a reality show focused around your casual woodworking life.

It would be better than 99% of what is on the tube.

Thanks Fellas! Glad you are enjoying.

Lol, a reality show based on my life may hold a very narrow appeal as soon as I start waxing poetic about the Japanese hammer.

[Brian Holcombe]

Finished dovetailing the bottom. I installed it as a test fit to make sure that I'm within a good tolerance for dimensions and squareness. The bottom was mildly out of square prior to assembly and test fitting the bottom brought that back in line with the top. Now the cabinet itself is a bit like a spinal cord with all of these free floating dovetailed frames.


This installment is not as picture intense, sometimes, being in the heat of the moment I do not always reach for the camera.

I started by trimming the bottoms to proper length and squareness. These are 5/8" thick panels, so I've taken to clamping them to the bench with holdfasts and a spacer on both sides and using the bench as a big shooting board as shown previously. It works beautifully on thin stock (not preferred on heavy stuff). Using a 45 degree pitch #7 plane for this.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/BD065652-5138-4C3D-8FA2-BED7BBAA3904_zpsnjgjmihl.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/BD065652-5138-4C3D-8FA2-BED7BBAA3904_zpsnjgjmihl.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/7994D4FE-85C0-422A-92AA-935BBF276E35_zpszcmbf4ek.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/7994D4FE-85C0-422A-92AA-935BBF276E35_zpszcmbf4ek.jpg.html)

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/6F32FDDA-7F60-4D3E-B0D7-68415E21C086_zpsvzy6fvyw.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/6F32FDDA-7F60-4D3E-B0D7-68415E21C086_zpsvzy6fvyw.jpg.html)


http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/B77F1565-A896-41AB-959C-8D98EC099887_zps07m6ndvh.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/B77F1565-A896-41AB-959C-8D98EC099887_zps07m6ndvh.jpg.html)

Next I marked the panels then cut them. For these I used heavy overcuts in the areas which will remain unseen. This looks gappy, it will be cleaned up in the final assembly.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/264C6D04-E23C-4E3A-9A7C-2363357B5DB3_zpsbntsjjni.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/264C6D04-E23C-4E3A-9A7C-2363357B5DB3_zpsbntsjjni.jpg.html)

Mitered the inside sill to accept the bottom sill. What you may not see here, but is part of this, that bottom lip falls into a dadoed groove in the bottom of the panel. You can possibly make out the groove, but it's a rather tight fit. I used one of Terry's planes for that, what a wonderful device.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/39916FD7-0345-465A-BAB7-F9369198C3EF_zpsz8jeibjr.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/39916FD7-0345-465A-BAB7-F9369198C3EF_zpsz8jeibjr.jpg.html)

Last I made the bottom sill and mitered the corners.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/82ED2FED-7952-42AE-989F-85F9AB7DEEE1_zps1am4rw9a.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/82ED2FED-7952-42AE-989F-85F9AB7DEEE1_zps1am4rw9a.jpg.html)

These will be laminated in, but not quite yet.

Here is an updated look at the cabinet as it sits.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/656C33A9-D376-4DA9-9364-F810727C0A1E_zpsirbgcmwt.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/656C33A9-D376-4DA9-9364-F810727C0A1E_zpsirbgcmwt.jpg.html)

[James Pallas]

Brian Your joinery work is really something great. The rest of your work is the same. It gives me something to work towards. The photography is excellent also. Keep it coming I'm watching and learning.
jim

[Mike Cogswell]

LOL, that's a good catch, but actually a robe. I put in some time before getting ready for the day and usually I'm too lazy to change.
Oh thank goodness. For a moment there I thought you were doing this exquisite work in your immaculate shop whilst wearing a suit and tie per your avatar. The quality of your work and cleanliness of your shop is about all I can stand. A coat would have finished me off.

[Phil Thien]

Really enjoying this thread.

Not that it matters, any maybe I missed it, but what is going INTO the cabinet?

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks Fellas!

Mike, I have a couple lab coats in the shop for day to day.....just kidding :p

Phil, the top drawers are for jewelry, so I plan to line those. The bottom drawers are for delicates. I am planning it in a way where I expect it will be easy to repurpose if the plan changes, so the top drawers will be without small dividers. Instead I will probably just divide them into two or three sections.

Today I built the major crossmembers to support the bottom of the case and top of the legs. The reason for this is mainly to support the base. I have plans to cut a housing into the bottom panel to accept the base, and so I wasn't confident that the remaining 1/2" of material would be strong enough to support what will eventually be a very heavy cabinet.

All I had in the pile that I was willing to sacrifice and willing to work was hard maple and white oak....and so I chose the hard maple.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/8D3D2698-0709-4562-9CB0-9A14FE524174_zpsrylwehin.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/F4267781-D13A-4360-AED8-F070B3334D75_zpsirmfipw3.jpg

I can usually saw well enough to dimension with the jointer and without needing to bother will using anything else. I have my jointer set with an aggressive chip breaker setting (.010"~) and so most straight grained wood looks gorgeous and doesn't need follow up with a finish plane.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/B65D7FA8-2123-44E5-84AF-B0F7C464256A_zpsvi8bpfii.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/5C3BAFA4-199A-4283-8C22-1F3B1A28C064_zpsp9ahzwvt.jpg

Cut to length, cut square then cut tapered dovetails on either end with heavy shoulders.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/F05A2DB5-8A24-4A80-B4C1-DDD750F1B5B9_zpsx60z1po0.jpg

I forgot to photograph the housing, so I may do so when everything comes back apart for the wedged through tenons on the base.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/BA645484-A71D-4941-A71E-C1388E4DB3A5_zpsrstks1qv.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/2FC2027B-B0CB-4FE8-BD86-E8B1D5647C2C_zpsrxx83uqg.jpg

[Brian Holcombe]

Cut tenons, squared them and paring the baseline here;

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/DC1DF14C-89F9-420E-BDE9-C21D1CA38B8D_zpsnjgxezxo.jpg

i had some heavy paring to do, and cutting on a skew while taking small bites moved through the work quickly.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/D5FAA062-86F1-43D4-8D17-A361A1E69120_zpsgxoiufeo.jpg

it was pretty square off of my block but needed a little tweaking;

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/B18967B6-A29D-4E4D-80F3-3ED507359C7D_zpsutrqulfc.jpg

Same with these half laps, I want these to wind up very similar to one another before I cut the stretcher.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/8B1145E0-E5C3-4648-A25F-984D950B2803_zpsiv0s3yrk.jpg

Now on to layout and initial cutting of the mortises on the bottom panel and subsequent crossmembers;


http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/67FEA41A-0E58-4B3F-A189-0977216DEDE2_zpsmcfvs8ec.jpg

started by drilling just shy 3/4 holes with a brace and bit which allows me to cut clean holes and also maintain perpendicularity.

This is the underside and it came through clean.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/6A762F26-6FFA-4740-AFC1-CDABF2508C74_zpsalzi879z.jpg

I chop waste into the hole when cutting mortises and this works quite quickly on large mortises;

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/DAB2CE7A-7497-4974-A0A2-91EEB72F3F2E_zpshxexnjm9.jpg

I then spin the chisel and cut back toward the line again;

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/6B7FF8D0-12F7-471C-960B-EC41440CE007_zpszvv71kmh.jpg

i see mention of mortise chisels not being a priority for sharpness, mine are sharp enough to pare with and I maintain them with a strop while I cut.

Needs a slight tweeting but it is mostly there;

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/0A067E5B-E90A-49F9-A7D8-F2849DF6C7F0_zpsqkmv3xxq.jpg

three more of these then cut housings, then onto the cross member;

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/1C71277A-0C0E-4024-A44C-3455B45FA9E5_zpsqxkgnn0c.jpg

these are much tougher since the hole is 1" wide and 1.5" deep. So I will work from both sides and pare the finish, then return to the top to cut for wedges;

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/F35F3F00-C95E-44EC-BD1E-C9CB87C6C767_zpsqssu9ioa.jpg

i used to really dread mortise cutting, but practice makes a hell of a change along with a 675g hammer and paring sharp mortise chisels. I still take small bites and that helped tremendously to improve my results.

[Mike Holbrook]

Nice chisel work Brian! 675g hammer is about 1 1/2 lbs/ 24 oz. I believe. The 4 lb Wilton hand sledge I use for splitting and convincing tractor attachments might be a little too much then, but the 375g barrel, Japanese chisel is too small? I have often wondered about what might be a good metal hammer size for driving Japanese mortise chisels. TFWW offers a 570g, Tools from Japan offers 670g hammers. I suspect Brian's is from a Gennou maker he mentioned in another thread. I suspect a metal hammer of that size would drive a mortise chisel with more authority and probably precision than a lighter hammer. Yes, Brian I am offering you the opportunity to just go ahead and wax poetically about chisel hammers. Just get it off your chest Brian, some of us are definitely interested in hearing your thoughts.

[Brian Holcombe]

LOL, thanks Mike!

Bear in mind I continue my progression and study of Japanese tools, so I am not an authority, just proceeding with enthusiasm. I decided to get a 375g as well because 675g this is a heavy weight to swing for all tasks.

The combination of metal hammer with a soft center and hardened ends combined with hooped handle has a dead-blow effect. It's that effect that really drives the chisel. I decided on red oak handles for the mortise chisels for that same reason.

Ebony would not deaden the blow as much as red oak, and so for my small carving chores I decided on ebony handles and a small hammer, it should result in an untempered transfer of the hammer blow.

I preferred this to the bouncing of wooden mallets, though I'm sure some may prefer them for that same reason.

[Brian Holcombe]

Took a moment from banging my hammer to finish rabbeting the inner panels and cutting their receiver grooves in the web framing;


http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/575E1A01-98CE-4139-B3A3-52574486EEF4_zpsfyspnq6i.jpg


http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/B9982C82-7AB9-4CAD-939F-F09FF7F344F6_zpsycwpfzrx.jpg


Then I returned to finish chopping my mortises, test fitting, trimming, final fitting and then installation. I was in the groove all day and did not take much in the way of photos until most of it was complete.


http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/5295B348-1C67-4CA2-9AE9-F62F62F9D52E_zpsz4bnmw91.jpg


http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/5EA59BB4-194C-4431-9FBB-963F2A215D79_zpsbilclw14.jpg


The cabinet is quite stiff now, the inner panels, base and crossmembers have added a lot of integrity to the structure.


Onto the lower stretcher;


http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/0C162111-1572-485B-84C3-DC52C3B31416_zpsxlvivzlj.jpg


http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/88C917DF-5756-4ACA-BEC1-390ACB4210B9_zpsogl9hd3w.jpg


Those few marks from an errant saw blade will be gone soon enough.

[Phil Mueller]

I don't know how I missed this thread until now. I suppose congratulations is in order since your last post. Hope mom and baby are doing well.
Regarding your woodworking, I wish I were your Mother...you're craftsmanship is amazing. Thanks for all the step by step pics. While it's far beyond where I'm at, it reminds me to pay attention to grain, the value of a good saw (someday), and working through all the details. It's really inspiring.

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks Phil! Everyone is doing well!

Reading the grain was difficult for me at first then it became much more intuitive after a sort of 'Ah-ha' moment. I try and reach a little further with every project, or most every project, by stepping slightly outside of my realm every time and inviting a new a difficulty. In this case I feel I was reaching a bit by deciding to dovetail the webframes, but now that is something I will likely incorporate on most of the casegoods that I build. However, I'll probably change the designs so that I can make them through and tapered.

I went with tapered dovetails on the crossmembers and that is much easier to work with than plain sliding dovetails which seem to be either overly tight or overly loose.

My wife really likes this Plan File type jewelry box, and so I would not surprised if I'm making another one of these very shortly after completing this one, but with a few minor changes.

[Phil Stone]

Thanks Phil! Everyone is doing well!

... In this case I feel I was reaching a bit by deciding to dovetail the webframes, but now that is something I will likely incorporate on most of the casegoods that I build. However, I'll probably change the designs so that I can make them through and tapered.

I went with tapered dovetails on the crossmembers and that is much easier to work with than plain sliding dovetails which seem to be either overly tight or overly loose.


I'll have to go back and see how you did the tapered sliding dovetails with handtools, Brian. On my nearly completed bench, I used that joint, but did so with a router and fairly elaborate jigs. It's a wonderful, self-locking joint, but I'd sure love to find a way to do it by hand.

[Brian Holcombe]

If it's blind and not excessively long I cut them just like a half blind dovetail but with a slight taper. If they are through and through they're easier as I can cut them with a dado plane and dovetail side rabbets, Terry gordon has a really good video on doing just that on his site.

[Christopher Charles]

Hello Brian,

Continuing to enjoy your build thread. Would you care to share your design process? Do you work from you're own drawings? To what degree do you design as you go?

Thanks,
C

[Brian Holcombe]

Awesome, glad to hear that you are enjoying! It's probably true that I am a woodworker out of being a frustrated designer. Meaning that I began woodworking because I had a design I wanted to see in the flesh and have continued because I want to bring my ideas to life. I work in classical proportion, which is also known as golden ratio, primarily.

I work out the majority of my projects on paper, to scale, before ever picking up a tool. I am not a classically trained woodworker, so I'm working with intuition on how wood works and drafting ideas and theorising which will work and which will fail and why. Over time I have adjusted my 'on paper' eye to acknowledge my 'in the flesh' eye, meaning I have learned what I like and dislike about previous designs once they are in the flesh. Typically one draws in plan views on paper, but in real life you are only seeing in perspective. So you rarely ever see pieces exactly as you drew them, but instead at eye level or at a seated level and that changes how you enjoy certain designs. So, I have learned to keep a mental list of practical guidelines.

I do alter designs as I go, sometimes I find something I planned is not very practical when actually in the wood, and so I'll make a change. Other times I decide that I want to incorporate a new idea or technique immediately. In this instance I decided that I would like to do a chip carved foot, reminiscent of timber frame, ahead of those angled cuts I typically make.

I do like to increase my mental catalog of design ideas and I do so by traveling, going to museums, visiting workshops, visiting buildings, ect. I like to acknowledge the built world and how people accomplished things in the past and why and keep that in the back of my mind. When an idea is forming, certain aspects are often something I've seen in my past that then emerge on paper.

[Mark Stutz]

Brian,
I've watched Terry's video on the sliding dovetail, as well as several others, and want to try it. Do you have Terry's side rabbets with the dovetail fence, or do you use standard side rabbets with a batten clanped onto the workpiece? Are those his planes a couple of posts up?

I wonder if the LN 98/99 would work for this?

[Brian Holcombe]

Mark, I am using Terry's planes and my dovetail side rabbet has the fence. I haven't used a batten for this, but I could see how one would be quite useful in certain scenarios, especially near the finished cut. The fence acts as a depth stop as well and thats helpful in certain cases. Side rabbets can cut the floor of the dado slightly, and on a through dovetail this is something to avoid.

I haven't used the 98/99 and the reason I went with Terry's planes over those was that I wanted a long reference. Most of the time when I'm planing a sliding dovetail it's fairly wide, and so a long reference is helpful in keeping those true.

I have an ECE dovetail plane as well, it's bigger yet, and so I use it for roughing out the male portions of the joint.

[Brian Holcombe]

Here's an updated shot of the cabinet. Pretty distinct Charlotte Perriand influence that will seem less so once the doors are on (she took to sliding doors typically). I have one side of the stretcher mostly finished in a chip carving. I applied the texture with a gouge.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/76E4CE1F-5815-4029-A6DD-FCE0A6767D63_zpsd0mvxvgb.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/76E4CE1F-5815-4029-A6DD-FCE0A6767D63_zpsd0mvxvgb.jpg.html)

After the base is complete I will build a frame and panel back for the cabinet.

[Chuck Hart]

Brian I am really jealous of your wood, and your skill. Nice stuff. As the saying goes "You suck" :D

[Brian Holcombe]

Hah, thanks Chuck! Cheers!

[Frederick Skelly]

That's coming together beautifully. Can't wait to see her finished!
Fred

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks Fred!

[ian maybury]

Hi Brian. I hadn't been following, but worked through the thread just now. Lovely work, and while i'm a mixed hand and power person a nice reminder of just what hand tools are capable of.

The thoughts it really brings out for me are (a) there's no substitute for the right tools properly set up (one wrong move and it's oops/it's not necessarily a low cost route - no wonder high end cabinetry was rare enough back in the day), and (b) there's so much of what is actually design involved in the making - the combination of the design of the piece and the choice of material and methods are really a single planning task, even though they often tend to get thought of separately. ( c) It's easy to forget the quality of work that's possible with hand tools - in the right hands, and applied with the right mindset.

It's scary how far the mentality that underpins the consumer/box store version of tools and DIY is from this. A visiting (and not very practical) brother in law the other week left my fairly ordinary workshop shaking his head after being walked though a series of hand tools and machines and how they worked and were set up - the complexity/precision involved in everything blew his mind.

There's more than a bit of a tendency in these days of specialisation too (in the broader house and contents context) for designers to at times to not have a very practical grasp of function and build/construction - never mind the immersion in the user situation that's necessary to properly understand requirements. The various schools (architectural etc) often don't emphasise especially the practicalities to any significant degree at all. So many marketing/business types think manufacturing is just something that happens - old hat. Maybe we need a system of life long progression - where our designers work their way up through the various disciplines.

The Japanese predictably enough have in some quarters tended to not just value, but also to set out to implement this sort of thing properly….

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks Ian! It's funny that you mention that, because it reminds me of a quote from Louis Kahn. He was a guest lecture in an architecture class and said this;

''If you think of Brick, you say to Brick, ‘What do you want, Brick?’ And Brick says to you, ‘I like an Arch.’ And if you say to Brick, ‘Look, arches are expensive, and I can use a concrete lintel over you. What do you think of that, Brick?’ Brick says, ‘I like an Arch.’ And it’s important, you see, that you honor the material that you use. [..] You can only do it if you honor the brick and glorify the brick instead of shortchanging it."

for some reason this quote has always resonated with me, I grew up constantly having odd hobbies of metalworking and woodworking and as a kid sometimes I had nothing to do except geek out on materials and their properties. And so it became very apparent to me at a young age that I must respect the material I work with, any time I have forgotten that it reminds me.

[ian maybury]

It's always a meditative deal i think Brian. As in slowing down enough to get as close as we possibly can to the true reality of what we are doing. The perennial problem we all tend to suffer from is that in an effort to short cut (out of fear, laziness, perception of poverty whatever) we adopt mind models that actually are not a very accurate representation of the reality we are engaged in. We try to buck the natural flow of things. The scene can be social, work, technical, environmental whatever. Wishful thinking often kicks in.

:) Then reality turns around and bites us up the ass - just to keep us grounded.

Woodworking is a great teacher…...

[Brian Holcombe]

And so a minor change to the low stretcher;

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/8019D512-C9D1-47E4-BBC1-6379FD35F2CD_zpsg1x1u1bw.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/F0A7C3FE-E47E-4800-8D01-BDD9B2104194_zpsppw7sgnc.jpg

[David Wong]

Hi Brian,
The facets are very nice. Your photo really shows off how it catches the light. What did you use to crown the stretchers?
David

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks David! I used a jack plane followed by a spoke shave.

[Brian Holcombe]

Prepping stock for the back panel.
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/CCE2F8F9-2F6D-4D74-BBFB-B1E1B6FF51CC_zpsdjrfmhyc.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/CCE2F8F9-2F6D-4D74-BBFB-B1E1B6FF51CC_zpsdjrfmhyc.jpg.html)

All out of 4/4 so, needed to rip down some 8/4

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/1CCDBBBA-4C17-43E6-AB5D-0042C4770DB4_zpsbydgofkc.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/1CCDBBBA-4C17-43E6-AB5D-0042C4770DB4_zpsbydgofkc.jpg.html)

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/4DF82AFA-BAF3-44E4-82E5-05C88CD39537_zpsvxrdbew9.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/4DF82AFA-BAF3-44E4-82E5-05C88CD39537_zpsvxrdbew9.jpg.html)

All dimensioned and now cutting grooves. These grooves are to locate the back on the case;
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/524B86F5-9B52-47AD-815D-615906E5B054_zps5w8ocfad.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/524B86F5-9B52-47AD-815D-615906E5B054_zps5w8ocfad.jpg.html)

Next are the grooves to hold the inner panel....no plough....no problem;
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/EE92CF1C-74B2-4F8B-B911-BA1117457DAE_zps9xdfyx6o.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/EE92CF1C-74B2-4F8B-B911-BA1117457DAE_zps9xdfyx6o.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/6CD1E967-5744-4EE1-A6A4-F7BCB36A1939_zpskkzvo7gh.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/6CD1E967-5744-4EE1-A6A4-F7BCB36A1939_zpskkzvo7gh.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/450D8F5B-DB2B-4A31-9EF6-B63FB51E318F_zpsbqod5jbc.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/450D8F5B-DB2B-4A31-9EF6-B63FB51E318F_zpsbqod5jbc.jpg.html)

and now they're mocked up in the back of the cabinet. I'm laying out the tenons and they will fall right into the ploughed grooves.
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/C8C58C2E-F139-43DD-9735-1503C2A3C55F_zpsxl01xyls.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/C8C58C2E-F139-43DD-9735-1503C2A3C55F_zpsxl01xyls.jpg.html)

[Brian Holcombe]

I mentioned these here over in Derek's thread, but this was what I had in mind (minus the inside corner). I debated various haunches and landed on these feeling that they would help me to maintain my baseline with their wedging action.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/1D8B75BA-7BEE-4B69-B6EF-E0FA8941B78E_zpsprwjyett.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/1D8B75BA-7BEE-4B69-B6EF-E0FA8941B78E_zpsprwjyett.jpg.html)


http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/D3A8B699-6902-4496-9792-51A58A312295_zpsvroep0pv.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/D3A8B699-6902-4496-9792-51A58A312295_zpsvroep0pv.jpg.html)

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/E92D7FA8-8EDD-424C-BD97-DAC3AE19F5AD_zpsxeqsxbxb.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/E92D7FA8-8EDD-424C-BD97-DAC3AE19F5AD_zpsxeqsxbxb.jpg.html)

Trimmed the top of the stile to also have a rabbet and it now sits flush in the cabinet. This slight misalignment will disappear with some plane work. Important part is that the grooves in both rail and stile are perfectly aligned.
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/C16B79E1-6788-4C39-B9B7-29E8D7C488DD_zpsrvz8zbvj.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/C16B79E1-6788-4C39-B9B7-29E8D7C488DD_zpsrvz8zbvj.jpg.html)

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/80C3D428-1F76-479B-9361-85FB41FE9CD3_zpsyvmhdj4b.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/80C3D428-1F76-479B-9361-85FB41FE9CD3_zpsyvmhdj4b.jpg.html)

Now to chop mortises for the lower rail which will also have a mitered haunch.

[Mark Almeidus]

Beautifull work. I wish one day i will be able to build like that.
One minor critic thou, you should posted the build with pics at once. Like this is like watching tv series, and i hate them. :)
Hats off.

[Jim Matthews]

Beautifull work. I wish one day i will be able to build like that.
One minor critic thou, you should posted the build with pics at once. Like this is like watching tv series, and i hate them. :)
Hats off.

At least he has the decency to sweep the floor before taking pictures.
Have of my "build in progress" photos look like an advertisement for
another TV show - Hoarders.

I'm glad to see whatever the 'Big Dogs' post, as they move along.
It helps put the amount of time required into perspective.

For me, it's a satisfying hobby - I couldn't afford to buy the stuff I make.

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks Gents! Hopefully this TV series ends on a cliff hanger every week! Lol..

Jim, certainly that's the case here as well. I couldn't even afford my hours at this point :D I estimate about 300 hours so far.

[Mark Stutz]

This slight misalignment will disappear with some plane work. Important part is that the grooves in both rail and stile are perfectly aligned.

Thanks for reminding us of this. I am all too guilty of wanting everything to be perfect from the get-go.

Thanks again for taking the time to do this. I am learning and relearning a lot, having been away from this for a while.

[Brian Holcombe]

Cheers! Glad you guys are enjoying.

[Prashun Patel]

At least he has the decency to sweep the floor before taking pictures.

Before taking pictures?

He sweeps the floor in between plane strokes.

I've SEEN his floor. His carpet is so clean it squeaks.

[Brian Holcombe]

Before taking pictures?

He sweeps the floor in between plane strokes.

I've SEEN his floor. His carpet is so clean it squeaks.

LOL!

I'm guilty of sometimes taking the plane shaving out of the plane and putting them directly into a paper bag. OCD.....it's a gift and a curse.

[John Schtrumpf]

I'm guilty of sometimes taking the plane shaving out of the plane and putting them directly into a paper bag. .....
I put my shavings in a bag too, less to clean up off the rug :D

P.S. I can't wait for the next installment!

[Brian Holcombe]

A little OCD goes a long way :p.

May be a bit, need to finish the bed first, which will take me about two months.

[Brian Holcombe]

Had some time to make progress on the cabinet.

I finished up the back panel, along with it's surrounding frame;
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/EBF21C46-D5A3-40ED-A91E-391A3BC3BD4D_zpsqfshmoje.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/EBF21C46-D5A3-40ED-A91E-391A3BC3BD4D_zpsqfshmoje.jpg.html)

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/FE5806F7-D5A9-4A27-86D8-998ACD4FB0F6_zpsjqbq1ut1.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/FE5806F7-D5A9-4A27-86D8-998ACD4FB0F6_zpsjqbq1ut1.jpg.html)

I'm not sure just yet how I'm going to hold the panel in place, right now it's just friction. I have been debating outside pegs and inside sliding wedges.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/674A5B1C-2C59-448C-A26A-F5E5D969DD5A_zpsanhpul5l.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/674A5B1C-2C59-448C-A26A-F5E5D969DD5A_zpsanhpul5l.jpg.html)

You may notice the upper most drawer slot is taller than the rest by 1/2", or you may not. I made a stop for the upper portion of that slot, and will follow up at another point with upper rails.

Now that the majority of the casework is complete I'm moving along to the doors before I complete the drawers. Reason being is primarily a selfish one, being that I want to see how the cabinet looks before making the drawers.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/781DAC23-E1F0-4E8F-9305-3BA0F5B6C4A4_zpsjbzc2jae.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/781DAC23-E1F0-4E8F-9305-3BA0F5B6C4A4_zpsjbzc2jae.jpg.html)

Burled wood door panels

Trimming frame members to length, these were prepped a long while ago and I touched them up to ensure they are flat and without wind.
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/8866F4A5-ACDB-439C-BE33-F7794923622E_zpsdjywn53j.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/8866F4A5-ACDB-439C-BE33-F7794923622E_zpsdjywn53j.jpg.html)

Because these are so tall and thin I've decided to make them integral with the door panel and possibly (though I havent decided 100% yet) make a door liner which seats them on the inside moldings and this will double as a necklace holder.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/4F12FD49-1785-4059-A533-AA93F435E633_zpskdefepvh.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/4F12FD49-1785-4059-A533-AA93F435E633_zpskdefepvh.jpg.html)

Grooving the door frame parts
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/18957004-6DB5-41C8-9C84-10B6D743FE21_zpsay4v0y3t.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/18957004-6DB5-41C8-9C84-10B6D743FE21_zpsay4v0y3t.jpg.html)

And finally the door panels out of the press

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/52B1EEC5-35FA-49EA-8C32-F30F5191750D_zpsbofphdjy.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/52B1EEC5-35FA-49EA-8C32-F30F5191750D_zpsbofphdjy.jpg.html)

I plan to upholster the inside of the door panels in leather, so a batten system will double as a frame for holding the upholstered panel. Hoping that I have enough material left over to upholster all that I need to upholster, so I may be searching for another hide soon, maybe I'll do natural leather behind the doors and black in the drawers or something to that effect.

I have some lamb suede....maybe that will be nice behind the doors....just thinking out loud.

[Brian Holcombe]

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/2F2E77F4-BA8E-4F58-92BE-9D9AEA800E0D_zpsazl9ixo3.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/2F2E77F4-BA8E-4F58-92BE-9D9AEA800E0D_zpsazl9ixo3.jpg.html)

[Brian Holcombe]

A very satisfying update for me, though still a long road ahead. I have not decided 100% what to do for handles, but if I have ebony stock long enough I will use that....otherwise maybe rosewood. As much as I would love to use ebony...this project is getting a little on the deep end for a pro-bono project....so it will likely be rosewood, hah.

I'm planning standard butt hinges, probably Brusso....and onto drawers soon.

I've shelved my other work for a few weeks so I can make some real headway on this cabinet. If I'm going to have this finished for christmas I'm going to need to really get moving on this one. I'll be confident in the completion date a little more so when the drawers are assembled.

I'll resume my normal practice of documenting the work at this point, however I was thinking the mortise and tenoning was getting a little redundant. I have had some requests to document my approach to applying the upholstered panel in the back, and I will do so. As I move into the drawers I will do the same.

Turns out I have enough leather for the back panels, but I will have to source something else for the drawer liners....likely it will be lamb suede which is very easy to work with because it's very thin.

[Chris Hachet]

Amazingly nice work, Sir!

[Prashun Patel]

Your back must be sore from all the slapping. Take another: Great design and crafstmanship.

Your bookmatch looks like the face of a bull. My devious side wants you to put ring pulls near it's nose.

That or long tab pulls along the inner edges.

[Brian Holcombe]

Thank you both!

Prashun, that is hilarious and I'm glad I'm not the only one seeing images in burled wood. I have that cabinet in my study and I'm convinced that the burls look like a samurai helmet, but my wife thinks I'm insane.

Speaking of pull tabs, that has been on my mind recently. I have a slice of macassar ebony basically devoted to this part of the cabinet, but it's about 36" long....which is about 2" shy of the door's height. So I've been debating if I should put them on the inside edges or centered on the stiles. Not sure what the final thickness will be, it depends on where I place them to some extent. It will probably be 1" x 3/8" with a full length finger groove.

[Mike Allen1010]

Great build Brian! Now that I've read Prashtun's post, I too see the bulls face on the veneered panels. I really admire how you balance aesthetic design with outstanding technical execution. Thanks for posting!
Cheers, Mike

[Brian Holcombe]

Three of us can see it now...so we can't possibly be crazy :p

Thank you, kind sir!

[Christopher Charles]

The three of you are crazy. It is clearly a mad goat, not a bull. :)

Brian, looks great, bet you can't wait to see it with a finish coat. I may have missed it, but what did you use as a substrate for the door panels?

Cheers,
C

[James Pallas]

Brian your cabinet looks great. I really like to see the wood and I don't care much for hardware showing or contrasting wood for hardware. If you could find some small pieces of wood that match to put tabs where the "bulls" nostrils are and possibly use Soss hinges the beauty of the panels would get full attention. Just suggesting. I'm sure whatever you choose will look great. Those panels are really going to pop when you put the polish to them, can't wait to see that.
Jim

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks gents!

Christopher, I can't wait! But, a long road ahead with the drawers. I have settled on drawer slips and lining the drawer bottoms with either leather, suede or shagreen.

The substrate for the door panels and back panel are both 1/2" baltic birch ply.

James, thank you for the suggestions. I've been debating a few of these things. I may even get a few sets and mock them up. My only worry with the Soss hinges is that they protrude back into the case about 1/4"…. if the drawers wind up super tight side-to-side it won't be a problem, so I plan to make the drawers first.

Good ideas on the handles, I may be over-reaching by adding a contrasting wood, I don't want the make the face overly complicated. I want to stick with full length handles, but maybe walnut is a better choice than ebony or rosewood. These handles won't be overly heavy and won't be the least bit ornate.

[James Pallas]

Brian, Soss hinges can be done with hand tools. I understand there is an electric router jig for them but I have only done them with hand tools. You are correct in the fact that they could be a problem with the drawers.
Jim

[Brian Holcombe]

Jim,

If you don't mind me asking, what is your procedure for these?

[James Pallas]

Brian you are given a paper template for the hinge in the package. It gives you the set back and the outline. The screw boss and the hinge body are different depths and that is given also in the package. There is a bit of wiggle room on the width of the body part of the mortise. I mark the set back chop the body mortise until I can set the hinge in less the screw bosses then mark those directly from the hinge. I use a gouge to mark and cut the ends in a bit and then use an appropriate chisel to cut down to the land for the screw boss. I have done these for full size house doors to the ones I pictured which were 1 1/2 inch or so. They Also have the round ones that fit in a drilled hole and tighten with a wedge screw on the surface. I only use them in special cases because of the expense. The ones that fit house doors cost as much as a very good door. I have not found it to be difficult to do. I would put it about as difficult as doing those tappered leaf hinges for drop leaf tables. All of the ones I have used have been good quality. I have never used any other brand but Soss. I don't have any connection with Soss other than a user. I'm sure you could find instructions for them on the net. I hope this helps.
Jim

[Brian Holcombe]

Very helpful, thank you!

[Mark Stutz]

Brian,
I'm haveing a hard time envisioning full length handles,probably because I've never done them. What I do see is a diamond shaped set of pulls that echo the diamonds formed in the veneer figure.

[Christopher Charles]

I too am curious about the full length pulls. I was picturing hand carved finger pulls, perhaps with faceted faces similar in texture to your tenon ends. But full length would have a sleeker profile for sure. Would the taper at the top and bottom?

[Brian Holcombe]

I haven't nailed down the profile just yet, but i expect it will wind up in a sort of Bauhaus style. My style so far has been in the influence of Charlotte Perriand, Bauhaus and Japanese.

[Brian Holcombe]

The doors are set for the moment, I smoothed them, and I will return to them when I start working on the backs.

Since it is still humid here and will be for about a month I want to get the drawers on a roll, that starts with prepping the stock. This is going to be a log post showing what's involved in this work;

This is rough milled timber which has been sitting for nearly 6 months after rough cutting to let any twist happen that will happen. I dont want these to twist in use so I'm letting any weirdness work its way out first (hopefully). The large drawers on the bottom have so far been kind to me and they have had fairly minimal twist. I start by setting the winding stick on the stock to see where I need to remove wind;
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/C1D5B351-72FE-4480-AB86-C0CCEDEABEDF_zpsuhncewlz.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/C1D5B351-72FE-4480-AB86-C0CCEDEABEDF_zpsuhncewlz.jpg.html)

You can see the left front and right rear corners just barely turning up. Next I check to see where the board is out of flat along the length. Again i'm pretty well spoiled here, but the board has a belly.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/E7F92ABC-038C-47D6-B99B-319C789F1808_zpsleaurhv1.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/E7F92ABC-038C-47D6-B99B-319C789F1808_zpsleaurhv1.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/BC4D0CDD-EFFC-4377-9B9A-D99338D9F8CB_zpsh9w8f8be.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/BC4D0CDD-EFFC-4377-9B9A-D99338D9F8CB_zpsh9w8f8be.jpg.html)

Some initial cuts are taken, focused on the center of the board to remove the belly, followed by light cuts at the high corners;
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/2A6050A8-55D4-4B34-AE79-229FCBEBAEC3_zpskmph9uxp.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/2A6050A8-55D4-4B34-AE79-229FCBEBAEC3_zpskmph9uxp.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/093A302A-8559-48BA-A033-324A9825389B_zpsvpqt7mu6.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/093A302A-8559-48BA-A033-324A9825389B_zpsvpqt7mu6.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/6E4DB61C-462E-477E-91AC-2ACD5143301A_zpssvh1xpxz.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/6E4DB61C-462E-477E-91AC-2ACD5143301A_zpssvh1xpxz.jpg.html)

After I get a clean face, I am returning to the winding sticks to check my work;
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/78A8385F-3A19-479C-9E78-84257A2A2C07_zps4v5kkab9.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/78A8385F-3A19-479C-9E78-84257A2A2C07_zps4v5kkab9.jpg.html)

Followed by the straight edge to ensure the belly is gone (a slight concave is fine, but this is actually flat)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/C6D262C9-7B9B-4726-AD95-EB3FB0095345_zps6krrwdnr.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/C6D262C9-7B9B-4726-AD95-EB3FB0095345_zps6krrwdnr.jpg.html)

Checking cross grain as well to ensure the board is somewhat flat across the width
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/987B1565-CF52-424D-8CDC-74B306BD0254_zpsiefn5cnp.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/987B1565-CF52-424D-8CDC-74B306BD0254_zpsiefn5cnp.jpg.html)

[Brian Holcombe]

Markout my lines, you see I have a LONG way to go, but not quite enough to resaw the board. I chose stock like this because you never do know what'd going to happen when you resaw a board, it may turn into junk. With seven faces in the same board I do not want to risk one of them being junk;


http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/69E1FD3F-B7A0-4EA0-8F53-D4D368AFE27E_zpsig1reswn.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/69E1FD3F-B7A0-4EA0-8F53-D4D368AFE27E_zpsig1reswn.jpg.html)

Check to see where the board is out of flat, do not need to check the wind because it is in the markout (thick corners are high)

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/94357F9F-FB34-4A65-B671-36DE990C038C_zps9qgsgaro.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/94357F9F-FB34-4A65-B671-36DE990C038C_zps9qgsgaro.jpg.html)

Miter the back edge to prevent blowout;
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/901C3C3C-9EDF-4E10-8E68-0128A2D2E3B4_zpsuvejv7bm.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/901C3C3C-9EDF-4E10-8E68-0128A2D2E3B4_zpsuvejv7bm.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/B13CBF4B-E73C-4B4D-9A36-7C4BB973BA00_zpsrptwkgdz.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/B13CBF4B-E73C-4B4D-9A36-7C4BB973BA00_zpsrptwkgdz.jpg.html)

Rough initial passes at a 45 to prevent massive tearout;
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/E7E86172-151D-4EE5-8AB9-8091B42B7CD6_zpscyqwdbnq.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/E7E86172-151D-4EE5-8AB9-8091B42B7CD6_zpscyqwdbnq.jpg.html)

About 3/16" has been removed quite rapidly;
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/36A10562-FA4E-4578-9670-72313EF10924_zpsamstdgul.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/36A10562-FA4E-4578-9670-72313EF10924_zpsamstdgul.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/504D7189-6759-44AB-AA33-337C03B68EC2_zpsayrt3ugg.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/504D7189-6759-44AB-AA33-337C03B68EC2_zpsayrt3ugg.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/18A37C5F-E767-47F0-93FC-6475AD4271D4_zpsgl57s4qn.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/18A37C5F-E767-47F0-93FC-6475AD4271D4_zpsgl57s4qn.jpg.html)

Wind is out;
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/261F85D8-2C51-45CE-9D7E-034D875A1085_zpstaq8q0dr.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/261F85D8-2C51-45CE-9D7E-034D875A1085_zpstaq8q0dr.jpg.html)

More later.

[Allen Jordan]

That is some nice dimensioning work, I've never been good at getting the matching side parallel. I'll be using my LN 7 1/2 soon for flattening a big walnut slab... never done something that size before, it'll take some serious time I'll bet.

[James Pallas]

Nice work on this post Brian. Pictures, explainations and objectives is very helpful. Do you use steel toe shoes along with your winding sticks.
Jim

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks Allen! There are some nuances to more out of flat boards that aren't shown here; if the initial face were more out of flat or cupped I would start with cross grain cuts. Also, since I removed so much material I will have to readjust my reference face after this side is complete.

I dont know know how much experience you have, so I hope you don't see this as presumptuous, but here are some pointers that I have found in my experiences;

on your slab, start with cross grain work on the both the reference face and the opposing face. Do 95% of the work cross grain, you do not want to be taking big bellies or turned ends out with a large plane long grain. It will take an eon.

I think you will find that once you are taking long cuts with a jointer plane you will find it hellish to push, at that point you may want to switch to a #4 plane setup for heavy cuts.

If you keep after the flatness with a long straight edge it will be easier to work with a smaller plane at the point when you are taking full width long grain cuts.

i have heard people say a slab doesn't need to be flat....if you intend to smooth with a plane then it will need to be very flat to get good passes. On your finish plane make sure you have the edges feathered out so that you are not making track marks. Keep the chipper set tightly, you'll meet plenty of grain reversals in a large slab, and work your way toward full length shavings.

a long accurate straight edge and two or even three winding sticks will save you a lot of headaches if you don't have a set already. Check your straight edge before using it....you'd be surprised at how bad some 8' straight edges can be.

[Brian Holcombe]

Hah, thanks James! Most would be appalled by my footwear...:D

I think Prashun is the only one who knows about it.

on a serious note, those are precision ground beams from McMaster, I had to go through a few before I got any that were accurate along the length.....most were out, and since I do not have straightening equipment on hand I had to request replacements.

[Prashun Patel]

I'm not telling.

But what does 'Winding stick ONLY' mean? What other uses would compromise it?

[Brian Holcombe]

:D

Just my marker, I settled on a few of those that were out .005" over the length of them. That's not good enough for flattening panels, but it's quite alright for use as a winding stick.

[Brian Holcombe]

OK, and inching toward the finish line.

Getting everything to about 95% with the Try plane. This gets from cross grain cuts to flat enough to finish. There is no medium plane because I am keeping a closely set chipper on the trying plane. The tearout is minimal, not even something most would call tearout;

The first passes look like this
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/A46C0AF3-6E3B-400E-92AB-E44929534D17_zpsmb7i2dsf.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/A46C0AF3-6E3B-400E-92AB-E44929534D17_zpsmb7i2dsf.jpg.html)

Then after I'm done with the try plane it looks like this ;
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/2EBE9DBB-FBE1-48B9-9796-4475F8962E9B_zps1hsuce2j.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/2EBE9DBB-FBE1-48B9-9796-4475F8962E9B_zps1hsuce2j.jpg.html)

For the inside of the drawer it would be fair to use just that and skip the finisher.

Anyways, my finisher has seen it's fair share of re-hones, so back to the basics;
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/6439CDCC-4F6A-4BE7-B724-827E085735A4_zpsnyk3etfc.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/6439CDCC-4F6A-4BE7-B724-827E085735A4_zpsnyk3etfc.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/2403B009-4688-4CDE-ADB0-C3CDF1B1DB3D_zpsyudbyhlf.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/2403B009-4688-4CDE-ADB0-C3CDF1B1DB3D_zpsyudbyhlf.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/FFD1F432-089D-494F-A73A-FED4B67EC9D4_zps4zdcjo4u.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/FFD1F432-089D-494F-A73A-FED4B67EC9D4_zps4zdcjo4u.jpg.html)

1000 grit is complete and ready for 3k
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/C6D8C9AB-405D-49A2-86E1-3A8218785A7C_zps5hlqekni.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/C6D8C9AB-405D-49A2-86E1-3A8218785A7C_zps5hlqekni.jpg.html)

3k is done
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/9C6B8103-413C-4339-B938-17D26BD4FB3F_zps6d7nwmxm.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/9C6B8103-413C-4339-B938-17D26BD4FB3F_zps6d7nwmxm.jpg.html)

8k prepped
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/4C808F88-6293-4FC6-A8ED-5ED98FCBD668_zpsjknqurgt.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/4C808F88-6293-4FC6-A8ED-5ED98FCBD668_zpsjknqurgt.jpg.html)

and complete
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/8039C532-E90B-47B7-A18F-C8C88A33474B_zpstur0u5ly.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/8039C532-E90B-47B7-A18F-C8C88A33474B_zpstur0u5ly.jpg.html)

13k finished I dont do this with anything but A2 since the stuff is brutal to polish. O1, white and blue steel are heading to natural stones at this point
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/C748369A-F0C9-4E0E-8E5D-65A10739351C_zpsqf3rzvg2.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/C748369A-F0C9-4E0E-8E5D-65A10739351C_zpsqf3rzvg2.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/34025930-8FAD-4F7E-A99B-295912335080_zpsiwqrweis.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/34025930-8FAD-4F7E-A99B-295912335080_zpsiwqrweis.jpg.html)

There are fine swirls, not unexpected from this stone.
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/92B5E0F5-E191-4750-BFB9-BE52F4DD14A0_zpssaysmyyi.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/92B5E0F5-E191-4750-BFB9-BE52F4DD14A0_zpssaysmyyi.jpg.html)

Clean strop
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/A6AB0F1E-B753-44B8-9399-90E0E3A83F96_zps0wz25k2s.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/A6AB0F1E-B753-44B8-9399-90E0E3A83F96_zps0wz25k2s.jpg.html)

I set the chipper, you'll notice a sweeping curve to the leading edge of the chipper, also polished. Dont ask the depth, I have no idea, if tearout presents I will tighten it.
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/F92AB423-A4BA-48A3-9005-8AFAA9247BCF_zpsn9xyeivh.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/F92AB423-A4BA-48A3-9005-8AFAA9247BCF_zpsn9xyeivh.jpg.html)

[Brian Holcombe]

Heavier shavings (probably .002)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/AA68242F-CBFC-43C1-8B1D-70C9FA5C6E76_zps07ldwzzq.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/AA68242F-CBFC-43C1-8B1D-70C9FA5C6E76_zps07ldwzzq.jpg.html)

Light shavings like .001" or less
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/432604BE-9108-47ED-BEC1-2C1D580EE758_zpsqoehzxft.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/432604BE-9108-47ED-BEC1-2C1D580EE758_zpsqoehzxft.jpg.html)

Finished
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/E0A28C5B-F7E0-4006-B7AF-E8F95DFC776D_zpshw8iiqaq.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/E0A28C5B-F7E0-4006-B7AF-E8F95DFC776D_zpshw8iiqaq.jpg.html)

[Phil Stone]

Now that's a nice finish sheen.

[Scott DelPorte]

Thanks for all the pictures, thats really helpful to see your process and what a beautiful result it gives.

[ian maybury]

Ta Brian. A picture vs a thousand words etc...

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks fellas! Down to the last drawer front now and I'm exhsusted, lol.

ive got some planning to do then onto cutting dovetails since the sides and backs are ready.

[Christopher Charles]

Looking good, thanks for all the pics. I always pick up something--I may check out McMaster for an improved straight edge.

C

[Pat Barry]

Great work Brian and I love all the pictures and detail. Just one question though, does your tweed work jacket have patches on the elbows?

[Robert McNaull]

Cabinet/work looks great. Always enjoy reading and following your process.




Anyways, my finisher has seen it's fair share of re-hones, so back to the basics;
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/6439CDCC-4F6A-4BE7-B724-827E085735A4_zpsnyk3etfc.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/6439CDCC-4F6A-4BE7-B724-827E085735A4_zpsnyk3etfc.jpg.html)



Brian - thanks for sharing all of the sharpening photos, very helpful for me.

You mind captioning the stones/sharpening media in a left to right fashion. I am always interested in what people use, one of the things I miss about David Weaver not posting on here anymore.

[Brian Holcombe]

Great work Brian and I love all the pictures and detail. Just one question though, does your tweed work jacket have patches on the elbows?

How could it not? :p

Thanks Gents!

Chris, if you do buy one or more just be sure to check them for straightness.

Robert,
Left to Right;
Atoma 140, 400, 1200, DMT dia-flat 400, Shinden Suita (Yama Renge), Nakayama Asagi, Chosera 3k, 1k, Naniwa snow-White (8k) and finally Sigma 13000.

one note I wanted to make earlier, this setup, without running water has a higher risk of stray grit transfer, so I am extra cautious about it. Hence the spray bottle and soaking tub, rather then simply dipping the stone a second time. I wipe the stone down after soaking and smoothing, then spray water on to prevent stray grit from scratching the work.

i've also gone through a short period with sandpaper on granite, I like the granite plate, but the sander paper is not for me. The Atoma line up replaced that.

[Tony Shea]

That is an interesting shape on your iron Brian. Do you have any curvature at all to the edge or do you hone straight across and just relieve the corners like it looks in the pictures? I personally have never had good luck relieving just the corners and now always hone a slight camber in my blades. This is just second nature now and is slightly different from blade to blade. I even hone my LN 7 jointer with an ever so slight camber, people say that is a no no but I still get perfect edge joints with the camber and also leave not tracks when jointing the face of boards.

It is always nice to see how different we all work and what methods have stuck with each individual. Thanks for the pics Brian.

[Brian Holcombe]

Mostly straight across with the edges relieved. I find that in order to make certain that they don't dig into the sides I have to sharpen the radiused corners as well….meaning I can't just hone the flat or they will dig in at some point.

The Jointer, smoother and Try plane are all straight across with relieved corners. The Jack has one blade which is very heavily cambered.

[Brian Holcombe]

My drawer fronts are now most of the way complete. I plan to move along with the majority of the rest of the work before deciding what to do on the drawer pulls. My intended plans will not work out as my mom has insisted that I build necklace hangers into the door fronts....using up all of the available space between the drawers and the doors.


So, I am building this setup and likely will complete the drawers before actually deciding on how to open them. Poor planning, I know, but I expect it will work out. Worst case I can do the Nakashima style pull, something I have been very much trying to avoid.
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/7729C47F-E3D8-4198-B760-AA7E26619157_zpskcavcguj.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/7729C47F-E3D8-4198-B760-AA7E26619157_zpskcavcguj.jpg.html)


Showing the molding details inside the case, these are not actually attached yet except by how they lock into the inside panels


http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/1D297395-1749-4BFF-88AB-3A5866E19502_zpsabqgr775.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/1D297395-1749-4BFF-88AB-3A5866E19502_zpsabqgr775.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/C8AEF33F-33D6-40EB-9B94-0A83DC36E57E_zpsmkaqut5i.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/C8AEF33F-33D6-40EB-9B94-0A83DC36E57E_zpsmkaqut5i.jpg.html)


The inside of the doors will be lined with leather, with a thin open space for the necklaces covered by battens and veneered panels
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/DD398FE3-3C6D-4497-8EA2-C7EB85CCD7BD_zpsseoctjfm.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/DD398FE3-3C6D-4497-8EA2-C7EB85CCD7BD_zpsseoctjfm.jpg.html)


This is a very rough mock-up of the inside of the door without the panel
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/F51E1F2E-CABC-4003-8847-930E67CFC9F0_zpsrzrbkxlh.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/F51E1F2E-CABC-4003-8847-930E67CFC9F0_zpsrzrbkxlh.jpg.html)


and with the panel (uncut)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/E655CC57-8B53-4E84-8F24-6C8A3582DB84_zpscfwercsr.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/E655CC57-8B53-4E84-8F24-6C8A3582DB84_zpscfwercsr.jpg.html)

[Brian Holcombe]

James, sorry to disappoint but I landed on Brusso butt hinges. As much as I wanted to use the Soss hinges I was concerned that reducing the clearance between the drawers and case sides would be trouble at some point.

[James Pallas]

Brian I am far from being disappointed. That is a beautiful piece of work and you have to make all of the discissions. Things I say are only suggestions. I was a long way into woodworking before I saw a Soss hinge and was totally intimidated until installing a couple. On another note I did see some drawer pulls made by cutting a more or less square mortise in the center of the drawer and then installing a rocker type affair on some type of hinge pin from the back. You push on the top and the bottom pops out enough to form a pull. It looked like a great idea but I could not investigate because it was a do not touch. Not intuitive at all because it looked like decor rather than a pull being made the same type of wood. Flush ring pulls would work but that isn't campaign furniture your working on. I can see your problem. I'd be willing to lay odds that you will figure it out. Again great work.
Jim

[Brian Holcombe]

Thank you! I'll figure something out. I spent like 2 hours doing mock-ups yesterday, anyone watching certainly would have thought I have lost my mind.

[Christopher Charles]

Those panels will look great finished! will you veneer both sides and then apply leather? Also curious to see your solution for drawer pulls as well. Recessed ring pulls also came to mind but agree with Jim they are out-of-bounds style wise. Must feel good to be on the downslope with the project...

Cheers,
C

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks Christopher! Absolutely, as much as I have enjoyed this project I'm ready to see it start to wrap up. None too soon however with a few more things to go and least of all...drawers.

[John Kananis]

This is coming along nicely - I'm enjoying it.

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks John!

[Derek Cohen]

Brian I am far from being disappointed. That is a beautiful piece of work and you have to make all of the discissions. Things I say are only suggestions. I was a long way into woodworking before I saw a Soss hinge and was totally intimidated until installing a couple. On another note I did see some drawer pulls made by cutting a more or less square mortise in the center of the drawer and then installing a rocker type affair on some type of hinge pin from the back. You push on the top and the bottom pops out enough to form a pull. It looked like a great idea but I could not investigate because it was a do not touch. Not intuitive at all because it looked like decor rather than a pull being made the same type of wood. Flush ring pulls would work but that isn't campaign furniture your working on. I can see your problem. I'd be willing to lay odds that you will figure it out. Again great work.
Jim

Firstly, Brian, looking very good, and increasingly interesting as you progress. The leather and the hinges and the pulls are all that I identify with. I put aside my build for a few weeks to get on with a couple of other matters, and now I am rejuvinated by your recent posts to get back to it.

James, my eyes were transfixed by your mention of drawer pulls that did not look like pulls. I thought that I had found a solution then discarded it as not reliable enough. Can you say more and, as well, point me towards an illustration?

Regards from Perth

Derek

[James Pallas]

Brian and Derek Brian first I apologize for high jacking your thread a bit. Derek I saw the pull on a box in a gallery in Sante Fe, NM years ago. Could not touch the work or get behind it. The pull was a rocker type that you pushed on the top and the bottom protruded enough to get two or three fingers under the edge to pull out the drawer. The box also had a top latch that worked somewhat the same. You pushed on the bottom and it unlatched the lid which sprung up on wooden leaf springs on each side giving space to lift the lid. I built that but did not try the pull. All of it was somewhat disguised by chip carving. The pull was just a block that was beveled top and bottom with some sort of axle from the back. It was all flush to the front surface. I remembered because it is a great idea. I gave the box I made to a friend in NM so don't have an example. Hope this helps.
Jim

[Brian Holcombe]

Thank you Derek!

James, please proceed, I am certainly interested for future projects.

[Brian Holcombe]

I had originally intended to use that burled veneer panel as a divider, framing it with dovetailed battens, however it ended up being too thick and I had to scrap the idea.

I altered my plan for battens alone and proceeded, a minor disappointment, but they'll be available for a future project (another cigar humidor perhaps :D ).

Sorry, minimal detail shots since I was working through the planning along with the project. I cut away a rabbet under each of the framing members to make room for the thickness of leather underneath. The frame is ultimately attached by brass screws so that a future restorer may be able to replace the leather without much grief.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/E10BE89C-456F-4648-977E-D72427EE8F87_zpslue44w0r.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/E10BE89C-456F-4648-977E-D72427EE8F87_zpslue44w0r.jpg.html)

Cutting dovetail half laps

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/E01782D9-D215-4EB0-870D-AE7DB79A88DE_zpsgkp1gr6u.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/E01782D9-D215-4EB0-870D-AE7DB79A88DE_zpsgkp1gr6u.jpg.html)

Those are both complete now, more or less, and I'm onto hanging the doors

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/3376B70A-AC18-4E14-9AB2-8D0AB763BA17_zps38ialrts.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/3376B70A-AC18-4E14-9AB2-8D0AB763BA17_zps38ialrts.jpg.html)

One door is up.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/9A1CC396-A302-49CE-B109-EC39FAE419F8_zpstwaknmd2.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/9A1CC396-A302-49CE-B109-EC39FAE419F8_zpstwaknmd2.jpg.html)

The stainless screws will be replaced by brass soon. I was a little disappointed that I had resorted to screws, but I think they look quite fine.

The doors await brass hangers for the necklaces. My dad is working on this aspect of the build.

[James Pallas]

Looking good Brian. Your build is a little like Gypsy Rose Lee, unveiled a little at a time. It's all fun however.
Jim

[Brian Holcombe]

Hah! Now that's a great description :D

[Brian Holcombe]

I want to show, by contrast to the previous installment, what I do to keep after my Japanese chisels. The two stones shown here are an Shinden suita and a Nakayama Asagi. The Nakayama is just slightly finer, but both of these are incredibly fine stones. The Shinden leaves a better Kasumi finish.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/C643BEE0-1373-4632-A52E-50110F86CE4A_zpsj1ioxfuj.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/C643BEE0-1373-4632-A52E-50110F86CE4A_zpsj1ioxfuj.jpg.html)

I build a slurry for most of the sharpening that I do and do regularly maintenance by hand, no guide. These chisels I'm sharpening have been used for the entire day, there is wear but not enough to drop to anything lower than a finish stone, in fact I could get another full day out of them without issue.

See the mirror finish on the Hagane

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/A7394369-EABD-44DD-807C-7FCC5F85E66F_zps0qbk5sda.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/A7394369-EABD-44DD-807C-7FCC5F85E66F_zps0qbk5sda.jpg.html)

Here is the back, this back shows alot of flat area, but this maker (kikuhiromaru) does that on smaller chisels.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/29F0967A-2D60-429F-9CCE-F735BBEF3AC4_zpsdciuoxay.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/29F0967A-2D60-429F-9CCE-F735BBEF3AC4_zpsdciuoxay.jpg.html)

Here is a Koyamaichi paring chisel that I also have used all day
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/D5B8C463-8613-4024-AB2B-B722D671862A_zps1ui8omo1.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/D5B8C463-8613-4024-AB2B-B722D671862A_zps1ui8omo1.jpg.html)

The difference between soft and hard steel are still showing nice contrast, but both are mirror finished.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/A5B01A55-19BA-4714-B0FD-773A70F67226_zpsluloawur.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/A5B01A55-19BA-4714-B0FD-773A70F67226_zpsluloawur.jpg.html)

Here is the stone, it's super flat and smoooooooth.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/0D6D2339-76DC-46E4-89A6-7827CB36136F_zpsnv2tkbmo.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/0D6D2339-76DC-46E4-89A6-7827CB36136F_zpsnv2tkbmo.jpg.html)

and with some slurry

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/520125E7-F3CB-4267-901D-118408DA82FB_zpsa4il3a51.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/520125E7-F3CB-4267-901D-118408DA82FB_zpsa4il3a51.jpg.html)

The Nakayama just loves plain carbon, doesnt matter how hard. The shinden loves Tasai chisels, they're matched perfectly

Here's a large Kiku, just for reference. These chisels are 1980~ vintage white steel #1 and incredibly hard.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/4499468A-8B0E-4361-9DC8-B0A651DE3ABC_zpsy44jtpli.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/4499468A-8B0E-4361-9DC8-B0A651DE3ABC_zpsy44jtpli.jpg.html)

Tasai
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/63B53A4E-43CE-4A31-BCE3-F239545C963A_zpsqsiblm4x.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/63B53A4E-43CE-4A31-BCE3-F239545C963A_zpsqsiblm4x.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/02019F83-75D0-4053-B7C8-089846E90BA2_zps0snkicag.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/02019F83-75D0-4053-B7C8-089846E90BA2_zps0snkicag.jpg.html)

[Christopher Charles]

Hello Brian,

Thanks for sharing these details. A couple of questions--what do you see as the advantage of the natural stones over something like shapton ceramics?

And, unrelated, I was wondering about your method for squaring the ends of boards. I don't recall seeing in any of your posts, though I could have easily missed.

Keep the pics coming :)

[David B. Morris]

LOVELY work, Brian. Makes me long to start working in walnut again. I like how you "embraced the sapwood' in your drawer fronts (those are drawer fronts, right?). Also, very nice proportioning of same in case.

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks you both!

Christopher, I like them for a few reasons; they are truly splash and go, they stay flatter longer, they can cut aggressively or minimally depending on how you work the slurry and they leave a nice kasumi finish (I like the traditional appearance), but the most important feature in my opinion is how the steel feels on the stone. What I mean is that I'm not fighting the slurry, but working with it, something I haven't experienced on synthetic finishers.

Generally I square boards with a shooting board, and square panels by clamping them to the bench (slightly raised) and planing with the jointer on it's side. I'll take some detail photos next time I do either.

David, I appreciate the kind words and thanks for noticing my efforts with the sapwood. I do enjoy working with walnut, and it is addictive!

[Christopher Charles]

Thanks Brian, I've recently moved up from nortons to shaptons, primarily for the spritz and go advantage, but the feel not as tactile. Looking forward to the photos, appreciate it. Also have been watching the walnut and have been getting inspired as well. I have an embarrassingly large pile of air dried walnut awaiting transformation, but alas, other commitments have interfered with my starting any new projects. Soon!

C

[Brian Holcombe]

I would put some time on them before you try anything else. I find I don't really dislike any of my stones, but I require some time to get used to their personality. Some are more convenient than others for attributes like I mentioned about the naturals. If you use mostly western blades you might also consider an oil stone for finishing. On the plane blade that David included with the Try plane he had set it up on a washita stone, it cut beautifully. When it came time for resharpening I touched it up on my Nakayama stone and I would be hard pressed to tell the difference between the two, both having given excellent results.

Different steels also react differently to different stones, for instance the Tasai chisels, which are a heavily alloyed work a lot better on the Shinden than the Nakayama. When it comes to something like A2 I don't use the naturals, I just use the procedure shown previously, no sense in working A2 to 30k on natural stones, it doesn't benefit from it much at all in my experience.

Looking forward to seeing what you build! A stack of walnut is too much for me to resist!

[Christopher Charles]

Thanks for the additional thoughts and sage advice to practice with what's in front of me :)

Will post projects as they emerge for sure.

C

[Brian Holcombe]

Small update, but as usual the small updates are the most work. This one was tough, finished up the maple sides in prep for building the drawers. I also cut some sacrificial wear strips. This process will seem a bit unusual by comparison to the normal piston fit drawer, and for good reason, because my drawers are lipped top and bottom I must fit the sides before assembling the drawer. This was a bit of an oversight in planning on my part because thus is one scenario where modernist aesthetic makes slightly more work. Given then choice to plan again I might be enclined to show the drawer blades and make the drawers flush top and bottom.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/097F57EC-CBB4-4142-AFA2-74DA43FB8507_zpsgpfhlox9.jpg

[Brian Holcombe]

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/8985ABF6-BF69-4C35-9FBC-D4B4563E35BD_zpsw0wdno70.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/8985ABF6-BF69-4C35-9FBC-D4B4563E35BD_zpsw0wdno70.jpg.html)

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/E0AEDCAA-8522-4B21-B365-F2EDE0D83A40_zpsq1aepwms.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/E0AEDCAA-8522-4B21-B365-F2EDE0D83A40_zpsq1aepwms.jpg.html)


I have been working through fine tuning my doors and installing hinges and catches as well;

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/468055C3-F8E4-41F8-B118-57D050F30BFC_zpsbptdo5we.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/468055C3-F8E4-41F8-B118-57D050F30BFC_zpsbptdo5we.jpg.html)

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/F22692F9-CC76-415E-A9CD-B249657E64BD_zps2gqlr7z4.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/F22692F9-CC76-415E-A9CD-B249657E64BD_zps2gqlr7z4.jpg.html)

The right side door needs some adjusting work before fitting catches;

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/F9FA8655-019D-4FDA-B1D0-E8165F7BE495_zpsgkrrp01m.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/F9FA8655-019D-4FDA-B1D0-E8165F7BE495_zpsgkrrp01m.jpg.html)

left side just needs some face planing on the bottom.

[Brian Holcombe]

Playing with dovetail layouts, So far I plan to set it about like this, so long as this layout plays well with the smaller shelves. I know many many handtoolers will prefer thinner pins, but I prefer them a little heavier for the strength of the joint. Thin pins may be just as well, especially after glue, but I like to rest assured.

Many critical tools here, the most important is the recently finished espresso.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/7029A18A-B939-4090-8BEA-C200E751E773_zpsdwkkaias.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/7029A18A-B939-4090-8BEA-C200E751E773_zpsdwkkaias.jpg.html)

Set the depth, I have actually set this to the thickness of the back board, but plan to use it throughout just to make life simple(r).

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/4D8B56E4-0DF6-4012-92BA-5246BDCE97BC_zpsixlirtla.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/4D8B56E4-0DF6-4012-92BA-5246BDCE97BC_zpsixlirtla.jpg.html)

I overlap centerlines so that I can pick the exact center in between the lines

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/F69BBFE1-BC71-4F98-A978-C69EB0258CC4_zpsqorfpdhz.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/F69BBFE1-BC71-4F98-A978-C69EB0258CC4_zpsqorfpdhz.jpg.html)

Taking a guesstimate at what will look nice.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/D6859127-C652-4463-8EC3-09A7ED7286EE_zpsfsr5ndow.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/D6859127-C652-4463-8EC3-09A7ED7286EE_zpsfsr5ndow.jpg.html)

Layout the angle
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/E006A804-AD93-42AD-9365-B41AABCA12DF_zpszpbokpuw.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/E006A804-AD93-42AD-9365-B41AABCA12DF_zpszpbokpuw.jpg.html)

Choose the appropriate chisel, these chisels have sides without a land, so they're nice go-to's for sharp corners.
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/0250BCFE-5BFC-44C6-878D-BA27986FFA8C_zpsvnk1m11q.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/0250BCFE-5BFC-44C6-878D-BA27986FFA8C_zpsvnk1m11q.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/F3081DE1-7D54-42CC-9132-7F269981AFEC_zps7w4kvuu0.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/F3081DE1-7D54-42CC-9132-7F269981AFEC_zps7w4kvuu0.jpg.html)

Showing the layout with the drawer front to give an idea of how those small shoulders will work.
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/2E75485B-FF78-4E91-B505-0FA4286D3919_zpssmfujyoz.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/2E75485B-FF78-4E91-B505-0FA4286D3919_zpssmfujyoz.jpg.html)

I may still narrow the tails for slightly larger shoulders.

You may also notice that I am not considering where the drawer bottoms will go and that is because I have slips planned for this project. I'll layout the upper drawers and rear dovetails before cutting anything to make sure it should all workout. There are some minor inconsistencies in the drawer blades side to side, so my build will accommodate those less than perfect dimensions and do so without looking less than perfect.

[James Pallas]

Looking good Brian. It took me a moment to guess that it was the bottom drawer you are working on. You indeed have your work cut out with lips top and bottom. In your process you are showing another good example of what a tail vise can do.
Jim

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks Jim! Indeed, I'm proceeding with caution because I know it's going to be hard for me to adjust after assembly. What I will end up doing is adjusting mockup assemblies until they run smoothly before any glue is used.

I adjusted the layout a bit, rather than 1 over 7 like I had been using (8 degrees~) I went with a 10 degree angle.
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/B65FF63B-D8D0-4F9E-AE2E-E8619FD3DFBC_zpsqse1tgrx.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/B65FF63B-D8D0-4F9E-AE2E-E8619FD3DFBC_zpsqse1tgrx.jpg.html)

The faces have had a few weeks to rest, so they're being adjusted a bit for any minor twist which has cropped up and squaring up the drawer sides. The check at this point is simple to check for out of squareness. I'm just pushing on corners to see if the face will rock.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/6B6C1C36-6D5C-446B-BC1A-B3F54B3596FC_zpsoadriowh.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/6B6C1C36-6D5C-446B-BC1A-B3F54B3596FC_zpsoadriowh.jpg.html)

The dovetail layout works nicely for all areas where it will be deployed. I like the pins with this slightly steeper setup, I can use the same chisel but the tops are not as thick.

[Christopher Charles]

Yes, a tricky situation. I presume you'll mark to the middle and hope that everything aligns. Dry fitting is a good idea and worst case you could recut a runner a bit thicker to take up any slack...

I like the dovetail layout.

Looking good!

C

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks Chris!

Marking the placing on the drawer front is pretty straightforward. If I move out the drawer side and set the face against it, I can manage to get a knife in to mark it.
I share your thoughts on the runner, if I run into any trouble. These drawer sides are super tight currently (practically a wedge fit) I set it up like that so that I have some room to maneuver once the drawer is assembled (presumably).

[Phil Mueller]

Brian, not unlike Liam Neeson in "Taken", you certainly have special skills. Thank you for all the time you take to document your work. You may not realize it, but even the step to "chamfer the edge to prevent blow out" was a great tip for a beginner like me. Thanks for every detail!

[Brian Holcombe]

Hah, I like that comparison :D My pleasure, glad you are enjoying and find the details helpful.

[Brian Holcombe]

Now that the dovetails are marked out and the face is ensure to be laying flat on the ends of the sides I'm set to move forward. I cut the back to length and over-thickness (not 100% on what I'm doing for drawer slips so I left it. I cut the backs of the sides to ensure they are meeting up nicely with the backs.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/919F04CD-23F4-4994-9783-DE2A61E5E748_zpspnb5z9rm.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/919F04CD-23F4-4994-9783-DE2A61E5E748_zpspnb5z9rm.jpg.html)
Onto dovetails, I started by ganging up the sides to cut the tails
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/8522491D-858B-44C3-8DB3-9CE139E1A103_zpsfn57napx.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/8522491D-858B-44C3-8DB3-9CE139E1A103_zpsfn57napx.jpg.html)

I cut the tails then split the waste with a saw

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/B48F422E-B7F5-468F-8C68-D45A3ECEF8B8_zpsxnqqv1si.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/B48F422E-B7F5-468F-8C68-D45A3ECEF8B8_zpsxnqqv1si.jpg.html)

Setup with a 90 degree block

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/29865671-3BC9-4548-93FB-FD7486C03450_zpsnkbu8hih.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/29865671-3BC9-4548-93FB-FD7486C03450_zpsnkbu8hih.jpg.html)

Knock out the waste with the slim chisel
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/2BE7F4A7-C5F0-48A4-93CC-08FC5A02AF90_zpsxqk9lufw.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/2BE7F4A7-C5F0-48A4-93CC-08FC5A02AF90_zpsxqk9lufw.jpg.html)

Chop to the line with the full width chisel, no paring and I'm cutting straight through from the front to the inside. These drawer sides are 1/2" thick so long as I'm well registered they will not be off the line.
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/66CFB1D0-9BFA-4266-BC8D-BDA320256A96_zpsrfm8best.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/66CFB1D0-9BFA-4266-BC8D-BDA320256A96_zpsrfm8best.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/A78F5FBA-21A3-4365-8637-9F0010342875_zpsoagmqmsp.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/A78F5FBA-21A3-4365-8637-9F0010342875_zpsoagmqmsp.jpg.html)

I clear the waste by tapping it back into the dt, then clearing it with a chisel (lightly)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/A7A2D3AE-5F3E-4A43-ADF7-104636014099_zpsw89nzkco.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/A7A2D3AE-5F3E-4A43-ADF7-104636014099_zpsw89nzkco.jpg.html)

Cut the ends
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/C3BD6D9B-6DA5-4989-B8C9-555F7CDE131F_zps0rggdn5f.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/C3BD6D9B-6DA5-4989-B8C9-555F7CDE131F_zps0rggdn5f.jpg.html)

Super clean end grain, I always here about how chopping dovetails leaves nasty endgrain....not the case with this method, and this is in rock maple
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/A8CFFC84-56FB-4E9A-90A7-539BFA2485A5_zps98zvcvbs.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/A8CFFC84-56FB-4E9A-90A7-539BFA2485A5_zps98zvcvbs.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/21139F7B-9C33-43CD-B179-E2B29E5CEF30_zpstnp0xtsa.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/21139F7B-9C33-43CD-B179-E2B29E5CEF30_zpstnp0xtsa.jpg.html)

Tails, just like surgery you mark the places you plan to remove :)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/4345A426-2EFF-4686-AF10-8D99C297AB71_zpsfhwrgjr3.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/4345A426-2EFF-4686-AF10-8D99C297AB71_zpsfhwrgjr3.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/9FA48C74-F278-46FF-A943-3133D6935E6B_zpsurzwmwrn.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/9FA48C74-F278-46FF-A943-3133D6935E6B_zpsurzwmwrn.jpg.html)

[Brian Holcombe]

Chopping away
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/61031A0C-3C34-4BCC-990F-B81CE7A43D14_zps5gv37tlj.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/61031A0C-3C34-4BCC-990F-B81CE7A43D14_zps5gv37tlj.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/89710506-5E8E-4384-89C5-A0F423192EF4_zpspndkfcc8.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/89710506-5E8E-4384-89C5-A0F423192EF4_zpspndkfcc8.jpg.html)

Onto the drawer fronts
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/3A52E467-CCBA-4294-ABDB-21C60E3BF39D_zpss9099zoy.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/3A52E467-CCBA-4294-ABDB-21C60E3BF39D_zpss9099zoy.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/A2017A2A-D604-4568-BEE3-C22982F6C034_zpsmm98sea8.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/A2017A2A-D604-4568-BEE3-C22982F6C034_zpsmm98sea8.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/F983F49A-9275-4C8F-BE26-B56E3AC226D0_zpszz6dneml.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/F983F49A-9275-4C8F-BE26-B56E3AC226D0_zpszz6dneml.jpg.html)

Splitting the waste.....this requires me to be extra careful, though it goes quickly

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/2451C399-2501-4720-9B8D-C40D950B5728_zpsrjwovcdu.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/2451C399-2501-4720-9B8D-C40D950B5728_zpsrjwovcdu.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/668E2BE7-0B8A-473B-9402-F036A5D2486D_zpsw4g7uyz1.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/668E2BE7-0B8A-473B-9402-F036A5D2486D_zpsw4g7uyz1.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/668E2BE7-0B8A-473B-9402-F036A5D2486D_zpsw4g7uyz1.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/668E2BE7-0B8A-473B-9402-F036A5D2486D_zpsw4g7uyz1.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/F19DDF90-F550-4CBB-B7D4-5C63FB313AB5_zpsrbvqbmdk.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/F19DDF90-F550-4CBB-B7D4-5C63FB313AB5_zpsrbvqbmdk.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/6B12CA38-EFB7-42A3-93E3-C533FC5C8B55_zpsft73h9yf.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/6B12CA38-EFB7-42A3-93E3-C533FC5C8B55_zpsft73h9yf.jpg.html)

[Daniel Rode]

Like the rest of the build, the dovetails look really nice, Brian. I like the thin, London Pattern, pins on drawers. They have an elegant look to my eye. The whole project is simple and elegant.

I've been working a lot in pine. Even in pine it's possible to get clean end grain when chopping dovetails. I'm no expert but I think it's mostly a matter of good patient technique and truly sharp chisels. I can't wait to get back to hardwood for the next project :)

[Brett Robson]

Wow that looks great! I can only wish my dovetails looked that perfect!

[Derek Cohen]

Hi Brian

The cabinet is progressing really well.

May I offer some advice on the dovetails? In particular, about using a fence to chop to the baselines and also to get the floors flat/perpendicular. What you do seems a lot of extra and unnecessary work - and it is not accurate as well! (The photos show that you still crept over the baseline).

All you need to do is undercut the baseline. This may be done before sawing out the waste, or after that step. In the following photos I undercut after sawing the waste ..

http://www.inthewoodshop.com/Furniture/DovetailBaselines_html_m712ec708.jpg

If is then much easier to avoid shifting the baseline backward.

http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a262/Derek50/DovetailBaselines_html_m65f9e5ef_zpsdah0cbfh.jpg

Article: http://www.inthewoodshop.com/Furniture/DovetailBaselines.html

The other factor is to place the boards side on so that you can see the (vertical) angle of the chisel ...

A slight undercut is best. The baseline has no structural strength, so does not need to be flat. I just must not have a peak.

http://www.inthewoodshop.com/Furniture/MakingBetter%20Dovetails_html_m685d9209.jpg

Hope that I am not telling you how to suck eggs.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Robert Engel]

Curious as to what brand of chisel that is - Japanese?
It looks perfect for the job.

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks Gents!

Derek, thanks as well for posting up your thoughts on my approach, I seem to find myself flip-flopping back and forth between these two styles. In either case, I have some time this morning so I'll flop back to your approach and see how it does. In any event, even when I use a block I register in the knife groove.

Robert, I used a few different brands, but the dovetail chisel in specific is made by Akio Tasai. They are called shinogi style and the finish is a file finish. I like these because the shinogi line is wide enough that it doesnt feel uncomfortable.

[Derek Cohen]

In any event, even when I use a block I register in the knife groove.

Brian, you can see here that the chisel s being pushed back over the line ...

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/A8CFFC84-56FB-4E9A-90A7-539BFA2485A5_zps98zvcvbs.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/A8CFFC84-56FB-4E9A-90A7-539BFA2485A5_zps98zvcvbs.jpg.html)

I suspect that you are taking too large a bite with the chisel, and this is wedging it rearwards.

The advantage of sawing out the waste is that the remainder must come out in thin slices.

Bottom line, if you undercut the baseline first, the chisel cannot push it back.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[James Pallas]

Looking good Brian. It is very nice of you to make all of these posts about your build. The extra time you spend doing it should be appreciated by all. I find myself looking for updates everyday.
Jim

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks James!

Derek, you make a good point and I appreciate your pointing it out to me, next week I will saw the waste out and see if the baseline issue is resolved. I will do so with and without my block and post up the results.

I've actively been reducing undercutting or eliminating where possible. Chris Hall made a good point to me on another board, when you undercut you are leaving two points of contact. Those two points are going to do a much easier job of compressing the side grain than a full surface would. When I undercut now I do so in situations where I can leave a good landing. That's not impossible on dovetails, but fairly difficult between the tails.

In either case, I hope my post did not come off as a directive on how to cut dovetails, this is an always has been my documentation of my own progress. I did some extra documentation for those who would like to see some super sized photos of this work and it shows my errors as well as my successes.

[Patrick McCarthy]

Brian, again, these posts are very educational for lots of us out here. Your time, effort and generosity are all very much appreciated. Patrick

[Brian Holcombe]

My pleasure! Glad to hear that you guys are enjoying!

[ian maybury]

It's fun to follow it along Brian - and your photos and stuff really bring it to life. Makes it so nice and relaxing too when somebody else is doing the work...

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks Ian! Hah, I like that last bit, lol.

btw here is some serious tool porn, can't wait to put this jack to serious use;

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/59BD293C-9955-4558-B594-38BC60AD8F19_zpssdadh2re.jpg

[Mike Allen1010]

Nice work Brian. I especially like the contrast between the lighter color drawer sides and darker fronts.

Now on to the goodies; enquiring minds must know how you like the new DW jack plane??? they both look great! Are they beech, double iron?
Cheers, Mike

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks Mike! I may dump the sacrificial drawer glides as well and replace their dimension with some walnut drawer slips grooved to fit the inside corner.

The planes are both beech and both double iron. I only had the chance to try it out briefly, but it is worlds apart from the Low angle Jack. I have always felt like the Low Angle Jack was fighting me in really heavy cuts....this plane just breeeeezes right through cross grain. I setup a quick panel blasted through it with heavy cuts on the face super quickly.

Once mom's cabinet is done I plan to build a console with drawers for my wife, so I will post up some slab work from the rough.

[Brian Holcombe]

And on we go; The drawer backs were 1/4"~ overside....too much to plane too little to saw....and definitely too little to Karate chop....or so it seems;
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/8D0EEF12-B14A-4625-927F-10A61DA729F7_zpsy6vuzgqx.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/8D0EEF12-B14A-4625-927F-10A61DA729F7_zpsy6vuzgqx.jpg.html)

These about .020"

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/BC90C3F4-E8FB-4EA1-A23C-7E5426F2E976_zpsvd9htn3p.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/BC90C3F4-E8FB-4EA1-A23C-7E5426F2E976_zpsvd9htn3p.jpg.html)

And back to more dovetailing;
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/DC612294-8461-4DA0-A122-145EF4C59840_zpshapptirw.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/DC612294-8461-4DA0-A122-145EF4C59840_zpshapptirw.jpg.html)

I've seen this floating around, I believe it was Jim Matthews who mentioned this to me, notching out the corners makes it really easy for the saw to fall right into the knife line. You may notice another knife line shooting off to the left.....that was accidental.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/509DEA73-1806-4D38-A80E-1A81B0E5A245_zps44otbwof.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/509DEA73-1806-4D38-A80E-1A81B0E5A245_zps44otbwof.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/3C6C9568-C3BA-4EC6-BC2C-62725BF9185F_zps7nwrcrdh.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/3C6C9568-C3BA-4EC6-BC2C-62725BF9185F_zps7nwrcrdh.jpg.html)

Fishtail!

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/C45A60FF-81CA-4CAD-8CC2-15A7625B0C83_zps3voymxg9.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/C45A60FF-81CA-4CAD-8CC2-15A7625B0C83_zps3voymxg9.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/CC92F275-55F7-4352-B136-25F9AB6B2E2D_zpsbto5okmq.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/CC92F275-55F7-4352-B136-25F9AB6B2E2D_zpsbto5okmq.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/F0B0153E-B4BD-4EA2-83C7-E5BF17E9AAC4_zpsxva2fnfp.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/F0B0153E-B4BD-4EA2-83C7-E5BF17E9AAC4_zpsxva2fnfp.jpg.html)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/0F3C64F0-E96C-4D86-9E87-4A4AA8205523_zps3chn9js8.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/0F3C64F0-E96C-4D86-9E87-4A4AA8205523_zps3chn9js8.jpg.html)

[Derek Cohen]

Hi Brian

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/8D0EEF12-B14A-4625-927F-10A61DA729F7_zpsy6vuzgqx.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/8D0EEF12-B14A-4625-927F-10A61DA729F7_zpsy6vuzgqx.jpg.html)

That would have been an opportunity to use your new jack plane. It is precisely the situation that Chris Schwarz wrote about the scrub plane being for.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Brian Holcombe]

Indeed, goofy as it may sound I did not want to mar the sides just yet. It's too shiny and new. I'm sure David would encourage me to start showing some wear on it, but thus far I've only been using it for thicknessing.

[James Pallas]

Neatly done Brian. However it does seem that Gypsy's progress is being hindered by the arrival of the two new "plane" girls on the block.
Jim

[Brian Holcombe]

Haha, thanks James! I'd certainly been a bit distracted. I've been mulling over projects and probably will go forward with one where I can really put some mileage on the woodies.

[Brian Holcombe]

Finally...,starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/C408B3B9-5AA4-4EFB-BDB5-71A44F6AEAF6_zpskkyvhxwc.jpg

And now onto the drawer slips.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/4F28362B-B9C5-45C2-92AF-315085C31295_zpsc0droswc.jpg

Getting a pretty sweet finish off the try plane;

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/F53BDF2A-EEDA-4928-8170-B1B13EF8860D_zpsy1ssdhw2.jpg

[Robert McNaull]

Brian, I have been enjoying this thread since you started it and thanks for taking the time to document your process.

[Brian Holcombe]

My pleasure!

[Brian Holcombe]

Needed a break from all things drawer related, so I did some finish planing.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/81344FE2-8C07-4DF8-B017-5598E5EA5526_zps3p10q9fm.jpg


http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/29F27CE2-F3A8-47C8-AE7B-512635812C7C_zpsx7oczf7f.jpg

more work to go, but looks promising.

[James Pallas]

Very smooth Brian. Dovetails look good with the different angle on the half pins and the size. Look almost like houndstooth. Is that finish with that LA jack on the sidelines? Thanks for sharing.
Jim

[Malcolm McLeod]

Your signature line implies we are to think you are "bumbling"; clearly a prevarication.

I have been lurking, and there is no evidence of this bumbling of which you speak. NONE!

Incredible work. Awesome thread. A lucky recipient!

[Brian Holcombe]

Thank you both!

James, didn't use the LA jack on this, I've got that setup for ripping down the sides of the drawer slips. I smoothed the panels by first cruising over them with David's try plane, to knock down any highs that have formed over time, then smoothing it with a bronze #4 (Bevel Down). I have been setting the chip breaker on the #4 to the point where it will crinkle the shaving, then backing off a bit until I get straight shavings that shoot up out of the plane. Only exception being on the panel with the bookmatched crotch sections, they require a super tight chip breaker, not just for over the end grain sections but actually the areas surrounding it which must be interlocked grain.

Thanks for the comments on the dovetails! I have always like tone/tone dovetails for that same reason, leaves a nice subtle pattern.

[Christopher Charles]

Looks fabulous. Is the finish off the plane or did you burnish with shavings? Inspiring as always.

Best,
C

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks CC! I burnish with shavings. In addition to brightening it slightly it will help me find any existing tear out.

[Prashun Patel]

Thanks CC! I burnish with shavings. In addition to brightening it slightly it will help me find any existing tear out.

I've learned a good deal here. (Mainly how far I still have yet to bumble...)

Thanks for the tip on backing off the #4. I did not know it was possible to get them to shoot up like that. Now I have something aim for.

Can you share more about how you burnish the surface? That's a stunning picture on so many levels. Inspiring.

[Daniel Rode]

I always struggle with how to tell if I have the iron close enough. This is a great tip!

Does the burnishing make a visual difference after finish is applied?

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks gents!

On burnishing; I literally just grab a handful of fine shavings, ball them up and then rub the surface going with the grain. I find it particularly helpful in hunting down tearout or other problems (like foggy areas) before putting the finish on.

I notice that even with a wipe on oil finish that going through these efforts seems to show through after the finish is applied. I further burnish the oil into the wood, so it does minimize the contrast by bringing up the lows, but it's still visible.

The biggest thing that seems to help me is in getting the panel 90% with a try plane. Since a smoother is working best with a fine shaving the panel needs to be pretty flat. I have a section that I worked on for some time last night that is a crotch section. Now a crotch section doesnt stay perfectly flat because there are so many types of grain going different directions, so it makes highs and lows over the course of a few seasons. I went back to the try plane to knock down the highs then worked on it with the smoother plane.

[Brian Holcombe]

I think it's official that I have a carbon steel and wooden soles addiction;

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/8075D203-67D2-43D0-80CB-59E1A86095D3_zpspf9grqwk.jpg

[Tony Shea]

So tell us more about what plane this is Brian. I can't resist a nice Japanese made iron/plane.

[Brian Holcombe]

The iron is by Yokoyama Kunio in Tougou Kou and the dia maker is Nimura-san.

I bedded the iron, and set the chipper, but have yet to actually tune the sole beyond a little tiny bit required after bedding the blade. I have a feeling that once I am able to tune the sole (waiting a few weeks/months for the wood to adjust to my humidity level) I should be able to get a super thin shaving (this one is like .001"~). I dont need anything like 10 micron, but I could go for about double that.

I'll probably end up getting a few of these probably from a few makers and setting them for different humidity levels and different cuts.

I thought the iron would be a lot of work, since his cold worked irons are generally somewhat 'rustic' but it was pretty spot on, needing minor ura-dashi to bring down one corner. The chipper needed quite a bit of work and still needs a little fine tuning.

[Mike Allen1010]

I think it's official that I have a carbon steel and wooden soles addiction;

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/8075D203-67D2-43D0-80CB-59E1A86095D3_zpspf9grqwk.jpg


Ooooohhhh - very Nice Brian!!!!

I continue to savor your build. Beyond wood working techniques and skills, I also lean a lot about how you set up your tools for the terrific performance you get from them, as seen in this thread . I especially enjoy your description of Japanese tools. For example, I would love to hear what you look for in a Japanese plane, why you select different dai\blade makers, how you set them up etc.

I don't want to hijack your build thread and I'm sure there are others posts on this subject. Brian, I think your perspective is particularly helpful for me because we get to see an hear the context of how you use your tools in your build threads, which really helps me "put the pieces together" and understand how various hand tools are supposed to work.

I really appreciate you taking the time to share your work. I super enjoy your threads-your work is outstanding .

All the best, Mike

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks Mike! I'm happy to share on the subject, but fair warning as this will be a bit long winded. :D

Chris Hall initially nudged me down this path, seeing my increasing interest in Japanese hand tools but wondering why I had been stopping short of the Kanna. We debated for a bit and ultimately I decided I would like to try and see what the Japanese hand plane had to offer. This came at a time when David Weaver and I were talking about the merits of wooden bodied planes and plain carbon steels and how they would perform in the work that I do (flattening panels, dimensioning by hand, ect) and David concurred that adding a Kanna to the lineup would be helpful and enlightening to me, and so I proceeded. I'll need more time on the Kanna, of course, but in using David's planes I can say that the wooden bodied plane has changed everything about how I work. I still use metal planes for many facets of my work, but the wooden bodied planes are an absolute joy to use and perform exceptionally well. I have them tuned up for panels which is where I find they benefit my process the most.

So this draws back to the thought process behind going to wooden bodied planes. The problem I wanted to solve was when jointing a panel I found there to be a point at which the panel is beginning to get very flat and the metal soled jointer became a friction monster. The Try plane that David built solved this issue, I could create a nice flat panel quickly and further refine it with a finish plane with ease. Using the plane is addicting, so much so that I fell a little further down the rabbit hole with the Kanna and the wooden jack plane.

The decision goes a little further than just the soles of the planes, the carbon steel blades are quite quick and easy to sharpen up and can be worked on natural stones. Natural stones can remain truer for longer and are truly splash and go. I find that building a slurry with a 1200 atoma plate is also enough to maintain flatness of the stone, so I can use them really easily. I like my Chosera stones, but I dont like to constantly use them because of the soaking and flattening involved in using them.

Since I plan to use this plane for finish planing my qualifications for the blade were that I wanted something that would be easy to sharpen, make a very keen edge and provide a nice clear finish on medium hardwoods. I brought my qualifications to So Yamashita and after some time in debating specifics he suggested Yokoyama Kunio's range of offerings, Yokoyama Kunio's speciality is in plain carbon steels, though he can work in alloy steels as well. He uses traditional methods of work on his blades, so pine charcoal forging and cold work to refine the steels and provide a very hard edge that is easy to sharpen on natural stones. My understanding is that using pine charcoal and low heat minimizes carbon loss in the forging process. The downside is that these blades will often have minor delaminations that many will find unappealing, they do not bother me.

When it comes to setting up the blade and fitting into the dai, then further adjusting the sole (which I've yet to do on this Kanna), I followed Chris-Sensei's guide as closely as possible.
http://thecarpentryway.blogspot.com/2014/04/kanna-help-you-perhaps.html

Chris has eight posts on this that detail the work he does to setup, but when I adjust the sole and further tune the blade (I want to add a very minor camber and further tune the corners) I'll detail those things with photos.

Chris' detailing of the sole setup;
http://thecarpentryway.blogspot.com/2011/11/smile-and-wave.html

There are 5 posts detailing plane sole setup.

One more note, I'm still working out my equipment for ura-dashi (tapping out), and straightening of the chip breaker. I made some copper shims from a piece of pipe that was hanging around;
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/4C8A7524-1D84-441B-8BCF-AA54C9B49EEC_zpsrr8dkzyr.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/4C8A7524-1D84-441B-8BCF-AA54C9B49EEC_zpsrr8dkzyr.jpg.html)

I plan to make something for the Hardy hole, probably will wind up like a ball hardy.

[Mike Allen1010]

Brian, thanks very much for sharing the links to info on setting up Japanese planes.

I read through 4 of the posts and I have to say my ignorant reaction is waaaay to much work. I appreciate sharp, well tuned hand tools/ planes more than most -sincerely I do. In fact I have several Japanese planes, including some with irons that alone cost more than a complete, comparable LV/ LN western style planes. My experience has been these Japanese plane irons have the best edge in my shop, even though I rarely use them for the reasons implied in my question below.

My question is given all the work of flattening Japanese plane irons (given the typically significant lack of flatness due to combing 2 different types of steel, as described in the links), and the need to periodically "tap out" the hollow iron, and the required tools solely for that - do you prefer these to western planes?

I don't at all mean my question to be inflammatory and completely appreciate that tool preferences are subjectively personal. As someone who is an unabashed admirer of your work, I'm sincerely interested in your thoughts . It is entirely likely I'm missing something from my own experience .


Best, Mike Allen

[Brian Holcombe]

Anytime! My decision making was that if I wanted to be able to use the edges available in Japanese planes than I would also have to sign onto the process involved in setup and maintenance. They're significantly more work to setup, that's certainly true, but once they're setup they're not necessarily all that much more work to maintain, since how often are you at risk of wearing into the hollow? If I grind away 1/16" of my iron then I will have to tap out to thicken up the front landing...so it's not too often in my expectations. I'll make the comparison to setting up a good saw like the Disston...much more work initially (or so I assume from photos of your efforts :D), but the regular day-to-day it's actually much less work since it does the job more effectively.

The big positive to that is in the day-to-day since you are no longer working a big flat section of hard steel on the back of the iron and instead working just the outside edges which makes it easier to ensure the wire edge is removed and easier to maintain flatness. The bevel self-jigs and so it's very easy to maintain as well. I combined this with western woodies for my every-day high-use planes because I wanted something ultimately much less work to maintain during the day. I can take a vintage carbon steel western iron, or Japanese iron to splash and go finish stones and get back to work in 5 minutes, no soaking, no heavy flattening of the stones, no grinding. If they're getting to the point where I need to remove more wear then I can go back to a medium stone to remove the wear and I'm back to work in 10 minutes. Eventually I will have removed synthetic stones from my use almost entirely (save for sharpening A2) but this is going to take a good bit of experimenting with stones that take me from coarse to fine.

A2 irons on the other hand become a real bear to remove the wear on, I feel that after a couple touch-up sharpenings that I have to grind back a portion of the iron to completely remove the wear or I will be working the back of the iron forever.

So rather than using these instead of western planes I consider these to be in addition to western planes. It's possible that I'd be using the bronze smoother far less once I have completed my setup, but its unlikely that it will be eliminated entirely. The same way that the western woodies have far reduced the amount of time I put on my metal jointer and jack. It's reduced their use to an point where I can live with resharpening the A2 irons, since instead of sharpening them 2x per day, it's now about 1 time per week or less.

[ken hatch]

Brian,

Leave a trail of bread crumbs as I'm slowly wondering pretty much down the same path.

ken

[Brian Holcombe]

Will do! I'll post up stuff as I nail down a regimen.

[Brian Holcombe]

And back to woodwork. Dim'd the drawer slips. I made an error in planning with my drawer depth and so I repented this sin by making drawer slips for the drawer front as well as the sides.

Last pass on this one;

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/FE345173-3568-4BB6-B45E-8AE9676BE8DD_zpstxvtccuc.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/FE345173-3568-4BB6-B45E-8AE9676BE8DD_zpstxvtccuc.jpg.html)

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/678C5589-4145-41C4-8058-300CE6640559_zps02pdrhf5.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/678C5589-4145-41C4-8058-300CE6640559_zps02pdrhf5.jpg.html)

I found stub tenons to be helpful locators on this and also add a very minor amount of glue surface area for the corners.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/4B7BEB4F-3E39-432C-93F1-9E769AF0146E_zpserssppro.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/4B7BEB4F-3E39-432C-93F1-9E769AF0146E_zpserssppro.jpg.html)

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/325BE0D8-9014-454E-95E3-5E7FEF794551_zpsaayepkph.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/325BE0D8-9014-454E-95E3-5E7FEF794551_zpsaayepkph.jpg.html)

All drawer bottoms are in and all drawers now glued up. Last step for these will be finish planing the sides, fine tuning the fronts then cutting handles.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/7751F7AC-D14C-438A-A2DD-30B945F97922_zpsfmiixp3z.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/7751F7AC-D14C-438A-A2DD-30B945F97922_zpsfmiixp3z.jpg.html)

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/22923927-A7D5-4479-B025-4192405BF519_zpsql8pskbw.jpg (http://s27.photobucket.com/user/SpeedyGoomba/media/22923927-A7D5-4479-B025-4192405BF519_zpsql8pskbw.jpg.html)

Still unsure of how I will finish the drawer bottoms I haven't decided on veneer or leather. I was planning leather but my father was requesting wood. Seemed like an odd request for a jewelry cabinet so we will debate further. Any and all suggestions are welcome,

[John Kananis]

If its jewelry then I vote for leather.

Brian, what saw do you use for cutting the plywood bottoms?

EDIT: She's a beaut by the way.

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks John!

I use a festool track saw for the plywood bottoms.

[ken hatch]

Thanks John!

I use a festool track saw for the plywood bottoms.

Smart.

I finally had a Festool track saw follow me home from the wood store. After several years of borrowing the store's "Demo" unit when I needed to cut a panel or table top I said "enough get your own".

ken

[John Kananis]

Thanks John!

I use a festool track saw for the plywood bottoms.

Those are pretty cool. I usually make ply cuts on the tablesaw but the last couple years, I find myself hitting the power on my machines less and less. Taking this a tiny bit off topic but I was looking at that Japanese Plywood (looks like a Dozuki) saw from LV.

[Brian Holcombe]

Smart.

I finally had a Festool track saw follow me home from the wood store. After several years of borrowing the store's "Demo" unit when I needed to cut a panel or table top I said "enough get your own".

ken


Those are pretty cool. I usually make ply cuts on the tablesaw but the last couple years, I find myself hitting the power on my machines less and less. Taking this a tiny bit off topic but I was looking at that Japanese Plywood (looks like a Dozuki) saw from LV.

The festool saw is great. I use the festool tracksaw for breaking down slabs and sheet goods.

John, it's hard to take this thread off topic with japanese tools, hehe, they're part and parcel. I have a mitsukawa hardwood saw (replaceable blade) and I think it's a good saw but eventually I will get a few more, likely most of them being handmade. Heiji makes awesome saws so I will probably get a few from him.

[Prashun Patel]

Can you talk more about your choice of hinges here? Your selections seem so meticulously made, I'm curious about what else you considered. I am embarking on a wall hung cabinet, and am taking a lot of inspiration from here (hope u don't mind).

[Brian Holcombe]

Sure, I decided on plain butt hinges and scaled them appropriately for the size of the cabinet. My scaling is entirely by-eye since these doors arent particularly heavy. I also considered scissor hinges and soss hinges. The scissor hinges required the drawers to be set in from the sides more than I would prefer for this.

Brusso is my go-to for hinges, I like their quality level and so I always use them before anyone else.

Glad to see my work inspires. There are a few things I would change about how I did this cabinet to make the work flow a bit quicker, so if you want a second set of eyes on your design I am happy to take a look.

[Prashun Patel]

I will take u up on that. Thx.

[Matt Lau]

Wow!

Leave the creek for a while and a nice piece of art comes up. Salute!

[Brian Holcombe]

Thank you!

[Pat Barry]

Hi Brian,
What do you see as the biggest pro's and con's of using drawer slips as compared to grooves in the drawer sides and fronts? I think this is the first time I have seen this technique - maybe just never noticed it before.

[Brian Holcombe]

Pat, sorry for the long pause. They make the drawers a little stronger, and they also make them easier to plan, not having to hide the groove in a dovetail.

Cutting the drawers with recesses so that the groove on their underside is accessible. I had planned to eliminate this from the design, but since the bottom had already been done for some time I decided to go ahead with it. They're pretty straightforward to make, and allowed some time on one of the new Tsuki's.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/166F3512-AD9F-413D-85CA-076BE2335540_zpswusjv4zn.jpg

Marking out with two separate gauges, since the front is lower.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/337874B3-D0F2-449C-B036-7A3326386337_zpsxphho2ai.jpg

Crosscut, and next take 90% quickly. The knife lines give me an accurate reference for when to stop and reduce the risk of blowout.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/F4C13A13-A7FD-4F55-8AEE-BE111756C218_zps021dvgyj.jpg

I take out the last 10% carefully, the miter the sides.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/073110F3-784A-454B-870F-6C6F16BDA432_zpsadiexefo.jpg

Final step is to smooth out with a scraper.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/DFB9A2F8-B63A-4AA2-AC56-8DCD3D205537_zpsjr9ukcge.jpg

Here's how they look. Btw my father made those brass and steel hangers.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/180C8893-6445-458F-A429-EB9543BF000F_zpslyv3oaaw.jpg

I finished lining the drawers with Pacific silver cloth (photos next time) and have finally figured out door handles , so I'll post those up once they're on their way.

[James Pallas]

Brian, Very clean quality work. You are doing a great job of showing each process. You have written a very complete instruction on your build. I really appreciate your effort. All of the operations can be used to complete other projects. Great value and all for free.
Jim

[Prashun Patel]

I totally agree. Brian, u should teach.

[Patrick McCarthy]

I totally agree. Brian, u should teach.

Oh, the Sensei is teaching, and doing an excellent job of it. AND, to a most appreciative audience of eager students!

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks Gents, very kind of you. I feel I need a few more years under my belt, but if anyone is local to me I'm happy to walk them through their trouble spots.

[Christopher Charles]

As always, thanks for posting. And kudos to your dad--not surprised to see that the talent runs in the family :)

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks Christopher! It's definetly in the blood, in fact I have a wooden smoother that belonged to my grandfather's grandfather. I visited my ancestor's farm, which is about 150 years prior to him, and they had a pretty extensive wood shop and blacksmith's shop....so it seems I did not stray far.

[Lasse Hilbrandt]

What superior craftmanship displayed here. Im very impressed.

Unfortunately Im lost in this thread and unable to navigate my way to see the pictures of the finished cabinet.

I would really like to see it :-)

[Brian Holcombe]

Thank you! I'll post up finished pics in a few weeks, it's nearly complete at this point but basically just detail work so I haven't updated.

[Brian Holcombe]

Ready for finish.

I cut 1/4" deep grooves to house the handles and finished up planing the drawers and case.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/C800C855-3367-460B-B642-A848BDE31F15_zpsidnvb8ju.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/3AEF0CA9-B8ED-4949-89AF-6A2FD12465E6_zpsgcrojryl.jpg

[Christopher Charles]

Ohhh! My favorite part of every project is the first coat of finish with the big 'pop' it gives. And the handles are very fitting. You must be pleased.

[John Kananis]

Very symmetrical and equally divergent. Just beautiful.

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks gents!

I can't wait to see it with some varnish on it. Can't do it in the shop (.stinks too much) so my father and I are going to bring it to his place and finish it.

[Prashun Patel]

My exact thoughts. Nice handles. Boy, that cabinet looks so good as is, it seems a shame to put a finish on it.

[James Pallas]

Looks great Brian. I like the pull choice a lot. Looks like we will soon see all of the "goodies".
Jim

[Patrick McCarthy]

Brian, LOVE everything about it. OOnly surprise to me was I anticipated the handles in ebony. Not sure why I envisioned them in ebony but love the shape with the soft curve.
Particularly appreciative of your efforts to educate the rest of us, Sensei.
Happy New Year Brian. I hope it brings great joy to you and your family. Patrick

[Patrick McCarthy]

On second thought , maybe the ebony would be too big a contrast to the burl. Don't know. But it is great, please don't interprete my comments as any sort of criticism, they are not intended that way. Best, Patrick

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks fellas! Happy new year!

Patrick, funny enough I originally planned them in Ebony, I debated it for a bit but ultimately decided on tone on tone. To my eye either one would work nicely. I did ebony on a wall hanging cabinet a few years and loved it.

[Brian Holcombe]

Installed! Was an uneventful move, which was exactly what I was hoping for. Got some finish on it, and It really looks great with a finish;

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/496F4509-8EEA-4AC7-BA9D-445F96C81DE1_zpsie1q0eak.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c181/SpeedyGoomba/7DBE19CE-E004-4082-B7B5-4997CC893BD2_zpsbzihadwg.jpg

Dad's going to work on the finish for a bit, then my mom will take some good photos, she is a far better photographer than myself.

[eric burns]

That is incredible. Very nice work sir

[Jeffrey Martel]

Looks fantastic, Brian. I love those door fronts.