More Coopering

[Mike Henderson]

I made a corner cabinet recently with coopered doors, and they came out okay. Recently I was asked by a niece to make her a box of a certain size - actually, it should be called a big box or a small chest. Making a box with a flat top seemed kind of boring so I decided to use coopering to make a serpentine top. It's still in progress but you can see where I am now. I was reasonably satisfied with the way the top came out. I chose highly figured wood for the top.

The box is about 20" wide, 14" deep and about 12" high in the front. Joinery is half blind dovetails.

I'm kind of in a quandary about the hinges, however. I can use Brusso stop hinges but the top is a bit big for those hinges. Or I could go with some other hinges and put some other stop mechanism to hold the top open. Any ideas?

She also wants a shallow tray in the box, which is the next step. I have a lot of aromatic cedar in the shop right now so I'll use that for the tray.

Mike

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[Reinis Kanders]

Nice box, with this lid no one is going to pile stuff on the top:)
Did you use bandsaw for the edges?

[Mike Henderson]

Nice box, with this lid no one is going to pile stuff on the top:)
Did you use bandsaw for the edges?

Do you mean to cut the angles on the staves? No, I cut them on the table saw. Each stave is about 1" wide and is cut 3 degrees on both sides. When I wanted to "turn the corner" and reverse the angle, I simply turned the staves over and glued them that way. So they're small side down in the highest point and small side up in the lowest point.

Mike

[Jamie Buxton]

I wouldn't be offended by a chain to stop the top. Brass hinges, brass chain -- works with walnut.

[Mike Henderson]

I wouldn't be offended by a chain to stop the top. Brass hinges, brass chain -- works with walnut.

Thanks for the idea, Jamie. A chain would probably work and be less expensive - and it shouldn't get in the way of stuff in the box.

Mike

[Jim Finn]

Very nice job! Great look.
I have made few trunks like this, only I made them of eastern red cedar. Difficult top to make. I switched to making just rounded top trunks. I made about fifty of them but none as nice as yours!

[Brian Tymchak]

Very nice Mike! How are you shaping the inside curves on the top?

[Mike Henderson]

Very nice Mike! How are you shaping the inside curves on the top?

I'm not sure what you mean, Brian. The inside of the top is shaped by the arrangement of the staves, similar to the way the inside of a wooden barrel is shaped by the arrangement of the staves.

If you mean how did I smooth out the inside curve, it was with a sander and rough sandpaper.

Mike

[Jamie Buxton]

Lee Valley sells brass ball chain. http://www.leevalley.com/US/hardware/page.aspx?p=40495&cat=3,41419,41435 A nice thing about ball chain is that there's very little to snag on clothing. Also notice the thingies they sell to terminate the chain into a nice spot for a screw.

[Reinis Kanders]

Thanks for the explanation. Exactly what I was asking.
Do you do sketchup and calculate those angles or do you just go with your experience? I guess if you are coopering a something circular then calcs can be done in a head.

You could also use a leather strip as a lid stop.



Do you mean to cut the angles on the staves? No, I cut them on the table saw. Each stave is about 1" wide and is cut 3 degrees on both sides. When I wanted to "turn the corner" and reverse the angle, I simply turned the staves over and glued them that way. So they're small side down in the highest point and small side up in the lowest point.

Mike

[Mike Henderson]

Thanks for the explanation. Exactly what I was asking.
Do you do sketchup and calculate those angles or do you just go with your experience? I guess if you are coopering a something circular then calcs can be done in a head.

You could also use a leather strip as a lid stop.

No, I'm old school. I do a full size drawing and then measure the angle. But you have to remember that the angle you measure is like a miter. Half of it needs to go on each stave - or you only put the full angle on one side and leave the other side square.

I often then do a prototype in cheap (maybe pine) or scrap wood and adjust the angle slightly to get the curve I want.

Thanks for the leather strap idea. That might be less likely to mark the wood over time as you opened and closed the top. Good idea!

Mike

[Mike Henderson]

Lee Valley sells brass ball chain. http://www.leevalley.com/US/hardware/page.aspx?p=40495&cat=3,41419,41435 A nice thing about ball chain is that there's very little to snag on clothing. Also notice the thingies they sell to terminate the chain into a nice spot for a screw.

Thanks for the pointer. I probably would not have found that on my own.

Mike

[Brian Tymchak]

If you mean how did I smooth out the inside curve, it was with a sander and rough sandpaper.


Yep, that was what I was meaning. Sorry for the vague reference.

Thanks! I had a project in mind a while back (that I never started) that would have required a tighter inside radius and I wondered then how I would smooth the curved surface. But, since the need passed, I never researched a solution.

[Mike Henderson]

Yep, that was what I was meaning. Sorry for the vague reference.

Thanks! I had a project in mind a while back (that I never started) that would have required a tighter inside radius and I wondered then how I would smooth the curved surface. But, since the need passed, I never researched a solution.
Okay, I understand. The smaller in width you make the staves the easier it is to fair the inside curve. The outside is no problem.

Mike

[Mike Henderson]

I completed the box and here's a few pictures of it. The finish is dewaxed shellac as a base and water based lacquer over that. The shellac brings out the color in the walnut.

First, a straight front view. I used a small piece of ebony for the handle.
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And then a corner view to show the serpentine top. Note how the grain figure flows around the corner.
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A view into the inside. I made a shallow tray for her - that's what she wanted. I have a bunch of aromatic cedar in the shop right now so she got aromatic cedar:)
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A view into the box, without the tray.
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And, finally, a view of the end, showing the half-blind dovetails and the shape of the top.
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One disadvantage of this top is that if you put the box against the wall, you can't open the top. You have to have the box some distance from the wall to leave room for the top.

Mike

[daryl moses]

Very, very nice! I like everything about it. Great job!!

[Duane Meadows]

I agree with Daryl, very nice job indeed!

[Scott Cenicola]

Wow Mike, that came out beautifu! Very nice craftsmanship. I was just at the lumber store yesterday and they had just received a shipment of black walnut. I was amazed , as I have used or worked with it before. Almost $10 a lf though (8" wide). Guess I'll start saving up!

[Mike Henderson]

Wow Mike, that came out beautifu! Very nice craftsmanship. I was just at the lumber store yesterday and they had just received a shipment of black walnut. I was amazed , as I have used or worked with it before. Almost $10 a lf though (8" wide). Guess I'll start saving up!
Wow, that's really expensive for 4/4 walnut. Around here it's about $7-$8 a board foot and I thought that was expensive. There's about $80 of walnut in my box (total purchase, which includes scrap loss).

With the hardware, bottom, and tray, I have about $125 total in the box.

Mike