2 drawer chest

[steven c newman]

Just started up...another one of my Build-alongs...:cool:
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Some of the parts....mostly 5/16" thick, from doing all that resaw work.
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These two will get glued up into a lid...edges will get jointed, later will cut it to length.
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The 2 pieces for the ends were jointed to match each other...but..
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Were not square on either end, and one was longer than the other...
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They are square now, and the same length....the panel for the back was then cut for length...
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Back needed ripped to match the width of the ends...I save the cut-off...have a plan for it..
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Will be the front of a Poplar drawer divider, between the two drawers...
Which brings us to Part II....stay tuned..:D

[steven c newman]

OK, Part II...concerns the panel for the lid/top....edges needed jointed..
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Both edges that will be in the glue joint, in fact...
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Piece is just sitting there, nothing holding it in place...and no gaps.
Got out the clamps, cauls, and glue....had to use the jaws of the vise as a third hand ( to keep things flat, too) while the clamps were applied
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One caul at the top. 3 HF clamps, over, under, over.....let this sit a day or so.

next up? :confused: Box/ Finger Joints by hand.....also intend to use them when making the 2 drawers. May nail on the drawer bottoms...we'll see....first, I'll get the back and the sides connected, and that strip across the front, as the top will have a storage area under it. Haven't decided on a bottom for the case, yet.

Stay tuned for the next exciting episode :D

[steven c newman]

Actually, I decided to clean out the tool well...and clear the top of the bench, first..
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The tools now in there, are ready-use....waiting on the next job...Needed to pick out a couple drawer fronts..
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To get the spacing right....Also use a chisel, to space the fingers out..
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Cut a bit of plywood down, to protect the top of the bench...
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From all the chopping going on...saw the lines, knife the "base line" chop 1/2 way through..flip over..
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Complete the chops. New mallet seemed to do better on the black end...yellow just bounce of.

Quick 5 minute sharpening on the chisel..had too many(3!) bevels going on...went with a single 25 degree one...used the completed set of fingers, to lay out their matching sockets...saw, chop, flip, chop....time for a dry fit..
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Then had errands to run...then 2 trash cans of scraps, shavings, sawdust needed to go to the firepit....along with a bunch of cardboard boxes....then stand by, to keep an eye on it...

Busy day....Amazing how many toys...er..TOOLS can be found in a tool well....

Stay tuned...may try to get the other back corner done next....then work on the front....maybe even a few grooves?
We'll see..:D

[steven c newman]

Cleaning out that tool well...turned into a treasure hunt of sorts....
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And about a pound of screws, with very sharp points...
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Amazing what such a small space can hold....swept the last of the shavings out....set up a set of ready-use tools that can stay on the bench..
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And now the bench is ready for more work..
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This is the main work area in the shop....welcome to The Dungeon...

Thinking of using the one end piece to layout matching fingers down on the other end of the back piece....then use it to layout the other end piece finger to match....Need to sharpen up..a couple pencils, first. That Yankee Screwdriver has an APEX tip holder in it...can change out to whatever tip I need to use..

[steven c newman]

Today being a Monday....shop was closed for the day. Try again on Tuesday. Might get something done....

[steven c newman]

Tuesday Shop time....got a lot done in 2 hours..
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Film @ 2300 hrs....have an errand to run, first...BRB

[steven c newman]

Ok..errands ran....where was I?
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Second back corner dry fitted...
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Back needed a groove done...this is the jig ( adjust the plane a tad, and the jig...ends were also grooved)
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Back gets a groove for the compartment's floor, ends get a groove for the drawer divider..
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Not very deep, either...lumber is 5/16" thick. Front of the compartment also needed a rebate...reset the 45..
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Then some layout work for the front..
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To find out where all the fingers and notches will go...
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have to hide a couple grooves...
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One end done...then the other end was done...then that dry fit...

Stay tuned, need to cut two plywood panels to size, then a glue up can be done...

[steven c newman]

Got up way too early, today.....Mountain Dew/Pills Breakfast is still trying to wake me up.....weather outside is dreary, 30 degrees too cold. Might be a good day to head to the shop....

Need to cut 2 plywood panels to size, and get them fitted to the case...and make sure I get the right one where it belongs....Been known to mess that detail up...

Checked that panel I glued up for a lid....more than long enough....just not WIDE enough....will need to add another strip to one edge....wondering if adding bread board ends to the lid will help keep it flat.....

Stay tuned...there MIGHT be some cussing involved, today :rolleyes: ( more than usual?)

[Andrew Pitonyak]

Stay tuned...there MIGHT be some cussing involved, today :rolleyes: ( more than usual?)

And the obligatory blood sacrafice that comes with every build.

[steven c newman]

None so far....:rolleyes:
Plywood cut to almost the right sizes...drawer divider needed adjusted.
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and test fitted..
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Next, the floor needed a little work..
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And test fitted..
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Cleaned up a few spots...laid it all out..
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As this will be a "War Zone" ....Too many clamps, not enough hands...
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May have missed a spot?
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Maybe. Moved this to the center of the bench...had other things to do..

Stay tuned..:D

[steven c newman]

Ok, lid work...first glue was out of the clamps...and cut to size...needed an edge jointed..
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Both it and the add-on piece were jointed...then a "rubbed" glue joint..
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Yes, there IS a glue joint...look at the arrow. Decided to just add clamps and cauls, anyway..
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Vise jaws act as a 3rd hand, and a pair of cauls...almost the last of the clamps in the shop....after these, it would be the pipe clamps...
Bench is now full of glue-ups...guess I can stop for the day...
Stay tuned..

[Mike Allen1010]

Nice work Steven- I appreciate you posting the comprehensive pic and colorful commentary! Looking forward rest of build.
Cheers, Mike

BTW: Is it correct to sign response post? I ask because my a Boys just informed me I don’t need to sign my text messages because they obviously know who I am. Who knew???

[steven c newman]

Keeps me out of the local taverns....
Clamps came off the mess, today....nothing creaked or groaned ( except me, of course..) Then the clean up began..
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easy part...the back...then the sides..
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Then the fun one..the front....drawer divider needed thinned down a bit...was a bit too fat...Stanley 60-1/2 plane to do most of that task...
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Top and bottom edges of the case got a visit from the Stanley #3....leveled the playing field...

Base: The plywood I was going to use..didn't "measure up".....so..
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I made a new one. Didn't have a single piece big enough, so I glued up a panel...Will clean it up tomorrow....along with the lid
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I did make sure it is large enough, though..
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So...now I am stuck with a full bench, again..
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Then see about making a couple drawers?
Stay tuned..

[Stew Denton]

Hi Steven,

Chucked a bit at your statement "too many clamps, not enough hands," I could relate to that . However you then add, "may have missed a spot." With regards to potentially missing a spot, you have enough clamps on it, that I think you would have to work at it to find another place where another clamp would be very useful. Not saying it couldn't be done, just saying you would have to work at it.

Nice build so far.

Regards,

Stew

[steven c newman]

Well, I did miss one corner...
So...Which of these 3 tasks to do, today...once Lunch has settled in..
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Get the base cleaned up, trimmed for size, installed and trim added...
Clean the lid up, and flat...trim to size, decide IF a bread board end is doable, and install the lid
Or
Build two drawers, and fit them to the case...with handles...

Hmmmmm? And...with a 2 hour time limit?

[steven c newman]

2 hours went fast...may have put in a wee bit of "overtime" too...Base came out of it's clamps...was trimmed down a bit....then glued in place..
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And set this aside...then that lid...
Cleaned up, flattened, and trimmed....then added bread board ends....which meant I needed a tongue on each end. Roughed out with the tablesaw, then fine tuned with a Routah..
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Not much room for error, either...
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Since the lid is barely 5/16" thick....then a dry fit...
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And then the glue and clamps, and cauls..
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Used the #358 Mitre box to trim the drawer fronts to length...
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Due to the clamps, case is sitting on it's top....
Dug out some molding blanks..
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Once the clamps come off, I can add a molding around the base..
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May do a little fancy cutting...maybe add some "feet" in the corners?

And that was it, for today....tried to get a little done..
Stay tuned, there's always tomorrow..:D

[steven c newman]

So...have all day, today...to either sit here and yak....or try the shop...after it warms up a bit....a bit nippy down there, this morning....ground might be a tad froze. Since the Dungeon is in a basement....cold ground = cold shop.

Suppose I could wander down there, and take the clamps off of things....and clean the joints up. Almost out of glue, too. May work on drawers today....and get them ready to assemble.

Maybe after Lunch, eh?

Stay tuned....( you do want pictures, right?)

[Thomas Wilson]

Anything with “Steven C Newman” on the author line is a Must Read. Love your camera work. It is dungeon-y.

Thanks for the effort you put in to share your fun.

TW

[steven c newman]

3 hours of shop time, today. Got to the point I was getting cramps in my toes :mad:...and then this went empty...
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In-between? lid was cleaned up...
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But something looked...off..
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Not square,,,,one of those days....got this squared up, then rounded the corners a bit..
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And figured out which hinges to use. Set this aside, for now...and spent almost an hour working on the case...
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Flattening the sides, getting them and the plywood to meet flush....round and round we go....because the next step needed a gap-free surface to work..
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Front gets a few cuts made, the one in back didn't...
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The 2 ends also got a cut-out....just not as fancy...
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I intend to add glue blocks/feet in the corners....can't today, ran out of glue...:mad:

Stay tuned for Part 2 of today's follies...:rolleyes:

[steven c newman]

And..part 2. Set the case aside, for now....I did size the drawer fronts to fit...
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Stanley #3 to joint an edge or 3....then worked on the lid again...had a pilot drill IN the shop
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North Bros. #41, with the smallest bit it had. 6 turns to get to the depth, wax for the threads on the very tiny screws....was only one thing missing...the screwdriver to drive the screws:mad:
Had to hobble up the stairs, pick up the screwdriver, and hobble back down....why this screwdriver?:confused:
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The only one small enough to drive them screws. Phillips head ones. have to wait until the case is dry, before I install the lid on the case. I located some knobs that might work for the drawers..
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Maybe. Then cut a bunch of drawer parts...including an extra side. Never know when it might be needed. Backs were ripped and cut to size (I hope) and then planed down flat..
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That sheet of plywood was cut down for both drawer bottoms. So, maybe IF I get a new bottle of glue...and get rid of these :mad: cramps in my toes..maybe I can build two drawers, tomorrow?
We gaining on it..stay tuned:D

[steven c newman]

A little over 2 hours this evening..IN the shop...Glue?
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Out with the old( empty) and in with the new (full) bottle...Needed to remove a few clamps, first..
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In the process of cleaning things up....found dried glue from squeeze outs...needed to remove that.
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Extra board for support...got around the the front of the case....sanded all corners until they were round....and found a spot where the molding was higher than the floor..can't have that..:mad:
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As that is where a drawer will slide in and out at....decided to just plane it flush..
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Then, decided to add the lid....
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6 turns with the Yankee #41 was JUST deep enough for the pilot holes....7 turns was too deep.:eek:..note the hole? Best close the lid...
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And set this aside...for now ( 17 photos....) Stay tuned, part 2 coming right up..:D

[steven c newman]

Ok...Drawer fronts get a rebate along the bottom edge....
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Stanley 45 is a quick and easy way to do them...once you get the board to lay still....
Test for fit with the plywood bottom panel...
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Fronts get attached to the sides with finger/box joints....lay out some fingers...
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Then chop the waste with a couple "finger tools"...
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Then use those finger to lay out more fingers..
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Never fails..first set is always too loose, set set is always too tight...might get that figured out, someday:rolleyes:
Tested the plywood for size..
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As usual...too wide, too long, one end not square....fixed all of that....spread so glue, and started a little bit of assembly..
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Original "plan" was to just nail it up...the Ash and the small nails didn't play nice....either a split, or a bend...Vise works nicely as a clamp, and a way to hold a lot of part in one place...
Never have enough clamps? Well.
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had to add two more...so...that about stops any more shop time....closed up for the evening ( 1830 hrs to 2100 hours) and head back upstairs.

Might even try a bit tomorrow, even though it is a Monday...Stay tuned:D

[Tony Zaffuto]

Steve,

You're hand cutting a lot of box joints these days: do you find them easier or harder to do, than dovetails?

Thanks,

T. Z.

[steven c newman]

About the same, actually. I get bored doing one type of joint, so I go and try the other for a while...keeps me in "practice", that way.

next project is just as liable to have dovetails, as it is to have box joints. All depends on the project, and what size it is.

[Tony Zaffuto]

About the same, actually. I get bored doing one type of joint, so I go and try the other for a while...keeps me in "practice", that way.

next project is just as liable to have dovetails, as it is to have box joints. All depends on the project, and what size it is.

Thanks! I might just try hand cutting box joints.

T.Z.

[steven c newman]

Well, normally, shop would be closed on a Monday....got tired of the ugly view out the windows...and went to the shop...had a stack of clamps to remove
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Don't worry, they won't be there, very long...cleaned up the drawer...
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Kept test fitting it, until it slid right in....couple high spots needed planed down...Then added a couple knobs..
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That drill bit seemed to be the correct size....wasn't. so, glue in the hole, glue on the tenon, rub a pinch of sawdust onto the tenon...then clamp both knobs in place..
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and set it aside, for now...finger joints for the other drawer..
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I might just get the hang of these joints.:rolleyes:.someday...wound up doing all four corners...might as well, right? Then the drawer's bottom, a bead of glue everywhere...and the forest of clamps..
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And that was as far as I could go....just over 2 hrs in the shop....I removed the clamps from the knobs...
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We're gaining on it.....will see about the other drawer, tomorrow

Stay tuned:D

[steven c newman]

Other drawer came out of the clamps, today....needed a bit of tune up..
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Both of these planes, and the sanders went to work...until the drawer fit, without any binding...then the knob install...used a different drill today...
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That is just a "normal" twist drill in the brace...I started to hole with a blue handled tool..
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The holes seemed to fit the tenons on the knobs better...
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Could have used less glue, too...
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Dry fit,,
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Had to add a divider in the top drawer...issues with a clamp bowed front....

There was a coat of that Gunstock stain applied and wiped down....letting it dry a while....
Almost done...sorry, don't have a way to do a video.....

[steven c newman]

Stain applied and wiped down..
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And...
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And..
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And..
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Slide the bottom drawer out...
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And the top drawer..
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Haven't decided on whether to stain the insides of the drawers....takes forever to get that smell out...

letting this dry a day....and then see about a top coat....
Stay tuned...

[steven c newman]

There is a spot upstairs...on top of the sideboard beside my computer desk...that seems to be a "catch-all" for about any small tool. Drill bits, hardware, screwdrivers, small stuff from sales..

Will go through all of that, what I don't want, gets tossed out, what I want to keep...will go in this little tool chest.

Size of the project...looks large, doesn't it? Top is 1/4" x 8" x 12-1/2". Box stands 6-1/2" tall...at the base, it stretches 8-1/2" deep. Top compartment is 1-1/4" deep. Drawers are 1-1/8" deep

May leave the insides of the drawers un-finished. Need to go and get a brush or two, to apply the varnish to the outsides....

This was just a way to use up left over pieces of Ash. And, to keep my hands in "practice" by doing things. Ideas for the box? Came from the one Paul Sellers was building in his MasterClass series....I just added a few tweaks, is all. Store bought stuff for this project amounted to just the hinges and the knobs....all else was on-hand in the shop, from other projects.

Note...that lid used a bread board edge....but both are only 1/4" thick. Try that some time...

Once the stain stops stinking the place up, I think I can apply the clear gloss poly....and post this as a "Finished Project".....

thanks for looking in..

[Josh Robinson]

Nice work...enjoyed the thread!

[steven c newman]

Thank you.

Can of varnish put up an epic fight....then found the varnish was skimmed over....got rid of the skim...new brush was used. Even the insides, drawers and all, were given a decent coat of clear gloss. Then, noticed I never added a coat to the Stanley No. 71-1/2's case.....oops...corrected that oversight...just on the outsides. Then just tossed the can away....wasn't much left, anyway.

Letting both sit overnight...will rub things out in the morning, if needed. Hope I can get the drawers to open...I did not varnish the undersides, where they slide on....

I think that will about do it, for this little Project...need to take a few better pictures tomorrow...
Thanks for looking in!

[steven c newman]

Photo shoot this morning..
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Then open the drawers..
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And the lid...
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Have cleared off the catch-all spot on the Sideboard, plunked this down..and now is filling up..
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Twas a shame to throw such grain away...so...
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I made use of it, instead....

All from a stack of scraps..
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All the Hardwood came from this...along with a couple scrap pieces of plywood. "Store Bought" items was the knobs and the hinges...

[Andrew Pitonyak]

Came out well....

[steven c newman]

Already filling up, in it's new home..
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May have to build another one....

[Mike Allen1010]

Great build – thanks much for sharing all the pictures and descriptions! I really like the dramatic figure in the woods you selected. To my, seems like the design and construction are both well-thought-out and great fit for your needs.

BTW, I have never made finger joints with hand tools I wonder how you compare the ease/execution of those verses dovetails?

All the best, Mike

[steven c newman]

About the same, either way....if I get bored doing one, I can just do the the other for a while.

I tend to look at the grain's figure, while laying things out, trying for the best match, or look. And, let the grain do the "talking".

Thanks for looking in. ( wonder how this would look, as a full sized Hope Chest...)