Underbench cabinet: drawers 3 and 4

[Derek Cohen]

http://www.inthewoodshop.com/Furniture/UnderbenchCabinetBehindDrawer1_html_m5a0ab82.jpg


Moving across to top right. This is a drawer for wheel cutting gauges ...


https://i.postimg.cc/65SxYS2X/6.jpg


I went through many ideas before coming up with this design. Simple, but effective for access and keeping the gauges from moving around.


https://i.postimg.cc/Lskd48y9/7.jpg


Two Tite Marks with fine adjusters and two Veritas gauges (these were a steal several years ago - Anniversary gauges in stainless steel. Brilliant!). The gauge at the front is one I built. My idea of Veritas-going-Japanese :)


https://i.postimg.cc/HkyDK2X7/5.jpg


Everything is removable. The slots for the arms were made with a fluting blade in a Veritas Combination Plane ...


https://i.postimg.cc/wvFSJb8n/8.jpg


Drawer #4 was much more work. Much more.


This is the middle drawer, second row. The drawer above holds large squares. This drawer holds more squares, small ones for joinery ....


https://i.postimg.cc/fW2GRFv9/9.jpg


The only way to keep these from moving around in a drawer is to french fit them ...


https://i.postimg.cc/15bbpq2R/11.jpg


The little "dot" at the top end is a rare earth magnet. This is to keep extra blades (for the squares) from getting lost.


https://i.postimg.cc/k4jpD6Wm/12.jpg


This is where I moved the Veritas sliding square. There is a Vesper small double square along with a similar Starrett. These are so useful for checking dovetail sockets. Below is my favourite double square, a 4" Moore & Wright, along with a 4" vintage Browne & Sharpe machinist square.


Now slide the top tray away, and below are large and small Starrett dividers, and a vintage Starrett compass ...


https://i.postimg.cc/3JkP4BLb/10.jpg


Again french fit to prevent any sliding around ...


https://i.postimg.cc/76PRxMG9/13.jpg


I managed to get all these rules inside the drawer - Starrett and Mitutoyo in metric and imperial ...


https://i.postimg.cc/bwbWLvfx/16.jpg


Easier to stack them this way ...


https://i.postimg.cc/R0L85bFq/15.jpg


Two more drawers, and I am going to call it quits for a while. Lynndy has orders for night stands.


I hope you are still having fun! :)


Regards from Perth


Derek

[Patrick McCarthy]

Derek, as always, quite impressive and well thought out. I particularly like the sliding keeper for the rules on the side. Of course, magnet to keep Chris Vesper’s alternative rules is brilliant too.

I comment not as a criticism, but curious as to why the divider points are pointed out rather than towards the back. This might be explained by me being more klutzy and trying to save myself a few pokes, but i kept looking at them and wondering. Probably would have reversed the Tite-Marks too, but again, we are all wired a bit differently. Initially thought might alternate direction of every other one, but then asked myself “why?”. Initial response was economy of space, but your access and usability wins out, and i jettisoned that idea.

Again, great thoughtfulness, great execution and - no surprise with you - great craftsmanship.
Thank you for sharing. Best, Patrick

[Derek Cohen]

Patrick, I guess we are wired differently :)

My natural inclination is to have all that faces downward at the lower end, which is towards myself.

I can accept a difference with the dividers, but reverse the Tite Marks?!

Thanks for the kind words :)

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Scott Winners]

The holders for the marking gauges in drawer #3 are inspired.

[Curt Putnam]

I, too, particularly like the way you fitted the marking gauges. You should consider bundling everything about the build and publishing it as a book.

[Michael J Evans]

Patrick it's obviously because Derek is from down under. Not the only thing backwards... I heard the toilets flush the other way too 😲😂🤣

[Stew Denton]

Derek,

Thanks for this and the other post on your bench cabinets. Beautiful craftsmanship and work!

Stew

[Todd Zucker]

The marking gauge holders really are elegant.

[Derek Cohen]

Thanks ... I wish the forum had a "like" button.

Here is one more drawer, french fitted sliding bevels (Shinwa, Stanley and Chris Vesper) ...

https://i.postimg.cc/yxpgTS2P/1.jpg

I have done more, but I decided to discontinue posting these drawers. The thread was about the building of the Underbench Cabinet, which was intended to outline the various techniques and designs in building drawers, per se. It was not intended to be more than this. It has developed, most unintentionally, into a tool display. I enjoy using fine tools, even discussing fine tools, but not showing tools - not my thing.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Aaron Rosenthal]

Derek, I wish you would reconsider.
If you look at the many posts on this and other forums regarding tool storage needs and workshop organization you would see the appreciation of your organizational thoughts. Adding to that is your woodworking skills inspires others.
I may never get to your level but I’m inspired to add little storage solutions to my home and workshop in part by our posts.
And really, aside from this “non-showing” venue, is this forum any different than a public furniture showing into which you often compete?

[Curt Putnam]

I, too, wish you would at least post the finished drawers. It is useful to see what tools you choose to keep close at hand as well as how you choose to house them. A lot of people follow the "Derek" way and this is part of it.

[James Pallas]

Very nice set up Derek. I just can’t get that organized. I thought about fitted drawer styles but have too many tools I guess and I want them all close. I have a 5’x4’x3’ job box, 2 five drawer roll aways, 2 ten drawer boxes, grandpas old wood box, and numerous other cabinets all full. I guess I need to buy the house next door if it comes up, this one is full. I’d dread walking next door for a screw driver though. 😢

[Anuj Prateek]

Beautiful!


And I learnt a better way to store rules :)

[Derek Cohen]

Derek, I wish you would reconsider.
If you look at the many posts on this and other forums regarding tool storage needs and workshop organization you would see the appreciation of your organizational thoughts. Adding to that is your woodworking skills inspires others.
I may never get to your level but I’m inspired to add little storage solutions to my home and workshop in part by our posts.
And really, aside from this “non-showing” venue, is this forum any different than a public furniture showing into which you often compete?

Aaron, I did warn you! :)

This one is about the tools ... just because I think that they are beautiful, and I love using them. They give me joy.

All the tools in this cabinet have a story, or a connection. This is one of the reasons I keep them, even though I do not "need" them as I have others. All get used. In the case of the chisels in this drawer, they are my go-to for dovetails and close-up detail work. Mainly because they are all fully bevelled at the sides and have minimal lands. In spite of the absence of hoops, all may be used with mallet. The condition here being that the mallet head is UHMW. This is firm for feedback but yielding to avoid damage.

This is another skeleton drawer. The top tray are home to Veritas PM-V11 chisels. Most here are aware that I have road-tested tools for Lee Valley (Veritas) for many years. Not only are these just superb chisels, but I like the way they feel in the hand, particularly the smaller sizes. For dovetails, these run 1/8" upwards to 1".


https://i.postimg.cc/rsw-RW9Zs/2.jpg


The five on the left have custom Ebony handles (they are also round and not shaped with flats). The far right is a fishtail I made from a spare (pre-production) 3/8" chisel. I am sure that Veritas will have fishtails for sale at some stage. This is my design, not theirs (I have no idea what they have in mind).

The lower tray house Blue Spruce dovetail/detail chisels. This was the first set of premium chisels I purchased. Dave Jeske had just begun making them, and I was one of the first to order. In fact, the 3/4" (which is the largest size here) was the first made. I asked Dave for a 3/4". He had made 2, one for another order, and sent me the spare. I sent it back. His idea at the time was to make the steel thicker as the chisels became wider, and the one he sent was 3/16" thick. It felt heavy and clumsy. I requested 1/8", and that is what che then made for me.

My one concern about the chisels, prior to purchase, was that they are A2 steel, and that, for paring, a 30 degree bevel might not be ideal. Then it dawned on me that all the Japanese chisels I had were 30 degrees ... These blades get very sharp. They do not hold an edge as long as PM-V11, and need to be honed more frequently. But that does not detract from the absolute pleasure in using them.


https://i.postimg.cc/T2tDxZhD/4.jpg


These are light blades in beautiful African Blackwood handles. Sized 1/8", 3/16" and up to 3/4". There are two 1/4" skew chisels. I nagged Dave to make a fishtail, but he was skeptical there was an advantage over the skews (there is indeed a big advantage when cleaning out socket corners). Later he did make them, and I chanced on a sale of tools at a deceased estate in Oz. They had not been used, which brought me some sadness for the previous owner.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Scott Winners]

I am glad you have relented on the drawer organizers.

I am in the midst of building a tool organizer cabinet myself and should be in a position to shamelessy rip off your marking gauge Frenched holder in the next two weeks or so.

As above, per Curt and Aaron, I came up with my ugly tool organizer as a solution to my unique set of problems by looking at lots of pictures of what has worked for other folks. Like everyone else I have my own work style and my own set of tools, but by taking a pinch here and a dash there... I am still working 10s and 12s for my 5 scheduled 8 hour shifts each week, not planning to open a thread in the project section until I have my marking gauge Frenched into my drawer #1.