Pirate Chest for Kids

[Andrew More]

Solid maple pirate chest for the kids.Finish is Enduro-Var II from General Finishes.
"Iron" bands are aluminum spray painted to cut down on weight.
Hinges are Rockler Lid-Stay torsion hinges (https://www.rockler.com/lid-stay-torsion-hinge-lid-support-rustic-bronze) to prevent accidents with the very heavy lid.
The nails are genuine old fashioned square cut nails (https://www.leevalley.com/en-us/shop/hardware/fasteners/nails/40387-wrought-head-square-cut-nails), from Lee Valley.
It weights ~65 lbs.

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[George Yetka]

Very nice, I like the hardware. One question, can the lock clasp engage itself when closing? Kinda reminds me of the old refrigerator clasps.

[Edward Weber]

Looks good and I think any kid would love their own Pirate chest.

[Andrew More]

Very nice, I like the hardware. One question, can the lock clasp engage itself when closing? Kinda reminds me of the old refrigerator clasps.

Sorta, it's a little tight. Even if it did, there's a good crack around the top. It would be scary for them, but no permanent injury, unlike a sealed fridge. I originally didn't put on the clasp, but my 5 year old daughter had issues raising the lid without a handle of some sort.

[Stan Calow]

Andrew nice job. I tried to do this once, but got stumped at figuring out the geometry for cutting the slats for the top - the right combination of widths and bevel angles. Any enlightenment? I want to try again.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

I like your project, Andrew! I am sure the kids will enjoy it for years to come! Well done, Sir!

[Andrew More]

Andrew nice job. I tried to do this once, but got stumped at figuring out the geometry for cutting the slats for the top - the right combination of widths and bevel angles. Any enlightenment? I want to try again.

Honestly the top was the most challenging part of this project. I also goofed a bit, and had to add another board to the back to make it fix the box. If I had to do it again, I'd build the top first, then adjust the box.

I mostly tried to follow this guide here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJmZHJeQ6jw

The other thing I'd change if I was doing this again, is that I'd make a gluing jig for gluing the top together. I tried tape and ratchet straps, which worked fine for the smaller test boxes of about 3"x4", but was pretty poor at this scale, resulting in some gaps between the slats.

[Ron Citerone]

That is a clean looking piece there! Kids will always remember it for sure!