Wood thickness question

[Tom Sweeney]

What is the minimum thickness wood that you should use to make small boxes - like the ones Kevin Gersty makes?
I have some nice looking spalted maple I want to use to build a small decorative box. One piece I have, that looks real nice, is only about 1/4".

I was thinking if it was too thin maybe I could plane it as thin as my planer will go & glue it to a ply substrate - like a thick veneer then I could use it for the top. If this would work, would I need to glue a piece that was the same thickness to the bottom of the ply for stability reasons?

I do have thicker pieces so it's not that big a deal if it isn't feasable. I just really like the looks of this one piece - real nice colors & some figured grain in it also.

Thanks in advance for any help.

[Jim Becker]

Personally, I feel that 1/4" and 3/8" are ideal thicknesses for small boxes, especially if you want to resaw some "outstanding" stock that is limited in quantity.

[Byron Trantham]

I've made about 6-7 boxes. All of them have been with 1/4 stock. I have both box joints and through dove tails. I make them closed. That is, I make a closed box and then use the band saw to "cut off the lid". Fit looks like you know what you are doing. :D

[Kevin Gerstenecker]

Tom, almost all of the Boxes I make are with 1/4" to 3/8" thick wood. This thickness works out very well for boxes. When I use Exotic Wood for boxes, I am able to purchase it in 4/4, and get much more value from the wood. Most Exotic wood is expensive, (What wood isn't, for that matter!), and if you are able to get thick stock, and resaw it, you are essentially reducing the price per BF. That is the way I look at it anyway. When planing the Resawn stock, I sometimes use 2 sided carpet tape and adhere the thin stock to a "carrier" board when running it thru the planer. I use a good grade of Plywood or MDF for the carrier board. It may not be necessary to do this, but I sure have had good sucess planing the thin stock with this method, and get no snipe. I have never laminated very thin stock to a substrate for a box, but I see no reason why it wouldn't work. Don't be too concerned about stock thickness.........I have resawn some wood for Boxes, and it came out thinner than 1/4", and I used it anyway, and it was fine. As long as it is dried and stable, thinner than 1/4" will be OK. If you need any other information about small boxes, just shout, I will be more than happy to help all I can. Have fun, they are fun to build and addictive! :D