How do you make "pidgeon holes"??

[Jim Mackell]

I'm almost done making a replacement copy of an old slant top desk. I'm at the point where I need to make an insert with the various "pidgeon holes" for papers and the various crap that belongs in old desks. I've been fiddling around with various thicknesses of wood and can't find a good way of putting something together that both looks nice and is sturdy enough to actually use.

Any ideas? :confused:


Thanks in advance. Jim

[Jamie Buxton]

There are lots of ways. One is to run the horizontal boards the full width of the opening, and the vertical boards only from one horizontal to the other. There are dadoes in the horizontals, and tongues on the ends of the verticals fit into them. Sometimes the dadoes are stopped short of the front, so they're not visible. Sometimes a sliding dovetail is used instead of the dado-and-tongue.

[George Leicht]

I know I have a warped sense of humor, but using a dovetail for a pidgeon hole strikes me as funny!
George

[Zahid Naqvi]

A rolltop desk is my big project for next year, and I will need to make a bunch of pigeon holes. If you have "the best of FWW" CD that was in the market a while back it has an article by Kenneth Baumert, he recommends making grooves. All dividers are 1/4" and the horizontal shelves are 1/2". He make the pigeon holes at the end when all else is done so that it can be dimentioned to fit perfectly.

[Rob Millard]

Jim,
I’ve made several desks with pigeon holes, one of which had the dividers only 1/8” thick, and they can be pretty fragile. If the front is not shaped, then they can be assembled with stopped dados, but this alone has very little glue surface and is difficult to pre-finish without interfering with the glue surface. I make stub tenons on the ends of the vertical pieces to add a little extra glue surface. If the front edges are profiled, then a stopped dado with tenons is still the way to go, but the front will have to be mitered, using a vee bit, and a chisel. The stub tenon can be taped off during finishing, so that the glue surfaces aren’t contaminated. I have attached two photos; the one shows a New Port desk and the other a Seymour desk. The New Port piece shows the mitered intersections.
Rob Millard

[Ken Salisbury]

Use your standard pidgeon hole jig

http://www.oldrebelworkshop.com/smiley2.gif

[Jim Mackell]

Use your standard pidgeon hole jig

http://www.oldrebelworkshop.com/smiley2.gif






Ken, you have a very unique perspective. And a very challenging dental problem.

[Sam Chambers]

How do you make pidgeon holes?

Well, first you have to securely clamp the pidgeon to your drill press table...

Sorry, I couldn't help myself! :rolleyes:

[Dave Falkenstein]

If your pigeon holes are the kind that form small rectangular storage holes, both horizontally and vertically, then you can cut a slot in all of the pieces half way through the material. The vertical pieces would have the slot in the front half and the horizontal pieces in the back half. A small dado where the ends fit into the outside frame holds it all in place.

[Ken Garlock]

How do you make pidgeon holes?

Well, first you have to securely clamp the pidgeon to your drill press table...

Sorry, I couldn't help myself! :rolleyes:

Sam, I had a like idea.:D Get a cage full of pigeons and a shotgun.:p ;)

[Jeffrey Makiel]

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y84/Beff2/Slide1-1.jpg


http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y84/Beff2/Slide2-1.jpg

It usually takes about 3 days.
-Jeff :)