bevelled edges and splines for small boxes

[tom coleman]

Need suggestions on cutting wood for small boxes to precise lengths with beveled 45 degree edges. Should I cut my 1/2 inch stock to length first and then use a sled with a stop to cut the 45 degree bevels?

Plan on making a jig to cut kerfs for splines on routertable or table saw. Which approach is easier? I expect to purchase 1/8 inch spline material from Rockler.

[Jim Becker]

The sled is the way to go. Personally, I'd cut the stock over length, do the bevel cut on one end and then, using a stop on the sled, do the other bevel cross cut with a stop in place to insure exactly duplicated lengths for the box parts.

I have generally used the table saw for the spline cuts. Just be sure to use a blade that leaves a flat bottom cut. The jig should support the fibers so tearout should be limited. If you do use the router table, remember that such a cut puts a lot of stress on what is typically a very small cutter. VERY slow cutting is necessary to insure you don't break off the bit.

[Lee Schierer]

I use my cross cut guide with a fixed stop to cut pieces of equal length with miters on the end. If the opposite sides are different in length cut all teh same length parts, then make the change. My stop flips up out of the way so I can flip it out of the way to cut the "wrong angle" end off the stip if I am cutting multiple pieces from a long piece of stock.

Another joint you may want to consider which is exceptionally strong for small boxes is the locking rabbet joint. You can see how it looks in a small box (3 X 5) in the photo below.
http://www.home.earthlink.net/~us71na/maplebox.jpg

[Dave Verstraete]

Tom
I use a sled with stops to cut sides to a 45 degree. I use a jig to cut the splines in the box after the box is assembled. A great description of this is on the FWW site. Just look up "Lift Lid Box by Doug Stowe". He describes the method of cutting so that the grain goes all the way around the box.

[glenn bradley]

Yep, I use a sled (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=75217&stc=1&thumb=1&d=1195254603) too. It is small in size, has holddowns for small parts like I use in boxes and cuts 45* only.

[David Keller NC]

"Need suggestions on cutting wood for small boxes to precise lengths with beveled 45 degree edges. Should I cut my 1/2 inch stock to length first and then use a sled with a stop to cut the 45 degree bevels?

Plan on making a jig to cut kerfs for splines on routertable or table saw. Which approach is easier? I expect to purchase 1/8 inch spline material from Rockler."

I make a lot of these. Some of them are dovetailed (by hand), but most are the 45-degree standing miter with horizontal spline variety.

So... - Do you intend to make invisibly-splined joints (i.e., with the spline oriented vertically in a kerf in both sides of the 45 degree joint), or with visible, horizontal-splined joints? If it's the first one and they're to be invisible (stopped kerfs) I'm not aware of any other way to do this except with a jig and straight bit on a router table. If they're to be vertical and are in through-kerfs, IMO the easiest way to do this is with a jig and a table saw.

If the splines are to be horizontal (and thus visible), I recommend building a sled for use on a table saw. I also have a jig to do this with a slot cutter on the router table, but the table saw is much faster, and typically minimizes tear-out on the back side of the cut.

Finally - on getting the stock cut to length and mitered: It's not impossible to shave off a hair's length on a table saw, but the typical result is that the blade flexes in the cut because the wood's not on both sides of the blade. The result is that the miter is usually misshapened, with an inconsistent angle across its width.

For that reason, I have a donkey's ear shooting board and a plane designed to run in it. Though I make these boxes primarily through powered tools, there is no way to accurately shave off 20 thousandths off of the length of a piece without using a handplane. I've tried doing this operation with a stationary belt sander and a jig, but the results are very unsatisfactory (in my opinion), thus the handplane and shooting board.

[tom coleman]

:)all of your suggestions much appreciated