QSRO pie safe

[Scott T Smith]

A year or so ago we milled up a good sized water oak log (red oak family) that had a lot of defects (limbs, knots, powderpost beetle holes, etc.) in the log. Most of the resulting boards were #2 common, with a few #1's thrown in.

Because most customers prefer FAS or select boards, when the lumber came out of the kiln I marked it as "shop wood" and set it aside for my own use.

Fast forward to last month when a customer approached me about a trade. If I would supply the lumber, he would make two identical pieces of furniture - one for him to sell and one for me to keep. He suggested a pie safe, and I agreed with the stipulation that we add some additional depth to it and design it so that it could be used to house computer equipment and servers. We incorporated some muffin fans for heat removal into the design, along with fresh-air inlet vents at the bottom on the back.

I told him about my "shop wood" stash, and together we went through the pile and selected boards that had enough usable lumber between defects to be suitable for the project. Being a "wide quartersawn board" type of guy, the only glue-up on the exterior wood is on the top where we joined two wide boards together. The side panels are made from a bookmatched panels that came from a single board.

In addition to providing the lumber, I took care of all of the surfacing, ripping, resawing, etc. and also mixed up a dye combination that I liked. He did the final dimensioning, finishing, assembly, etc.

This is a surprise gift for my wife for our anniversary. She is going to be out of town for a few days; my plan is to move all of the computer equipment that is currently spread around her office into it and surprise her upon her return.

Here is the finished product. I think that his craftsmanship really turned out well.

Sometimes I am surprised about how quartersawn red oak (as well as boards with defects) get a bad rap. Being fortunate enough to run a sawmill, I have seen a lot of very pretty lumber, and QSRO ranks right up there with QSWO in terms of ray fleck, ect.


Front view, optimized.jpg doors.jpg Front closeup.jpg



Side panel.jpg Side panel closeup.jpg Top.jpg

[ray hampton]

your are a good example of a piesafe

[Jeff Bartley]

Scott---if that's the 'shop wood' I can't imagine what the FAS looks like!! Great story too, I'm sure your wife will appreciate it!

[Lee Schierer]

I doubt that any pie is truly safe in any container that isn't locked, particularly blackberry pie. However, that is one very nice looking cabinet.

[Von Bickley]

I have seen a lot of very pretty lumber, and QSRO ranks right up there with QSWO in terms of ray fleck, ect.

I agree with you on that QSRO........

[Randy Gazda]

Nice work! Good looking boards for #1 and #2 common.

[Phil Thien]

Looks fantastic.

I agree that QSRO is fantastic. I have a few very nice boards in the shop, waiting for the right project.

Can we at least put some pies ON TOP of the cabinet?

[Scott T Smith]

Looks fantastic.

I agree that QSRO is fantastic. I have a few very nice boards in the shop, waiting for the right project.

Can we at least put some pies ON TOP of the cabinet?

Gee Phil, the problem with pie's here on the farm is that they don't last long enough to make it from the house to the shop....

Come to think of it, maybe I can co-opt my mother-in-law to baking one for a photo....

[J.R. Rutter]

I like QSRO as well - smells better than white oak when milling. This turned out to be a nice project, glad you were able to find the wood in your pile.

[Bruce Page]

That is a beautiful piece. I love your choice of finish for it!
Your wife will be thrilled!
I built my workbench out of red oak. There are a couple of pieces of curly QS that are really nice.

[Mark Valsi]

I'm not a fan of Pie Safes, don't eat much pie, and don't like that "tin" front. But man, that is some great craftsmanship and wonderful wood choice. Well done !

[Todd Burch]

Very nice Scott!

[Kent A Bathurst]

Scott - brilliant.

You got the best of that trade, by a mile. Wood for many hours of shop time.

[Scott T Smith]

Scott - brilliant.

You got the best of that trade, by a mile. Wood for many hours of shop time.

Kent, I think that it was a "win-win" for both of us (but I'm not complaining!). His time was shortened a bit because he made two identical pieces at the same time, so that shortened up his time quite a bit.

BTW - my customer's name is Ira Kohn. I don't know if he is a member of SMC or not, but he is a great craftsman.

[Scott T Smith]

Looks fantastic.

I agree that QSRO is fantastic. I have a few very nice boards in the shop, waiting for the right project.

Can we at least put some pies ON TOP of the cabinet?

Phil - thanks for the great request! I asked my mother-in-law to bake an apple pie (my wife's favorite) so that I could have it waiting inside the safe when I unveiled it for her this past Sunday.

Sure was tasty - especially when accompanied by some Blue Bell ice cream!

Pie in safe2.jpg


Here is a shot with the equipment installed. Two fans on the top pull the hot air out, and two fans on the bottom push cool air in. The air flow system is baffled, and designed to enhance the cooling of the servers.

airflow 2.jpg