Project: Purple Heart and Figured Maple Night Stands (Finished)

[Rich Torino]

Jim,
thanks for taking the extra time to put the pic show together.. It's always informative to watch someone elses methods.
I do agree with you about the look without the shelf however the practical side does come into play.... my wife would also agree with the shelf..

[RickT Harding]

Mind a question Jim? I was planning on doing the under bevel from the article. Have you decided how much oversize you're making the top if you are following the same under bevel design?

Thanks

[Jim Becker]

Mind a question Jim? I was planning on doing the under bevel from the article. Have you decided how much oversize you're making the top if you are following the same under bevel design?

My overhangs are figured at 2" which works well with the particular Freud cutter I'm going to use to do the bevels. For these night stands, I'm not beveling the wall side.

I have to get cracking on an update to this thread, too...

[RickT Harding]

Thanks for the info Jim. Looking forward to the updates. I did my first dry fit of my base today so I'm starting to get pumped.

[Jim Becker]

As promised...an update. I didn't really spend much time in the shop on the weekend since I had a few other things to do, but I did take a few minutes on Saturday to completely pre-sand all the components including the large blank for the top. I want any sanding before finishing to be at a minimum.

In addition to sanding the flat components in the obvious way, I gang-sanded the legs as that provided better support for the Festool 150/3 sander and helped insure that they all stayed in the same profile with the taper breaks in the same spots.

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On New Years Day, I got the whole afternoon in the shop after a lazy morning and began by assembling the sides to their respective legs. The first step is the secondary wood which lines up with the inside of the legs.

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The 1/4" thick purpleheart end panels were then attached to the sides...one bead of glue along the top of the panel and just pin nails at the bottom. This insures that seasonal expansion of the very thick "veneer" doesn't cause structural problems later. In retrospect, I should have waited to attach these panels as it would have made some other construction tasks at the front of the piece easier, but no matter, things still worked out.

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[Jim Becker]

One down....and you can see what the construction looks like

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Four down...

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Assembling the backs to the sides happened in essentially the same manner...a little glue and pocket screws. You might notice that the backs and interior side panels are just scraps of poplar and cherry used as secondary wood. By doing the 1/4" purpleheart material as a thick veneer on the sides, I saved material and also provided a nice way to flush the interior with the legs for easier construction of the interior drawer supports later.

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In order to lock things together at the front, the two narrow rails (1/2" thick) at the front of the piece were drilled for small dowels I had lying about. There were corresponding holes drilled where these rails needed to go. Next time, I'll improve the precision of this...

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As you can see in this picture, I used blocks of wood as spacers to hold back the front rails from the front of the legs by 1/4" to match the offset (shadow line) on the side panels.


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[Jim Becker]

After this bit of assembly was done (and it went fast due to the use of pocket screws), the end result was the basic table carcass.

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After getting the second unit together, I worked with some 1/2" thick poplar and some other scrap materials to create the internals that would support the two drawers and keep them in line. The only remaining work to be done on these bases is to add the shelf that will be about 5" below the bottom of the lower shelf-rail. I'll fit those up next weekend...and I am thinking it will be a very interesting exercise to fasten them in place. Nothing like a small challenge...

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[Christopher Stahl]

I'm loving this project already. You're using two of my favorite woods. Keep up the good work Jim.

[Bob Feeser]

Jim,
I'm drooling over the curly maple. Beautiful stuff. Nice choice of design.

[Don Bullock]

Great progress Jim. Thanks for the update.

[randy street]

Did you get those tops on?

Things are looking very nice.

Randy

[Jim Becker]

Did you get those tops on?

I got the shelves fitted and the drawer boxes made on Sunday. I'll be posting an update as soon as I have time. I'm saving the tops and drawer fronts for last...LOL

[julie Graf]

i am a fan of the purpleheart/maple combo.

You sure do get a lot done in one day! I need to be more like you.

[Dennis Peacock]

Beautiful pieces there Jim!!!!!!! I can't wait to see them on my next trip to Philly!!!!!

[Gary Muto]

Looks like a really nice project. Thanks for taking the time to document it so well.