[OP]
Contributor
Well, I'm back in the building mode after an extended time of not building anything.
My wife found this Bookshelf for sale in England,and now it is my job to recreate it. It's supposed to be English A&C, but it kind of has a secessionist feel to me also.
Attachment 507068
I'll try an post some progress pics as I go.
Last edited by Mike Cutler; 09-03-2023 at 12:45 PM.
"The first thing you need to know, will likely be the last thing you learn." (Unknown)
Contributor
That English brown oak might be tough to find here in the US – not that it's essential. Classic design that would look great in lots of different timbers.
Moderator
Hearne carries it...I generally am not a fan of "oak" but I absolutely love English Brown Oak and every time I visit Hearne, I seem to buy another stick or three of it. Since they have their open house in about a week and I like going to them, if I do show up, there will likely be some more of the stuff in my rack. LOL (It's only money...)Originally Posted by Mike Allen1010
--
The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...
Contributor
The shelf fronts appear to have nail holes, as if the shelf material is plywood, and the edgebanding is nailed on. If that is true, it seems odd to me. If you're going to use edgebanding, glue it on.
[OP]
Contributor
Jamie
Apologies for not responding sooner.
No, I won't be putting any nails in it. When she first showed it to me, I told her it looked kind of "roughly" made. ( The price to have it bought and shipped from the UK was going to be close to $3K!!)
The bookshelf will be made from solid, sap edge, air dried, walnut. The walnut is 1" thick for just about everything except the feet.
The shelves will be dado's and internally pinned to register from the front for seasonal movement. The shelves are face sawn walnut, some nice figure in the boards, but it will be mostly hidden.
The top and sides are book matched, Q-sawn, walnut. Behind those fake "stretchers" at the top and bottom will be hidden cleats to tie the front into a single plane.
The back will be 1/2" baltic birch, with some series, book matched, walnut, sections. I had a piece that had an interesting knot in it, and the book matching is going to appear as "raised arms".
The only mechanical fasteners used will be to tie the top and bottom to the sides, and the back to the case.
The sides will be recessed into the feet, and I still have to work out the expansion and contraction, of the sides, in relation to the feet. In the end, they will probably be attached with screws in slotted holes .
The Q-sawn material should be less reactive to seasonal changes, than the shelves, which is why the shelves will be free floating.
All of the wood is cut to it's near final dimension right now, and has been acclimating in the house for the past month.
The finish is a toss up right now, between my "go to", General Finishes process, or Odie's oil. The client, my wife, likes the Odie's oil. It's a workout to do Odie's on this scale.
I should be cutting the shelf dado's this weekend, and can have the basic form freestanding. I still need to make the back and the feet.
It's funny that you mentioned the plywood. Believe it, or not, I've actually made a full sized mockup out of a sheet of plywood . It came out nice too. Maybe,I'll glue some edge banding on that one and who knows??
Sometimes camera shots can "fish eye" a piece, and getting the final proportions can be difficult
Last edited by Mike Cutler; 10-05-2023 at 6:37 PM.
"The first thing you need to know, will likely be the last thing you learn." (Unknown)
[OP]
Contributor
Well, except for the buttresses, being glued on, and it was to cold outside for that, The bookcase is finished.
The entire project is air dried walnut, from a log(s) I helped pull out of the woods about 7 years ago. It's kinda hard to believe that a poison ivy covered old log, resulted in this.
Here is the finished bookcase.
IMG_3969.jpg
The color is kind of washed out, so I've included this picture to show the actual coloration under normal lighting.
IMG_3968.jpg
I utilized the sap edges an attempt to add contrast to the project, and get away from the "brown box" appearance that sometimes walnut can present. I wanted to use the grain and sap edges as highlights. Drove my wife nuts.
The shelves are flat sawn and just resting in dado's. The sides and top are all book matched, Q-sawn walnut. The back is an accidental happening of resewing a timber, and finding that pattern inside. it looks unbalanced in the photo, but the pattern does repeat on both sides for symmetry. It is 1/8" re-sawn walnut, glued to 1/2 baltic birch.That back is the principle element that gave the case strength. All of the expansion and contraction of the case is referenced to the back plane.
The profile on the top is a product of a Grizzly, Giant Thumbnail shaper cutter. I wish I had the abilities to do that by hand, but sadly, I do not.
The finish is two coats of Odie's Universal oil. I tried this finish because I knew some months ago, I wouldn't;t be able to finish with temperatures outside in the band for a more "traditional finish", ie General Finished type products.
The Odie's finish is not an easy finish to apply, regardless of the you tube video's. It's pretty labor intensive actually. My shoulders and neck are still exhibiting the effects. My wife, whom the shelf is for, wanted a "warm" finish, and she's happy, so I'm happy. My neck and shoulders will be happy next week.
I Hope everyone enjoys it.
PS
That's my Vizlsa, Finn, photo-bombing. He missed hunting season this year due to a Nuclear power plant outage, so he's getting his revenge.
Last edited by Mike Cutler; 12-13-2023 at 6:04 PM.
"The first thing you need to know, will likely be the last thing you learn." (Unknown)
Contributor
That is outstanding. A simple bookcase, yet elegant.
Contributor
Beautifully executed Mike! Well done, Sir!
Ken
So much to learn, so little time.....
Contributor
The problem with utilizing the figure so nicely on the back, of course, is that you will not be able to actually place anything on the shelves to distract from it.
[OP]
Contributor
My wife said basically the same thing.
If she knew how long it took to make that back, she'd know why she got the bookcase in December, and not October,
That back took quite a bit of work. The pattern is reflective of a limb that must have been extending out of the tree. There was dry rot, and bug trails in the wood. I actually had to be a little bit careful re-sawing it, to not blow that figure apart with the blade. It was a brand new blade, which is probably why I didn't blow it apart.
I used a wire brush and a Dremel to get did of any "loose" crud, and former bug trails, and once I had solid material only, I filled the areas with a black epoxy to stabilize and anchor the area, and had to sand it down.
It's okay, that it may not be seen. Those sections were destined for the wood stove, if I didn't use it in that application.
Thank you for the feedback. All of you.
I have a bubinga cutting board in the queue next. A barter arrangement for some Top Bar Beehives.
Last edited by Mike Cutler; 12-15-2023 at 6:47 PM.
"The first thing you need to know, will likely be the last thing you learn." (Unknown)
Do not put books on that second shelf.Hiding that figure would be a loss. A really beautiful piece.
"A hen is only an egg's way of making another egg".
– Samuel Butler
Member
Great looking set of shelves and I agree with Glenn about not hiding the second shelf!
"You can observe a lot just by watching."
--Yogi Berra
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote