Dutch Tool Chest

Back in November I took the Dutch Tool Chest course with Chris Schwarz at the wortheffort school in San Marcos, TX.  It was a much needed break from work, lots of fun, and resulted in a tool chest.  The Dutch Tool Chest is a unique design that results in decent tool storage, no horizontal surface to use as storage preventing the opening of the chest, and is quite easy to build.  It can hold essentially all the 50 or so hand tools needed to build just about anything, though fully loaded its not easy to move by yourself.  The class was  full two days, which resulted in a completed carcase, with just the front and top remaining, along with the insides.  This class is well suited for people just getting into hand tools, wanting to learn to cut dovetails, and dados by hand, and end up with a useful project.  For more experienced woodworkers it was a great refresher on all the good habits you've replaced with lazy bad ones.

wortheffort, with Brady intently chopping dovetail waste in the foreground

About to start fitting the back

I got a few important things out of this weekend.  It was a great confidence booster, that many of the skills/techniques i developed through making mistakes and deciphering overly opinionated forums, really were some of the best ways to work.  I also learned that I can put in 2 full days (9+ hours) in the shop, and that I was just lazy all the previous weekends.  I also had a chance to work alongside others, which is rare in the solitary world of garage/basement woodworking.  That was quite enjoyable and a great way to catch mistakes before you make them, or at least while you can still fix them.  In fact one of the best things was that I was able to go with a friend of mine, Brady, who has also recently been updating his blog at KirkwoodWorking.  Saturday evening, we all went for drinks after which Chris Schwarz gave a nice talk on the evolution of workbenches followed by a Q&A session.

Chris and I discussing the finer points of screw clocking

Unfortunately after that weekend it was back to long hours at work, and working on the upstairs floor before Christmas, so the tool chest sat mostly idle.  Eventually I found the time to finish the lid, and start the insides.

On Tuesday we had a rare "snow" day here in Houston, and I was able to finish up the interior bits of the chest.

The inside with tools.

Rip and crosscut panel saws on the lid

Bottom with small drawer

Finally I took some in progress shots of the small brass mallet rack in my tool chest.  I started with some scrap oak, and traced the shape of the mallet on the ends.  I am a big fan of quick and dirty waste removal, so I cut a couple slits down the length and split out the waste with a chisel.

Freshly sharpened rip panel saw

Using my new handscrews instead of my hands

Then I took a more refined approach, using #8-12 molding planes, and finally the mallet head wrapped in sandpaper.

Close to the line with planes

Cleaning up a few plane tracks

Now I just need to make a stand to raise it up a few feet, and probably some wheels, cause fully loaded its not something I enjoy lifting.

2013 Projects Part 2

The second half of the year consisted mostly of working, running, and flooring.  No one likes pictures or descriptions of cubicles or me drenched in sweat, so instead some pictures of flooring:

First three rows

A little further along

Floor complete

Eventually the upstairs was completed.  The stairs look a little longer has I had to make the bullnose out of solid hickory, then get the stain to match.

First Flight

Second flight and hall

The three astute readers may notice the appearance of a green chimney cupboard upstairs.  I finally finished the hand tool only chimney cupboard.  This project was actually a lot of fun, but I will not do it with BORG pine mystery-wood again, that was a mistake.

With the exception of the Dutch Tool Chest and  bookshelves in upcoming posts, that wraps up woodworking in 2013.

No woodworking this weekend

This weekend we finally were able to see the results of last 7 or so months of work.  Both Christy and I ran the Chevron Marathon on the 19th.  We both managed to run the whole time (not counting a a couple Gatorade/water stations, its just easier to drink when you slow down a little), and we also did a pretty good job of maintaining our split times.  Christy averaged 10:52 min/mile and finishing in 4:44:46, and I averaged a 9:04 min/mile and finished at 3:57:42.  Both meeting our goals of <5 hrs and <4 hrs respectively.  We are both sore (obviously) but feel great about our accomplishment.  This also frees up nights and weekends just a little.

Projects from 2013

Lots of people make resolutions around the first of the year.  I don't really like the whole resolution thing, as it never seems to stick.  One thing I do think about is all the projects I want to build, or complete since there are still a few lingering at various stages.  Soon enough the list of projects I want to build reaches some unobtainable number in 10 years let alone 1 year.  To make myself feel better I then have to make a list of all the projects I've completed, its not as long, but still impressive enough that the to-do list is less intimidating.  All this rambling is leading towards something....the list of project I completed in 2013:

By the end of 2012 I had finished my workbench and reorganized the shop.  To help accommodate the new layout I needed a new lathe stand:

Then started to make everything round:

Tap handle, chisel handle, and peppermill

Bottle bottle opener

Started to play with the mahogany again:

Spice Rack

Roorkhee Chair progress

Then decided to practice my dovetails:

Pine; ready to go

The beginning of 142 dovetails

Quick graduation gift (with a new toy....love the LA Jack)

Finally completed the Roorkhee chairs and bookcase in May

Christy, dutifully trying out the new chairs

Starting to load the bookcase

And then broke into the special walnut I brought down from Boise

Bookmatched crotch walnut for the top

Top Shaped and finished

Completed table

After that work got crazy, we started training for the marathon, oh and the ceiling fell down...and the floor got ripped up....

Just a minor leak causes a big hole Why not just replace the carpet while we're at it? So the project I had been avoiding, a hand tool only chimney cupboard, was pushed back a little further Thicknessing the back panel Kiska does not seem concerned about the delay Whew....that's probably enough for one post.  I will post the remaining 2013 projects in a few days.  I guess I did quite a few projects in 2013.  Hopefully 2014 is at least as productive

Holiday Vacation

Vacations are tricky for those with lots of hobbies and full time jobs.  On the one hand its a chance to travel/see family/relax/etc.  on the other, all you want to do is spend time on your hobbies.  I was lucky enough that this vacation I was able to do both.

My parents and youngest sister came down to celebrate Christmas with my wife and me.  This year the big gift went to my sisters, both receiving a fairly portable set of bookshelves.  For Libby the gift was some time in the shop making her own.

Both "received" their gifts(oak/picture of oak) a little early, even though the actual bookshelves still aren't done yet.  To streamline the process for Libby, I decided to build Carly's alongside (the fact that I was too busy with other project had nothing to to with it not getting done before the holidays).

Once again I didn't take many pictures along the way, but we made pretty good progress and actually got the dye and stain on the bookshelves before Libby had to go back to school.


 Of course things didn't go perfectly and someone ended up needed stitches.  Luckily it was not my little sister.  Remember to secure your work piece when paring your mortises.  The good news is I should be able to remember the date of my last tetanus shot a little easier...Christmas 2013.  We did use plenty of safe practices while sanding.

They flew back to Rochester, and I started finishing Carly's and even got to work a little on the bookcase I get to keep.  I am taking a very hybrid approach on this project, I drilled holes for the mortises, and removed most of the waste with a jigsaw.  Then went back and cleaned them up with chisels.  The plan is to get this dyed by the weekend so I can spray shellac on all three at once.

Roubo Part 3

My perfect (from 5 feet away) dovetails

I am still not great about taking pictures of every step, and even worse about posting them.  Next was to cut the endcap for the tail vise and mill the last two boards for the front slab.

Can you see the router table?

The important parts here are to create the dog holes in the second to front strip (it's easiest when the strip isn't attached), and then the dovetailing of the endcap.  I followed Jameel Abraham's procedure, except that the tails were cut by hand, not cut with the bandsaw I don't own. After gluing the last two laminates to the slab, I installed the tail vise hardware.  I was hoping to use it for milling the legs, but the stools the slab is on are not a workbench, and I couldn't find my router table (its under a pile of maple) to make the dogs safely .

One leg assembly

The legs are 2 pieces of 5+" 8/4 boards glued together, so I milled those first and got them gluing.  While they were becoming one, I milled the stock for the rails, and by the end of the weekend I had all the maple for the project dimensioned.  I spend the next week with a router and edge guide routing the large mortises for the rails, and then marked and drilled the holes for the drawbore pegs.  I then brought the tenons  on the rails close to size with a dado stack in the table saw.  I cleaned them up with a router plane, and fit them in the legs.

Checking for square and marking for pegs.

Just to be certain I pounded them all together (without glue), and checked for square.  They were close enough.  I used a 3/8" bradpoint bit to mark the location of the holes on the tenon.  When I drill those I will move the hole in the tenon 1/16" closer to the shoulder, and when pegged, it will pull the joint together.

It almost looks like a bench

This week I started working on the leg vise.  I had thicknessed the slab of mahogany a week or two before, so this was mostly cutting out the shape and laying out the locations for the hardware.  I decided to do somewhat of an ogee pattern at the bottom, and so I made a router template and guide bushing to get close (using the 1/2" x 2" bit), then used a flush trim to bring the top inch to the dimension I wanted.  Looking back I should have just left it the size it was with the guide bushing and saved myself the headache of sanding on the drill press, and spending a lot of time making it look smooth.  It still needs some work, but that will have to wait, as its decorative, and right now I just want a bench.  The rest of the vise installation is much of same, routing with an edge guide, and drilling holes for the hardware.  The new thing is that much of the hardware for the leg vise is attached using bolts that seat into tapped holes in the leg and chop.

Now I just have to put the pieces together.

A busy few weeks( a very late Roubo Part 2)

Gluing the back slab.

I was able to get the two top slabs glued up.  I decided to give myself a break, and picked up some Titebond II Extend.  That was a huge help, and allowed me to get both slabs glued up with very little touch-up needed afterwards.  Surprisingly I didn't use ALL of my clamps (some were too small).

The following week I started a 2 week long class/test at work, which consumed almost all my time, and all my energy.  I was able to take a short break, and cut some dovetails, make a sticking board and stick some moldings.  All in preparation for a demonstration at the hand tool splinter group meeting.

Second load of pear

"Floating" wine rack

I was also given a free pear tree, as long as I cut it up and hauled it home....2 carloads later....looks like I have a couple dozen bowls to practice on. I also had to make a wedding gift.  I decided on a wine rack similar to one I made for us a few months ago.

After the class I was finally ready to get back at working on the bench.  I had flattened one side to send it through the thickness planer, but after all the reclaimed oak, and surfacing the boards for glue up I decided to change the blades.  Turns out the last time I switched blades I tightened the bolts a little too much, and rounded 8 of them trying to get them out.  Luckily I had a screw extractor that worked for 7 of them, and then broke getting the last one out.  Now a week later I have replacement bolts, the blades are new and sharp, and its time to get back to work.

One hour later, and the slabs are nice and parallel and exactly 4 in thick.
I think the title should more correctly read a busy few months, as I am just now posting this, and part 3 is done and 4 is close.