Building the Case

If you’re starting with 3/4″ solid stock, crosscut a 12″-long piece that’ at least 5″ wide and with particularly nice figure. Set it aside for a lid panel. Then, rip a 4-ft. length of your stock to 4-7⁄8″ wide, and plane that down to 1/2″. Square up one end, and crosscut a piece for the front panel/drawer face to 11″ long. Rip what’s left of the long board to 4-11⁄16″ wide — it will become the case’s two sides and back panel when we cut those parts to length, shortly.

Now why, you’re probably asking yourself, is the front panel wider than the other three panels? Well, the drawer face should come from the same front panel so its grain will match the front of the case. And, it takes two 3/32″-wide cuts with a thin-kerf saw blade (3/16″ of material loss) to cut that drawer face free. Once we make those cuts a little later, the widths of the remaining strips of the front panel, plus the drawer face, will add up to 4-11⁄16″, to match the width of the sides and the back panel. (Note: If you use a 1/8″-kerf blade instead, make the front piece 4-15⁄16″ wide to start with.)

The top and bottom of the box have some decorative built-in moldings, and we’ll mill those next at the router table. With a 45° chamfer bit, first shape the long edges on the prettier “show” face of your front piece and the combined side/back piece. I set the bit height to 3/16″ for these cuts.

We’ll build as much of this box as possible before slicing the lid free, so next come some grooves to house the plywood bottom panel and middle tray, and the top solid wood panel. Since even 1/4″ plywood isn’t a true 1/4″, I used an “undersized” straight bit that cuts grooves to fit my plywood perfectly. Set the bit height to 1/4″. Here’s where to place those grooves on the inside faces of both your front and side/back pieces: mill a bottom-panel slot 1/4″ from the bottom edge of your parts. Plow the second groove for the middle tray 1-7⁄8″ from the top edge. Then, reset your router table fence one more time to rout the lid panel groove 3/16″ from the top edge. Sand the inside faces of the case parts now, up to 220-grit, to get that out of the way.

When the dust clears, head to the miter saw and swivel it to exactly 45° so you can take care of those corner miters. Angle-cut the ends of the front panel, then split the longer piece into two mitered sides and a back panel: the sides are 8-3⁄4″ long and the back panel is 11″ long.

With that done, let’s cut the drawer face out now. Set your rip fence 3/4″ from the blade, and cut the bottom narrow piece of the front panel off. Then slide the fence 1-9⁄16″ away from the blade, butt the cut edge of the rest of the panel against the fence, and make a second rip cut to separate the drawer face from the front panel’s top section. Mark it and the other two loose pieces so you can keep their ordering straight, and set the drawer face aside for a bit.

The side panels, on the other hand, don’t need any rip cuts yet, but we do need to mark and install the drawer slides on them while they can still lie flat. Center this hardware between the wider-spaced grooves on the sides (it’s the drawer box area), and choose which ends of both side panels will face front on the case. Close the slides, making sure their front edges are flush with the inside corners of the case miters. Mark the backs of the slides and the hole positions for installing 3/8″-long screws. Drill shallow pilot holes for the screws, and fasten the slides to the side panels.

Remember that first piece of stock you set aside for the lid panel? Surface it flat and step over to your band saw to resaw it down the middle. Fold open the pieces, and you’ve got a beautiful book-matched panel in the making! Glue up this panel, then plane it down to a thickness that just fits into the lid grooves on the case pieces. Then rip and crosscut it, and the plywood bottom and tray panels, to final size, according to the Material List. Finish-sand these three panels.

Enough making parts … let’s put this box together! With the glue bottle still capped, assemble the case parts and panels dry to make sure all the miter joints close tightly. Now, spread a sparing amount of glue into the plywood grooves and over the ends of the miters (you can’t wipe off any wet squeeze-out that ends up inside the box, after all!). Pull the box together with two or three strap clamps, clean off any wet glue on the outside, and let the assembly dry.

Adding Splines, Subtracting a Lid

Once the strap clamps come off, you have a decision to make: Spline the corners or not? I think splines made from a contrasting wood like walnut really dress up the mitered joints of this case, but honestly, they’re more decorative than structural on a box this small. I used Rockler’s new Router Table Spline Jig (item 59288) and a 1/8″-dia. straight bit to cut 3/8″-deep spline slots across the corners of the case.

I positioned the top splines 1/2″ down from the top of the case and 3/8″ up from the bottom. I made the splines by ripping a thin strip of walnut and crosscutting it into 1″-long pieces. Glue your splines in place, and trim them flush when the glue dries. Finish-sand the box.

Ready to cut the lid free? It’s finally time. Set your table saw’s rip fence so the lid will be 1″ wide, and raise the blade to just a hint under 1/2″. Stand the box against the fence and make four very careful cuts around its perimeter to score the lid almost free.

Once the last cut is done, use a utility knife to gently slit through the kerfs and release the lid. Sand the cut edges smooth, and scrape off any dried glue inside that needs to go.

Making the Drawer

At this point, we can take this project almost all the way to the finish line by building the drawer. Here’s the good news: the construction is simple. Rip and crosscut the drawer box’s front, back and sides to size from 1/2″ stock. If you look carefully at the Drawing, the corner joints are just 1/4″ x 1/4″ rabbets on the ends of the front and back pieces that you can make at your table saw with a dado blade or at the router table with a rabbeting or straight bit. The tongues of these rabbets fit into dadoes cut across the ends of the drawer sides, 1/4″ back from the part ends. Those are easy to cut, too. Once these joints slip together it’s almost like they don’t need glue. Chuck a 1/8″-dia. straight bit in your router table (or a 1/8″-kerf saw blade in your table saw), because this drawer still needs bottom-panel grooves. For one this tiny, 1/8″-thick plywood will do nicely. You can find it at craft stores.

I placed the grooves 1/8″ up from the bottom edges of the drawer parts, and I cut them 1/4″ deep. Cut your bottom panel to fit the drawer box, and make sure all five parts go together nicely. Then give them a thorough sanding, and glue the drawer box and bottom panel together.

There are still two more big grooves to cut into the outside faces of the drawer box, and those will wrap around the drawer slide hardware, positioning the drawer box in the case. For my project, I was able to cut these grooves 1/4″ deep and 11/16″ wide. You could use a dado blade in the table saw, but I chose the router table and a 1/2″ straight bit. Two passes, shifting the fence back a nudge after the first, widened my grooves as needed. I also positioned these slots about 1/16″ closer to the top of the drawer box than the bottom, rather than centering them perfectly. It left a little more wood near the drawer bottom grooves this way, for added strength. Now fasten the drawer box to the slides, making sure the front face of the box is flush with the bottom corners of the front miter joints when it’s closed. That way, the drawer face’s miters will fit nicely against the miters on the case.

I sanded the edges and ends of the drawer face lightly so that it fit into its opening with a bit of space on top and bottom. Then I positioned it with the drawer box closed inside the case, and pinned the face and box together with 3/4″-long, 23-gauge pin nails.

Mounting the Lid

With the drawer done, I dyed the lid, box and drawer, then turned my attention to mounting the lid. I went for the “brass ring” of hinges here: Brusso’s solid brass quadrant hinges. That’s because Rocker offers a new JIG IT® Hinge Mortising System (item 58822) that makes cutting these complex hinge and lid support mortises much easier. A removeable plastic center plate with several cutouts fits into a base plate and positions the various mortising cuts for a guide collar and straight bit in a plunge router. I routed the mortises and installed the hinges and lid on the case with a few screws to check the action. Then, off came the hinges for final top coating to seal in the dye.

Some Finishing Finery

Clear shellac really pops the figure of this maple! But applying it can be tricky. If you’re a novice, try a rattle can of semi-gloss lacquer instead: it’s just about foolproof. Then reattach the lid.

From here, I cut 1/4″ x 1/2″ x 1/2″ wood spacers and glued them to the box bottom corners to serve as mounts for four brass feet. I screwed the lid and drawer knobs in place and lined the drawer bottom and top tray with self-adhesive green velvet. A matching green ring bar came last.

My jewelry box is now ready to wrap up as a special gift. I hope yours will meet your holiday deadline, too!

Click Here to download a PDF of the related drawings.

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Here are some options that should make the season’s work go more smoothly. But first, a word about safety.

Safe Finishes

Although most finishes contain toxic solvents while liquid, the ones I’m suggesting here are safe after they dry. That goes for food contact items and pretty much everything else. Shellac is edible, as is mineral oil, which woodworkers typically use on cutting boards. Most everything else dries to an inert plastic film. Even drying oils, like boiled linseed and tung oil, form a stable film, albeit more slowly.

Before you ask, yes, there was a flap in 2007 concerning toys being recalled for having lead in the paint. However, they were all traced to China. Here in the U.S., we removed lead from our paints in 1978, so even if you use wall paint for stain or coloring, you’re not adding lead.

Clear Coatings

Shellac, lacquer and water-based coatings are all very fast-drying and easy to use, so they are great options. Shellac and lacquer will add some amber tint to the wood, which can be quite attractive, but water-based coatings usually are completely clear. That means they won’t yellow even the lightest colored woods.

Any of these coatings can go over wood stains and dyes to act as a clear sealer. However, crystal clear water-based coatings are best over paint because they won’t tint the colors underneath.

Dyes

For bright, translucent, see-through colors on wood, dyes are just the ticket. They are easy to use, and if you mix them in either water or alcohol, they dry very fast. You’ll find dyes sold as mixable powders, as liquid concentrates and as premixed dye stains you can use right out of the can.

Flood them on or dip small parts into the liquid dye solution, then wipe them off completely right away. Leave only what the wood has absorbed.

Because dyes can dissolve again even after they dry, it’s best to seal them with a clear finish. Fortunately, any finish will go over a dried dye, and even one coat will do the job. If you simply can’t top coat, use alcohol-soluble dye with some shellac stirred in. The shellac will lock in the dye.

There is one exception. Some premixed or ready-to-use dye stains contain a binder, which means you would not need to seal them after use. If you are not sure what you have, seal it anyway. It can’t hurt, and it’s good insurance.

Paint

When it comes to versatility, water-based paint is king. Hit the shelves of your local hobby shop and you’ll find a vast array of acrylic craft paints in two-ounce squeeze bottles.

Not only are they available in every color imaginable, but also in metallics, glow-in-the-dark, neon and exterior versions.

No craft store nearby? Visit your favorite paint or home store. Both interior and exterior paints are fair game, and you can get a quart or gallon mixed to any custom color.

Many stores even offer 8 oz. sample jars, also available in custom colors, for about $3.50, which, ounce for ounce, is decidedly cheaper than small bottles of craft paints.

Stain from Paint

Use paint straight from the container to apply bright, festive colors to any wood or to turn any water-based paint into a pigment stain. It’s easy: just reduce the paint by stirring in some water, anywhere from 10% to 50%, depending on the color you have and how rich a stain you want. Treat it just like any pigmented stain: apply it liberally, then wipe off as much or as little as you need to get the look you want.

Once it is dry, seal the stain with a coat or two of clear, water-based polyurethane to both preserve the color and add a bit of protection. Grab a can from your finishing shelf and brush it on, apply it with your favorite spray gun, or pick up an aerosol can of the same finish for quick and easy spray application with no gun cleanup needed.

Oils

Though they don’t dry nearly as fast, many woodworkers like the ease and beauty of oils, especially on things like cutting boards and for dipping small parts. There are two distinct types: drying oils and non-drying oils.

Walnut oil, raw or boiled linseed oil, tung oil, and even Danish oil are all drying oils and will all form a film, though they dry at different rates. If you prefer non-drying oil, stick to mineral oil and avoid cooking oils (olive, corn, canola, etc.) as they can turn rancid in time. Be aware that, while mineral oil looks nice initially, it will come off after being scrubbed a few times with soap and water.

With all oils, the technique is the same. Either dip the part or flood the oil on liberally, let it sit and soak in for 10 or 15 minutes, then wipe off whatever has not been absorbed. As with all finishes, oils will dry faster in hotter air, so find somewhere warm and toasty to set the parts while they are drying.

Danish oil, which is actually a thin varnish, will dry overnight. Boiled linseed oil or tung oil will take two or three days, while raw linseed oil will take at least a week. Walnut oil, a poor choice in my opinion, may take a month or more, and it could cause problems for those with nut allergies.

The post Simple, Fast and Safe Finishes appeared first on Woodworking | Blog | Videos | Plans | How To.

While you can certainly stain this project any “Mission brown” color you like, its compact size makes this project a manageable candidate for traditional ammonia fuming. If you’ve never tried it, there’s no better way to finally know what a fumed finish looks like than to give it a go and see for yourself.

So, now that I’ve planted that seed, let it germinate while I show you how to build this plant stand for your home.

Making the Legs

If you have access to 8/4 quartersawn white oak, you could make these 1-5/8″-square legs from solid blanks. But that will only provide quartersawn grain on two faces, with flat sawn grain on the other two. I think the difference in grain pattern is distracting. Here’s an alternative: save that showy flaked quartersawn grain pattern for the aprons and rails, and downplay the grain on the legs. To do that, I glued my leg blanks up from two laminations of 13/16″-thick riftsawn stock (look for end grain that runs about 45° to the board faces). Riftsawn grain has a linear and similar pattern on both its faces and edges. If you make them carefully from the same board, only a woodworker will notice that these laminated legs aren’t actually single pieces of wood. It’s a really good compromise here.

Once you’ve ripped and surfaced the legs to final proportions, cut them an inch or so longer than necessary and all to the same length. The tops of the legs will receive pyramids next. In case the pyramid-cutting process produces any tearout, the extra leg length gives you the chance for a “do over” or two, if needed. To set up for cutting the four beveled faces of each pyramid, I screwed a 40″-long fence to my miter gauge and tilted my table saw blade to 19.5°. Draw base lines all around each leg for the pyramids, 5/16″ from one end. Now, lightly score along these lines with a sharp utility or marking knife — it helps safeguard against splintering. Clamp a stop block to the miter gauge fence against the flat “foot” end of each leg so the blade lines up exactly with your score lines. Make four cuts to trim the pyramids to shape. If they’re crisp and meet your approval, crosscut the legs to final length.

Each leg requires two pairs of 1-3/4″-long mortises on its inside faces for the aprons and one pair of 1/2″-long mortises for the top rails. Choose the “show” faces of the legs first (arrange the laminated edges of the legs to the sides of the project), and mark the legs to keep their orientation clear. Then lay out these 1/4″-wide mortises, according to the Drawings. Chop all the mortises about 9/16″ deep.

I like to chamfer the bottoms of legs like these. It’s easy to do with a block plane or a chamfering bit in a trim router, and removing the edges and corners will ensure that the legs won’t chip if the plant stand gets dragged across a floor. Chamfering also adds a nice shadow line detail. About a 1/8″ chamfer is all you need. Once the chamfers are cut, sand the legs smooth, then up to 180-grit, and set them aside.

Machining the Apron and Rail Tenons

Mill nine, 3″-wide blanks for the aprons from 1/2″ stock, and prepare five, 1-3/4″-wide blanks for the top rails (one of each size is a test piece). Crosscut them all to 13″ long. While your first inclination might be to start cutting curves into these parts now, save that for last. The right place to begin is by raising tenons on their ends while you still have flat reference edges to bear against. Stack a wide dado blade in your table saw, and bury it in a sacrificial fence so only 1/2″ of the blade projects out from the fence.

Start by cutting the “end” shoulders of the tenons, using the test pieces to set up these cuts. Raise the blade to 1/8″, install a scrap fence on your miter gauge to back up the cuts, and cut one shoulder on all the parts, with the workpieces standing on-edge. Next, crank up the blade to 1-1/8″, flip the workpieces to their opposite long edges, and cut the other end shoulders into all of them. This should produce a 1-3/4″-long tenon on the aprons and 1/2″ tenons on the top rails.

Complete the tenons by lowering the dado blade to 1/8″ again and cutting the final two broad shoulders of each one, starting with the test pieces. Aim for a good friction fit of the test tenons in their leg mortises. Slightly tight is always better than too loose: you can refine the fit of a snug tenon easily with a shoulder plane or a file.

Shaping and Mortising with Templates

Our eyes can distinguish even subtle differences between two curves, especially when they’re parallel and close together — as they will be on these aprons and rails. So, uniformity is reason enough to make templates for shaping both the aprons and rails. You’ll also appreciate having stopped slots on the apron template for locating the mortises that house pairs of faux tenons. That way, you can rout these mortises to exact size easily and quickly with a guide collar and a straight bit.

I laid out my apron and rail templates on long strips of 1/2″ plywood so I could leave some extra material at the ends for use as handholds. Bend a flexible batten to draw all the curves, and mark the tenons on the ends of the templates, too. Next, lay out the positions of the mortises on the apron template, then enlarge these two outlines to 3/4″ wide and 2-1⁄2″ long. Rout slots through the template to hit your outlines with a 3/4″ straight bit in your router table, starting and stopping these cuts carefully. Chisel the mortise cutouts square.

Now, grab your jigsaw or head to the band saw to cut the templates to rough shape, and smooth their curves with sanding drums or on a spindle sander. I tacked a pair of 1/2″ thick spacers underneath the handholds of each template to register the aprons and rails automatically, and to add some stability during use. Once the templates are ready, use them to draw curves on all the apron and rail workpieces. Cut these parts just outside of those layout lines. Then stick an apron or rail to its template with carpet tape, and shave the curves to match the templates with a piloted flush-trim bit in your router table.

After forming the two curves on each apron, I routed its mortises before separating the apron from the template and moving onto the next one. Use a 1/2″ O.D. guide collar and a 1/4″ straight or spiral bit in a plunge router for this task. Your mortises will end up being 1/2″ wide and 2-1/4″ long. Rout them 1/4″ deep. Chisel the mortise ends square. Add some tiny chamfers to the long edges of the rails and aprons, then finish-sand them all to 180-grit.

Assembling the Framework

You’re now ready to bring your big stack of parts together into a framework. First, test the fit of all the pieces, then glue and clamp up two side assemblies consisting of two legs, two aprons and a top rail. When those dry, erect the frame with the last four aprons and two rails. Clamp carefully during glue-up so that all four legs stand flat and the frame is square.

Mitered corner braces will support a pair of 12″ x 12″ floor tiles for the plant shelves. Make the braces by crosscutting eight blanks to 6″ long, then miter-cutting their ends to 45°. Measure up from the leg bottoms to set the brace heights from the floor at 17″ and 32″ (measured to their top faces).

Once I had these positions marked, I glued the braces to the aprons with cyanoacrylate for a quick bond. Then I drove pairs of #8 x 1″ screws through countersunk holes inside the mortise areas to secure the corner braces permanently.

The last building step is to cover those “secret” screwheads with faux tenons. These tenons look best if you rout or plane tiny chamfers around their ends. Just make up a long blank of 1/2″-thick, 2-1⁄4″-wide tenon stock.

Chamfer both ends however you prefer (I used a chamfering bit in the router table), then chop the ends off in 1/2″ lengths. Repeat this process seven more times. Glue the 16 tenons into their mortises.

Fuming and Finishing

My “More on the Web” video for this article will provide the details of ammonia fuming, but here’s the short story: You’ll need a plastic “tent” to cover the plant stand, for trapping the fumes that turn this project from a raw tan color to a grayish or greenish brown. And, it’ll take potent, lab-grade ammonia with a 28% concentration to do that job; household ammonia is only about 5% and too weak to fume oak adequately. You can buy a gallon jug of 28% aqueous ammonia from Hi-Valley Chemical (hvchemical.com) for about $17.

Fuming is a simple process: ammonia reacts with the tannins in the oak to permanently darken it. The longer you leave your project in the tent, the darker it becomes, up to a point. I learned, through a timed test on scraps from the project, that after about 24 hours, darkening slows to a barely noticeable degree. So, after building my tent from furring strips and 4mil sheet plastic, I filled a glass pie plate with 12 ounces of ammonia, dropped the tent in place, and let the fun begin. I changed it at eight-hour intervals and stopped the reaction 24 hours later.

It is ABSOLUTELY essential to wear a respirator with cartridges approved for ammonia gas, goggles for your eyes, and long sleeves and chemical-safe gloves whenever you handle the liquid. Concentrated ammonia is extremely caustic. But, with proper precautions and good ventilation, I didn’t find it problematic to work with.

Once my plant stand came out of the tent, I let it off-gas for two days and then gave it a light final sanding. (Fuming actually penetrates the wood much more deeply than pigment or dye stains will, so touchup sanding won’t remove the color.) I wiped the wood down with Watco® Danish Oil Natural, which turned it immediately to a deep chocolate brown. When that dried, several coats of satin lacquer added a pleasant sheen.

After the finish cured, a trip to the home center for some porcelain floor tiles brought this handsome project to a close.

Click Here to download a PDF of the related drawings.

The post Stickley-Inspired Plant Stand appeared first on Woodworking | Blog | Videos | Plans | How To.

The construction is simple, but making this box requires a high level of precision. I’m amazed by how as projects get smaller, the required attention to detail seems to go up exponentially! It’s probably because a small goof stands out like a sore thumb on a small project. You can reduce this effect by making sure your machines are well-tuned, and by taking extra time to finely craft the box or boxes you make. Making three of these boxes at once is nearly as efficient as making one. And since machining the stock and drilling the large holes must be done on pieces at least 12″ long or longer (for safety reasons), I suggest you make at least three boxes. You can figure it like this: making one box may take three hours, and making three boxes may take four hours. As the quantity goes up, the time per box goes down. This is because so much of your time is spent on machine setups, not the machining itself. If you make more than one box at a time, be sure to label all the parts as you work so bases, lids and handles don’t get mixed up.

Magnetic Attraction!

Rare-earth magnets are used to hold the lid to the base. These are small but powerful magnets. I balanced the attraction force by using different thickness magnets set at a certain depth. It took a bit of trial and error, but the setup described and shown here works well.

I oriented the embedded magnets so the lid sits on the base only one way. Doing this eliminates the need to be absolutely dead-on perfect in positioning the magnet holes. Here’s how it works: Every permanent magnet has both a north and a south pole. Opposite poles attract; like poles repel. For this project, you don’t need to know which sides of the magnets are north or south, you just need to know the magnets are oriented one pole up in the left magnet holes, and the same pole oriented down in the right magnet holes. I’ll tell you how to set them up in the section on making the lid.

Construction Notes

You’ll need the following tools to make the box: table saw, drill press, band saw, and a stationary belt or a disc sander. You’ll also need three Forstner bits (a 1-5⁄8″, a 5/16″, and a 1/4″) and a 5/16″ plug cutter, a 1/8″ brad point drill bit, and a pair of dowel centers. The diameter of the dowel centers needed depends on the type of dowel centers you use. If your dowel centers are the short type, then you’ll use 5/16″-diameter centers inserted in the base’s plug holes. If your dowel centers are the long type, then you’ll use 1/4″-diameter centers inserted into the base’s magnet holes.

Do not use an orbital sander for finish sanding. The parts are too small for that, and doing so will “crown” the flat surfaces, and destroy the crisp edges. Instead, finish-sand the parts using your stationary belt or disc sander with 120-grit sandpaper, then 180-grit, and then 220-grit. Complete the finish sanding using hard and flat sanding blocks with 240-grit sandpaper, and then 320-grit.

Test your machine setups on scrap wood prior to committing the operations to your workpieces. Also, use extra caution: machining small parts means your hands need to get closer to the cutting tools than when you machine larger pieces.

Making the Base

Cut a piece of walnut to 1-1⁄2″ thick x 3″ wide x at least 12″ long. The base (piece 1), or bases, will be cut from this stock. Draw the base layout (see Drawing) on the top of the base piece blank. Using a drill press, drill the 1-5⁄8″-diameter x 1-1⁄4″-deep center hole, or holes if you are making more than one box. Then drill the 5/16″-diameter x 3/32″-deep plug holes, the 1/4″-diameter x 1/8″-deep magnet holes and the 1/8″-diameter bottom hole. That last hole is there so that you can reach in from underneath, using a small diameter tool, and push the bottom insert out, should it ever need to be removed.

Use a band saw to rough-cut the base shape, and then sand the sides and corners of the base. Sanding with fine grits on a stationary sander will get you extremely close to done, leaving just a bit of hand sanding for later.

Making the Lid

Cut the lid blank (piece 4) to size. It’s initially made oversized so its shape can be traced from the top of the base. Draw a 2-1⁄4″ centered square on the underside of the lid. Insert dowel centers into the plug or magnet holes in the base, and mark the magnet hole locations on the underside of the lid blank. Drill the 5/16″-diameter x 3/32″-deep plug holes in the lid blank, and then the 1/4″-diameter x 1/16″-deep magnet holes.

Now to determine the lid magnet orientations: Stack the two 1/16″-thick magnets (pieces 5) together; they will grab and join together due to their magnetic attraction. Now you know that the same pole, whether that is north or south, is up. Use a marker to label the “up” side of both magnets. Insert the magnets into their holes in the lid with one mark up, and the other with its mark down and hidden.

Make the lid plugs (pieces 6) using a 5/16″-diameter plug cutter. Glue and gently hammer the plugs in place, covering the lid magnets. Orient and then insert the base magnets (pieces 2) into the base. With all the magnets oriented correctly, the lid will be attracted to the base one way, and repelled from the base if flipped 180˚.

Complete the Base and Lid

Make and insert the base plugs (pieces 3). Flush-trim the lid and base plugs. Finish-sand the base using hard sanding blocks. Set the base on the lid so the magnets hold the parts together, then lay out the lid shape. Cut and finish-sand the 14˚ beveled edges of the lid.

Make the handle and dowels (pieces 7 and 8). Drill the handle dowel holes in the handle and lid. Sand the handle and lid, and then glue the handle to the lid.

Finishing Up

Use hardboard to make the bottom insert (piece 9), and then cover it with leather (piece 10). The diameter of the bottom insert depends on the thickness of the leather used. Test the fit prior to adhering the leather. The bottom insert with the leather attached should fit slightly snug in the hole.

Apply finish to the wood, and then insert the leather bottom. Now you’re ready to wrap the box, give the gift, see the smiles, and listen to the accolades!

Click Here to download a PDF of the related drawings.

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Making this lamp’s tapered hexagonal body is straightforward using a band saw with the aid of a tapering jig (see Drawing). The lamp can be made using almost any wood or combination of woods. (I used hard maple to make the body and mahogany for the top cap and base.) The thick stock gives the lamp some heft so it’s stable and difficult to topple. You’ll also need a lamp wiring kit and a lampshade, which are readily available at hardware stores, home centers and from online retailers.

Prepare the Stock

The lamp body is made from four pieces of 8/4 maple, but you could glue together thinner stock to achieve the required thickness. The glued blank has a hollow center channel that provides wiring access (see Drawing). Gluing the stock also makes it more stable and allows you to orient the wood for a pleasing grain pattern.

Starting with square pieces helps ensure that the finished lamp is plumb, so jointing and planing the stock is highly recommended. Make your workpieces a little oversize so you can square the glued lamp body blank if needed. (The blank dimension for this project is sized to work with a band saw with a resaw capacity of 6″ or greater.) It’s also important that the center channel actually remains in the center of the stock as you work so the electrical parts wind up in the right place.

When gluing and clamping the stock, try to keep the pieces from slipping so the edges remain flush. I use wood handscrews to clamp because they provide pressure over a large area and can be adjusted to apply more or less pressure in specific areas.

Once you remove the clamps, check that the ends are perpendicular with the sides of the blank. Square the ends if necessary with a band saw or miter saw. Don’t worry if the dimensions aren’t exactly the same as those in the Drawing — it’s unnecessary for a project like this to be that precise.

The rectangular end plugs allow the blank to be mounted in the band saw tapering jig, but more on that later. Cut the plugs so they fit snugly in the center channel, then glue them in place and tap them flush with the stock. Now draw diagonal lines on the ends of the stock from corner to corner to locate the center point, which should fall in the middle of the end plugs. Punch a small hole in the centers with an awl.

Lay Out the Hexagon

Creating a hexagonal pattern is amazingly simple — check out the photos. Use a wing compass to determine the maximum size of a circle that will fit on the end of your stock.

Using the radius measurement, draw a circle on paper or cardboard (or on the stock). Without changing the compass setting, strike off consecutive points around the circle’s circumference — you should get exactly six points.

Then draw lines between the points to outline the hexagon, and finally cut out the hexagon pattern. Although you can draw directly on the stock, a pattern provides consistent, repeatable results if you plan to make more than one lamp.

Center the pattern on the stock using the awl mark you made earlier and trace around the pattern in pencil. You can do the same on the other end (the bottom) for visual reference when cutting, but it’s optional. Now draw a smaller inside hexagon by measuring 3/4″ from each line. This delineates the starting point for the taper on the top end.

Make the Tapered Hexagon

Cutting the tapered hexagon is a two step process that requires a band saw jig (see Drawing) for the second step. (If your band saw has a resaw capacity greater than 6″, it may be possible to do this in one step with the jig.) Understanding the jig’s operation is more important than duplicating its dimensions because band saw table sizes differ. The jig’s purpose is to guide the stock through the blade at an angle.

The jig’s base is 1/2″ plywood with a runner on the bottom that fits into the band saw’s miter gauge slot. The workpiece is held by adjustable mounting blocks on each end that are sized to allow the stock to rotate and just touch the base. It’s important to use only one screw to attach each mounting block to the base because they need to pivot to remain parallel with workpiece ends.

The first set of cuts you’ll make on the band saw produces a straight hexagonal column. Use a 1/2″ or wider blade to minimize blade deflection. Position the saw’s fence to the outside of the blade and tilt the table toward you about 30˚. (You may want to adjust the fence to accommodate blade drift; check your saw’s instruction manual.) Then adjust the fence and blade to align with one edge of the hexagon drawn on the top of the workpiece. Make the first cut; then rotate the workpiece and adjust the fence and table to align the blade for the next cut. Repeat this operation until you’ve cut all six sides. Save at least one of the cutoffs; you’ll need this later for routing the relief cuts in the lamp body.

Now you’ll need to mount the workpiece in the tapering jig. Here’s the sequence that worked best for me: First, screw the bottom mounting block to the center of the bottom of the workpiece, but don’t attach the mounting block to the jig’s base yet. Roughly center the workpiece on the jig. Position the jig with its track in the saw’s miter gauge slot and align one of the bottom edges of the hexagon against the blade. Now screw the bottom mounting block to the jig’s base. Next, attach the top mounting block to the top of the workpiece and slide the jig back so the blade just touches the top of the workpiece. Rotate the workpiece from the bottom mounting block so the blade aligns with one of the lines of the smaller inside hexagon drawn on the top. Screw the top mounting block to the base and recheck the blade alignment with the small hexagon. Finally, screw one or both of the mounting block lock screws slightly into the stock to prevent the workpiece from rotating. Now you can cut the tapers by rotating and cutting.

Once you’ve completed the cuts, you’ll need to remove the saw marks from the workpiece. I used a hand plane because it provides a clean, crisp, controlled cut. You could also use a jointer or a sander, but be careful not to remove too much stock. Now’s a good time to bore a 1/2″ hole in each end to open the center channel for wiring.

Rout the Relief Cuts

The decorative relief cuts add dimension and visual interest to the lamp body by emphasizing its hexagonal shape. For safety’s sake, it’s best to use a router table for this step because it provides excellent support and control for the workpiece.

Use a 3/8″ or 1/2″ flat-bottom straight bit to rout the 1/8″-deep relief channels. Attach the cutoff (saved earlier) from making the hexagon to the router table’s fence with brads or carpet tape. The cutoff provides stock support and the clearance necessary to keep the router bit parallel with the workpiece edges. Make steady, multiple passes to remove the stock between the raised edges. Turn the workpiece around and adjust the fence so the cut starts on the opposite edge to complete the work.

You’ll need to sand the relief channels, so start with 120-grit paper and work your way up to 220-grit. Then sand the edges, and you’ll be ready to make the remainder of the parts.

Top, Base, Feet

If you prefer, you can use a contrasting wood for the top cap, base and feet. The top cap must fit precisely on the lamp body top. However, it’s unlikely that the lamp body is perfectly symmetrical, so you need to trace the top onto the top-cap stock for a perfect fit. Cut the piece on the band saw, but leave it just slightly large to allow for some fine-tuning. Mark one mating edge on the lamp body and top cap to ensure alignment during assembly.

The base’s tolerances don’t need to be quite so exact, so simply lay out a hexagon on the stock, then cut it on the band saw. Once it’s cut, you’ll need to counterbore a 1/2″-deep x 1-1/4″-diameter hole in the bottom of the base to accommodate the end of the threaded lamp pipe and nut. Then bore a 7/16″ hole through the center of the base and the top cap for the lamp pipe.

Using the band saw, cut 45˚ chamfers on the top edges of the base and top cap. Aside from sanding the sawn edges, I shaped the top’s upper surfaces, starting at the chamfers, with files and sandpaper to create a more rounded profile where it meets the metal lamp neck. When you’re satisfied with the fit and appearance of the top cap, glue it onto the lamp body with either epoxy or cyanoacrylate.

The feet afford a more finished look to the base and allow space for the electrical cord to exit. Make a strip of 1/4″-thick x 1-1/4″-wide x 10″-long stock and trace the corner onto the strip for six 1″-long pieces. Cut these pieces on the band saw and then sand the edges smooth. Glue the feet at the corners of the base about 1/16″ back from the edge. You might also want to add a few pin nails to secure them.

After finishing, you’ll attach the base to the lamp body with four #8 x 2″ wood screws, but drill and countersink the screw holes now. Then place the lamp body on the base and center it. Mark the base screw hole positions on the lamp body and then drill pilot holes.

Assemble and Install Wiring

Everyone has a favorite finish, and because lamps typically don’t experience a lot of wear and tear, don’t hesitate to use what you like. I applied a few coats of clear aerosol lacquer, rubbing between coats with 0000 steel wool and a soft cotton rag. This finish provides enough protection and imparts a soft glow to the wood. Finish the base separately from the lamp body and top cap. When the finish has cured, screw the base to the lamp body, and you’ll be ready to wire.

Most lamp kits provide some wiring instruction, but here are a few tips that can ease the process. First, cut the threaded lamp pipe so it extends about 1/4″ at the top and bottom. Use a file to round any sharp edges on the inside and outside of the tube to prevent damaging the wire. Insert the tube through the lamp and install the locknut on the bottom and the neck on top and then tighten. Now install the harp bottom over the lamp nipple (on top of the neck) and screw the socket cap onto the nipple. Thread the wire from the bottom through the lamp pipe and into the socket cap. Pull enough wire to connect to the socket and tie an underwriter’s knot to prevent the wire from being pulled off the terminals. Connect the wires to the terminals, finish assembling the socket, and finally add the harp and lampshade. The final touch is to add some non-slip protective pads on the feet (item #43518 at rockler.com; 800-279-4441).

With this lamp’s construction now under your belt, you’re likely full of ideas how to improve it, make multiples of it and branch off into making your own designs. Just be careful not to have all those new lamps turned on at the same time, or you could experience a big spike in your electric bill.

Click Here to download a PDF of the related drawings.

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Knobs

Something that niggles me about almost all knobs is attachment. Most metal pulls are attached with machine screws, while faceplate knobs are traditionally attached with a wood screw. About the only time the screw is tight and the knob doesn’t spin is on the day it is installed or when the humidity has been 90% for three weeks running. The rest of the time, which is most of the time, the knob whirls and wobbles every time you tug on it. My methodology ends this problem by attachment with a dowel. In most casework, I find that either a 3/8″ or a 1/2″ dowel works handsomely. With spindle-turned pulls, the dowel can be turned as part of the piece, while the faceplate-turned variety requires the gluing of a dowel as a loose piece.

Three further benefits are derived from hand-turned knobs. The first comes for free and can’t be storebought. By turning everything from one billet, you get a repeating grain pattern in all of the pulls. The second benefit is perspective. In very high-end 18th- and 19th-century chests of drawers, the knobs were graduated.

Starting with the biggest knobs on the bottom drawer, the pull on each successive drawer upwards is between 1/16″ and 1/32″ smaller. This corrects for perspective when a standing viewer looks down at the drawers, so that all the knobs look to be equal in diameter. It is a nice touch that few will directly perceive — but it’s why certain works end up in museums and others don’t.

The third benefit is that you can make your own latching mechanism to secure a door. By turning the dowel long enough to go through the door stile, you can attach it to a toggle that slips behind the face frame stile when you turn the knob. This detail brings delight to all who open the door, once you warn them not to yank, but to gently turn the knob — today’s public is accustomed to magnetic catches on cabinetry instead.

Spindle or Faceplate?

Spindle turning is by far the best grain orientation for pulls up to about 1-1⁄2″. That being said, I have successfully spindle-turned 3″-diameter entry door knobs. While theory says that, at some diameter, faceplate turning becomes the better grain orientation due to strength, I am not at all convinced that this is so. Rather, I think that the decision to faceplate turn is stylistic. You get a much different look by faceplate turning. This highlights the fact that wood for a turned knob should always have good crossgrain strength.

Like the perfect grain and diameter match, an inlaid contrasting dot is also part of my signature. I spindle-turn a contrasting wood to an appropriate diameter, then drill on center with a twist drill that is about .005″ smaller in diameter, apply a drop of super glue, and tap the spindle into the hole. After parting off the excess, I turn the remaining excess flush.

Chucking is somewhat problematic with faceplate-turned knobs. One solution is to lay out with a compass, then band saw rounds. Now drill a blind hole in each blank on the center dimple left by the compass point. Glue in a dowel and grab this in a four-jaw chuck.

To install a shop-made knob, simply drill a hole of the appropriate diameter at the appropriate place, apply some glue, and push it home. Quickly align the grain to the desired orientation. I like to through-drill the holes and have the tenons come flush with the inside face. This allows easy removal if something catastrophic happens. For bombproof installation, split the tenon about two thirds of its length and drive a wedge from the inside.

I used this technique to attach pulls made from oldtime barrel taps with working handles to a maple sugaring- themed cabinet I created for Geauga County [Ohio]’s 2006 Infinitree Project.

Handles

Turned handles are eye-catching and constantly garner comment. What is more, they are easy to make from scraps that would likely be thrown away. You can turn round tenons and drill the drawer or carcass for gluing into place, or you can make a square tenon and mortise the carcass. This is the stronger attachment when a lot of weight is involved, such as on a tool chest. My illustration should give any woodworker/turner sufficient information to make your own version.

Wheels

Although most turners only think of toys at the mention of turned wheels, it is possible to make neat turned wheels for a variety of furniture: tea caddies, rolling boxes and mobile stands, to name a few. This is pure faceplate turning. The concept is simple, but there are some tricks to getting nice concentric wheels of uniform diameter. Stock selection and layout is one of these tricks. Wood for wheels needs good crossgrain strength and should be planed to uniform thickness.

To create a wooden wheel, lay it out with a compass or dividers, center-punch the center point, and drill in a drill press to the axle diameter. Band saw just outside the layout lines.

Chucking is quite easy: simply turn a very short tenon with a square shoulder that is tight with the center bore. Pin the piece against this improvised chuck. For small bore diameters, you can use a 60° live center directly, but for larger diameters you will need to interpose a piece of wood. Once chucked, turn the piece round with a bowl gouge and/or a scraper. Turn just to the compass line and all the wheels will be the same diameter. You can scrape the face of the wheel to look like a wheel and tire. You can even wood-burn spokes.

On some wheels, the axle can be as simple as a nail. On functional wheels, the axle is a square of wood with each end turned round. Leave the center square for easy attachment to the box or frame you are adding the wheels to. Cross-drill the axle and tap a tapered pin through to secure the wheel.

I hope you find ways to weave these ideas into your work. Shop-made pulls, handles and wheels really add a unique dynamic to your woodworking projects.

The post How to Turn Knobs, Handles and Wheels appeared first on Woodworking | Blog | Videos | Plans | How To.

Classic Mitered Jewelry Box: In this classic gift project, quality brass hardware, figured wood and contrasting splines combine to create a beautiful box.

Stickley-Inspired Plant Stand: We’ve updated a classic piece, increasing its height and adding some gentle curves, but Chris Marshall keeps you tied to tradition with a fumed ammonia finish.  

Keepsake Box: This small package itself is a good thing. Hidden magnets preserve the natural look and handmade feel of Bruce Kieffer’s tiny treasure box.

Carousel: Sandor Nagyszalanczy’s miniature mechanized carousel captures the  joi de vivre of its real-life inspiration, and will bring a smile to those who receive, and those who build, this presentation piece.

Hexagonal Table Lamp: Larry Okrend sheds light on how you can create this lamp’s tapers with a jig and a band saw.

Tool Preview: Trusted names Rob Johnstone and Anatole Burkin take you on a tour of what two new technology-based tools can do for you. Explore the options of the Full Spectrum H-Series 5^th Gen Desktop Laser, and the do-it-all router/laser/3D printer Piranha FX.

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