To start with, the puzzle needs to look like this:

The object is to get both washers on the same loop.

First you want to pull the loop on the bottom of the puzzle out far enough that you can slide as washer through it:

Once you get the loop pulled out, it should look like this:

Next, take the washer on the right and slide it through the loop you just pulled out:

I find it makes the next step easier if you’ll pull down on the two main loops a little to tighten up the knot and take out the slack:

Now here’s the tricky part, and the key to solving the puzzle. Pull the knot through the center hole towards you. You basically grab the two strings going through the center hole and pull them until the knot comes through:

After you pull the knot through the center hole, you should have two loops that you can now slide the washer through:

Here’s another view after the washer has been passed through those two loops:

Next you pull the knot BACK through the center hole. You do this by grabbing the stings from behind the puzzle and pull them back through:

Once the knot has been pulled back through the center hole, there should be another loop you can pass the washer through:

After passing the washer through that last loop, you can now pull on the two main loops to tighten the knot and you should have the two washer on the same side!

That’s it! Pretty easy, right? Hopefully this will help, but you may have to try it a few times to get it down. Even after I show people in person, it usually takes them a try or two.

For a possibly better explanation, check out this website.

You can also view larger pictures on my photography site.

Thanks for looking and I hope you make some of these puzzles!

David

Larger Picture Version

LJ Project of Finished Displays

Here you can see my miter key jig. Since I cut so many miter keys for the wine cork displays and the boxes I make, I decided that a nice, large, dedicated jig would save me a lot of time. It works really well, I’ve used the heck out it.

The first thing I do is figure out how far from the edge I want my keys to be. I take into account how deep the rabbit for the back and the dado for the glass is so I don’t cut into them. I also make sure the saw blade height is set accordingly and will not cut completely through the box.

I use a ruler to set the stop block the distance I want and then clamp it in place with a C clamp.

Once my stop block is in place, I rest the box securely in the jig, turn the saw on, and slide the jig forward to make the cut.

Now, I’ve seen videos of people making this cut then pulling the jig back through the blade with the box still in the jig. I use to do this until the box shifted once and basically ruined that project. So, after I slide the piece through the blade, I left the box off and slide the jig back the front of the table top.

After I move the jig back to the front, I flip the box forward and place it back in the jig to make the cut on the next corner. I do this for all four corners.

Here you can see the kerf left by saw, nice and clean. A flat tooth blade is really the only way to go. I have an ATB+F blade I picked up from Lowes, it works great.

Once the cuts have made on all four corners on one side of the box, I flip the box around and make the same cuts on the other side. This way all eight miter keys are evenly spaced from the outside edge.

Now, on some of the boxes that are a bit deeper, I make another set of miter key cuts at a shallower dept. This is up to you, experiment and see what you like.

Here’s what I did on the two larger ones.

Here’s all three displays I’m currently working on with all the miter key slots cut.

Next I cut some strips for the the keys themselves, walnut in this case. These strips need to be the exact width of your saw blade for a nice snug fit.

A test fit to make sure everything is ready to go.

Once you have your strips cut, you can cut them into smaller pieces to fit into the slots. I usually cut them by hand with a dovetail or backcut saw. I cut them so they are about a 1/4” longer than needed so I have room to slide them around.

All the pieces are cut, lets get to glueing them in!

I start by getting my glue out and putting a big helping of it on a piece of scrap wood. This way I can “dip” my pieces in the glue. This just seems quicker to me. I also use a small applicator bottle to put a little glue in each slot.

Going one corner at a time, I start by placing a small amount of the glue in each slot with the squeeze bottle.

I then dip an edge into the glue and spread a little around the top and bottom with my finger.

Next place the piece firmly into one of the miter key slots. I like to make sure a little glue squeezes out both sides so I know I’ll have a good bond.

Repeat for the remaining slots on that corner.

Once you get one side complete, spin the box and do the rest. Here’s all of the boxes with the miter keys glued in.

Once the glue has dried, I cut the excess off with a flush cut saw.

I usually trim one side the of the box, then flip it over and do the other side.

Once all the keys are cut flush, you can sand the outside and get ready to apply your finish!

For the back, I just cut a piece of 1/4” plywood that fits snug into the rabbit in the back.

As for the finish, I usually used BLO followed by a wiping varnish on the redwood. On the oak, usually just wiping varnish or poly.

I hoped you enjoyed these tutorials. I think it was a good learning experience for me to actually document my process. If you have any questions feel free to message me. Thanks for looking!

Larger Picture Version

Bigger Picture Version

Now that I’ve got my glass, I can begin the glue-up. However, I suggest sanding the inside first, one less thing to deal with later.

I begin by laying my pieces down on my table with the inside facing down and the front facing away from me. I use a piece of MDF to make sure the front edges are aligned then place masking tape on each joint.

After all the joints are taped, I flip the whole assembly over and fold everything together, taping the last corner. After looking to make sure the corners are tight and everything lines up, I untape one of the corners and lay it back open.

Now I go find my glass. As you can see here, my glass comes stacked with painters tape holding the pieces together. I like stacking them on bench cookies so they won’t get scratched. Actually, I haven’t had these bench cookies long and the only thing I’ve used them for is to hold pieces of glass. I should probably try to use them something eventually…

I do another dry fit with the glass in place to make sure there are no issues.

Next I untape an edge and lay the assembly open again. I sit the glass aside and get out my glue. I spread glue evenly on each miter face, let it sit for a few minutes, the repeat the process.

After I applied all the glue, I insert the glass, fold the assembly together again, and tape the last corner so everything is nice and tight.

You might notice there is a little squeeze out on the inside corners, I usually take care of this with a chisel after the glue drys.

Now, you can let it dry with just the tape holding the joints, but since I got a couple of those band clamps, I’ve been using them to make sure the miters really pull together tight.

That’s about it for the assembly, just them cook for a while, then take the tape and/or clamps off.

In the next section, I’ll show how I cut and glue in the miter keys!

Thanks for looking, any comments will be appreciated.

Bigger Picture Version

Once I cut my stock to length and rip to the desired width I setup my tablesaw to make 45 degrees bevel cuts. I add a fence to my miter saw and find a clamp and stock block. You can see my stock to the right of my fence just waiting to be cut.

Since i have been making so many of these things lately, I’ve cut a few pieces of MDF to help with the measurements.

Here you can see how I use them to set the stop block.

Before I begin cutting, I mark my boards with a red pencil to indicate the top of each piece. I then make my cuts playing the top down to the left of the blade a cut a small piece off the end. I then flip the board over, top up, slide it against the stop block and make the final cut. I sit the piece I just cut off to the side then I flip the board back over, top down, and trim off just enough to get rid of the previous bevel cut. After that I flip the board back over, slide it against the stop block again the make the cut. Repeat until you have four sides.

Here you can see all four sides. At this time I usually number the boards in the order they where cut, and place an arrow indicating which edge will be the front. I also mark which board I want to be the top.

I almost always use either board #2 or #3 so the grain warps around the edges of the top.

I take the boards that will become the top and mark the center of each. I then clamp them to the bench with a sacrificial board beneath them and use a 1 1/4” spade bit to drill a hole in the center of the board. This will be were the corks go in. I’m sure a drill press and better bits would make this much easier.

Here you can see the tops with holes drilled.

The next step is to rout the inside of the hole to make make it look smoother. I do this at the router table with 1/2” round over bit and the fence removed. I lower the piece on the bit and rout in a clockwise direction until I have rounded over the entire hole. This can be dangerous process if you’ve never done it before, so be careful and have a firm grip on the the piece as you lower it. Thankfully a 1 1/4” hole with 1/2” round over bit you can lower the board on without the bit touching the wood.

Here you can see the hole after it was routed. Doesn’t that look nice?

Now it’s time to cut the dado for the glass and rout a rabbit for the back. I cut a 1/8” dado on the table saw by setting the blade to make a 3/16” cut 1/4” from the fence. I make sure the top of the piece is up and the arrow pointing towards the front edge is also pointing towards the fence.

If you’re like me and use a thin kerf blade, you may need to adjust your fence just slightly in order to get a 1/8” dado. Practice on a scrap first.

After the dado is cut in the bottom of each piece. I head to the router table to cut a rabbit 5/8” deep by 1/4” tall. I use a rabbiting bit for this, but I’ve also done it in with the tablesaw.

Here’s the pieces after the dados and rabbits have been cut.

The final step is to measure the dado so you know what size glass to get. The easiest way I have found is to place a thin ruler in the dado, place the 1” mark at the bottom left most edge of the dado, then take a reading from the other side and subtract 1”. Don’t forget to subtract that inch!

A note on that glass. I prefer glass because it’s easier to clean up after the finishing. I used plastic on the my first one and it was a disaster. I’m also fortunate enough to know a place that is friendly, fast, and dirt cheap to get my glass from. My last order was for 14 pieces of glass ranging from 9” square to 11” square and it cost me less that $30 and was ready in a couple days.

That’s it for now. I hope you enjoyed this tutorial and are inspired to make your own. Next time I’ll cover cutting the plywood back and assembly.

Comments and feedback our always welcome! Feel free to contact me if you have any questions. Thanks.

David

Large Tutorial on Smugmug

The design is one of my own. It’s very simple, basically the same as the boxes I make but with glass and a hole in the top. There is nothing complicated about them and they make great gifts. They don’t have to store just wine corks either. Some of the people I have made them for store beer caps, marbles, and coins in them.

Please feel free to copy my design. I’m sure there are several ways to improve upon it and I’ve love to see or hear about any of them. Some of the ideas I’ve played around with include: rectangle instead of square, box joints instead of miters, and making the glass removable instead of the back.

• Tablesaw
• Miter Saw
• Router
• Drill
• Miter Key Jig

The techniques used are simple. I’ve only been at this for a year, so most new woodworker should able to follow along. If you have an questions, feel free to contact me. As always, any comments or feedback is welcome. I hope you enjoy the tutorials!

David