This is a bread box I just completed.
It is a gift that was requested by a friends eldest daughter for her wedding.
The breadbox is made from western maple, with quilted western maple(from the same tree) for the door panel. the drawer is made from clear yellow cedar, with a birch bottom, and a birds eye maple kerfed block to hold knives. the back is a raised pine panel from a single board.

The carcass is constructed with through dovetails. as well as threw wedged tenons(diagonal wedges).
I had initially used walnut wedges, but when I applied finished, the end grain walnut caused problems, so i replaced the walnut wedges with rosewood wedges.(getting the old ones out was quite difficult)

This was a fun project, that i used as a experiment to try different techniques for some of the joinery than i normally would. all the joints were cut with hand tools, as well as was most of the stock preparation.

guess i will start planning the next one.

I had hope for this pile of maple 3×12s. But these hopes were squashed today when i took the tarp off. after 2 years of drying, most of it is split and unusable. only six 8ft planks made it.

So , my project this week would make most here want to cry, i am cutting and splitting for firewood to give away.
I do have my eye out to try and save the quilted pieces as i find them, but i will probably miss most.

The back story of this maple is that it came down in a spring storm, so it was at it’s wettest when I cut it.
I put about 3000bf in the boat shed, and had to pile(this pile)outside about another 1000bf under tarp.
what i think happened, is that because this pile was outside, it lost water too fast which caused the huge loss due to splitting. the wood in the boat shed it losing moisture much more slowly, though it will probably take a few more years to dry.

the only thing this maple could be used for now is practicing wood turning, though it’s a rare turner who would pay for wood.

April 30th. update, i wanted to share that this wasn’t an entire loss. attaching pictures of some of the gems found while cutting this pile for firewood. smaller pieces but great figure. i think i will save them for cutting veneers when i go to school at inside passage school this fall.

I needed a diversion project to take my mind off the home reno’s (just found out i have to take out the kitchen floor I had just put down and installed cupboards ontop of).

So I made a foot rest for my wife for her desk at work. It seems like many peoples knees ache when they sit at computer desks for hours a day, because I have requests for half a dozen more.

I banged this one out this evening, took about 1 1/2 hours including stock preparation ( by hand).

the joinery is just a rabbet and wooden nails, the project is made out of western maple including the nails with a dowel plate.

Everyone seems to have a piece of wood in their shop they cannot identify. this one was mine.

I found it in the ditch beside my house, obviously dunnage used to sticker some more expensive wares for transport from some other country. extremely heavy and dense, quite waxy, open grained, green when first cut and oxidizes to black. it also has a unique odor when first cut or planed.

I did a bit of research and thought it was heartwood asian ebony, or maybe cabbagebark.

I made a few mallets out of it, and have a three foot piece leftover.

today i finally identified it as south American partridgewood. a woodworker i know who has been using exotics for 35+ years had a piece to compare it to (the smell was the determining factor)

I had never heard of it before, but from how nice it is to work with hand tools. i can see why it is rare.

the mallets i made from it have held up well to everyday use , and the heft makes it a perfect choice for this.

now i will have to keep my eyes open for another mystery piece.

...oh yeah, the handle is a piece of soft maple, shaped with spokeshave only, attached with through mortise and wedge(no glue).

hello everyone, busy right now doing a built in closet for my wife(home reno horror), so my shop time has been limited to building jigs for creating a 10×8 foot wooden monster of a closet.
a friend commented on this chisel block in my shop so i thought i would post it. I used to use a chisel block akin to a knife block for the kitchen, but i kept knocking it over . so i built this one.
so far it holds

3 corner chisels
8” square
3 saddle square(dovetail markers)
4 marking guages
6 mortise chisels
1 burnisher
1 awl
2 marking knives
4 skew chisels
4 paring chisels
10 bench chisels
2 divider
there is room for more, i just haven’t found what i need to put there yet. all in easy reach. i did have to burn the sizes of each chisel into the handle so they are easier to find.
happy new year

hello everyone, i just joined lumberjocks, I am far from computer savy, but i am trying to figure this thing out so i can post some projects. hopefully this works and what you are seeing is a picture of my workshop(a few years old)
the workbench is completely of ash, 4 inches thick for the top, and 6×8 inches for the legs. it is 30 inches deep and 8 foot long. i have since added holes for bench dogs and hold-downs, a tool cabinet for the base, among other things. i seem to find a need to change it for every project.
i hope to get some cleanup done soon so i can take some up to date photos. the pileup of shavings and tools right now is embarassing.