As I wrote earlier, I’d jointed the box corners using the Lock Mitre Router Bit in the router table. I mentioned that I’d set it up by way of trial and error. That prompted me today to do a Google on the topic & I came up with this helpful website.
Anyhow, with those joints, there should be no need for any reinforcement, but the box itself, before polishing, did seem a bit plain, especially when set against the lid. I wanted a change from the ‘slip feathers’ / mitre keys that I’ve frequently used & so I decided to turn some pegs with square heads. In bog oak again, they are long enough to provide some added strength.
I touched the heads quickly on the belt sander to give a rustic look.
I arranged the oak of the box itself so that two prominent knots fell centrally on the front and back of the box. One of them crumbled away during planing. I’d previously set an ammonite into a burr oak sketch book: and carved out around the knot to do the same here. I’m pleased with the result. To my mind, the ideas of fossils and the passage of time are strongly linked so that relates to my intention of using the box to house some vintage watches.
In go the knitting needles for the last time..
I recently read somewhere that we should expect to spend the same length of time finishing a project as we do in constructing it. So – that’s another 35 hours in the shop. Mmm we’ll see.
The finished box is here
-- Res severa verum gaudium - True pleasure is a serious business. http://www.folksy.com/shops/TreeGems
15 comments so far
CedarFreakCarl
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595 posts in 2220 days
#1 posted 1948 days ago
Looks great…......I’ll check back in 35 hours or so…......can’t wait!
-- Carl Rast, Pelion, SC
rikkor
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11296 posts in 2041 days
#2 posted 1948 days ago
That is really special. Great job Stewart.
Douglas Bordner
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3907 posts in 2231 days
#3 posted 1948 days ago
WOW
-- "Bordnerizing" perfectly good lumber for over a decade.
GaryK
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10263 posts in 2155 days
#4 posted 1948 days ago
Pretty cool use of a knot! Nicely done!
-- Gary - Never pass up the opportunity to make a mistake look like you planned it that way - Tyler, TX
davidtheboxmaker
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373 posts in 1972 days
#5 posted 1948 days ago
That lid certainly went pop when you put the polish on it.
Looking forward to seeing the whole thing in a single photograph – time to stop teasing and let us see it.
Dick, & Barb Cain
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8681 posts in 2466 days
#6 posted 1948 days ago
I can hardly wait to see the rest of it.
The ammonite sure will look nice, instead of a knot.
They have found ammonites here in one of the iron ore mines.
The mine is in a cretaceous formation. They also find sharks teeth.
They found one giant ammonite about 18” in diameter.
So where I live, once was an ocean.
-- -** You are never to old to set another goal or to dream a new dream ****************** Dick, & Barb Cain, Hibbing, MN. http://www.woodcarvingillustrated.com/gallery/member.php?uid=3627&protype=1
Colin
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232 posts in 2087 days
#7 posted 1948 days ago
Yes Stewart, you are a master, I can’t wait to see the finished box in all its glory.
-- Colin, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. "Every craftsman was once an amateur"
MsDebbieP
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18320 posts in 2327 days
#8 posted 1948 days ago
the fossil is a brilliant touch!!
35 hours .. how many hours do we have left?
-- ~ Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)
CutNRun
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122 posts in 2013 days
#9 posted 1948 days ago
I admire your creativity. I am a pretty decent technician, but need to work on the creative side of things. I hope to make some good progress on my box in the next few days and will add to my blog as well. I too, can’t wait to see the finished project, regardless of how “Plain Jane” it may make my effort look.
-- CutNRun - So much wood, so many trails, so little time
Todd A. Clippinger
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8654 posts in 2266 days
#10 posted 1948 days ago
That is just too cool! I am going to have to put a fossil in one of my projects now.
-- Todd A. Clippinger, Montana, http://americancraftsmanworkshop.com
SPalm
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4105 posts in 2049 days
#11 posted 1948 days ago
You da Man, you da Man.
-- -- I'm no rocket surgeon
Bob Babcock
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1804 posts in 2253 days
#12 posted 1948 days ago
I love your work Stewart. Every piece I’ve looked at I’ve thought…”Man I’d love to make that”
-- Bob, Carver Massachusetts, Sawdust Maker http://www.capecodbaychallenge.org
jockmike2
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10636 posts in 2413 days
#13 posted 1948 days ago
Nice burl, just gorgeous, I love those little swirls in that oak burl Mr. Stewart. My Hats off to you. mike
-- (You just have to please the man in the Mirror) Mike from Michigan -
mot
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4912 posts in 2203 days
#14 posted 1948 days ago
Stewart, you crafty devil you!
-- You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation. (Plato)
TomFran
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2933 posts in 2161 days
#15 posted 1948 days ago
Stewart,
This is going to be a dazzler! Thanks for sharing your great ideas with us. I’m learning from a master.
-- Tom, Surfside Beach, SC - Romans 8:28
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