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97K views 798 replies 53 participants last post by  Smitty_Cabinetshop 
#1 ·
Some Background

> UPDATED 04 May 2018 to address CHUMBUCKET limitation. kas <

Posted a 'Shop Notes' entry some time ago to talk about a big 'ole pine dovetailed box I bought at a local auction.

Wood Gas Hardwood Machine Window


Not absolutely certain it was ever a tool chest, but I won't rule it out either. Some points to consider on the tool chest vs. plain box discussion:

- There's no evidence it ever had sliding trays or inserts. Not that they're required, I suppose, but modern authors suggest that's the historical norm. Maybe the builder wasn't norm.

- No mortise lock, only a ring for a hasp / padlock. But then, a lock is a lock.

- It has chest-like handles. They're clinched through (and very cool looking).

- It has remnants of a chest-type lid. Wish there were more of it, but alas.

- The scallop marks from a cambered plane are clearly evident. You could suppose a finished box would have gotten a run with the smoother. But then a tool chest should show more capability. This one could go either way.

- The owner was indeed a carpenter of some merit. He (or his descendant) at least had a Sargent VBM smoother in nice condition, fore and jack planes, a wooden jointer with fence, iron bench dog (no bench though), decent handsaws and a mortising gage that appears to be a rosewood and brass Stanley #77. These tools (and others) were also auctioned off on sale day and most had the same initials marked on them.

- The overall dimensions don't rule out it being a tool chest, and actually seem right for one.

- No skirting for extra base support or for dust control around the lid

One thing is clear, though. If it's going to be a tool chest for me, it's gonna need some work.

- Regluing of the carcase dovetails

Wood Hardwood Wood stain Gas Plank


- A lid
- Top and bottom skirting
- Wheels
- Interior sliding tray(s)
- Interior saw till

The wonderful blue patina of the old chest is a big reason the antique dealer wanted it.

Wood Gas Composite material Hardwood Automotive exterior


If I'm going to refurbish this piece into something useable, I'd like to have the new work on the exterior blend in with the original as much as possible. Details for the skirts, lid and interior will come from C. Schwarz' Anarchist Tool Chest and a build here on LJs by Carters Whittling. Overall it's a very, very low priority project.

Thanks for looking!
 

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#27 ·
Some Background

> UPDATED 04 May 2018 to address CHUMBUCKET limitation. kas <

Posted a 'Shop Notes' entry some time ago to talk about a big 'ole pine dovetailed box I bought at a local auction.

Wood Gas Hardwood Machine Window


Not absolutely certain it was ever a tool chest, but I won't rule it out either. Some points to consider on the tool chest vs. plain box discussion:

- There's no evidence it ever had sliding trays or inserts. Not that they're required, I suppose, but modern authors suggest that's the historical norm. Maybe the builder wasn't norm.

- No mortise lock, only a ring for a hasp / padlock. But then, a lock is a lock.

- It has chest-like handles. They're clinched through (and very cool looking).

- It has remnants of a chest-type lid. Wish there were more of it, but alas.

- The scallop marks from a cambered plane are clearly evident. You could suppose a finished box would have gotten a run with the smoother. But then a tool chest should show more capability. This one could go either way.

- The owner was indeed a carpenter of some merit. He (or his descendant) at least had a Sargent VBM smoother in nice condition, fore and jack planes, a wooden jointer with fence, iron bench dog (no bench though), decent handsaws and a mortising gage that appears to be a rosewood and brass Stanley #77. These tools (and others) were also auctioned off on sale day and most had the same initials marked on them.

- The overall dimensions don't rule out it being a tool chest, and actually seem right for one.

- No skirting for extra base support or for dust control around the lid

One thing is clear, though. If it's going to be a tool chest for me, it's gonna need some work.

- Regluing of the carcase dovetails

Wood Hardwood Wood stain Gas Plank


- A lid
- Top and bottom skirting
- Wheels
- Interior sliding tray(s)
- Interior saw till

The wonderful blue patina of the old chest is a big reason the antique dealer wanted it.

Wood Gas Composite material Hardwood Automotive exterior


If I'm going to refurbish this piece into something useable, I'd like to have the new work on the exterior blend in with the original as much as possible. Details for the skirts, lid and interior will come from C. Schwarz' Anarchist Tool Chest and a build here on LJs by Carters Whittling. Overall it's a very, very low priority project.

Thanks for looking!
You got it, Super. Thanks for the encouragement, too. Probably paid more than I should have in that I can make a better box from scratch than I have now, without all the strings. But, as a relative always tells me, you sure like to aggravate yourself!
 

Attachments

#28 ·
Some Background

> UPDATED 04 May 2018 to address CHUMBUCKET limitation. kas <

Posted a 'Shop Notes' entry some time ago to talk about a big 'ole pine dovetailed box I bought at a local auction.

Wood Gas Hardwood Machine Window


Not absolutely certain it was ever a tool chest, but I won't rule it out either. Some points to consider on the tool chest vs. plain box discussion:

- There's no evidence it ever had sliding trays or inserts. Not that they're required, I suppose, but modern authors suggest that's the historical norm. Maybe the builder wasn't norm.

- No mortise lock, only a ring for a hasp / padlock. But then, a lock is a lock.

- It has chest-like handles. They're clinched through (and very cool looking).

- It has remnants of a chest-type lid. Wish there were more of it, but alas.

- The scallop marks from a cambered plane are clearly evident. You could suppose a finished box would have gotten a run with the smoother. But then a tool chest should show more capability. This one could go either way.

- The owner was indeed a carpenter of some merit. He (or his descendant) at least had a Sargent VBM smoother in nice condition, fore and jack planes, a wooden jointer with fence, iron bench dog (no bench though), decent handsaws and a mortising gage that appears to be a rosewood and brass Stanley #77. These tools (and others) were also auctioned off on sale day and most had the same initials marked on them.

- The overall dimensions don't rule out it being a tool chest, and actually seem right for one.

- No skirting for extra base support or for dust control around the lid

One thing is clear, though. If it's going to be a tool chest for me, it's gonna need some work.

- Regluing of the carcase dovetails

Wood Hardwood Wood stain Gas Plank


- A lid
- Top and bottom skirting
- Wheels
- Interior sliding tray(s)
- Interior saw till

The wonderful blue patina of the old chest is a big reason the antique dealer wanted it.

Wood Gas Composite material Hardwood Automotive exterior


If I'm going to refurbish this piece into something useable, I'd like to have the new work on the exterior blend in with the original as much as possible. Details for the skirts, lid and interior will come from C. Schwarz' Anarchist Tool Chest and a build here on LJs by Carters Whittling. Overall it's a very, very low priority project.

Thanks for looking!
Yep but you saw it and you wanted it. Who cares what you gave for it. You have it and you will fix it.
Go for the gusto Smitty.
I have a few wood bodied planes that I paid way to much for. Oh well. There mine.
 

Attachments

#29 ·
Some Background

> UPDATED 04 May 2018 to address CHUMBUCKET limitation. kas <

Posted a 'Shop Notes' entry some time ago to talk about a big 'ole pine dovetailed box I bought at a local auction.

Wood Gas Hardwood Machine Window


Not absolutely certain it was ever a tool chest, but I won't rule it out either. Some points to consider on the tool chest vs. plain box discussion:

- There's no evidence it ever had sliding trays or inserts. Not that they're required, I suppose, but modern authors suggest that's the historical norm. Maybe the builder wasn't norm.

- No mortise lock, only a ring for a hasp / padlock. But then, a lock is a lock.

- It has chest-like handles. They're clinched through (and very cool looking).

- It has remnants of a chest-type lid. Wish there were more of it, but alas.

- The scallop marks from a cambered plane are clearly evident. You could suppose a finished box would have gotten a run with the smoother. But then a tool chest should show more capability. This one could go either way.

- The owner was indeed a carpenter of some merit. He (or his descendant) at least had a Sargent VBM smoother in nice condition, fore and jack planes, a wooden jointer with fence, iron bench dog (no bench though), decent handsaws and a mortising gage that appears to be a rosewood and brass Stanley #77. These tools (and others) were also auctioned off on sale day and most had the same initials marked on them.

- The overall dimensions don't rule out it being a tool chest, and actually seem right for one.

- No skirting for extra base support or for dust control around the lid

One thing is clear, though. If it's going to be a tool chest for me, it's gonna need some work.

- Regluing of the carcase dovetails

Wood Hardwood Wood stain Gas Plank


- A lid
- Top and bottom skirting
- Wheels
- Interior sliding tray(s)
- Interior saw till

The wonderful blue patina of the old chest is a big reason the antique dealer wanted it.

Wood Gas Composite material Hardwood Automotive exterior


If I'm going to refurbish this piece into something useable, I'd like to have the new work on the exterior blend in with the original as much as possible. Details for the skirts, lid and interior will come from C. Schwarz' Anarchist Tool Chest and a build here on LJs by Carters Whittling. Overall it's a very, very low priority project.

Thanks for looking!
Its the price of the adventure.
 

Attachments

#30 ·
Some Background

> UPDATED 04 May 2018 to address CHUMBUCKET limitation. kas <

Posted a 'Shop Notes' entry some time ago to talk about a big 'ole pine dovetailed box I bought at a local auction.

Wood Gas Hardwood Machine Window


Not absolutely certain it was ever a tool chest, but I won't rule it out either. Some points to consider on the tool chest vs. plain box discussion:

- There's no evidence it ever had sliding trays or inserts. Not that they're required, I suppose, but modern authors suggest that's the historical norm. Maybe the builder wasn't norm.

- No mortise lock, only a ring for a hasp / padlock. But then, a lock is a lock.

- It has chest-like handles. They're clinched through (and very cool looking).

- It has remnants of a chest-type lid. Wish there were more of it, but alas.

- The scallop marks from a cambered plane are clearly evident. You could suppose a finished box would have gotten a run with the smoother. But then a tool chest should show more capability. This one could go either way.

- The owner was indeed a carpenter of some merit. He (or his descendant) at least had a Sargent VBM smoother in nice condition, fore and jack planes, a wooden jointer with fence, iron bench dog (no bench though), decent handsaws and a mortising gage that appears to be a rosewood and brass Stanley #77. These tools (and others) were also auctioned off on sale day and most had the same initials marked on them.

- The overall dimensions don't rule out it being a tool chest, and actually seem right for one.

- No skirting for extra base support or for dust control around the lid

One thing is clear, though. If it's going to be a tool chest for me, it's gonna need some work.

- Regluing of the carcase dovetails

Wood Hardwood Wood stain Gas Plank


- A lid
- Top and bottom skirting
- Wheels
- Interior sliding tray(s)
- Interior saw till

The wonderful blue patina of the old chest is a big reason the antique dealer wanted it.

Wood Gas Composite material Hardwood Automotive exterior


If I'm going to refurbish this piece into something useable, I'd like to have the new work on the exterior blend in with the original as much as possible. Details for the skirts, lid and interior will come from C. Schwarz' Anarchist Tool Chest and a build here on LJs by Carters Whittling. Overall it's a very, very low priority project.

Thanks for looking!
And you consider the price of a tank of gas vs. a life-long tool, it's no big deal at all.

Time to tear this thing down. Next installment soon…
 

Attachments

#31 ·
Some Background

> UPDATED 04 May 2018 to address CHUMBUCKET limitation. kas <

Posted a 'Shop Notes' entry some time ago to talk about a big 'ole pine dovetailed box I bought at a local auction.

Wood Gas Hardwood Machine Window


Not absolutely certain it was ever a tool chest, but I won't rule it out either. Some points to consider on the tool chest vs. plain box discussion:

- There's no evidence it ever had sliding trays or inserts. Not that they're required, I suppose, but modern authors suggest that's the historical norm. Maybe the builder wasn't norm.

- No mortise lock, only a ring for a hasp / padlock. But then, a lock is a lock.

- It has chest-like handles. They're clinched through (and very cool looking).

- It has remnants of a chest-type lid. Wish there were more of it, but alas.

- The scallop marks from a cambered plane are clearly evident. You could suppose a finished box would have gotten a run with the smoother. But then a tool chest should show more capability. This one could go either way.

- The owner was indeed a carpenter of some merit. He (or his descendant) at least had a Sargent VBM smoother in nice condition, fore and jack planes, a wooden jointer with fence, iron bench dog (no bench though), decent handsaws and a mortising gage that appears to be a rosewood and brass Stanley #77. These tools (and others) were also auctioned off on sale day and most had the same initials marked on them.

- The overall dimensions don't rule out it being a tool chest, and actually seem right for one.

- No skirting for extra base support or for dust control around the lid

One thing is clear, though. If it's going to be a tool chest for me, it's gonna need some work.

- Regluing of the carcase dovetails

Wood Hardwood Wood stain Gas Plank


- A lid
- Top and bottom skirting
- Wheels
- Interior sliding tray(s)
- Interior saw till

The wonderful blue patina of the old chest is a big reason the antique dealer wanted it.

Wood Gas Composite material Hardwood Automotive exterior


If I'm going to refurbish this piece into something useable, I'd like to have the new work on the exterior blend in with the original as much as possible. Details for the skirts, lid and interior will come from C. Schwarz' Anarchist Tool Chest and a build here on LJs by Carters Whittling. Overall it's a very, very low priority project.

Thanks for looking!
I like to compare the price of a beautiful hand tool that will hold it's value to the price of dinner out with the family. Look at what that turns into.
 

Attachments

#32 ·
Some Background

> UPDATED 04 May 2018 to address CHUMBUCKET limitation. kas <

Posted a 'Shop Notes' entry some time ago to talk about a big 'ole pine dovetailed box I bought at a local auction.

Wood Gas Hardwood Machine Window


Not absolutely certain it was ever a tool chest, but I won't rule it out either. Some points to consider on the tool chest vs. plain box discussion:

- There's no evidence it ever had sliding trays or inserts. Not that they're required, I suppose, but modern authors suggest that's the historical norm. Maybe the builder wasn't norm.

- No mortise lock, only a ring for a hasp / padlock. But then, a lock is a lock.

- It has chest-like handles. They're clinched through (and very cool looking).

- It has remnants of a chest-type lid. Wish there were more of it, but alas.

- The scallop marks from a cambered plane are clearly evident. You could suppose a finished box would have gotten a run with the smoother. But then a tool chest should show more capability. This one could go either way.

- The owner was indeed a carpenter of some merit. He (or his descendant) at least had a Sargent VBM smoother in nice condition, fore and jack planes, a wooden jointer with fence, iron bench dog (no bench though), decent handsaws and a mortising gage that appears to be a rosewood and brass Stanley #77. These tools (and others) were also auctioned off on sale day and most had the same initials marked on them.

- The overall dimensions don't rule out it being a tool chest, and actually seem right for one.

- No skirting for extra base support or for dust control around the lid

One thing is clear, though. If it's going to be a tool chest for me, it's gonna need some work.

- Regluing of the carcase dovetails

Wood Hardwood Wood stain Gas Plank


- A lid
- Top and bottom skirting
- Wheels
- Interior sliding tray(s)
- Interior saw till

The wonderful blue patina of the old chest is a big reason the antique dealer wanted it.

Wood Gas Composite material Hardwood Automotive exterior


If I'm going to refurbish this piece into something useable, I'd like to have the new work on the exterior blend in with the original as much as possible. Details for the skirts, lid and interior will come from C. Schwarz' Anarchist Tool Chest and a build here on LJs by Carters Whittling. Overall it's a very, very low priority project.

Thanks for looking!
'Kids, it's ketchup and bread tonight again, sorry. But this bedrock #603 was just so nice!.... '

Hmmmmm…

:)
 

Attachments

#33 ·
Some Background

> UPDATED 04 May 2018 to address CHUMBUCKET limitation. kas <

Posted a 'Shop Notes' entry some time ago to talk about a big 'ole pine dovetailed box I bought at a local auction.

Wood Gas Hardwood Machine Window


Not absolutely certain it was ever a tool chest, but I won't rule it out either. Some points to consider on the tool chest vs. plain box discussion:

- There's no evidence it ever had sliding trays or inserts. Not that they're required, I suppose, but modern authors suggest that's the historical norm. Maybe the builder wasn't norm.

- No mortise lock, only a ring for a hasp / padlock. But then, a lock is a lock.

- It has chest-like handles. They're clinched through (and very cool looking).

- It has remnants of a chest-type lid. Wish there were more of it, but alas.

- The scallop marks from a cambered plane are clearly evident. You could suppose a finished box would have gotten a run with the smoother. But then a tool chest should show more capability. This one could go either way.

- The owner was indeed a carpenter of some merit. He (or his descendant) at least had a Sargent VBM smoother in nice condition, fore and jack planes, a wooden jointer with fence, iron bench dog (no bench though), decent handsaws and a mortising gage that appears to be a rosewood and brass Stanley #77. These tools (and others) were also auctioned off on sale day and most had the same initials marked on them.

- The overall dimensions don't rule out it being a tool chest, and actually seem right for one.

- No skirting for extra base support or for dust control around the lid

One thing is clear, though. If it's going to be a tool chest for me, it's gonna need some work.

- Regluing of the carcase dovetails

Wood Hardwood Wood stain Gas Plank


- A lid
- Top and bottom skirting
- Wheels
- Interior sliding tray(s)
- Interior saw till

The wonderful blue patina of the old chest is a big reason the antique dealer wanted it.

Wood Gas Composite material Hardwood Automotive exterior


If I'm going to refurbish this piece into something useable, I'd like to have the new work on the exterior blend in with the original as much as possible. Details for the skirts, lid and interior will come from C. Schwarz' Anarchist Tool Chest and a build here on LJs by Carters Whittling. Overall it's a very, very low priority project.

Thanks for looking!
That's the spirit!

Also, I would like to offer some old wood as well if it helps. Mine are old poplar floor joists from a local factory demolition.. They are 3 foot section 3" thick and 6" wide. I've removed the cut nails. The have two weathered gray surfaces that I could resaw. I'll take a pic if if you think they would help
 

Attachments

#34 ·
Some Background

> UPDATED 04 May 2018 to address CHUMBUCKET limitation. kas <

Posted a 'Shop Notes' entry some time ago to talk about a big 'ole pine dovetailed box I bought at a local auction.

Wood Gas Hardwood Machine Window


Not absolutely certain it was ever a tool chest, but I won't rule it out either. Some points to consider on the tool chest vs. plain box discussion:

- There's no evidence it ever had sliding trays or inserts. Not that they're required, I suppose, but modern authors suggest that's the historical norm. Maybe the builder wasn't norm.

- No mortise lock, only a ring for a hasp / padlock. But then, a lock is a lock.

- It has chest-like handles. They're clinched through (and very cool looking).

- It has remnants of a chest-type lid. Wish there were more of it, but alas.

- The scallop marks from a cambered plane are clearly evident. You could suppose a finished box would have gotten a run with the smoother. But then a tool chest should show more capability. This one could go either way.

- The owner was indeed a carpenter of some merit. He (or his descendant) at least had a Sargent VBM smoother in nice condition, fore and jack planes, a wooden jointer with fence, iron bench dog (no bench though), decent handsaws and a mortising gage that appears to be a rosewood and brass Stanley #77. These tools (and others) were also auctioned off on sale day and most had the same initials marked on them.

- The overall dimensions don't rule out it being a tool chest, and actually seem right for one.

- No skirting for extra base support or for dust control around the lid

One thing is clear, though. If it's going to be a tool chest for me, it's gonna need some work.

- Regluing of the carcase dovetails

Wood Hardwood Wood stain Gas Plank


- A lid
- Top and bottom skirting
- Wheels
- Interior sliding tray(s)
- Interior saw till

The wonderful blue patina of the old chest is a big reason the antique dealer wanted it.

Wood Gas Composite material Hardwood Automotive exterior


If I'm going to refurbish this piece into something useable, I'd like to have the new work on the exterior blend in with the original as much as possible. Details for the skirts, lid and interior will come from C. Schwarz' Anarchist Tool Chest and a build here on LJs by Carters Whittling. Overall it's a very, very low priority project.

Thanks for looking!
I think a parent should teach about priorities. Good job.
 

Attachments

#35 ·
Some Background

> UPDATED 04 May 2018 to address CHUMBUCKET limitation. kas <

Posted a 'Shop Notes' entry some time ago to talk about a big 'ole pine dovetailed box I bought at a local auction.

Wood Gas Hardwood Machine Window


Not absolutely certain it was ever a tool chest, but I won't rule it out either. Some points to consider on the tool chest vs. plain box discussion:

- There's no evidence it ever had sliding trays or inserts. Not that they're required, I suppose, but modern authors suggest that's the historical norm. Maybe the builder wasn't norm.

- No mortise lock, only a ring for a hasp / padlock. But then, a lock is a lock.

- It has chest-like handles. They're clinched through (and very cool looking).

- It has remnants of a chest-type lid. Wish there were more of it, but alas.

- The scallop marks from a cambered plane are clearly evident. You could suppose a finished box would have gotten a run with the smoother. But then a tool chest should show more capability. This one could go either way.

- The owner was indeed a carpenter of some merit. He (or his descendant) at least had a Sargent VBM smoother in nice condition, fore and jack planes, a wooden jointer with fence, iron bench dog (no bench though), decent handsaws and a mortising gage that appears to be a rosewood and brass Stanley #77. These tools (and others) were also auctioned off on sale day and most had the same initials marked on them.

- The overall dimensions don't rule out it being a tool chest, and actually seem right for one.

- No skirting for extra base support or for dust control around the lid

One thing is clear, though. If it's going to be a tool chest for me, it's gonna need some work.

- Regluing of the carcase dovetails

Wood Hardwood Wood stain Gas Plank


- A lid
- Top and bottom skirting
- Wheels
- Interior sliding tray(s)
- Interior saw till

The wonderful blue patina of the old chest is a big reason the antique dealer wanted it.

Wood Gas Composite material Hardwood Automotive exterior


If I'm going to refurbish this piece into something useable, I'd like to have the new work on the exterior blend in with the original as much as possible. Details for the skirts, lid and interior will come from C. Schwarz' Anarchist Tool Chest and a build here on LJs by Carters Whittling. Overall it's a very, very low priority project.

Thanks for looking!
That wasn't so hard.
 

Attachments

#36 ·
Some Background

> UPDATED 04 May 2018 to address CHUMBUCKET limitation. kas <

Posted a 'Shop Notes' entry some time ago to talk about a big 'ole pine dovetailed box I bought at a local auction.

Wood Gas Hardwood Machine Window


Not absolutely certain it was ever a tool chest, but I won't rule it out either. Some points to consider on the tool chest vs. plain box discussion:

- There's no evidence it ever had sliding trays or inserts. Not that they're required, I suppose, but modern authors suggest that's the historical norm. Maybe the builder wasn't norm.

- No mortise lock, only a ring for a hasp / padlock. But then, a lock is a lock.

- It has chest-like handles. They're clinched through (and very cool looking).

- It has remnants of a chest-type lid. Wish there were more of it, but alas.

- The scallop marks from a cambered plane are clearly evident. You could suppose a finished box would have gotten a run with the smoother. But then a tool chest should show more capability. This one could go either way.

- The owner was indeed a carpenter of some merit. He (or his descendant) at least had a Sargent VBM smoother in nice condition, fore and jack planes, a wooden jointer with fence, iron bench dog (no bench though), decent handsaws and a mortising gage that appears to be a rosewood and brass Stanley #77. These tools (and others) were also auctioned off on sale day and most had the same initials marked on them.

- The overall dimensions don't rule out it being a tool chest, and actually seem right for one.

- No skirting for extra base support or for dust control around the lid

One thing is clear, though. If it's going to be a tool chest for me, it's gonna need some work.

- Regluing of the carcase dovetails

Wood Hardwood Wood stain Gas Plank


- A lid
- Top and bottom skirting
- Wheels
- Interior sliding tray(s)
- Interior saw till

The wonderful blue patina of the old chest is a big reason the antique dealer wanted it.

Wood Gas Composite material Hardwood Automotive exterior


If I'm going to refurbish this piece into something useable, I'd like to have the new work on the exterior blend in with the original as much as possible. Details for the skirts, lid and interior will come from C. Schwarz' Anarchist Tool Chest and a build here on LJs by Carters Whittling. Overall it's a very, very low priority project.

Thanks for looking!
Ketchup!

Kids these days are so spoiled LoL

No ketchup = spare blade
 

Attachments

#37 ·
Prep for Re-Work

Take a look at a couple of (re-posted) picture for the nails that are evident… The ones left in the one remaining topper board / original lid, and the nails midway down each corner, holding the dovetail joints together.

Wood Gas Hardwood Machine Window


Wood Natural material Wood stain Hardwood Composite material


These nails, heck, all nails but what's in the hinges, need to come out to take the chest apart completely. Yep, I've decided to dis-assemble the chest. Why? Because, even though the box itself seems to be stable, the dovetail joints are loose and the boards that make up each side have separated. Also, the bottom of the chest is nailed on and apparently stable, but there's compelling evidence these nails are severely rusted. And some nail heads are gone. To get this chest tightened up for the next century of service, the thought of brushing glue into cracks and hoping for the best just ain't working for me. So now to get it apart without breaking it apart…

I began by cleaning the chest with a stiff brush to remove dirt and dust. Then removed a clenched nail that was holding a lid remnant at the right (bent) hinge.

Wood Wood stain Gas Hardwood Latch


Tire Automotive tire Wood Tread Trunk


Wood Scaled reptile Terrestrial animal Gas Metal


This single 'lid board' is dovetailed on each end, but too short to be part of a skirt surrounding a lid. So I had to remove it, too.

Wood Natural material Nail Road surface Hardwood


Wood Plane Gas Automotive exterior Wood stain


The hinges are nailed and clenched in place, and are very stable that way. I'll leave them and integrate the new lid and vintage hinges. There is a crack or two in the top board to address, though.

Wood Natural material Hardwood Plank Wood stain


To re-assemble means total dis-assembly, including the removal of those corner nails. To do that, the bottom had to come off (pulling the side boards apart while the bottom is nailed together will simply result in a splintered pile of old, blue kindling); I'll re-use whatever is salvageable from these bottom boards, but I'm not at all hopeful in that it looks like junk wood. And what better place use crappy stock? J So I pulled the boards apart with flatbar and hammer. Most of the nails weren't doing much at all because little remained of their head. Others were swollen with rust inside the walls of the chest. But everything came out!

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Tints and shades Composite material


Wood Flooring Hardwood Stain Soil


Table Wood Wood stain Plank Hardwood


Wood Bumper Machine tool Gas Hardwood


Without a bottom, it was finally time to address those four dovetail nails. Yes, I've been obsessing a bit on them since the day the chest came into the shop… they don't belong there, and it's been clear from the start I'd find a way to defeat them… Anyway, there are no pictures, but after a bit of coaxing I was able to wiggle a 'sip saw hack (metal cutting) blade into each of the joints. A couple trigger pulls and the nails were cut with no damage to the wood. Now to pull this carcase apart!

Wood Floor Wood stain Flooring Hardwood


With the chest knocked down to its component pieces, I noticed something done by the original builder of this chest: his method of chopping the waste between tails and pins left a substantial back bevel in the middle of each cut. Don't know if I'm saying that right, so a picture will help.

Wood Brick Brickwork Flooring Hardwood


Makes for tight fitting joints to the eye, but there's also remnants of glue (hide glue??) in those cavities that obviously had nothing nearby to hold on to. I'm going to opine that it's not a serious structural issue, re: the lack of glue surface, but it's interesting to see how this joinery was done a century ago. As another aside, I held one of the boards in a way to allow the light to bounce off the scallops left by hand planning the interior surfaces. It's what's visible here:

Wood Natural material Wood stain Hardwood Plank


Clearly camber on the iron he used to work these boards! Does it mean this is just a simple box vs. tool chest? Or, like the accountant's checkbook, the carpenter's tool chest isn't the smoothest? I'll never know.
Another construction detail to note is the use of dowels to join each side's pair of boards. The dowels bought the farm long ago, but they're clearly visible and were obviously put there to hold the boards together in the building of chest.

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Tints and shades Plank


How about a pic of all the metal removed from the chest thusfar?

Wood Table Wood stain Hardwood Hand tool


Glad to be rid of that stuff!

Now to find new bottom material and get the reconstruction underway. Went to the cut-offs bin and was very surprised to find what I did: A pair of boards already joined via T&G and of the right size! I'm not kidding, I don't remember stripping whatever it was and putting it in there, but I'm glad I did. It's got some kind of crate stenciling on one side, too. But what's most important is the size is right (with a little trimming). And because they're already joined it's work I don't have to do. Huzzah!

Brown Table Wood Rectangle Flooring


Wood Rectangle Table Floor Composite material


So, here's the pile that is the tool chest, including new as well as old bottom boards and a board I found that is blue and ideal for as much skirting as I can make from it.

Table Wood Wood stain Hardwood Plank


Shelf Bookcase Wood Shelving Publication


And that's a good ending for this installment. Next time, we should have a chest that is all (re-)glued up, with a new bottom. As always, thanks for looking.
 

Attachments

#38 ·
Prep for Re-Work

Take a look at a couple of (re-posted) picture for the nails that are evident… The ones left in the one remaining topper board / original lid, and the nails midway down each corner, holding the dovetail joints together.

Wood Gas Hardwood Machine Window


Wood Natural material Wood stain Hardwood Composite material


These nails, heck, all nails but what's in the hinges, need to come out to take the chest apart completely. Yep, I've decided to dis-assemble the chest. Why? Because, even though the box itself seems to be stable, the dovetail joints are loose and the boards that make up each side have separated. Also, the bottom of the chest is nailed on and apparently stable, but there's compelling evidence these nails are severely rusted. And some nail heads are gone. To get this chest tightened up for the next century of service, the thought of brushing glue into cracks and hoping for the best just ain't working for me. So now to get it apart without breaking it apart…

I began by cleaning the chest with a stiff brush to remove dirt and dust. Then removed a clenched nail that was holding a lid remnant at the right (bent) hinge.

Wood Wood stain Gas Hardwood Latch


Tire Automotive tire Wood Tread Trunk


Wood Scaled reptile Terrestrial animal Gas Metal


This single 'lid board' is dovetailed on each end, but too short to be part of a skirt surrounding a lid. So I had to remove it, too.

Wood Natural material Nail Road surface Hardwood


Wood Plane Gas Automotive exterior Wood stain


The hinges are nailed and clenched in place, and are very stable that way. I'll leave them and integrate the new lid and vintage hinges. There is a crack or two in the top board to address, though.

Wood Natural material Hardwood Plank Wood stain


To re-assemble means total dis-assembly, including the removal of those corner nails. To do that, the bottom had to come off (pulling the side boards apart while the bottom is nailed together will simply result in a splintered pile of old, blue kindling); I'll re-use whatever is salvageable from these bottom boards, but I'm not at all hopeful in that it looks like junk wood. And what better place use crappy stock? J So I pulled the boards apart with flatbar and hammer. Most of the nails weren't doing much at all because little remained of their head. Others were swollen with rust inside the walls of the chest. But everything came out!

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Tints and shades Composite material


Wood Flooring Hardwood Stain Soil


Table Wood Wood stain Plank Hardwood


Wood Bumper Machine tool Gas Hardwood


Without a bottom, it was finally time to address those four dovetail nails. Yes, I've been obsessing a bit on them since the day the chest came into the shop… they don't belong there, and it's been clear from the start I'd find a way to defeat them… Anyway, there are no pictures, but after a bit of coaxing I was able to wiggle a 'sip saw hack (metal cutting) blade into each of the joints. A couple trigger pulls and the nails were cut with no damage to the wood. Now to pull this carcase apart!

Wood Floor Wood stain Flooring Hardwood


With the chest knocked down to its component pieces, I noticed something done by the original builder of this chest: his method of chopping the waste between tails and pins left a substantial back bevel in the middle of each cut. Don't know if I'm saying that right, so a picture will help.

Wood Brick Brickwork Flooring Hardwood


Makes for tight fitting joints to the eye, but there's also remnants of glue (hide glue??) in those cavities that obviously had nothing nearby to hold on to. I'm going to opine that it's not a serious structural issue, re: the lack of glue surface, but it's interesting to see how this joinery was done a century ago. As another aside, I held one of the boards in a way to allow the light to bounce off the scallops left by hand planning the interior surfaces. It's what's visible here:

Wood Natural material Wood stain Hardwood Plank


Clearly camber on the iron he used to work these boards! Does it mean this is just a simple box vs. tool chest? Or, like the accountant's checkbook, the carpenter's tool chest isn't the smoothest? I'll never know.
Another construction detail to note is the use of dowels to join each side's pair of boards. The dowels bought the farm long ago, but they're clearly visible and were obviously put there to hold the boards together in the building of chest.

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Tints and shades Plank


How about a pic of all the metal removed from the chest thusfar?

Wood Table Wood stain Hardwood Hand tool


Glad to be rid of that stuff!

Now to find new bottom material and get the reconstruction underway. Went to the cut-offs bin and was very surprised to find what I did: A pair of boards already joined via T&G and of the right size! I'm not kidding, I don't remember stripping whatever it was and putting it in there, but I'm glad I did. It's got some kind of crate stenciling on one side, too. But what's most important is the size is right (with a little trimming). And because they're already joined it's work I don't have to do. Huzzah!

Brown Table Wood Rectangle Flooring


Wood Rectangle Table Floor Composite material


So, here's the pile that is the tool chest, including new as well as old bottom boards and a board I found that is blue and ideal for as much skirting as I can make from it.

Table Wood Wood stain Hardwood Plank


Shelf Bookcase Wood Shelving Publication


And that's a good ending for this installment. Next time, we should have a chest that is all (re-)glued up, with a new bottom. As always, thanks for looking.
This is an ambitious project Smitty. You got guts my man. Looking forward to see what you can do with it. Oh, and the Hoosier cabinet too! : )
 

Attachments

#67 ·
Back to Square One

Each of the four sides are comprised of two boards, and the dowels 'n glue that held those pairs of boards together bought the farm decades ago. But for the front board, where I was able to get them apart and check out the locust (?) dowels.

Wood Table Rectangle Wood stain Automotive exterior


Brown Wood Automotive tire Wood stain Floor


Wood Wood stain Plank Hardwood Rectangle


Hand Wood Finger Insect Pest


To get back to four tight boards from eight loose ones means clamps and glue. Oh, and biscuits. Yes, Norm-loving, electron-killing, can't-believe-a-true-galoot-would-ever-use- them biscuits! Why would I do such a thing? Why indeed. Let's discuss for a moment, shall we?

The mating edges of these boards aren't necessarily square, and they have glue residue. Not square, I'm guessing, due to a century of wood movement impacting the boards in non-linear ways. To clear the glue / dirt, I can (and will) use a scraper with some light pressure to for an improved gluing surface, but it won't result in a joint as good as one that were hit with a #8 jointer, for example. Removing material, however slight, increases the change the dovetails won't align, but I'll also do that if it addresses a significant gap. And I haven't mentioned before that the boards are kinda thin for a chest. The back board, for example, is 5/8" thin on one end and Âľ' thin on the other (yeah, it tapers).

So for max integrity of the carcase, the dovetail joints have to be glued up tight, the bottom needs to fit well, and the eight boards that make up the four sides of the chest need to be whole. For the latter challenge, I can do what the builder did and use dowels OR I can go with biscuits. The dowels are quaint and all, but for the front, they did fail. And I'd rather use a methodology with which I am more comfortable. Enough chatter, let's move on.

Pick a pair of boards. Any pair will do. I happened to start with the back board of the chest, and it figures the fit of the boards was an issue: a rise in along the center prevented closure at the ends of the board. I thought about it for about a second, then opted to use the #8 jointer as well as a LAAM block to kill the bump via the same method used for creating a spring joint.



On, then, to biscuit cutting. I placed biscuits at each (old) dowel location with small pencil marks placed for alignment of the cutter.



!




I brought the pieces together and the joint looked great. Glue applied, then, and clamped it up.

Wood Gas Hardwood Machine tool Lumber


Proved a concept, I have a clear path forward, and was sweating like crazy. Time to quit. In the couple days it took to get back to the shop, the second guessing began. Why did I remove material from boards that had fit together just fine for a century? What was I thinking? If that action alters the size of one pin and tail set, will paring for fit create additional gaps up the joint? And will that have an impact on every corner? Gotta do a fit check and see what I've done / try to figure this out. So the next trip to the shop, I clamped the jointed and biscuit'd board upright in the leg vice, grabbed it's side board mate and worked the joint together.

Wood Motor vehicle Gas Engineering Machine


Wood Motor vehicle Gas Engineering Machine


Wood Gas Composite material Machine Door


Snug… Good! Too snug? Maybe. Trim it? Man, I just can't… We're moving forward. Working the other edges, I noted maker's marks in pencil to show pairs and, apparently, faces.

Wood Rectangle Wood stain Natural material Tints and shades


More pairs, more gluing and clamping. Oh, and I planed out a 'bump' in the front panel edges, too.

Table Wood Flooring Hardwood Wood stain


Wood Table Machine tool Workbench Gas


Wood Gas Machine Lumber Composite material


I also repaired a couple of slip ends before assembling all side boards with screws. Yes, screws. In a jointed edge, pre-drilled for a counter-sunk screw and applied lots of glued to the pieces as I pulled them apart.









I wiped all glue sqeeze out from the exterior of the boards; didn't want to plane or scrape residue there! Thing is, can't be too aggressive as the paint comes off with water!

Finger Wood Flooring Natural material Nail


With all side boards in clamps, it was a good time to refresh the inside face of the boards that will be the new bottom of this chest. A good job for the cambered jack plane, I think, so the bottom of the chest carries scallop marks like the sides. It was a fun but very short workout.







One top tail is particularly nasty, a victim of a very bad chisel job.



Sensitive content, not recommended for those under 18
Show Content




Gluing up the whole carcase was stressful. I went with building two halves first, and used a face clamping setup to get 'er done.





I set the first one on the floor, clamped it with a framing square, and moved on to the second one.



Applied lots of glue.



Then clamped everything together.



!




With the sides in clamps, I traced the bottom boards and cut them with the RAS, following the lines. They were quite square. A few hours passed and I removed the clamps and was able to move on to nailing the bottom to the carcase. For that, I had a couple options: vintage cut nails or modern cut nails that are sold as masonry (hardened) nails. Because my supply of vintage square nails isn't endless, and this is only the bottom of a chest, cut masonry nails got the nod.

Okay, then. Time to invert the carcase, apply the bottom, clamp it in place and drive nails. First to transfer mid-point lines to the faces of the bottom boards using the #197 gage.

Automotive tire Wood Finger Tire Hardwood


I wanted to avoid driving new nails into the old holes of the carcase, so I drew marks along the edges of the bottom boards for the new nails.
Wood Wood stain Plank Road surface Hardwood


Pre-drilled the nail holes, of course, because I'd hate to have a side blow-out at this point. And angle was applied to each nail for additional holding power.

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Gas Varnish


Time to drive nails. Masonry nails were way too big, so vintage nails were straightened one at a time and driven home without issue! The end result was a box that's back together and ready for a skirting.

Why not get starting making the top? Well, I've decided to finish off the bottom of the box because it's what I started with, I have the material for the bottom skirt, and I'm not quite sure how I want to build the top and integrate it with the chest…

That's next, so until then thanks for reading!
 

Attachments

#68 ·
Back to Square One

Each of the four sides are comprised of two boards, and the dowels 'n glue that held those pairs of boards together bought the farm decades ago. But for the front board, where I was able to get them apart and check out the locust (?) dowels.

Wood Table Rectangle Wood stain Automotive exterior


Brown Wood Automotive tire Wood stain Floor


Wood Wood stain Plank Hardwood Rectangle


Hand Wood Finger Insect Pest


To get back to four tight boards from eight loose ones means clamps and glue. Oh, and biscuits. Yes, Norm-loving, electron-killing, can't-believe-a-true-galoot-would-ever-use- them biscuits! Why would I do such a thing? Why indeed. Let's discuss for a moment, shall we?

The mating edges of these boards aren't necessarily square, and they have glue residue. Not square, I'm guessing, due to a century of wood movement impacting the boards in non-linear ways. To clear the glue / dirt, I can (and will) use a scraper with some light pressure to for an improved gluing surface, but it won't result in a joint as good as one that were hit with a #8 jointer, for example. Removing material, however slight, increases the change the dovetails won't align, but I'll also do that if it addresses a significant gap. And I haven't mentioned before that the boards are kinda thin for a chest. The back board, for example, is 5/8" thin on one end and Âľ' thin on the other (yeah, it tapers).

So for max integrity of the carcase, the dovetail joints have to be glued up tight, the bottom needs to fit well, and the eight boards that make up the four sides of the chest need to be whole. For the latter challenge, I can do what the builder did and use dowels OR I can go with biscuits. The dowels are quaint and all, but for the front, they did fail. And I'd rather use a methodology with which I am more comfortable. Enough chatter, let's move on.

Pick a pair of boards. Any pair will do. I happened to start with the back board of the chest, and it figures the fit of the boards was an issue: a rise in along the center prevented closure at the ends of the board. I thought about it for about a second, then opted to use the #8 jointer as well as a LAAM block to kill the bump via the same method used for creating a spring joint.



On, then, to biscuit cutting. I placed biscuits at each (old) dowel location with small pencil marks placed for alignment of the cutter.



!




I brought the pieces together and the joint looked great. Glue applied, then, and clamped it up.

Wood Gas Hardwood Machine tool Lumber


Proved a concept, I have a clear path forward, and was sweating like crazy. Time to quit. In the couple days it took to get back to the shop, the second guessing began. Why did I remove material from boards that had fit together just fine for a century? What was I thinking? If that action alters the size of one pin and tail set, will paring for fit create additional gaps up the joint? And will that have an impact on every corner? Gotta do a fit check and see what I've done / try to figure this out. So the next trip to the shop, I clamped the jointed and biscuit'd board upright in the leg vice, grabbed it's side board mate and worked the joint together.

Wood Motor vehicle Gas Engineering Machine


Wood Motor vehicle Gas Engineering Machine


Wood Gas Composite material Machine Door


Snug… Good! Too snug? Maybe. Trim it? Man, I just can't… We're moving forward. Working the other edges, I noted maker's marks in pencil to show pairs and, apparently, faces.

Wood Rectangle Wood stain Natural material Tints and shades


More pairs, more gluing and clamping. Oh, and I planed out a 'bump' in the front panel edges, too.

Table Wood Flooring Hardwood Wood stain


Wood Table Machine tool Workbench Gas


Wood Gas Machine Lumber Composite material


I also repaired a couple of slip ends before assembling all side boards with screws. Yes, screws. In a jointed edge, pre-drilled for a counter-sunk screw and applied lots of glued to the pieces as I pulled them apart.









I wiped all glue sqeeze out from the exterior of the boards; didn't want to plane or scrape residue there! Thing is, can't be too aggressive as the paint comes off with water!

Finger Wood Flooring Natural material Nail


With all side boards in clamps, it was a good time to refresh the inside face of the boards that will be the new bottom of this chest. A good job for the cambered jack plane, I think, so the bottom of the chest carries scallop marks like the sides. It was a fun but very short workout.







One top tail is particularly nasty, a victim of a very bad chisel job.



Sensitive content, not recommended for those under 18
Show Content




Gluing up the whole carcase was stressful. I went with building two halves first, and used a face clamping setup to get 'er done.





I set the first one on the floor, clamped it with a framing square, and moved on to the second one.



Applied lots of glue.



Then clamped everything together.



!




With the sides in clamps, I traced the bottom boards and cut them with the RAS, following the lines. They were quite square. A few hours passed and I removed the clamps and was able to move on to nailing the bottom to the carcase. For that, I had a couple options: vintage cut nails or modern cut nails that are sold as masonry (hardened) nails. Because my supply of vintage square nails isn't endless, and this is only the bottom of a chest, cut masonry nails got the nod.

Okay, then. Time to invert the carcase, apply the bottom, clamp it in place and drive nails. First to transfer mid-point lines to the faces of the bottom boards using the #197 gage.

Automotive tire Wood Finger Tire Hardwood


I wanted to avoid driving new nails into the old holes of the carcase, so I drew marks along the edges of the bottom boards for the new nails.
Wood Wood stain Plank Road surface Hardwood


Pre-drilled the nail holes, of course, because I'd hate to have a side blow-out at this point. And angle was applied to each nail for additional holding power.

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Gas Varnish


Time to drive nails. Masonry nails were way too big, so vintage nails were straightened one at a time and driven home without issue! The end result was a box that's back together and ready for a skirting.

Why not get starting making the top? Well, I've decided to finish off the bottom of the box because it's what I started with, I have the material for the bottom skirt, and I'm not quite sure how I want to build the top and integrate it with the chest…

That's next, so until then thanks for reading!
Holy reclaimed tool chest Batman! Seems like some nervous moments, but you got the ol' chest looking pretty good. I had my doubts on the wood, but it looks like you made it to the summit. Got to be all downhill from here from here…right?
 

Attachments

#100 ·
Skirts are for Tool Chests

I need four sides of skirting for dovetailing in a way opposite the main body of the chest. As in, tails are cut into the face board of the main chest, but will get cut into the side boards of the skirt, to counteract each other and increase overall stability. I'm only able to get the bottom skirting entirely from my blue board:

- Two long boards, front and back
- Two short sides

Shelf Wood Bookcase Shelving Publication


I want the blue and/or weathered edges to be 'up,' and cut edge down on these boards, and each rip of the blue stuff yields a long and short skirt blank. We'll see what's left of 'ole Blue after that. Last question before I can cut wood: How wide (high?) should the lower skirt of this chest be? Here's what I know:

- I plan on putting this chest on wheels that extend about an inch below the bottom skirt. In other words, the bottom skirt will extend beyond the bottom of the chest by 1 1/2". Why? It's the original chest I want to see more of when all is said and done, not my additions. So less is essentially more when it comes to these skirt boards. That said, the bottom piece will be the widest.
- The upper skirt will match up with the lid skirt, and I don't want the some of those parts, when the lid is closed, to make the chest appear top heavy. A certain width is required, though, due the hinges being set where they are.

I got my copy of The Anarchist's Tool Chest back from Dad (he had stalled in his reading, not a hand tool guy) and found his lower skirt was six inches, upper was only wide enough for a single dovetail. That was a good touchstone, but of course his toolchest is much larger overall. So anything I get that approaches 6" is good.

What I can't get over is the 3/4" thickness of a lower skirt. Three-quarter inch stock sticks out very proud from the chest, and it's not attractive at all to my eye. It's not a perfect reference pic, but here's the chest w/ such material underneath and up the edges.

Wood Gas Motor vehicle Machine Hardwood


When I stood those corners up alongside the chest, they were simply too thick. So I'll reduce them via lunchbox planer to something less, for sure. Over to the blue board, then, to mark and cut it into pieces. I do want the top edges of the lid and bottom skirt boards to be painted edges, so I'll orient the cuts with that in mind. No pictures of ripping 'ole blue, but I used the table saw and have enough left to do the upper (or mid) band board on the carcase, I think.

Then I went the easy way and used the lunchbox planer to thin the skirts boards to something around 5/8" vs. the 7/8" it started out as… How about some actual woodworking now? I started on the left side as I faced the carcase, with the bottom skirt board cut at rough length. I marked the board for the width of chest, then added the thickness of the front and back skirts to each mark. Sorry these pics aren't intuitive… I can't recall the order they should be in, but they do convey the degree to which I attempted to mark the skirt boards to fit snug.

Wood Material property Metal Fashion accessory Aluminium


Calipers Wood Office ruler Wood stain Tool


Dovetailed the back end, repeated the process for the back skirt, but started by setting the marking gauge.

Wood Gas Hardwood Plywood Wood stain


Used the Diamond Edge to cut the tails, no lines to follow. Just an angle I felt was right, and one I could repeat.

Wood Floor Hardwood Wood stain Plank


The waste was cut with a coping saw, then cleaned up with the SW #750 re-issues. Here's my setup for chopping waste on this project:

Wood Kitchen utensil Hardwood Gas Wood stain


Then transferred the tails to the pin board via marking knife.
Wood Flooring Floor Tints and shades Road surface


Ready to clean the pin board.
Wood Tableware Tool Metalworking hand tool Hand tool


Wood Water Metal Flooring Engineering


And I love a picture of a workbench in use!
Hand tool Wood Tool Musical instrument accessory Antique tool


Fit check!
Rectangle Wood Creative arts Tints and shades Electric blue


Looks good.

So through the magic of the internet I was able to complete the second front corner and was ready then to mark the side boards and back skirt board for length cuts… Only one chance to do this right, so lots of clamps per the Schwarz' instructions and a picture tells the tale.

Wood Automotive exterior Motor vehicle Gas Bumper


The skirt will extend past the bottom of the chest an inch and a half to help hide the wheels I'll add later. Here's a solid aluminum break manifold for a QF-106 that I used for a gauge; it happens to be exactly 1 1/2" thick!
Wood Wood stain Hardwood Gesture Pattern


Finished all dovetail corners, and prepared the four sided skirt for a look!
Wood Wood stain Hardwood Rectangle Lumber


Wood Book Publication Rectangle Wood stain


Wood Wood stain Gas Hardwood Natural material


And here it is on the floor of the shop, with the remaining blue board ready for the next upper skirt.

Wood Natural material Gas Composite material Hardwood


So I've got to get said skirting attached permanently, then cut, dovetail and attach the upper (mid) skirt using the blue board that remains. Oh! Something else missing, you say? A lid? Hasn't that been the problem since we started this journey? : - ) I guess a lid is also on the agenda, then! As always, thanks for looking.
 

Attachments

#101 ·
Skirts are for Tool Chests

I need four sides of skirting for dovetailing in a way opposite the main body of the chest. As in, tails are cut into the face board of the main chest, but will get cut into the side boards of the skirt, to counteract each other and increase overall stability. I'm only able to get the bottom skirting entirely from my blue board:

- Two long boards, front and back
- Two short sides

Shelf Wood Bookcase Shelving Publication


I want the blue and/or weathered edges to be 'up,' and cut edge down on these boards, and each rip of the blue stuff yields a long and short skirt blank. We'll see what's left of 'ole Blue after that. Last question before I can cut wood: How wide (high?) should the lower skirt of this chest be? Here's what I know:

- I plan on putting this chest on wheels that extend about an inch below the bottom skirt. In other words, the bottom skirt will extend beyond the bottom of the chest by 1 1/2". Why? It's the original chest I want to see more of when all is said and done, not my additions. So less is essentially more when it comes to these skirt boards. That said, the bottom piece will be the widest.
- The upper skirt will match up with the lid skirt, and I don't want the some of those parts, when the lid is closed, to make the chest appear top heavy. A certain width is required, though, due the hinges being set where they are.

I got my copy of The Anarchist's Tool Chest back from Dad (he had stalled in his reading, not a hand tool guy) and found his lower skirt was six inches, upper was only wide enough for a single dovetail. That was a good touchstone, but of course his toolchest is much larger overall. So anything I get that approaches 6" is good.

What I can't get over is the 3/4" thickness of a lower skirt. Three-quarter inch stock sticks out very proud from the chest, and it's not attractive at all to my eye. It's not a perfect reference pic, but here's the chest w/ such material underneath and up the edges.

Wood Gas Motor vehicle Machine Hardwood


When I stood those corners up alongside the chest, they were simply too thick. So I'll reduce them via lunchbox planer to something less, for sure. Over to the blue board, then, to mark and cut it into pieces. I do want the top edges of the lid and bottom skirt boards to be painted edges, so I'll orient the cuts with that in mind. No pictures of ripping 'ole blue, but I used the table saw and have enough left to do the upper (or mid) band board on the carcase, I think.

Then I went the easy way and used the lunchbox planer to thin the skirts boards to something around 5/8" vs. the 7/8" it started out as… How about some actual woodworking now? I started on the left side as I faced the carcase, with the bottom skirt board cut at rough length. I marked the board for the width of chest, then added the thickness of the front and back skirts to each mark. Sorry these pics aren't intuitive… I can't recall the order they should be in, but they do convey the degree to which I attempted to mark the skirt boards to fit snug.

Wood Material property Metal Fashion accessory Aluminium


Calipers Wood Office ruler Wood stain Tool


Dovetailed the back end, repeated the process for the back skirt, but started by setting the marking gauge.

Wood Gas Hardwood Plywood Wood stain


Used the Diamond Edge to cut the tails, no lines to follow. Just an angle I felt was right, and one I could repeat.

Wood Floor Hardwood Wood stain Plank


The waste was cut with a coping saw, then cleaned up with the SW #750 re-issues. Here's my setup for chopping waste on this project:

Wood Kitchen utensil Hardwood Gas Wood stain


Then transferred the tails to the pin board via marking knife.
Wood Flooring Floor Tints and shades Road surface


Ready to clean the pin board.
Wood Tableware Tool Metalworking hand tool Hand tool


Wood Water Metal Flooring Engineering


And I love a picture of a workbench in use!
Hand tool Wood Tool Musical instrument accessory Antique tool


Fit check!
Rectangle Wood Creative arts Tints and shades Electric blue


Looks good.

So through the magic of the internet I was able to complete the second front corner and was ready then to mark the side boards and back skirt board for length cuts… Only one chance to do this right, so lots of clamps per the Schwarz' instructions and a picture tells the tale.

Wood Automotive exterior Motor vehicle Gas Bumper


The skirt will extend past the bottom of the chest an inch and a half to help hide the wheels I'll add later. Here's a solid aluminum break manifold for a QF-106 that I used for a gauge; it happens to be exactly 1 1/2" thick!
Wood Wood stain Hardwood Gesture Pattern


Finished all dovetail corners, and prepared the four sided skirt for a look!
Wood Wood stain Hardwood Rectangle Lumber


Wood Book Publication Rectangle Wood stain


Wood Wood stain Gas Hardwood Natural material


And here it is on the floor of the shop, with the remaining blue board ready for the next upper skirt.

Wood Natural material Gas Composite material Hardwood


So I've got to get said skirting attached permanently, then cut, dovetail and attach the upper (mid) skirt using the blue board that remains. Oh! Something else missing, you say? A lid? Hasn't that been the problem since we started this journey? : - ) I guess a lid is also on the agenda, then! As always, thanks for looking.
nice addition… one skirt..I mean step at a time ;)
 

Attachments

#162 ·
Everything Below the Lid

Chest-like object has suffered a bit of neglect, to be sure, and for that there isn't much of an excuse. Except for these two words: Family and Job. :)

Where in the heck am I with this refurb? Last installment says I 'completed' the lower skirt, but what's pictured includes a skirt that's not yet permanently attached to the chest. Issue? Well, kinda. But that's not what this installment is gonna cover. Instead of the base, I've moved to the middle of the chest to work the upper (or mid) skirtboards. So here we go.


The chest came with very little hardware: two handles, two hinges and a staple. (Per that fancy interweb, the ring of a hasp lock mechanism is called a staple. Who knew?) Well, because the upper (or middle) skirt needs to sit on or around ½" from the top edges of the chest walls, the staple is in the way. Sorry, but a couple of nipper cuts and it was no longer original equipment.




Went around and around re: the dimension of the middle skirt, but settled on what the donor material had to offer in context of some additional input from Carters Whittling and Chris Schwarz. (Narrow is the way to go for this band.) So the last of the blue board was measured, cut to width and thicknesses with the #6 (just to use something different) in prep for dovetailing and ultimate install as the bottom will be :) .








Sounds boring, right? Well, smooth was not meant to be, as two events conspired to force deviation from the plan.
First was measurement. Because the chest itself is not exactly square at the corners or even flush at the faces, marking the baselines on the front pin board became an issue. What does 'not square or flush' mean? How about a picture…


Corrections done with the SW #18 block.


And after:


Dovetails for the corners went without a hitch, at first.




But only after the tail boards were cut and I got to final fitting of the front and two-side assy that the second problem hit me: the long, front piece was too long, and the side boards weren't able to press tight at either of the front corners. So I took a page out of the original builder's book and thinned the tail a bit.






This I'll have to trim later.

With the fit challenge addressed, I moved on to cut the tail of the right, rear-side skirt piece. But instead of marking the tail and cutting material away from it, I remove the tail from the piece. So my plan to surround the upper part of the chest wasn't going to happen, alas. So I marked the two sides and cut them each to length, then glued up what I had: a three-sided skirt.




It's really okay, though, in that I would have had to dado away material where the surface-mounted hinges are and wasn't looking forward to that at all. What it did force is the use of glue and clamps and seven screws, countersunk and driven from the inside of the chest for additional strength.




Now for the lid assy, starting with material choice: boxalder.


These are table extensions I paid $5 for at the sale the toolchest came from. It's not pine, of course, but it's clear, stable and very workable with hand tools. Cut it and it smells kinda sweet, although it has not red streaking. Anyway, on with jointing, then ripping and thicknessing.








A shot of dovetail layout…


then through the miracle of the internet, the top's surround was done!


At this point I measured and cut and T&G'd four 'sides' for a center chest lid.






And I'm ready for the raised center panel. And my first choice is to press the former (crappy) bottom boards back into service.



Will it work? Tune in next time! Until then, thanks (as always) for looking!
 

Attachments

#163 ·
Everything Below the Lid

Chest-like object has suffered a bit of neglect, to be sure, and for that there isn't much of an excuse. Except for these two words: Family and Job. :)

Where in the heck am I with this refurb? Last installment says I 'completed' the lower skirt, but what's pictured includes a skirt that's not yet permanently attached to the chest. Issue? Well, kinda. But that's not what this installment is gonna cover. Instead of the base, I've moved to the middle of the chest to work the upper (or mid) skirtboards. So here we go.
Wood Wood stain Gas Hardwood Natural material


The chest came with very little hardware: two handles, two hinges and a staple. (Per that fancy interweb, the ring of a hasp lock mechanism is called a staple. Who knew?) Well, because the upper (or middle) skirt needs to sit on or around ½" from the top edges of the chest walls, the staple is in the way. Sorry, but a couple of nipper cuts and it was no longer original equipment.
Wood Religious item Artifact Cross Art


Wood Tool Metal Scaled reptile Hardwood


Went around and around re: the dimension of the middle skirt, but settled on what the donor material had to offer in context of some additional input from Carters Whittling and Chris Schwarz. (Narrow is the way to go for this band.) So the last of the blue board was measured, cut to width and thicknesses with the #6 (just to use something different) in prep for dovetailing and ultimate install as the bottom will be :) .
Wood Window Floor Bumper Flooring


Wood Floor Flooring Wood stain Hardwood


Wood Finger Hardwood Household hardware Wood stain


Wood Metal Roof Shadow Water


Sounds boring, right? Well, smooth was not meant to be, as two events conspired to force deviation from the plan.
First was measurement. Because the chest itself is not exactly square at the corners or even flush at the faces, marking the baselines on the front pin board became an issue. What does 'not square or flush' mean? How about a picture…
Wood Floor Gas Hardwood Flooring


Corrections done with the SW #18 block.
Wood Gas Metal Household hardware Hardwood


And after:
Wood Wood stain Hardwood Gas Flooring


Dovetails for the corners went without a hitch, at first.
Wood Wood stain Hardwood Plank Lumber


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Plank Rectangle


But only after the tail boards were cut and I got to final fitting of the front and two-side assy that the second problem hit me: the long, front piece was too long, and the side boards weren't able to press tight at either of the front corners. So I took a page out of the original builder's book and thinned the tail a bit.
Wood Flooring Material property Rectangle Hardwood


Wood Gas Hardwood Flooring Composite material


Wood Table Rectangle Wood stain Wall


This I'll have to trim later.

With the fit challenge addressed, I moved on to cut the tail of the right, rear-side skirt piece. But instead of marking the tail and cutting material away from it, I remove the tail from the piece. So my plan to surround the upper part of the chest wasn't going to happen, alas. So I marked the two sides and cut them each to length, then glued up what I had: a three-sided skirt.
Wood Fluid Finger Plastic bottle Thumb


Wood Road surface Motor vehicle Asphalt Gas


It's really okay, though, in that I would have had to dado away material where the surface-mounted hinges are and wasn't looking forward to that at all. What it did force is the use of glue and clamps and seven screws, countersunk and driven from the inside of the chest for additional strength.
Cosmetics Wood Finger Material property Office supplies


Wood Wood stain Varnish Hardwood Bumper


Now for the lid assy, starting with material choice: boxalder.
Wood Gas Hardwood Wood stain Plywood


These are table extensions I paid $5 for at the sale the toolchest came from. It's not pine, of course, but it's clear, stable and very workable with hand tools. Cut it and it smells kinda sweet, although it has not red streaking. Anyway, on with jointing, then ripping and thicknessing.
Wood Wood stain Flooring Hardwood Table


Ginger Ingredient Food Wood Cuisine


Food Ingredient Wood Tableware Recipe


Brown Wood Rectangle Beige Flooring


A shot of dovetail layout…
Wood Rectangle Road surface Floor Composite material


then through the miracle of the internet, the top's surround was done!
Tire Wood Bumper Automotive exterior Automotive tire


At this point I measured and cut and T&G'd four 'sides' for a center chest lid.
Brown Wood Natural material Flooring Twig


Wood Gas Hardwood Metal Composite material


Wood Gas Automotive exterior Crate Hardwood


And I'm ready for the raised center panel. And my first choice is to press the former (crappy) bottom boards back into service.

Wood Rectangle Hardwood Plank Composite material


Will it work? Tune in next time! Until then, thanks (as always) for looking!
Yes Smitty, but it is progressing

I like the way it is going and utilising the

old floor is great. It sure will confuse the experts

in a hundred years time. LoL

Will the inside of the lid be flush to hold saws?

jamie
 

Attachments

#268 ·
Okay, This Time it's All About the Lid...

EDIT: 23 August 2019, fixed all the Photo"Chum"Bucket pic errors.

----------------------------

Where are we? Oh, yeah. There's a top skirt (not glued):

Tire Wood Bumper Automotive exterior Automotive tire


And the frame part of the frame and panel:

Wood Gas Automotive exterior Crate Hardwood


With the idea (stupid, perhaps) to use the old, original bottom boards for the panel.
Wood Rectangle Hardwood Plank Composite material


Jointed, with biscuits to glue, and work can go on.

Wood Workbench Machine tool Hardwood Gas


A problem becomes apparent when clean-up begins. A crack (or craic), that is more like a split, but not good in either sense.

Wood Gas Flooring Hardwood Sculpture


With the intervention of my LJ pals, I chose the right path and split the board, then glued up the piece to address the flaw.

Wood Flooring Gas Composite material Engineering


Wood Wood stain Plank Hardwood Natural material


With the panel glued up and cleaned up, now is the time to cut grooves on the edges of the floating panel so it could go in the frame assembly. For that I used my shaper. Because the floating panel had a little bit of a bow to it, I put a shim across the top of the shaper to keep the panel pressed to the shaper top as it travelled through the cut.

Wood Bag Luggage and bags Gas Bumper


I waxed the bottom that shim, btw, so material would slide easily throgh the cut. Here's a picture of a piece of scrap that I ran through as a fit check:

Wood Finger Gas Thumb Flooring


If it looks like the groove doesn't quite fit it's probably because it doesn't. The material for the floating panel is a little bit thinner than it probably should be with all the work it needed, but I think it will fit in there fine. I'll add molding on the inside of the chest before it's all said and done, for additional strength, even thogh I don't think it's needed.

I ran the panel through the shaper with the grain on both sides and then on one piece of end grain. Then I did a fit check within the glued up three sided frame.

Wood Finger Floor Flooring Hardwood


Wood Table Floor Flooring Wood stain


Wood Natural material Wood stain Art Hardwood


Wood Gas Hardwood Wood stain Fixture


Strike a line across the top and I'm ready to cut the fourth side of the panel.

Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring Wood stain


Again through the magic of the inter-web there were lots of trim cuts needed to get the fourth side in there but finally I got it together. Here's the completed assembled frame and panel glued up, clamped up, ready to go.

Wood Flooring Hardwood Boats and boating--Equipment and supplies Wood stain


Wood Gas Toolroom Machine Engineering


Then I decided to do something else. The panel had to fit into the lid skirt assy, and I haven't seen this anywhere, but I wanted to put a very shallow rabbet around the inside of lid skirt for this framed panel to set into. Stopped rabbets… they're are no fun… I used the shaper with the jointer cutter, then dressed them up with the #278 withmixed results (I haven't worked the iron, and the stopped ends limited it's effective range). Here are some pictures marking the areas to be cut, running material through the shaper, and the chiseled ends of the stopped rabbits.

Wood Wood stain Plank Hardwood Tints and shades


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Varnish Plank


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Rectangle Composite material


In this case no good idea went unpunished. By adding the rabbets, my framed panel assembly was now not wide enough. A shim had to be added.

Wood Rectangle Composite material Plank Wood stain


Wood Flooring Floor Composite material Rectangle


Wood Bumper Automotive exterior Gas Tints and shades


Wood Saw Gas Hardwood Wood stain


With that aggravating detail out-of-the-way, I was able to take the completed panel out of it's clamp-laden environ and actually have some fun. I used the shiny #62 to clean and dress the inside of the panel so it would set flat in the skirt rabbets. The low angle on the #62 made it an excellent choice for this job; cross grain, with grain, didn't matter… it performed wonderfully. Love it, even though it's shiny. This type of specialty use makes it worth having, and I'm sure I'll discover more.

Table Wood Bottle Hardwood Flooring


Wood Hardwood Gas Shelving Wood stain


Smoothing plane Scrub plane Plane Jack plane Hand tool


The next step was to glue the lid skirt. I glued and clamped those pieces in place, on top of the chest, so if it wasn't square at least I'd have a match. Once the lid skirt / surround was dry, I traced the line of the skirt against the completed framing panel assembly so it could be cut and fit.

Wood Gas Machine Wood stain Hardwood


Table Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain


With block plane, #8 jointer plane, and #62 low angle jack I was able to get the panel to fit. And does it fit? You be the judge.

Table Rectangle Wood Flooring Floor


Wood Table Rectangle Composite material Plank


So we'll finish this installment with a parting shot of the chest as it sits today. The bottom skirt still is not in place permanently, there is smoothing to be done on the lid assembly, and chamfering / other cleanup needs to be taken care of, but we are starting to see the finish line on the exterior of this chest refurb. 'Til next time, as always, thanks for looking!

Wood Gas Thickness planer Machine Machine tool
 

Attachments

#269 ·
Okay, This Time it's All About the Lid...

EDIT: 23 August 2019, fixed all the Photo"Chum"Bucket pic errors.

----------------------------

Where are we? Oh, yeah. There's a top skirt (not glued):

Tire Wood Bumper Automotive exterior Automotive tire


And the frame part of the frame and panel:

Wood Gas Automotive exterior Crate Hardwood


With the idea (stupid, perhaps) to use the old, original bottom boards for the panel.
Wood Rectangle Hardwood Plank Composite material


Jointed, with biscuits to glue, and work can go on.

Wood Workbench Machine tool Hardwood Gas


A problem becomes apparent when clean-up begins. A crack (or craic), that is more like a split, but not good in either sense.

Wood Gas Flooring Hardwood Sculpture


With the intervention of my LJ pals, I chose the right path and split the board, then glued up the piece to address the flaw.

Wood Flooring Gas Composite material Engineering


Wood Wood stain Plank Hardwood Natural material


With the panel glued up and cleaned up, now is the time to cut grooves on the edges of the floating panel so it could go in the frame assembly. For that I used my shaper. Because the floating panel had a little bit of a bow to it, I put a shim across the top of the shaper to keep the panel pressed to the shaper top as it travelled through the cut.

Wood Bag Luggage and bags Gas Bumper


I waxed the bottom that shim, btw, so material would slide easily throgh the cut. Here's a picture of a piece of scrap that I ran through as a fit check:

Wood Finger Gas Thumb Flooring


If it looks like the groove doesn't quite fit it's probably because it doesn't. The material for the floating panel is a little bit thinner than it probably should be with all the work it needed, but I think it will fit in there fine. I'll add molding on the inside of the chest before it's all said and done, for additional strength, even thogh I don't think it's needed.

I ran the panel through the shaper with the grain on both sides and then on one piece of end grain. Then I did a fit check within the glued up three sided frame.

Wood Finger Floor Flooring Hardwood


Wood Table Floor Flooring Wood stain


Wood Natural material Wood stain Art Hardwood


Wood Gas Hardwood Wood stain Fixture


Strike a line across the top and I'm ready to cut the fourth side of the panel.

Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring Wood stain


Again through the magic of the inter-web there were lots of trim cuts needed to get the fourth side in there but finally I got it together. Here's the completed assembled frame and panel glued up, clamped up, ready to go.

Wood Flooring Hardwood Boats and boating--Equipment and supplies Wood stain


Wood Gas Toolroom Machine Engineering


Then I decided to do something else. The panel had to fit into the lid skirt assy, and I haven't seen this anywhere, but I wanted to put a very shallow rabbet around the inside of lid skirt for this framed panel to set into. Stopped rabbets… they're are no fun… I used the shaper with the jointer cutter, then dressed them up with the #278 withmixed results (I haven't worked the iron, and the stopped ends limited it's effective range). Here are some pictures marking the areas to be cut, running material through the shaper, and the chiseled ends of the stopped rabbits.

Wood Wood stain Plank Hardwood Tints and shades


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Varnish Plank


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Rectangle Composite material


In this case no good idea went unpunished. By adding the rabbets, my framed panel assembly was now not wide enough. A shim had to be added.

Wood Rectangle Composite material Plank Wood stain


Wood Flooring Floor Composite material Rectangle


Wood Bumper Automotive exterior Gas Tints and shades


Wood Saw Gas Hardwood Wood stain


With that aggravating detail out-of-the-way, I was able to take the completed panel out of it's clamp-laden environ and actually have some fun. I used the shiny #62 to clean and dress the inside of the panel so it would set flat in the skirt rabbets. The low angle on the #62 made it an excellent choice for this job; cross grain, with grain, didn't matter… it performed wonderfully. Love it, even though it's shiny. This type of specialty use makes it worth having, and I'm sure I'll discover more.

Table Wood Bottle Hardwood Flooring


Wood Hardwood Gas Shelving Wood stain


Smoothing plane Scrub plane Plane Jack plane Hand tool


The next step was to glue the lid skirt. I glued and clamped those pieces in place, on top of the chest, so if it wasn't square at least I'd have a match. Once the lid skirt / surround was dry, I traced the line of the skirt against the completed framing panel assembly so it could be cut and fit.

Wood Gas Machine Wood stain Hardwood


Table Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain


With block plane, #8 jointer plane, and #62 low angle jack I was able to get the panel to fit. And does it fit? You be the judge.

Table Rectangle Wood Flooring Floor


Wood Table Rectangle Composite material Plank


So we'll finish this installment with a parting shot of the chest as it sits today. The bottom skirt still is not in place permanently, there is smoothing to be done on the lid assembly, and chamfering / other cleanup needs to be taken care of, but we are starting to see the finish line on the exterior of this chest refurb. 'Til next time, as always, thanks for looking!

Wood Gas Thickness planer Machine Machine tool
Looks great. The panel door looks like it turned out well.
 

Attachments

#304 ·
Chest needs a lid, and now it has one...

Not going to clench cut nails for hinge install because my cut nails are truly vintage and will break rather than bend. Because of the thickness of the lid skirt, two shorter screws are needed at the base of the three-hole hinge, with one long wood screw good for the top in that it goes through the skirt and into the panel of the lid. Chose the hardware from the parts drawer, and moved out.

Wood Tool Cosmetics Hand tool Auto part


Clamped the hinge tight, tapped starter holes and drove the screws home.

Wood Gesture Finger Thumb Tool


Wood Hand tool Door Household hardware Gas


The next pic shows a challenge and the solution… The hinge plates extend above the plane of the lid, meaning I've had to consider either filing the iron down to the surface OR adding a shim of some kind to the top. The cut of wood is the piece I made on the shaper as material for said shims.

Wood Publication Flooring Hardwood Book


I thinned the material via bandsaw, flattened the backs, then pre-drilled and installed with some straightened cut nails and glue.

Hand tool Wood Tool Metalworking hand tool Household hardware


Hand tool Wood Tool Metalworking hand tool Axe


So now the chest-shaped box is a chest at last!

Picture frame Wood Gas Wood stain Wheel


Wood Rectangle Hardwood Wood stain Bumper


Next actions are installed wood stop blocks on the back to keep the lid from wanting to flop completely over when in the open position (don't want interior chains or strap stops), bevelling of the lower skirt and potato staining of the fresh cut material prior to paint. Drawers and such also to come! As always, thanks for looking.
 

Attachments

#305 ·
Chest needs a lid, and now it has one...

Not going to clench cut nails for hinge install because my cut nails are truly vintage and will break rather than bend. Because of the thickness of the lid skirt, two shorter screws are needed at the base of the three-hole hinge, with one long wood screw good for the top in that it goes through the skirt and into the panel of the lid. Chose the hardware from the parts drawer, and moved out.

Wood Tool Cosmetics Hand tool Auto part


Clamped the hinge tight, tapped starter holes and drove the screws home.

Wood Gesture Finger Thumb Tool


Wood Hand tool Door Household hardware Gas


The next pic shows a challenge and the solution… The hinge plates extend above the plane of the lid, meaning I've had to consider either filing the iron down to the surface OR adding a shim of some kind to the top. The cut of wood is the piece I made on the shaper as material for said shims.

Wood Publication Flooring Hardwood Book


I thinned the material via bandsaw, flattened the backs, then pre-drilled and installed with some straightened cut nails and glue.

Hand tool Wood Tool Metalworking hand tool Household hardware


Hand tool Wood Tool Metalworking hand tool Axe


So now the chest-shaped box is a chest at last!

Picture frame Wood Gas Wood stain Wheel


Wood Rectangle Hardwood Wood stain Bumper


Next actions are installed wood stop blocks on the back to keep the lid from wanting to flop completely over when in the open position (don't want interior chains or strap stops), bevelling of the lower skirt and potato staining of the fresh cut material prior to paint. Drawers and such also to come! As always, thanks for looking.
Nice work, Smitty…whats this potato staining you speak of?
 

Attachments

#400 ·
Making New Look Old...

Again, fewer words and more pictures this go-round. Let's get started!

Begin with an old chest (steady, Al), middling skirt and raw top.

Wood Rectangle Hardwood Wood stain Bumper


\Beat it up a bit.

Wood Floor Flooring Bumper Hardwood


Potato-stain the fresh cut edges.

Food Tableware Dishware Fruit Table


Hand Food Fruit Plant Finger


Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain Plank


Chamfer the bottom skirt.

Wood Finger Tire Automotive tire Gas


Wood Natural foods Metal Recreation Recipe


Rub the entire chest with dirt.

Plant Wood Grass Wood stain Hardwood


Apply watered-down paint that the computer color match systemsays is the predominant color of the dirty old chest.

Wood Outdoor furniture Gas Road surface Outdoor bench


Then rub down with WD-40 soaked rag and you've got it. Maybe some danish oil later, to seal it all up. But for now, this is it.

Wood Rectangle Gas Natural material Hardwood


As always, thanks for looking!
 

Attachments

#401 ·
Making New Look Old...

Again, fewer words and more pictures this go-round. Let's get started!

Begin with an old chest (steady, Al), middling skirt and raw top.

Wood Rectangle Hardwood Wood stain Bumper


\Beat it up a bit.

Wood Floor Flooring Bumper Hardwood


Potato-stain the fresh cut edges.

Food Tableware Dishware Fruit Table


Hand Food Fruit Plant Finger


Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain Plank


Chamfer the bottom skirt.

Wood Finger Tire Automotive tire Gas


Wood Natural foods Metal Recreation Recipe


Rub the entire chest with dirt.

Plant Wood Grass Wood stain Hardwood


Apply watered-down paint that the computer color match systemsays is the predominant color of the dirty old chest.

Wood Outdoor furniture Gas Road surface Outdoor bench


Then rub down with WD-40 soaked rag and you've got it. Maybe some danish oil later, to seal it all up. But for now, this is it.

Wood Rectangle Gas Natural material Hardwood


As always, thanks for looking!
Looks great! Well, sort of lol

How well do you think the potato trick worked? Don't happen to have any "before and afters" do you? Just curious.
 

Attachments

#425 ·
It's What's Inside that Counts, Right?

EDIT: 23 August 2019, removed broken Photo"Chum"Bucket links.

----------------------------------

So,

The Outside of the Chest looks reasonably authentic now, and features a lid that keeps dust and other detritus away from the rust-prone surfaces of tools within. But after a spring and summer to-do list filled with roofing, siding and other outdoor remediations, there has been no time for tool chests and the like. Until this week, when I starting clearing clutter with my Friendly Confines (Shop) and setting items inside the Chest.

Wood Table Wood stain Hardwood Flooring


Can't add more without stacking, and I'm not doing that. It's time to complete the guts of the rehab. I started with a set of prints from an old tyme book and chest build C. Schwarz linked to in his blog some time back.

Brown Font Wood Paper Rectangle


Spent some time last night scaling the drawing to the size chest I have vs. what was divided and documented. Most of the stock I need is 3/8" and 1/2", with a bit of 5/8" and 7/8" also. Here's where the thinner stuff can come from: Chinese pine of some kind that was a server packing crate.

Rectangle Wood Shelving Wood stain Flooring


Wood Rectangle Wood stain Tints and shades Hardwood


Time to do some lunchbox planing.

Motor vehicle Gas Wheel Machine Automotive tire


Then it's time to smooth with the bedrock #4C.

Wood Hardwood Table Flooring Event


That's the 3/8" stock, so then on to prep of the 7/8" material. Cross-cut the length needed from a larger board, then plane and smooth.

Hand tool Wood Bumper Tool Saw


Table Wood Flooring Hardwood Wood stain


Had to scrape the edge to remove some paint before jointing it and ripping to size. The #82 scraper was ideal. :)

Wood Floor Wood stain Flooring Wall


After the rip, a follow-up jointing with the #6 to remove the saw marks.

Wood Hardwood Flooring Table Wood stain


Three heart pine boards would become the 1/2" stock, so back to the lunchbox followed by the #4 1/2 for smoothing.

Table Electronic instrument Audio equipment Wood Keyboard


Tableware Table Wood Cuisine Hardwood


One of the final pieces needed for the chest is a board 8" wide, so I had to do a glue-up to get that ready for next time.

Wood Hardwood Gas Lumber Plywood


Wood Hardwood Gas Flooring Font


So with that in clamps, the pile of inside material is essentially complete.

Wood Wood stain Floor Flooring Hardwood


Next time there's layout of these pieces inside the chest. After that, there's build outs for sliding drawers and saw till. So this ride is not done yet! As always, thanks for looking!
 

Attachments

#426 ·
It's What's Inside that Counts, Right?

EDIT: 23 August 2019, removed broken Photo"Chum"Bucket links.

----------------------------------

So,

The Outside of the Chest looks reasonably authentic now, and features a lid that keeps dust and other detritus away from the rust-prone surfaces of tools within. But after a spring and summer to-do list filled with roofing, siding and other outdoor remediations, there has been no time for tool chests and the like. Until this week, when I starting clearing clutter with my Friendly Confines (Shop) and setting items inside the Chest.

Wood Table Wood stain Hardwood Flooring


Can't add more without stacking, and I'm not doing that. It's time to complete the guts of the rehab. I started with a set of prints from an old tyme book and chest build C. Schwarz linked to in his blog some time back.

Brown Font Wood Paper Rectangle


Spent some time last night scaling the drawing to the size chest I have vs. what was divided and documented. Most of the stock I need is 3/8" and 1/2", with a bit of 5/8" and 7/8" also. Here's where the thinner stuff can come from: Chinese pine of some kind that was a server packing crate.

Rectangle Wood Shelving Wood stain Flooring


Wood Rectangle Wood stain Tints and shades Hardwood


Time to do some lunchbox planing.

Motor vehicle Gas Wheel Machine Automotive tire


Then it's time to smooth with the bedrock #4C.

Wood Hardwood Table Flooring Event


That's the 3/8" stock, so then on to prep of the 7/8" material. Cross-cut the length needed from a larger board, then plane and smooth.

Hand tool Wood Bumper Tool Saw


Table Wood Flooring Hardwood Wood stain


Had to scrape the edge to remove some paint before jointing it and ripping to size. The #82 scraper was ideal. :)

Wood Floor Wood stain Flooring Wall


After the rip, a follow-up jointing with the #6 to remove the saw marks.

Wood Hardwood Flooring Table Wood stain


Three heart pine boards would become the 1/2" stock, so back to the lunchbox followed by the #4 1/2 for smoothing.

Table Electronic instrument Audio equipment Wood Keyboard


Tableware Table Wood Cuisine Hardwood


One of the final pieces needed for the chest is a board 8" wide, so I had to do a glue-up to get that ready for next time.

Wood Hardwood Gas Lumber Plywood


Wood Hardwood Gas Flooring Font


So with that in clamps, the pile of inside material is essentially complete.

Wood Wood stain Floor Flooring Hardwood


Next time there's layout of these pieces inside the chest. After that, there's build outs for sliding drawers and saw till. So this ride is not done yet! As always, thanks for looking!
Very cool.
 

Attachments

#445 ·
Drawers need Runners...

EDIT: 23 August 2019, removed broken Photo"Chum"Bucket links.

----------------------------------

Started the day's activity concentrating effort on the sliding shelf that will separate the till section from the undivided bottom well of the chest. Glue scraping with the #82, then a check for flat with the winding stick.

Safety glove Wood Hardwood Wood stain Glove


Hood Wood Floor Flooring Bumper


One isolated area of glue residue I can't get to. If it were tear-out, I'd have an issue. This ain't that, but it still bugs me. So the bedrock #4C gives way to the #2.

Brown Wood Beige Flooring Wood stain


Wood Hand tool Rebate plane Hardwood High heels


Took the glued-up, cleaned up panel over to the chest and was surprised at what I found:

Wood Water Floor Wood stain Tints and shades


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Tints and shades Flooring


Yes, that's the panel not reaching from one side of the chest to the other. Didn't think to check the length of the heart pine 'salvage'... Really thought it was long enough… So now I have to come up with a plan that 'stretches' the panel OR go back to start with material ID, planing, glue up, etc. etc. Yuck.

Even though the panel material is only 1/2" thick, it's hard stuff. I decided to try breadboarding the ends, because at this point there wasn't much to lose. I used the material cut off the width of the panel for this proof of concept exercise.

I set the blade of the table saw to cut a tab at the end of the board, and cleaned up the saw marks with the #92 shoulder plane.

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Office ruler Varnish


The completed tab then needed a new end-piece home, and for that I used the (very dusty) tenoning jig I bought about four years ago at a woodworking show. A little fettling and I was able to find a setting that allowed me to flip the board and get a cut to match the tab.

Wood Gas Flooring Hardwood Bumper


Wood Plank Natural material Hardwood Wood stain


Now that I knew what I was doing, and the result was nice and rigid, I repeated the process at each end of the real sliding shelf at the table saw (tabs and grooves) and bench (#92 and glue up).

Lighting Wood Flooring Floor Plastic bottle


Added sand bags to keep it straight while clamped up.

Wood Rectangle Flooring Tints and shades Hardwood


After lunch it was clear I had successfully stretched the panel and could move on with something else. :)

Wood Rectangle Wood stain Flooring Hardwood


The shelf rides 6" from the floor of the chest, on a pair of 1/2" x 1/2" runners. Installed those, cut the shelf to length (snuck up on said length with several trips to the RAS) and had a slider!

Wood Hardwood Gas Funeral Ceiling


Wood Automotive exterior Rectangle Gas Hardwood


Wood Wood stain Building Hardwood Plank


The drawings show a pull-up (vertical) saw till that rides inside the front wall of the chest, and is 2" deep. The shelf runners were kept 2" from the wall, and provided the reference for a mark square from the floor that sets the front limit of the remaining sidewall runners I'll be installing.

Wood Floor Wood stain Tints and shades Hardwood


The first runner is an L-shaped assembly of a base piece to the 7/8" thick side board.It's glued and screwed, and building a pair of them from the milled stuff wasn't an issue.

Wood Natural material Wood stain Hardwood Creative arts


I cut that side board plus the 1/2" pieces that stack on top of it to their final 14" length and had a look at the end result.

Wood Wood stain Plank Floor Lumber


I decided the resulting shelf surface for the middle drawer wasn't beefy enough, so the pair of 1/2" boards got re-thickened the old fashioned way.

Wood Table Bumper Hardwood Wood stain


\With the pieces all cut, it was time to install. The inside of the chest handles are 'bump-outs' to the inside surface of the chest, so I marked their location on the inside faces of the 7/8" runner boards and routed out material to prevent the clenched handle hardware from interfering anymore.

Wood Table Flooring Wood stain Plank


Hand tool Finger Wood Nail Auto part


And because the same 7/8" thick runner board needed to mate fully with the inside face of the chest, and said chest was planed rough and put away wet, a flush fit was possible after I coved the 7/8" runner with the cambered #5. Some pencil lines across the inside face of the board lets me concentrate on only 'hollowing' the board's area between the edges.

Wood Plank Hardwood Wood stain Flooring


After planing this way, you can see only the edges of the pencil lines remain.

Brown Wood Flooring Floor Plank


I predrilled all holes to include recessed headspace, then used 1" slotted screws to pull the chest insides together. The 1/2" runners under the sliding shelf were waxed prior to attaching the to the chest, and the underside of the 7/8" assy was waxed with the same sequence. I used a sheet of laminated paper to set a small but consistent gap between the shelf and the 7/8" runner board, too. Why did I have a laminated sheet of paper that handy in my shop? I don't know, really, but it was better than using a piece of sandpaper, regular paper or cardboard / pasteboard, I decided. :)

So at this point, I have the chest structure done and ready for sliding tills.

Wood Rectangle Gas Hardwood Composite material


I'm liking what I see (even though the picture makes it appear the runners are way out of 'level' from left to right… they're not, I promise! :) ) it was a good day of progress, and I'm ready to build drawers! As always, thanks for looking!
 

Attachments

#446 ·
Drawers need Runners...

EDIT: 23 August 2019, removed broken Photo"Chum"Bucket links.

----------------------------------

Started the day's activity concentrating effort on the sliding shelf that will separate the till section from the undivided bottom well of the chest. Glue scraping with the #82, then a check for flat with the winding stick.

Safety glove Wood Hardwood Wood stain Glove


Hood Wood Floor Flooring Bumper


One isolated area of glue residue I can't get to. If it were tear-out, I'd have an issue. This ain't that, but it still bugs me. So the bedrock #4C gives way to the #2.

Brown Wood Beige Flooring Wood stain


Wood Hand tool Rebate plane Hardwood High heels


Took the glued-up, cleaned up panel over to the chest and was surprised at what I found:

Wood Water Floor Wood stain Tints and shades


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Tints and shades Flooring


Yes, that's the panel not reaching from one side of the chest to the other. Didn't think to check the length of the heart pine 'salvage'... Really thought it was long enough… So now I have to come up with a plan that 'stretches' the panel OR go back to start with material ID, planing, glue up, etc. etc. Yuck.

Even though the panel material is only 1/2" thick, it's hard stuff. I decided to try breadboarding the ends, because at this point there wasn't much to lose. I used the material cut off the width of the panel for this proof of concept exercise.

I set the blade of the table saw to cut a tab at the end of the board, and cleaned up the saw marks with the #92 shoulder plane.

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Office ruler Varnish


The completed tab then needed a new end-piece home, and for that I used the (very dusty) tenoning jig I bought about four years ago at a woodworking show. A little fettling and I was able to find a setting that allowed me to flip the board and get a cut to match the tab.

Wood Gas Flooring Hardwood Bumper


Wood Plank Natural material Hardwood Wood stain


Now that I knew what I was doing, and the result was nice and rigid, I repeated the process at each end of the real sliding shelf at the table saw (tabs and grooves) and bench (#92 and glue up).

Lighting Wood Flooring Floor Plastic bottle


Added sand bags to keep it straight while clamped up.

Wood Rectangle Flooring Tints and shades Hardwood


After lunch it was clear I had successfully stretched the panel and could move on with something else. :)

Wood Rectangle Wood stain Flooring Hardwood


The shelf rides 6" from the floor of the chest, on a pair of 1/2" x 1/2" runners. Installed those, cut the shelf to length (snuck up on said length with several trips to the RAS) and had a slider!

Wood Hardwood Gas Funeral Ceiling


Wood Automotive exterior Rectangle Gas Hardwood


Wood Wood stain Building Hardwood Plank


The drawings show a pull-up (vertical) saw till that rides inside the front wall of the chest, and is 2" deep. The shelf runners were kept 2" from the wall, and provided the reference for a mark square from the floor that sets the front limit of the remaining sidewall runners I'll be installing.

Wood Floor Wood stain Tints and shades Hardwood


The first runner is an L-shaped assembly of a base piece to the 7/8" thick side board.It's glued and screwed, and building a pair of them from the milled stuff wasn't an issue.

Wood Natural material Wood stain Hardwood Creative arts


I cut that side board plus the 1/2" pieces that stack on top of it to their final 14" length and had a look at the end result.

Wood Wood stain Plank Floor Lumber


I decided the resulting shelf surface for the middle drawer wasn't beefy enough, so the pair of 1/2" boards got re-thickened the old fashioned way.

Wood Table Bumper Hardwood Wood stain


\With the pieces all cut, it was time to install. The inside of the chest handles are 'bump-outs' to the inside surface of the chest, so I marked their location on the inside faces of the 7/8" runner boards and routed out material to prevent the clenched handle hardware from interfering anymore.

Wood Table Flooring Wood stain Plank


Hand tool Finger Wood Nail Auto part


And because the same 7/8" thick runner board needed to mate fully with the inside face of the chest, and said chest was planed rough and put away wet, a flush fit was possible after I coved the 7/8" runner with the cambered #5. Some pencil lines across the inside face of the board lets me concentrate on only 'hollowing' the board's area between the edges.

Wood Plank Hardwood Wood stain Flooring


After planing this way, you can see only the edges of the pencil lines remain.

Brown Wood Flooring Floor Plank


I predrilled all holes to include recessed headspace, then used 1" slotted screws to pull the chest insides together. The 1/2" runners under the sliding shelf were waxed prior to attaching the to the chest, and the underside of the 7/8" assy was waxed with the same sequence. I used a sheet of laminated paper to set a small but consistent gap between the shelf and the 7/8" runner board, too. Why did I have a laminated sheet of paper that handy in my shop? I don't know, really, but it was better than using a piece of sandpaper, regular paper or cardboard / pasteboard, I decided. :)

So at this point, I have the chest structure done and ready for sliding tills.

Wood Rectangle Gas Hardwood Composite material


I'm liking what I see (even though the picture makes it appear the runners are way out of 'level' from left to right… they're not, I promise! :) ) it was a good day of progress, and I'm ready to build drawers! As always, thanks for looking!
Nice Smitty, love the "streching" of the board !
That's a save for sure..
 

Attachments

#456 ·
Best Saturday Use of Mock-ups...

EDIT: 23 August 2019, removed broken Photo"Chum"Bucket links.

----------------------------------

Walked into the shop this AM to this:

Wood Rectangle Gas Hardwood Composite material


And I want to get to a reasonable facsimile of this:

Rectangle Schematic Font Material property Parallel


So setting the depth of each drawer is the action of the day. I have them marked as being 6", so part of me says just jump in and start making drawers. The more practical side is telling me to do a something I hardly, if ever, do: Mock up the drawers. Why do that, you ask? Well, as has been discussed in this series, the chest is not square. But cutting at least the drawer bottoms I can be assured that what I build fits well and can slide freely from front to back. And, I've got a stack of 1/2" plywood that is perfect for this kind of thing. So let's cut wood, first to rip some of the aforementioned material to width.

Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain Hardwood


I traced a slight correction to be made to the back right side, then surveyed the situation. Not good.

Wood Sleeve Wood stain Floor Flooring


Wood Plank Automotive exterior Hardwood Wood stain


The sliding shelf is extended fully, and with the bottom drawer in the 'locked' position, there's a gap. That's not what I had in mind at all. The idea of the shelf is to isolate the lower section from dust / debris when working with items in the drawers. So another workaround is in the offing. How about a wider bottom drawer?

I ripped a new pattern piece and moved on with the next couple drawers by marking left vs. right corners and tailoring each to fit as required. Note in the second picture below that a sanding disc makes a nice adjuster for cut angles at the RAS.

Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain Hardwood


Wood Bumper Machine tool Gas Automotive exterior


At the top 'drawer,' the fit was good but got way too snug at the back left side.

Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring Wood stain


I figured the runner was to blame, so adjusted that piece, put it back in place, and had a good fit without fiddling with the drawer blank at all.

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Natural material Plywood


Road surface Gesture Wood Asphalt Finger


Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Wood stain


So I'll have a bottom drawer with character, and overall a bank of drawers that should look smokin' hot. :)

Wood Automotive exterior Rectangle Gas Plank


One final thing to mock up was the height of the top drawer. Why is it a concern? Well, the plan is to have the top drawer extend higher than the side walls of the chest because it can. How high? Some testing will tell me if the plan is "too high." So I ripped some ply scrap from the first shelf attempt and had a top drawer that was 'no problem' on height.

Wood Rectangle Automotive exterior Wood stain Plank


Well, not perfect.

The back board of the 'lid' is actually a thicker board than what makes up the original chest. So when the chest lid is closed on a drawer pressed to the 'locked' position, it doesn't close effectively. What does that mean? I think when the top drawer is built, the drawer back needs to be inset about a quarter inch from the bottom so the top closes.

Wood Flooring Floor Rectangle Plank


Wood Fixture Flooring Floor Wood stain


So again, thanks for coming along on what must seem to be a never ending project!
 

Attachments

#457 ·
Best Saturday Use of Mock-ups...

EDIT: 23 August 2019, removed broken Photo"Chum"Bucket links.

----------------------------------

Walked into the shop this AM to this:

Wood Rectangle Gas Hardwood Composite material


And I want to get to a reasonable facsimile of this:

Rectangle Schematic Font Material property Parallel


So setting the depth of each drawer is the action of the day. I have them marked as being 6", so part of me says just jump in and start making drawers. The more practical side is telling me to do a something I hardly, if ever, do: Mock up the drawers. Why do that, you ask? Well, as has been discussed in this series, the chest is not square. But cutting at least the drawer bottoms I can be assured that what I build fits well and can slide freely from front to back. And, I've got a stack of 1/2" plywood that is perfect for this kind of thing. So let's cut wood, first to rip some of the aforementioned material to width.

Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain Hardwood


I traced a slight correction to be made to the back right side, then surveyed the situation. Not good.

Wood Sleeve Wood stain Floor Flooring


Wood Plank Automotive exterior Hardwood Wood stain


The sliding shelf is extended fully, and with the bottom drawer in the 'locked' position, there's a gap. That's not what I had in mind at all. The idea of the shelf is to isolate the lower section from dust / debris when working with items in the drawers. So another workaround is in the offing. How about a wider bottom drawer?

I ripped a new pattern piece and moved on with the next couple drawers by marking left vs. right corners and tailoring each to fit as required. Note in the second picture below that a sanding disc makes a nice adjuster for cut angles at the RAS.

Wood Flooring Floor Wood stain Hardwood


Wood Bumper Machine tool Gas Automotive exterior


At the top 'drawer,' the fit was good but got way too snug at the back left side.

Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring Wood stain


I figured the runner was to blame, so adjusted that piece, put it back in place, and had a good fit without fiddling with the drawer blank at all.

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Natural material Plywood


Road surface Gesture Wood Asphalt Finger


Wood Rectangle Flooring Floor Wood stain


So I'll have a bottom drawer with character, and overall a bank of drawers that should look smokin' hot. :)

Wood Automotive exterior Rectangle Gas Plank


One final thing to mock up was the height of the top drawer. Why is it a concern? Well, the plan is to have the top drawer extend higher than the side walls of the chest because it can. How high? Some testing will tell me if the plan is "too high." So I ripped some ply scrap from the first shelf attempt and had a top drawer that was 'no problem' on height.

Wood Rectangle Automotive exterior Wood stain Plank


Well, not perfect.

The back board of the 'lid' is actually a thicker board than what makes up the original chest. So when the chest lid is closed on a drawer pressed to the 'locked' position, it doesn't close effectively. What does that mean? I think when the top drawer is built, the drawer back needs to be inset about a quarter inch from the bottom so the top closes.

Wood Flooring Floor Rectangle Plank


Wood Fixture Flooring Floor Wood stain


So again, thanks for coming along on what must seem to be a never ending project!
never ending project? Fine by me :)

It's fun to watch other people's process. Thanks for sharing, Smitty.
 

Attachments

#478 ·
Return from Obscurity

EDIT: 23 August 2019, removed broken Photo"Chum"Bucket links.

----------------------------------

Precious little dialog, and only three pictures, but know that the Chest has not been forgotten.

Worked an idea I had for the sliding tills. The #78 (love that plane) created a rabbet on pallet pine

Automotive lighting Automotive tire Wood Bumper Rim


That was matched up with a dado'd (and reclaimed) walnut front

Wood Automotive tire Tool Hardwood Metal


To create the beginnings of sliding tills for this chest interior.

Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring Wood stain


More to come!
 

Attachments

#479 ·
Return from Obscurity

EDIT: 23 August 2019, removed broken Photo"Chum"Bucket links.

----------------------------------

Precious little dialog, and only three pictures, but know that the Chest has not been forgotten.

Worked an idea I had for the sliding tills. The #78 (love that plane) created a rabbet on pallet pine

Automotive lighting Automotive tire Wood Bumper Rim


That was matched up with a dado'd (and reclaimed) walnut front

Wood Automotive tire Tool Hardwood Metal


To create the beginnings of sliding tills for this chest interior.

Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring Wood stain


More to come!
Glad to see the chest coming along
Jamie
 

Attachments

#485 ·
Return from Obscurity

EDIT: 23 August 2019, removed broken Photo"Chum"Bucket links.

----------------------------------

Precious little dialog, and only three pictures, but know that the Chest has not been forgotten.

Worked an idea I had for the sliding tills. The #78 (love that plane) created a rabbet on pallet pine

Automotive lighting Automotive tire Wood Bumper Rim


That was matched up with a dado'd (and reclaimed) walnut front

Wood Automotive tire Tool Hardwood Metal


To create the beginnings of sliding tills for this chest interior.

Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring Wood stain


More to come!
Keep your powder dry Smitty. Thanks for the update.
 

Attachments

#489 ·
Almost a Year, but Progress Continues...

EDIT: 23 August 2019, removed broken Photo"Chum"Bucket links.

----------------------------------

Yeah, if you're like Andy and had popcorn at the ready for another installment of this series, my bad as it's gone back to seed while you waited. The chest has been an interim resting place for tools that otherwise were a source of clutter, but the chest itself had precious little work done on it's behalf for the better part of the the last year. This weekend, that changed.

But this reprise from a couple installments ago. I'm here:

Wood Rectangle Gas Hardwood Composite material


And I want to get to get here:

Rectangle Schematic Font Material property Parallel


Drawer dimensions are set, and the bottoms are cut. Drawer (sliding till?) fronts are also done and joined (no glue yet) to the bottoms as shown in the last installment:

Wood Automotive tire Tool Hardwood Metal


Each drawer needs a back and sides, and I've opted to do half-blind dovetails at each corner. The walnut fronts are thin but incredibly tight-grained. Sides are pine, as is the back. Once the drawers are glued up they'll need some planing to fit, but that's been the plan all along. And each will ride on the bottoms that in turn will be spot glued and nailed to permit some expansion.

I cut the sides, then half-blinded them into the back…

Wood Burin Tool Hand tool Wood stain


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Lumber Plank


The other end of the sides were not nearly as deep; the walnut faceboard was marked on edge where material had to be removed.

Wood Composite material Tool Gas Metalworking hand tool


Less than an eighth of thickness remained, but fit was good.

Wood Hand tool Art Gas Tool


Face will be trimmed flush.

Wood Workbench Tool Hardwood Toolroom


And with two down, we're getting closer to said "trim time." :)

Wood Outdoor bench Door Rectangle Automotive exterior


One more drawer at the top and it'll be time to glue up, trim up and install pulls before tools move in. Chest progress is fleeting, but real. As always, thanks for looking.
 

Attachments

#490 ·
Almost a Year, but Progress Continues...

EDIT: 23 August 2019, removed broken Photo"Chum"Bucket links.

----------------------------------

Yeah, if you're like Andy and had popcorn at the ready for another installment of this series, my bad as it's gone back to seed while you waited. The chest has been an interim resting place for tools that otherwise were a source of clutter, but the chest itself had precious little work done on it's behalf for the better part of the the last year. This weekend, that changed.

But this reprise from a couple installments ago. I'm here:

Wood Rectangle Gas Hardwood Composite material


And I want to get to get here:

Rectangle Schematic Font Material property Parallel


Drawer dimensions are set, and the bottoms are cut. Drawer (sliding till?) fronts are also done and joined (no glue yet) to the bottoms as shown in the last installment:

Wood Automotive tire Tool Hardwood Metal


Each drawer needs a back and sides, and I've opted to do half-blind dovetails at each corner. The walnut fronts are thin but incredibly tight-grained. Sides are pine, as is the back. Once the drawers are glued up they'll need some planing to fit, but that's been the plan all along. And each will ride on the bottoms that in turn will be spot glued and nailed to permit some expansion.

I cut the sides, then half-blinded them into the back…

Wood Burin Tool Hand tool Wood stain


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Lumber Plank


The other end of the sides were not nearly as deep; the walnut faceboard was marked on edge where material had to be removed.

Wood Composite material Tool Gas Metalworking hand tool


Less than an eighth of thickness remained, but fit was good.

Wood Hand tool Art Gas Tool


Face will be trimmed flush.

Wood Workbench Tool Hardwood Toolroom


And with two down, we're getting closer to said "trim time." :)

Wood Outdoor bench Door Rectangle Automotive exterior


One more drawer at the top and it'll be time to glue up, trim up and install pulls before tools move in. Chest progress is fleeting, but real. As always, thanks for looking.
Sweet! I was wondering what the half blind DTs were for. It looks great. Am I the only one here doesn't have a tool chest?

What else besides the drawers remain to be done?
.
Thanks for sharing.
 

Attachments

#550 ·
Looking More Like a Tool Chest

EDIT: 23 August 2019, removed broken Photo"Chum"Bucket links.

----------------------------------

Had a chest with sliding tills 'in bottom only…'

Wood Rectangle Composite material Hardwood Gas


So I mounted faces via saw-kerf rabbets…

Automotive lighting Automotive tire Wood Bumper Rim


Wood Wood stain Gas Hardwood Machine tool


and dovetailed sides to said faces.

Tire Automotive tire Wood Rectangle Flooring


Wood Line Art Gas Office supplies


Wood Hardwood Flooring Gas Wood stain


Wood Floor Flooring Wood stain Hardwood


Table Wood Saw Tool Hardwood


Wood Tool Plane Gas Musical instrument


Glued faces…

Wheel Wood Tool Gas Flooring


Wood Engineering Gas Tool Machine


And now the sides get glued up, one drawer per day. This way I can clamp them up in place so they are 'set' where they'll live. With this box, square is certainly optional… :)

Wood Door Fixture Hardwood Gas


That will get these (sans lid):

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Plank Table


Into a chest that once looked like this:

Shelf Wood Bookcase Shelving Publication


Next installment, tills glued and done, finish added, pulls installed. Thanks for staying with this one, almost there!
 

Attachments

#551 ·
Looking More Like a Tool Chest

EDIT: 23 August 2019, removed broken Photo"Chum"Bucket links.

----------------------------------

Had a chest with sliding tills 'in bottom only…'

Wood Rectangle Composite material Hardwood Gas


So I mounted faces via saw-kerf rabbets…

Automotive lighting Automotive tire Wood Bumper Rim


Wood Wood stain Gas Hardwood Machine tool


and dovetailed sides to said faces.

Tire Automotive tire Wood Rectangle Flooring


Wood Line Art Gas Office supplies


Wood Hardwood Flooring Gas Wood stain


Wood Floor Flooring Wood stain Hardwood


Table Wood Saw Tool Hardwood


Wood Tool Plane Gas Musical instrument


Glued faces…

Wheel Wood Tool Gas Flooring


Wood Engineering Gas Tool Machine


And now the sides get glued up, one drawer per day. This way I can clamp them up in place so they are 'set' where they'll live. With this box, square is certainly optional… :)

Wood Door Fixture Hardwood Gas


That will get these (sans lid):

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Plank Table


Into a chest that once looked like this:

Shelf Wood Bookcase Shelving Publication


Next installment, tills glued and done, finish added, pulls installed. Thanks for staying with this one, almost there!
Any day now eh? It sure has come a long way from where it started!
 

Attachments

#580 ·
And We're Ready for Hardware!

EDIT: 23 August 2019, removed broken Photo"Chum"Bucket links.

----------------------------------

Left off last time looking like this:

Wood Door Fixture Hardwood Gas


After pulling clamps and doing some trim work first at the bench…

Wood Bumper Automotive exterior Gas Flooring


And then at the chest with the Stanley #278 in chisel plane mode…

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Plank Plywood


The chest is now looking like this:

Wood Art Wood stain Hardwood Varnish


Tills are marked for pulls, then I'll add finish and it'll be reveal time… Until then, thanks for following along!
 

Attachments

#581 ·
And We're Ready for Hardware!

EDIT: 23 August 2019, removed broken Photo"Chum"Bucket links.

----------------------------------

Left off last time looking like this:



After pulling clamps and doing some trim work first at the bench…

Wood Bumper Automotive exterior Gas Flooring


And then at the chest with the Stanley #278 in chisel plane mode…

Wood Wood stain Hardwood Plank Plywood


The chest is now looking like this:

Wood Art Wood stain Hardwood Varnish


Tills are marked for pulls, then I'll add finish and it'll be reveal time… Until then, thanks for following along!
Lookin' great, Smitty. It has been fun and educational following along on this refurb. You've done a great job of making something attractive and useful, while still preserving the history. I can't wait to see the final reveal.
 

Attachments

#593 ·
Conclusion!

EDIT: 23 Aug 2019, eliminated broken Photo"Chum"Bucket links.

--------------------------------------------------------

Okay, we started here when the evening's activites went down:

Wood Art Wood stain Hardwood Varnish


Tills were assembled and trimmed up earlier this morning and I was excited to add hardware and apply a finish. So tonight I started by adding a little beading detail using my Stanley #66 beading plane.

Wood Hand tool Tool Metalworking hand tool Metal


Wood Reptile Automotive tire Scaled reptile Flooring


Once the top edge of each 'drawer front' was beaded, it was time to add the ring pulls I had purchased many months ago… I only took a picture of the hole drilling though, sorry…

Pneumatic tool Handheld power drill Hammer drill Saw Drill


With the beading and pulls done, I applied a coat of Watco's Natural to the fronts and the underside of the lid. The bottoms weren't glued (that expansion / contraction thing, you know) so I drove a few square nails (vintage / recycled) to the bottom (back edge) boards. Pre-drilled with an old Craftsman eggbeater that caught my eye at a flea market last month. That tool has a story or two to tell, I think…

Hand tool Wood Tool Table Metalworking hand tool


I mentioned in the last installment a screw-up of sorts. I didn't know it at the time, but putting a bit brace in the bottom till is definitely something I wanted to do as part of outfitting this chest. But unfortunately the drawer was about 5/16" too shallow for the pad of the brace. I used one of the neat little carving tools that came in a starter set from Walt Q probably more than a year ago; my first foray into chip carving (probably an insult to chip carvers everywhere…) let to a slight 'wallow' that solved the problem without blowing out the bottom of the till.

Wood Tool Metalworking hand tool Table Hardwood


So, here's a pic showing all tills within reach, then another with them all closed and the bottom board pulled forward to protect the plane bay all along the bottom of the chest.



Wood Wood stain Hardwood Varnish Rectangle


I'll work up the project post and try to give a decent recap of the whole thing, but in the meantime here's the chest! The saw till does need recessed ring pulls; I don't have those ordered yet and will update this entry when I get them. As always, thanks for looking.

Wood Gas Hardwood Rectangle Wood stain
 

Attachments

#594 ·
Conclusion!

EDIT: 23 Aug 2019, eliminated broken Photo"Chum"Bucket links.

--------------------------------------------------------

Okay, we started here when the evening's activites went down:

Wood Art Wood stain Hardwood Varnish


Tills were assembled and trimmed up earlier this morning and I was excited to add hardware and apply a finish. So tonight I started by adding a little beading detail using my Stanley #66 beading plane.

Wood Hand tool Tool Metalworking hand tool Metal


Wood Reptile Automotive tire Scaled reptile Flooring


Once the top edge of each 'drawer front' was beaded, it was time to add the ring pulls I had purchased many months ago… I only took a picture of the hole drilling though, sorry…

Pneumatic tool Handheld power drill Hammer drill Saw Drill


With the beading and pulls done, I applied a coat of Watco's Natural to the fronts and the underside of the lid. The bottoms weren't glued (that expansion / contraction thing, you know) so I drove a few square nails (vintage / recycled) to the bottom (back edge) boards. Pre-drilled with an old Craftsman eggbeater that caught my eye at a flea market last month. That tool has a story or two to tell, I think…

Hand tool Wood Tool Table Metalworking hand tool


I mentioned in the last installment a screw-up of sorts. I didn't know it at the time, but putting a bit brace in the bottom till is definitely something I wanted to do as part of outfitting this chest. But unfortunately the drawer was about 5/16" too shallow for the pad of the brace. I used one of the neat little carving tools that came in a starter set from Walt Q probably more than a year ago; my first foray into chip carving (probably an insult to chip carvers everywhere…) let to a slight 'wallow' that solved the problem without blowing out the bottom of the till.

Wood Tool Metalworking hand tool Table Hardwood


So, here's a pic showing all tills within reach, then another with them all closed and the bottom board pulled forward to protect the plane bay all along the bottom of the chest.

Wood Natural material Wood stain Hardwood Varnish


Wood Wood stain Hardwood Varnish Rectangle


I'll work up the project post and try to give a decent recap of the whole thing, but in the meantime here's the chest! The saw till does need recessed ring pulls; I don't have those ordered yet and will update this entry when I get them. As always, thanks for looking.

Wood Gas Hardwood Rectangle Wood stain
Very very nice. It will get another 100 years of use.
 

Attachments

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