Failed Humidor

I have had good luck with the green masking tape on the wood I am going to cut or rout. It seems to save the ragged edges.

You are the only person in the universe who will notice the rabbets, my best advise is to not be as critical. You have solid skills, and the project is a work of art.

I agree. I can point out flaws in every one of my projects. This looks great.

-- Check out my new website! http://www.blakeweberwoodworking.com

i like it, im going to be starting my own box project soon and i can only hope that im within 1/32 of square :)

-- David - Houston, Texas.

Nice humidor Caver, I really like the banding…...... I agree also in regards to being critical. We are all sometimes to critical of our ownselves…........ sometimes that is good because it means we really care about the level of our workmanship, but we sometimes have to realize that “most” other people wouldn’t even begin to notice. Now, if I would just listen to myself!!!!
Very nice job, I haven’t tried the banding like this before, but I think I am going to have to.

Thanks for sharing

-- Gene, Majestic Eagle Woodworks, http://majesticeagleww.etsy.com/, http://www.flickr.com/photos/majesticeagle/

Thanks Gene, indeed, you should try it. The banding is not purely decorative, it actually serves to protect the veneer or potentially soft primary woods (cypress, or solid spanish cedar for instance).

Also, as I said, as long as the ends of the rabbets meet after cleanup, it will look perfect….

As for the critique, I find it helpful to document the things that went wrong, getting the big stuff right is easy, as they say, the devil is in the details….not that I believe in devils :{P

JC

-- Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known. -Carl Sagan

Oh and David, if your box is more than a 32nd out of square, a big a$$ clamp can normally fix that :)

JC

-- Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known. -Carl Sagan

flip your ruler over to the side with 1/8” graduations and it will be right on! Seriously, nice job. I doubt any of us has built a ‘flawless’ project. I certainly haven’t.

-- APLJaK Woodworking, Okanagan Valley, BC

Wow, some of you guys on LJs amaze me, you included JC. If this is a failed attempt, then I’ve definitely failed miserably in everything I’ve attempted to build. It looks really great in the pictures.

-- Dale Manning, Carthage, NY

JC, I think it looks great. I agree that the 3/4 material is a bit too thick, but you knew that. :-)

As for the rabbets… from what you are saying it sounds like you rabbetted the pieces prior to assembly? I would have assembled the box, done the initial sanding, the cut the rabbets. That way, there would be no issue of the parts not mating right at the rabbets.

Great humidor.

-- Charlie M. "Woodworking - patience = firewood"

“Failed Humidor” my ass…

-- "It's a good thing my woodworking is done afterhours so my 2 year old daughter can't hear the swearing."

Thanks for the comments guys…

Charlie, yes, the weight of the piece is perfect in my hands, but visually, it looks like a door to a bank vault :( I have no idea what I was thinking….

I did, in fact, rout the rabbets after assembly, however, since the box was a little tweaked, one side sat slightly higher than the other, but this error was doubled from low side to high side x 2….Since I had veneer on the top, I could not level the top of the box as I normally do. The lower rabbets were fine….Lucky I had just gotten a shiny new LN shoulder plane :)

Next time, I might be able to prevent this by assembling the box upside down so that any variation is on the bottom side…..that, or build it perfectly square to begin with :)

Thanks for your honest comments/critique everyone….I do like hearing what can be improved and have a thick skin when it comes to design….so don’t be shy!

JC

-- Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known. -Carl Sagan

JC, I hear the NTSB is giving your box a 5 star crash safety ratting for the cigars inside. (g) Very nice work from the composition to the finish. Put it on your desk, fill it with good cigars and be very proud. Again, nice work!

Tom

-- Anybody can become a woodworker, but only a Craftsman can hide his mistakes.

I wish my failures were this nice…

-- A thing of beauty is a joy forever...

Nice JC,

I like your straight approach. If all our work were perfect there wouldn’t be anything to strive for and (at least for me) that would be boring.

I can’t comment on your techniques because I have never made a box, but I do enjoy a nice cigar every now and then and to my un-trained eye that box looks fantastique.

-- Scott - Chico California http://chicowoodnut.home.comcast.net

Thanks guys….

Tom, I deserve that! This thing is a tank….its almost embarrassing :) I’ll do much better next time….

Chico, the level of detail on your projects inspire me. You and Tom in particular have moved beyond getting something square and matching the wood colors, adding in the subtle details and craftsmanship that make a project truly a cut above the rest into the realm of fine furniture, aka Tommy MacDonald….this humidor does not exemplify that ideal to be sure, but I pushed myself into uncharted territory and didn’t destroy it in the process, so I consider that a minor success. Thanks again for your inspirational work.

JC

-- Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known. -Carl Sagan

Another suggestion for cutting a clean line, whether its a router or saw, for banding or any other perfect line is to cut the taped line with a knife first. Tear-out is a challenge with all work.
I once redecorated a large room in an old house I was living in. I did raised cypress paneling on the walls, a beamed ceiling grid with fancy lighting, double pocket doors… It was beautiful. I had one little mishap with the router and left 1/4” scratch in the corner one of the raised panel. No one could see it, but guess what was the only thing I saw every time I walked into the room.

-- Its a HOBBY...I already have a job.