Puzzle Box

That’s a beauty. Love the shape and grain.

-- I am always doing what I cannot do yet, in order to learn how to do it. - Vincent Van Gogh

Very nice organic shape Andy. Your photography is very well done as well. What was the time to complete? Thanks for showing it.

-- Jeff, St. Paul, MN

Thanks Scott and Jeff.
Scott, i’m not sure, since I am pretty bad about getting distacted and having several projects going at once.I would say it took me about 3-4 hours to dig all the punk out and sand it smooth.Maybe a little longer,since this one has the shaping on it.

-- " Stubborn tenacity substitutes for natural ability" ANDY

Time well spent.

-- Jeff, St. Paul, MN

Sweet and curvy! Very nice, Andy. I have seen several of these puzzle boxes and would love to learn more about it…
he typed, batting his eyelashes coyly.

-- "Bordnerizing" perfectly good lumber for over a decade.

Good looking box Andy. Great design, finish and the photography is something special also. Well done!

-- Bill - "Suit yourself and let the rest be pleased." http://www.cajunpen.com/

Exceptionally nice, Andy.

-- CanuckDon "I just love small wooden boxes!" http://www.canterburybaptist.org/

fascinating. It looks quite difficult to create the “lock” .

Very nice – and a beautiful box.

-- "Functional WoodArt" by Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

Thank you Jeff,Douglas,Bill,Don and Debbie.
I will attempt to explain how these are made,but photos would be better.I promise to post a blog this winter when things slow down and I can be in the shop with a fire and Molly dog.
I penned this mantra as a reminder when laying out a design.
_”Bandsawn boxes are a simple progression of cuts that are then reassembled in order.”
Too keep it simple,I recommend starting off with a piece of scrap wood,(like the top of the neighbors fence post). A 4×4 is nice.

#1-I write Top,Bttm,Right,Left,Front,Back in pencil on each side of the box.Or if its odd shaped I make marks to aid in reassembly.

#2-Slice the bottom off.

#3-With a 1/4” blade cut out the key.Keep the radius tight and exit back out through the same entry kerf.This is what keeps the key in place.

#4-Cut off the top. There must be a figure 8 shape to the bottom of the lid to keep it from lifting straight up,but also needs to let it slide, at least in one direction.

#5-Make a verticle cut in a back corner and come in about 1/2” before cutting out the inside.Leave about 1/2” for wall thickness.

#6-Glue the back corner together using tape to clamp it, and then sand out the interior walls. Do not sand the kerf!.

#7-Glue the bottom on.I place it onto the box body temporarily, and mark it from the inside to show me how much of the interior bottom to sand smooth,then take it off and sand just to the marks and glue it on using tape/clamps.If you sand the bottom smooth where it joins the box body, it will show.The saw kerf will index itself and heal up nicely.Use the pencil marks you put on the sides at the beginning to aid you in aligning it on all 4 corners.

#8-Lightly sand away the the saw marks on all the mating pieces.The top,body and key.Because of the saw kerf and the sanding the joints will be a little sloppy.

#9-Shape/sand the outside and put your favorite finish on.

#10- Have fun doing it.

-- " Stubborn tenacity substitutes for natural ability" ANDY

Really nice project made. You ought to give lessons. This is really nice. Did you put a varnish on it to finish it off?

-- Carpe Lignum - Seize The Wood,

Wow! Talk about ingenuity!

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

Art from a fencepost! Great! Thanks for the added tutorial!

-- You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation. (Plato)

That’s super neat, Andy. I’ve never made these but I’ve always admired them.

-- Thos. Angle, Owyhee Design, Oregon

I love this. How big is it Andy?

-- Res severa verum gaudium - True pleasure is a serious business.

Thanks Stewart.It is aprox a 4” cube.I look forward to seeing one from you.

-- " Stubborn tenacity substitutes for natural ability" ANDY

Thanks for the blow by blow… only had to read it several times to get the gist. I’ve seen some like this in person, and It’s not hard to figure out how they go together… but a little harder to figure how to get one started.
Looking forward to the tutorials with pix – and all the wonderful creations we come up with ourselves!

-- I am always doing what I cannot do yet, in order to learn how to do it. - Vincent Van Gogh

A very beautiful looking shaped box. The cool lock works looks simple in movement, but yet looks like it took a lot of work to make sure it was shaped just right in order to slip in and out of its locking position correctly.

-- Paul @ Kathy Allen

Wow, Andy… Very cool. I think that looks great! Very clever.

-- As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another. (Proverbs 27:17)