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Oxbow chest

Project by acanthuscarver posted 552 days ago 751 views 2 times favorited 15 comments Add to Favorites Watch

This chest is made of cherry with poplar secondaries. As with all my pieces, it is a commissioned job. The best part of a piece like this is that it entails so many different aspects of woodworking. The pics here show the piece in the shop either while finishing is going on or just before the piece is cleaned of dust, waxed and delivered. If you’re really interested in seeing the piece made in a step by step tutorial, check out my blog.

I’ve made half a dozen or so oxbow chests. They derive their name from the “reverse serpentine” shape of the front which is similar in shape to the yoke of an ox cart. These chests are always fun to build because of the added challenges of the beaded case and the shaped drawer fronts. Since I really enjoy woodcarving, it takes an otherwise straight forward chest design and adds a sculptural aspect to the job. I hope you enjoy it.

-- Chuck Bender, period furniture maker, www.acanthus.com


15 comments so far

View Dusty56's profile

Dusty56

3457 posts in 580 days


posted 552 days ago

Beautiful craftsmanship ! What is a piece like this selling for ?

-- You know you're getting old when you know the difference between you're (you are) and your (belonging to you) AND how to use them in a sentence .

View GaryK's profile

GaryK

9521 posts in 880 days


posted 552 days ago

That must be a real money maker. Not super diffcult and relativly quick to build.

The finishing part is what slowes me down. It’s the part of woodworking that I don’t like.

How do you do the drawer fronts? Bent lamaination or cut from a solid piece?

Great chest!

-- Gary, East TX -- The longest journey begins with a single step.

View CharlieM1958's profile

CharlieM1958

7601 posts in 1111 days


posted 552 days ago

Another fantastic piece, Chuck!

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

View ND2ELK's profile

ND2ELK

6136 posts in 666 days


posted 552 days ago

Nice looking piece as always. Thanks for posting.

God Bless
tom

-- Mc Bridge Cabinets, Iowa

View runngt's profile

runngt

118 posts in 632 days


posted 552 days ago

Very nice work!!

runngt

-- It seem's I just make scrap wood and saw dust most of the time !

View daveintexas's profile

daveintexas

338 posts in 768 days


posted 551 days ago

Now that chest has nice curves !!
Thanks for posting.

Dave

-- MISSION FURNITURE-My mission is to build furniture

View Bigbuck's profile

Bigbuck

1366 posts in 555 days


posted 551 days ago

Very nice!!!

-- Glenn, New Mexico

View jockmike2's profile

jockmike2

7297 posts in 1139 days


posted 551 days ago

Super cool, man do you ever do good work. mike .........right up there with Norm

-- Mike. mwurm13@yahoo.com

View Scott Bryan's profile

Scott Bryan

20554 posts in 714 days


posted 551 days ago

Chuck,

This is a gorgeous chest. I am sure this was a challenging project. You did well with this piece.

How did you finish it? I am sure that you used shellac as a top coat but, to me, this has an aged appearance.

Thanks for the post.

-- With God's help all things are possible- even woodworking. Woodworking is not just a hobby, it is an (expletive deleted) expensive hobby.

View Woodhacker's profile

Woodhacker

1145 posts in 615 days


posted 551 days ago

Chuck, that is a beautiful piece! I agree with Scott…it looks like it has an aged appearance. I’m curious about your finish technique.

-- Martin, Kansas

View trifern's profile

trifern

7894 posts in 659 days


posted 551 days ago

This is simply outstanding. I love the sculptural qualities you add to it. Thank you for sharing.

-- My favorite piece is my last one, my best piece is my next one.

View darryl's profile

darryl

1392 posts in 1219 days


posted 551 days ago

nice looking chest of drawers. I like the finished color. The shape looks fantastic.

-- www.darrylmasterson.com ~ www.darrylmasterson.etsy.com

View acanthuscarver's profile

acanthuscarver

156 posts in 604 days


posted 551 days ago

Thanks everyone for the compliments. I’ll try to answer the questions in turn.

Dusty, the current price is around 6K but it is not for sale since it’s sold, delivered, etc. I just don’t want anyone thinking I’m advertising my furniture through my gallery posts. While I’m sure there are plenty of LJs who can afford that kind of money for a chest, why wouldn’t they build their own first? They are lumberjocks afterall.

Gary, after having built so many it is a fairly easy project to build. The drawers, as you’ll see if you follow my blog, are sawn from the solid. To say more would just give away a future blog post. :)

jockmike, Norm? I don’t use my nailgun enough (or my biscuit joiner at all)...

Scott, orange shellac is the finish of choice for my furniture. As to the “aged” appearance, I’m not sure how much of that is just an over abundance of dust on the piece when I took my picture. The color, and again this will be somewhat explained in the blog, is achieved through the use of a custom made water based analine dye. The color we were shooting for was similar to 200 year old cherry. I think we did pretty well. My wife is a whiz at those mixing those colors.

Woodhacker, all I can say is stay tuned to the blog and I’ll share a bit of the technique. I think, once you see it in action, you’ll be surprised at how easy it is.

Thanks again to eveyone for the comments. Keep the questions coming, it’s why I’m here.

-- Chuck Bender, period furniture maker, www.acanthus.com

View BobR's profile

BobR

137 posts in 877 days


posted 551 days ago

Another beautiful piece of work. Now I’m off to the blog.

-- Bob

View Kerry's profile

Kerry

131 posts in 682 days


posted 550 days ago

Gorgeous chest. Your work is always impressive and I appreciate your sharing info in your blog.

Kerry

-- Alberta, Canada

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