# Here's What Has Invaded My Shop



## sbryan55 (Dec 8, 2007)

*Start of Cabinet Construction*

My shop has been invaded!!! Mike Gager posted a blog about an invasion of brown recluse spiders in his shop. I have another "invasion" of sorts that has occurred in my shop.

Most of us tend to be somewhat solitary woodworkers and work alone in our shop. This has always been my situation as well. However last week this is what was going on in my shop:










This is my son Jonathan using a jointer for the first time.

Jon and his wife "commissioned" me to build them a vanity a short time ago. And, of course, being thrilled to be able to build something for them I gave an unqualifed yes to the project. But he added one caveat- he wanted to build the cabinet himself- which was a total surprise to me. Jon's background in woodworking, to this point, has been almost non-existant. He did take shop in high school and managed to produce a toy car and a bubble gum dispenser but really did not have any exposure to power tools or building any type of cabinetry.

Here is the cabinet that they decided to add to their bathroom:










They selected white oak as the wood and wanted it dyed a deep mission brown since my daughter-in-law favors dark furniture. And, despite being married only 1 year, Jon has learned to simply say, "Yes, dear" and let his wife make these type of decisions.

On the first day Jon was taught to operate a miter saw, table saw, jointer and planer while learning to select and prepare rough lumber. At the end of the day here is what he produced with very little help from me:










Next on the list was learning to use the router table since the right side of the cabinet is a raised panel. This is Jon raising the panel on the router table:










After some quick lessons in using trans tint dyes and wipe on polyurethane this is the stage that he is now at:










I had to learn most of what I know on my own so there was (and still do at times) a lot of head scratching and pondering as I learned to operate tools on my own and teach myself various joinery techniques. 
I will say that it is extremely gratifying ( and fun I might add) , not only to have another set of hands in the shop, but also to be able to pass along what knowledge that I have to someone else. And to quote Todd Clippinger it is wonderful to "share the love and share the knowledge". With that thought in mind I decided to blog the construction of this cabinet.

Thanks for looking and, as always, thanks for letting me share this with you.


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## scottb (Jul 21, 2006)

sbryan55 said:


> *Start of Cabinet Construction*
> 
> My shop has been invaded!!! Mike Gager posted a blog about an invasion of brown recluse spiders in his shop. I have another "invasion" of sorts that has occurred in my shop.
> 
> ...


This is like the exact opposite of when I was little and "made" projects in my grandfathers shop while he 
"helped." Sounds like some great quality time in the shop!


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## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

sbryan55 said:


> *Start of Cabinet Construction*
> 
> My shop has been invaded!!! Mike Gager posted a blog about an invasion of brown recluse spiders in his shop. I have another "invasion" of sorts that has occurred in my shop.
> 
> ...


Hey Scott 
This is the start of a great blog. I love it when one of my guys wants to come to town and build in the shop.
It's even better when there learning with you help. Enjoy this time together ,I know your sons project will be great.


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## Rick Dennington (Aug 27, 2009)

sbryan55 said:


> *Start of Cabinet Construction*
> 
> My shop has been invaded!!! Mike Gager posted a blog about an invasion of brown recluse spiders in his shop. I have another "invasion" of sorts that has occurred in my shop.
> 
> ...


Hey Scott: That is really great that you get to spend time with your son. My son, who lives in Nashville, Tn. likes to do the same when he and the family come for a visit. He's had very little, if any, experience with machinery and tools-only what I've taught him. He loves woodworking, and wants a shop of his own very bad. But job and location makes it impossible right now. He always say"Pop, I'm 40, and time's running out, and I'm getting old" lol lol. Shoot-I was around 40 when I got into real good. Still learning the wood. 
There's nothing like spending quality time with your kids-and gkids. Just wish they lived closer. Great blog.
Thanks for sharing the pixs, too.


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## REK (Aug 30, 2009)

sbryan55 said:


> *Start of Cabinet Construction*
> 
> My shop has been invaded!!! Mike Gager posted a blog about an invasion of brown recluse spiders in his shop. I have another "invasion" of sorts that has occurred in my shop.
> 
> ...


Scott quite a first project. My son is 13 and shows no sign of wanting to work in the shop, maybe I will get lucky like you in 5 or 6 years. It is nice to have someone to work with.


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## degoose (Mar 20, 2009)

sbryan55 said:


> *Start of Cabinet Construction*
> 
> My shop has been invaded!!! Mike Gager posted a blog about an invasion of brown recluse spiders in his shop. I have another "invasion" of sorts that has occurred in my shop.
> 
> ...


I am so happy you and your son get to share some time together…I was 40 when I got the bug….not training no idea really… just thought hey I can do that… My youngest daughter wanted to hammer nails into wood… so I bought her a hammer… now she is 18 no real interest.. don't even talk to me…oh well have a Grandson who will be 1 soon… and before you know it he will be wanting to spend time in my shop… I hope..


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## woodworm (Jul 27, 2008)

sbryan55 said:


> *Start of Cabinet Construction*
> 
> My shop has been invaded!!! Mike Gager posted a blog about an invasion of brown recluse spiders in his shop. I have another "invasion" of sorts that has occurred in my shop.
> 
> ...


I guess you had great time together. It's really reviiving and inspiring to have someone in the shop who wants to learn from us, once a while.
Happy woodworking Scott!


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## woodworkersguide (Mar 7, 2008)

sbryan55 said:


> *Start of Cabinet Construction*
> 
> My shop has been invaded!!! Mike Gager posted a blog about an invasion of brown recluse spiders in his shop. I have another "invasion" of sorts that has occurred in my shop.
> 
> ...


Scott, enjoy it!

My son just came in on Saturday for a week home and we got lots of shop time planned too. Not sure if he comes home now to see us or to get some "lathe time". It doesn't matter. It's just a thrill to be working in the shop with him!


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## charlie48 (Sep 21, 2009)

sbryan55 said:


> *Start of Cabinet Construction*
> 
> My shop has been invaded!!! Mike Gager posted a blog about an invasion of brown recluse spiders in his shop. I have another "invasion" of sorts that has occurred in my shop.
> 
> ...


Scott,enjoy the invasion.
It looks like a great project,looking forward for more pics.


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## dlcarver (Mar 9, 2008)

sbryan55 said:


> *Start of Cabinet Construction*
> 
> My shop has been invaded!!! Mike Gager posted a blog about an invasion of brown recluse spiders in his shop. I have another "invasion" of sorts that has occurred in my shop.
> 
> ...


Scott, I've been waiting for a post from you, what better post could you have. I love it when my son gets involved.
Run with the memories!!!!
Dave


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## huff (May 28, 2009)

sbryan55 said:


> *Start of Cabinet Construction*
> 
> My shop has been invaded!!! Mike Gager posted a blog about an invasion of brown recluse spiders in his shop. I have another "invasion" of sorts that has occurred in my shop.
> 
> ...


Great blog Scott. My son worked with me for seven years before I moved to Myrtle Beach. It was fun sharing time together and watching him grow as a woodworker. I miss having him in the shop. Enjoy every minute and thanks for sharing.


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## Cato (May 1, 2009)

sbryan55 said:


> *Start of Cabinet Construction*
> 
> My shop has been invaded!!! Mike Gager posted a blog about an invasion of brown recluse spiders in his shop. I have another "invasion" of sorts that has occurred in my shop.
> 
> ...


Scott, good blog and looks like your son is absorbing the knowledge quickly. Good quality time and sharing your tools and knowledge. Priceless.


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## adeptr (Mar 21, 2009)

sbryan55 said:


> *Start of Cabinet Construction*
> 
> My shop has been invaded!!! Mike Gager posted a blog about an invasion of brown recluse spiders in his shop. I have another "invasion" of sorts that has occurred in my shop.
> 
> ...


Best thing is having a son to spend time with who actually wants to still learn from the "Dad". I spend a lot of time doing a lot of things with my son and the joy of this time is priceless.


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## toddc (Mar 6, 2007)

sbryan55 said:


> *Start of Cabinet Construction*
> 
> My shop has been invaded!!! Mike Gager posted a blog about an invasion of brown recluse spiders in his shop. I have another "invasion" of sorts that has occurred in my shop.
> 
> ...


You'll have a great time building together.

The big surprise in sharing with others is how much personal growth I have experienced.

I look forward to seeing the finished project.


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## cabinetmaster (Aug 28, 2008)

sbryan55 said:


> *Start of Cabinet Construction*
> 
> My shop has been invaded!!! Mike Gager posted a blog about an invasion of brown recluse spiders in his shop. I have another "invasion" of sorts that has occurred in my shop.
> 
> ...


Great job Scott. I wish my son was closer so we could do some projects together. Glad to see your son finally took an interest in your hobby as well. Hope to see many more father/son blogs.


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## stefang (Apr 9, 2009)

sbryan55 said:


> *Start of Cabinet Construction*
> 
> My shop has been invaded!!! Mike Gager posted a blog about an invasion of brown recluse spiders in his shop. I have another "invasion" of sorts that has occurred in my shop.
> 
> ...


It's wonderful that your son is showing an interest in woodworking and that you have an opportunity to work with him in your shop. Many people don't become interested in woodworking until later in life like I did. It looks like your son is starting earlier. It isn't always easy to have a time consuming hobby with the daily living demands on young folks nowadays.


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## patron (Apr 2, 2009)

sbryan55 said:


> *Start of Cabinet Construction*
> 
> My shop has been invaded!!! Mike Gager posted a blog about an invasion of brown recluse spiders in his shop. I have another "invasion" of sorts that has occurred in my shop.
> 
> ...


good for both of you ,
and from the look of the work so far ,
he has a great teacher !

my sons wont even talk with me ,
so i teach others .

maybe someday ?


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## Rob200 (Sep 21, 2009)

sbryan55 said:


> *Start of Cabinet Construction*
> 
> My shop has been invaded!!! Mike Gager posted a blog about an invasion of brown recluse spiders in his shop. I have another "invasion" of sorts that has occurred in my shop.
> 
> ...


I wish my son lived closer so we could work to gather it would be fun for the both of us


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## Beginningwoodworker (May 5, 2008)

sbryan55 said:


> *Start of Cabinet Construction*
> 
> My shop has been invaded!!! Mike Gager posted a blog about an invasion of brown recluse spiders in his shop. I have another "invasion" of sorts that has occurred in my shop.
> 
> ...


Sounds like fun, Scott. I hope to do that with my sons some day if I have one.


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## woodsmithshop (Sep 10, 2008)

sbryan55 said:


> *Start of Cabinet Construction*
> 
> My shop has been invaded!!! Mike Gager posted a blog about an invasion of brown recluse spiders in his shop. I have another "invasion" of sorts that has occurred in my shop.
> 
> ...


as quickly as your son was" trained" by his wife, he should learn woodworking with no problems, LOL, it is good that you will be able to spend more time with him now. my son wants to build bunk beds for my gdaughters, I am waiting for him to find the time, like your son, he has no experience with ww, I am anxious to start with him.


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## OhValleyWoodandWool (Nov 9, 2009)

sbryan55 said:


> *Start of Cabinet Construction*
> 
> My shop has been invaded!!! Mike Gager posted a blog about an invasion of brown recluse spiders in his shop. I have another "invasion" of sorts that has occurred in my shop.
> 
> ...


now that's the good type of invasion


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## sbryan55 (Dec 8, 2007)

*Completing the Face Frame and Carcass*

As part of the Introduction to Woodworking 101 continued I introduced Jon to the part of furniture construction that most woodworkers truly enjoy- sanding and glue-ups! This is a picture that was taken about a month ago of him sanding the right side of the vanity.










With this glue-up, using biscuits, the face frame is being attached to the carcass. This was a challenging glue-up given the number of biscuits involved and the size of the cabinet. It was helpful to have two of us working together on this. If I had to do this by myself it would have been a challenge to get the clamps on before the glue started setting. Attaching the face frame may have been easier if we had cut a biscuit channel in the carcass edges but I guess I am still old school since we cut individual biscuit slots to attach the face frame.










Side view:










At this stage the cabinet is ready for staining/finishing (with plenty of lessons in sanding, of course) and construction of drawers and the door. The finished cabinet will be posted shortly.

I will say that this certainly has been a learning experience for both of us. As a self taught woodworker I have developed my own set of skills and techniques. Having another person in the shop did give me an opportunity to both demonstrate and explain different processes. In doing so Jon pointed out some things that made the process and assembly more efficient and/or faster. This just reaffirmed my basic philosophy that we can both learn from and teach others irrespective of our individual skill level.


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## griff (Feb 6, 2008)

sbryan55 said:


> *Completing the Face Frame and Carcass*
> 
> As part of the Introduction to Woodworking 101 continued I introduced Jon to the part of furniture construction that most woodworkers truly enjoy- sanding and glue-ups! This is a picture that was taken about a month ago of him sanding the right side of the vanity.
> 
> ...


Looks great Scott , Looking forward to seeing the completed project


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## roman (Sep 28, 2007)

sbryan55 said:


> *Completing the Face Frame and Carcass*
> 
> As part of the Introduction to Woodworking 101 continued I introduced Jon to the part of furniture construction that most woodworkers truly enjoy- sanding and glue-ups! This is a picture that was taken about a month ago of him sanding the right side of the vanity.
> 
> ...


2 cents

side stiles generally go from top to bottom, then the top and bottom rail go between side stiles. Then center stiles go between top and bottom rails, and center rails go between center stiles.

you have come up with something entirely new but we all know that experience is a tough teacher as it gives the test first and the lesson later.


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## Cato (May 1, 2009)

sbryan55 said:


> *Completing the Face Frame and Carcass*
> 
> As part of the Introduction to Woodworking 101 continued I introduced Jon to the part of furniture construction that most woodworkers truly enjoy- sanding and glue-ups! This is a picture that was taken about a month ago of him sanding the right side of the vanity.
> 
> ...


Scott, bet you have had fun working with your son on this!! Whenever my son has helped me on a project, I have enjoyed it immensely. If Jon gets the bug, then it will make Xmas shopping easy for you.


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## cabinetmaster (Aug 28, 2008)

sbryan55 said:


> *Completing the Face Frame and Carcass*
> 
> As part of the Introduction to Woodworking 101 continued I introduced Jon to the part of furniture construction that most woodworkers truly enjoy- sanding and glue-ups! This is a picture that was taken about a month ago of him sanding the right side of the vanity.
> 
> ...


Nice job Scott. Hope your son catches the bug and joins us on LJ's.


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## GaryC (Dec 31, 2008)

sbryan55 said:


> *Completing the Face Frame and Carcass*
> 
> As part of the Introduction to Woodworking 101 continued I introduced Jon to the part of furniture construction that most woodworkers truly enjoy- sanding and glue-ups! This is a picture that was taken about a month ago of him sanding the right side of the vanity.
> 
> ...


Wish I had all those clamps. Cabinet is nice too!


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## sbryan55 (Dec 8, 2007)

sbryan55 said:


> *Completing the Face Frame and Carcass*
> 
> As part of the Introduction to Woodworking 101 continued I introduced Jon to the part of furniture construction that most woodworkers truly enjoy- sanding and glue-ups! This is a picture that was taken about a month ago of him sanding the right side of the vanity.
> 
> ...


Roman, I agree. That is how I would have made the face frame. Jon worked with me on the design and construction and this was his idea (of course despite being married only 1 year he got approval from my DIL for the design and color). I really could not see any problems with the construction, other than as you say, it is different. Since it was his cabinet we went with the construction as he wanted.


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## stefang (Apr 9, 2009)

sbryan55 said:


> *Completing the Face Frame and Carcass*
> 
> As part of the Introduction to Woodworking 101 continued I introduced Jon to the part of furniture construction that most woodworkers truly enjoy- sanding and glue-ups! This is a picture that was taken about a month ago of him sanding the right side of the vanity.
> 
> ...


Looks good to me. I'm sure your son is quickly becoming a woodworker. Great to have all those clamps. Working with biscuits is pretty easy and is more than strong enough. The only thing I don't like about them is the cost. Biscuits are pretty expensive over here. at $10 for a bag with 24 biscuits regardless of the size. I have made some out of baltic birch plywood and even though they aren't pre-compressed they tested (my own test) stronger than the Lamello biscuits. I stack cut them 6 at a time on my scroll saw.


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## jlsmith5963 (Mar 26, 2009)

sbryan55 said:


> *Completing the Face Frame and Carcass*
> 
> As part of the Introduction to Woodworking 101 continued I introduced Jon to the part of furniture construction that most woodworkers truly enjoy- sanding and glue-ups! This is a picture that was taken about a month ago of him sanding the right side of the vanity.
> 
> ...


Structurally I don't believe there is an issue with which way the stile and rails run, however, with the rails running through the stiles you end up with exposed end grain which is a more difficult finishing issue if you want the stiles and rails to have a homogeneous finish.

Btw when did biscuit construction qualify as 'old school'?...lol


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## dlcarver (Mar 9, 2008)

sbryan55 said:


> *Completing the Face Frame and Carcass*
> 
> As part of the Introduction to Woodworking 101 continued I introduced Jon to the part of furniture construction that most woodworkers truly enjoy- sanding and glue-ups! This is a picture that was taken about a month ago of him sanding the right side of the vanity.
> 
> ...


Don't know where I would put all those clamps Scott….. I would have to build on to house them.
Fine job thanks for the post.
Dave


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## ND2ELK (Jan 25, 2008)

sbryan55 said:


> *Completing the Face Frame and Carcass*
> 
> As part of the Introduction to Woodworking 101 continued I introduced Jon to the part of furniture construction that most woodworkers truly enjoy- sanding and glue-ups! This is a picture that was taken about a month ago of him sanding the right side of the vanity.
> 
> ...


Hi Scott

Looks like a special cabinet will done. What makes it extra special is you guys did it together. Looking forward to seeing the finished project. Thanks for posting.

God Bless
tom


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## davemurray (Nov 15, 2009)

sbryan55 said:


> *Completing the Face Frame and Carcass*
> 
> As part of the Introduction to Woodworking 101 continued I introduced Jon to the part of furniture construction that most woodworkers truly enjoy- sanding and glue-ups! This is a picture that was taken about a month ago of him sanding the right side of the vanity.
> 
> ...


Looks good, I think sanding is everyone's favorite part of woodworking isn't it. Look forward to seeing completed project.


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## patron (Apr 2, 2009)

sbryan55 said:


> *Completing the Face Frame and Carcass*
> 
> As part of the Introduction to Woodworking 101 continued I introduced Jon to the part of furniture construction that most woodworkers truly enjoy- sanding and glue-ups! This is a picture that was taken about a month ago of him sanding the right side of the vanity.
> 
> ...


a great team project , scott ,

i bet there will be many more coming ,
now that your DIL is learning about 
' honey do lists ' .

have a great holidays !


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## blockhead (May 5, 2009)

sbryan55 said:


> *Completing the Face Frame and Carcass*
> 
> As part of the Introduction to Woodworking 101 continued I introduced Jon to the part of furniture construction that most woodworkers truly enjoy- sanding and glue-ups! This is a picture that was taken about a month ago of him sanding the right side of the vanity.
> 
> ...


Looking really good Scott. Its nice to teach someone a thing or two about woodworking. Its then that I realize how much I know. I then get on LJ's and realize how much I don't know. Looking forward to the next installment.


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

sbryan55 said:


> *Completing the Face Frame and Carcass*
> 
> As part of the Introduction to Woodworking 101 continued I introduced Jon to the part of furniture construction that most woodworkers truly enjoy- sanding and glue-ups! This is a picture that was taken about a month ago of him sanding the right side of the vanity.
> 
> ...


looks like a fantastic journey… this piece will carry some good stories with itself for years to come


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## Joemurph (Dec 10, 2009)

sbryan55 said:


> *Completing the Face Frame and Carcass*
> 
> As part of the Introduction to Woodworking 101 continued I introduced Jon to the part of furniture construction that most woodworkers truly enjoy- sanding and glue-ups! This is a picture that was taken about a month ago of him sanding the right side of the vanity.
> 
> ...


Looks great Scott, nice job!!!


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## kookiemomster48 (Jul 19, 2010)

sbryan55 said:


> *Completing the Face Frame and Carcass*
> 
> As part of the Introduction to Woodworking 101 continued I introduced Jon to the part of furniture construction that most woodworkers truly enjoy- sanding and glue-ups! This is a picture that was taken about a month ago of him sanding the right side of the vanity.
> 
> ...


Cabinet making, being way beyond my skill level, has always impressed me. I'm still waiting to get my lessons on using my saws. If it will cut off fingers I do not use it without being taught the ins and outs. <g>
There are two excellent professional builders in my group of friends. Just trying to find time in their schedules to teach me.


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