[RickKr]

Finished Box

The first box, using box joints, is complete. It took a bit to find hardware that would work and I had to bend the strap hinges because I could not find hinges with holes that would fit the 6mm Baltic birch plywood. The bent strap hinges on the box started out straight like the double strap hinge on the table. Not having any sort of sheet metal break, I had to figure out how to bend them with a sharp, crisp bend line while keeping the strap flat and straight.

For the finish I used Liberon Beeswax with turpentine. I had never used it before, but I really like this stuff. It was fun to apply and I was amazed at the finish it gave. Smooth, slick and hard. I have not tested its water repellency, but it is not supposed to be used in high water areas such as kitchens and baths. I also got it for use on cast iron tables as it has no petroleum products.

Rick

 

[CharleyL]

It's tough to find hardware for thin boxes, but you did, and it looks great.
Congratulations on the successful build. Now with this one complete, I'm betting that there will be more boxes in your future.

Charley

 

[RickKr]

It's tough to find hardware for thin boxes, but you did, and it looks great.
Congratulations on the successful build. Now with this one complete, I'm betting that there will be more boxes in your future.

Charley

Thanks. You are right on both accounts.

There will be more boxes in the future. I was on the west side of Oregon a week ago and picked up straight and dovetail cutters that will allow me to make most of the box and dovetail patterns in the Incra LS Positioner master reference guide. Unfortunately, my time is required on some other matters before I can really begin to play.

I mentioned I had to bend the hinges to get them to fit. That "bending to fit" entailed bending the hinge at a location that allowed the screws to center in the narrow lid width, which also involved shifting the hinge pivot below the joint between the lit and box. Not what I wanted but I could not find any hinges that would fit and have the hinge pin at the joint line. I really wanted to find hinges with a strap long enough to have all the screws on top, but that was just not going to happen.

When the box is opened, the lid "swings back" a tiny bit. I notice it, but then the maker would. I doubt others would, but almost no one will see this because it is a storage box and just about only I will be opening it. It won't be sitting out anywhere for others to notice and/or admire.

I'll take this all under consideration when I make more boxes, to not make the lid so thin, but also out of something more interesting than plywood.

Rick

 

[DesertRatTom]

For a larger box like this, you could wrap the edges with some hardwood, maybe contrasting the lighter wood. The ply will look like regular wood and you'll have solid edges. But that is a very practical looking first effort that will surely help organize some tool sets. Nice save on that hinge bending solution.

 

[CharleyL]

I see nothing wrong with the way that you installed those hinges, but next time you may want to build the box complete with the top and bottom installed, then cut the lid free leaving a perimeter piece of the sides still attached to the top. This will stiffen the lid and also make it a bit easier to install the hinges.

When I do this, I always draw a light diagonal line down what will be the front side. A strip of blue tape would work too.
this is to help you keep the front of the box and the front of the lid oriented correctly when it comes time to attach the hinges and latch. It's almost impossible to make a perfectly square box, so keeping the top oriented correctly to the bottom will make both fit together perfectly even if the box is not perfectly square. You can easily see how far out of square your box it if you place the lid on the box 108 degrees out. If the box is perfectly square, it will perfectly fit, but I doubt you will see this happen. I try very hard to get mine perfectly square, but only very rarely can accomplish this.

Then I cut the lid free using my table saw with the blade set for the thickness of the box side. I cut opposite sides. Then I insert small shims and tape them in place to prevent the saw kerf from closing as I make the two final cuts on the two remaining sides. If you don't completely cut through all 4 sides, you can later use a razor knife to separate the lid at the saw kerf and then just sand the edges smooth.

Charley

 

[RickKr]

Thanks, Charley,

I've read about and seen videos on sawing off the lid that way. Looks like a really slick trick, which I will do, probably on the next box. I haven't figured out what that next box will be, but it may be while.

It is Spring and there is yard and garden stuff to do that can't wait. My daughter raises chickens (in my yard - about 30 of them) and told me today that she wants me to rototill the chicken pen. She has been spreading straw all winter, in part to add carbon to the ground but also to give the chickens some relief from the snow. It will be a nasty job. Chickens are one of the grossest animals I've ever been exposed to. But, should I want to grow a garden in that ground after she and the chickens move out, it will be a killer garden.

In the past, when she had incubated eggs in quantity, to raise new chickens to sell, she had set up brooding pens in my garage. Now that I have some woodworking tools to play with, I don't want to give up the floor space for the pens. She said the chicks can go outside in brooding boxes with mat heaters, so if that works, I'll be happy.

Rick

 

[CharleyL]

When you want to sand the edges of the cut that separates the top from the bottom, it's best to glue a couple of sheets of 100 or 150 sandpaper to a flat piece of plywood. Then attach this plywood to your workbench with a couple of screws to keep it from moving. Then place the box top or bottom on this sandpaper edge down and push it back and forth, making certain that you rotate the box and move the box in random directions. This will clean up the saw cuts and any mis-alignments of the saw cuts as well as make the edges of the box and top perfectly smooth. Be careful about sanding in many directions and applying even pressure, or the top and bottom may not fit together perfectly when you finish. If you try to clean up the edges any other way they are likely not to turn out perfectly flat.

Charley

 

[RickKr]

Yes, thanks. I had to deal with the unevenness of the joints at the top. The box joints didn't turn out perfectly aligned at the top. I tried cleaning them up on the router table, but that did leave slight differences that had to be sanded out. This box was small enough that it fit on a single sheet of sandpaper, but that will not always be the case.

Rick

 

[twmv86]

i just bought some hide glue for a project im doing. i used it years ago for long open times

 

[CharleyL]

Hyde glue of the hot melt kind is not as slow drying as the liquid hyde glue, so I'm glad you are planning on using the liquid version, but be aware that hyde glue in either form is not moisture resistant. The titebond II and III are. I think the Titebond Extend is like Titebond II. Your choice of glue should be dictated by the project you are building. Hyde glue is my choice when veneering or restoring old furniture though.

Charley