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Projects Journal
Page 3
This page updated:
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Projects
Journal Index:
Page 1
(Bedside Table;
Kitchen Cabinets)
Page
2 (Trivet;
Writing Desk; Trad. End Table; Lamp)
Page 3 (A&C
Coffee Table; TV Cabinet; Walnut Coffee Table; A&C End Table)
Page
4 (Walnut
Hall Table; Granite Top Mission Table; Mission Hall Table)
Page
5 (708 Style Writing Table) (Mission Trestle Table)
Page
6 (Arts and
Crafts Bench)
Page
7 (New
Construction-2005 Kitchen)
Page
8 (Tool
Drawers; Stacked Tansu)
Page 9 (Plan
Rack; Door Restoration; Spice Rack; A&C House# Frame)
Page 10 (Craftsman
Chair Reproduction)
Page 11 (A&C
Kitchen Dining Set)
Page 12
(Cherry/Walnut Hope Chest)
Page 13 (Mission
Sideboard)
Page 14 (Kitchen
Drawers; Calendar Frames)
Page 15 (Corner
Cabinet)
Page 16 (2008
Kitchen Project/Trash Pullout)
 Arts
and Crafts Coffee Table
5/23/03 -
This quarter-sawn white oak Arts and Crafts coffee table continues the
scratching of the A&C itch which has pervaded my life recently. This piece
is a mini study in mortise and tenon joinery, with 60 of these classic joints
typical of the period.
20/20
Hindsight Department: This table was built from
a purchased plan. Except for
altering the dimensions of the legs slightly to take advantage of available
stock, the use of real mortises for the slats instead of the
"shortcut" called for in the plans, and the creative covering up of
my inevitable mistakes, the original plan
was otherwise followed to a "t" and I would hesitate to presume to
improve upon a design that works so well.
Corner
Cabinet for TV and components
7/15/03 - A corner cabinet, made of white oak with white oak plywood
side panels,
is an original design. The upper doors
will have top rails shaped to complement the crown molding and, along with the bottom doors, will be
of a traditional, non-raised panel style. The top half (everything above the
waist molding) is removable for ease of transport. The cabinet is 43.5"
wide, by 25" deep bottom/12" deep top, by 86" high. The design,
particularly with regard to the crown molding, is intended to complement a fireplace surround
and mantle on the opposite corner of the same wall in the family room.
I used a CAD program (QuickCAD) for the initial shop drawings, as well as a
basis for the cut list.
7/28/03 - Completed cabinet stained with an oil based stain and finished
with shellac. Shellac was sprayed with an HVLP unit, using 1# cut amber shellac
mixed with 99% isopropyl alcohol to preclude blushing in this summer's heat and
humidity. Rubbed out with 1200 grit sandpaper between the first and second
coats, and after the final coat, the finish was easy to apply, and took a lot
less time than my usual hand finishing techniques ... I have become a sprayed
shellac convert, at least on pieces this size.
20/20
Hindsight Department: If I ever have a bigger shop, this piece would make
a good paint storage locker. The project was snake bit from the get go and
contained more woodworking "incidents", both in design and
implementation, than any wood based project I've ever done ... even more than
that first little bookcase project in High School Woodshop 101 some 40 years
ago. That may be one of the reasons I dislike this piece intently and would
relegate it to the far corners of a remote storage shed but for the odd,
inexplicable reason that SWMBO absolutely loves it. For starters, I would change the
grain direction on the top door panels, as well as the orientation of the curve
in the top stiles (I have no idea what I was thinking at the time). Adding a
back and pocket doors to the shelf area may improve the overall look, but I am not sure
the poorly thought out design would support these changes. About the only good thing I can say about it is
that it is hell-for-stout and would hold up an elephant if called upon to do so, and it is actually
built in two parts ... for easy moving to that storage shed when the time comes.
Walnut
Coffe Table
8/08/03 - A walnut coffee table
that is a reproduction of a table owned by the client. The
original is made of pine and the functional aspects of the original design is
what tickles the client's fancy. I have leave to depart slightly from the
original as long as the functionality (specifically, a low shelf that
encompasses the entire bottom of the table) is left intact. There was no mortise
and tenon joinery in the original and it appears to be suffering from the lack
thereof, thus the new table. Wood choice was left to me, but the client desired a
"light walnut color" for the piece, so I decided to go with the real
thing. 8/16/03 - Bottom shelf complete. The cross-grain situation was an
integral part of the original design and not much can be done about it and still
maintain the feel and functionality of the original. I glued the middle of each
bottom apron and leg cross grain joint only, and
will peg once in the middle of each apron, which should allow for
movement. Still have some wedge shaped trim to mill up and apply to the inside
of the legs where they meet the shelf, as in the original, and then I can start
on the top. 8/18/03 - First coat of hand rubbed poly/oil finish on the
bottom assembly. 8/24/03 - Completed walnut top, with cherry inlay, and first coat of
finish applied. 09/01/03 - Walnut coffee table completed and ready for
delivery.
20/20
Hindsight Department: No regrets or changes. I really like the piece and have visitation
rights. It looks gorgeous in its setting, and in use, and I believe the
client is tickled, as I am.
Arts
and Crafts Style End Table
09/5/03 - This is my original design for an A&C style end table destined to fit between two recliners in a den. This table is
a cross in style
between the glass topped coffee table and
the traditional end table shown earlier
in this journal. There will
be an inset drawer for holding various TV and stereo remotes and a bottom
shelf between the two bottom aprons for papers, books and magazines. Other
design elements include spindles between the upper and lower aprons on
two sides, an arch, typical of the style, on the bottom aprons, and an inside taper
of the legs below the shelf.
Pictured above: Initial, dry fit, checking of the M&T
joints in legs and aprons. 9/08/03 - Joinery finished, arch cut in bottom
aprons, spindles made and installed, legs tapered and final dry fit before
glue up. 9/10/03 - Final glue-up of bottom assembly. 9/13/03
- Glue-up of the top and drawer, and the table pictured with with drawer
runners, kickers, cleats, and the bottom shelf in place. 9/14/03
- Almost there! - drawer planed and fitted, top scraped and ready to cut to
size. This piece will be finished with a Sam Maloof finish. The top and shelf
will not be permanently attached until the finish is applied.
20/20
Hindsight Department: In actual use, this design admirably performs
its intended function, and looks quite nice in its setting. Although the
aprons are flush with the legs in this piece, I would seriously consider
offsetting them about a 1/8" - 3/16" in any future versions, as well
as adding a slight bevel to the inside taper of each leg. One design element
that works very well is the unusual location of the slats, which allows for
easy access to the magazine shelf when sitting to the side of the table.
A
Few Wooden Drawer Slide Details: The tendency
these days is to purchase ready made, metal drawer slides for drawers in all
styles of furniture. The four
pictures below show the details of one side of a more traditional method of installing a
drawer in a table of this style, using wooden drawer "runners" and
"kickers".
From left to
right, the first picture shows the drawer "kicker' on top, and the
"L" shaped drawer "runner" on the bottom. These parts are
attached to the inside of the tables aprons with two wood screws each. Only screws, and no glue, are used to attach these
parts to the aprons to allow for future drawer adjustment.
The
"kicker" serves two functions on this particular table: As a cleat used to attach the table top,
and as a means of limiting the
downward motion of the front of the drawer when opened. The screw holes for
fastening the table top are slotted, which allows for
seasonal expansion of the wooden top.
The
"runner", on which the drawer bottom rests and slides, is attached to the
interior of the side apron with two screws and has two slotted screw holes to allow
for vertical adjustment when fitting the drawer.
The second
picture shows the back of the complete wooden slide assembly. The wooden block, attached to the rear apron of the table and holding
a partially driven screw, allows for easy depth
adjustment of the inset drawer.
Picture
three shows an 'end on' view of a drawer runner through the front
drawer opening. The runner deliberately encroaches
into the drawer opening approximately 1/32" on both the bottom and sides
of its "L" shape. This 1/32" allows for the gap between the inset drawer
front
and the drawer opening. The kicker (not shown in this picture)
also encroaches the same 1/32" into the top of the drawer opening.
The fourth
picture is a shot of the closed drawer with the back screws adjusted so
that the inset drawer front is flush with the front of the table.
There are usually enough scraps left over
from the project for the necessary parts. A properly fitted drawer will slide
smoothly with a satisfactory feel
and sound and with very little side-to-side wobble. Small
adjustments can be made with this method should seasonal wood movement be a problem. A
'button' can be attached to the top back of the drawer to keep it from being
pulled all the way out accidentally.
A different style wooden
drawer slide using a dovetailed center "runner". This method can be
used with or without the mating dovetail part attached to the underside of the
drawer. Advantages of this method include less need for a precise fitting of
the intended drawer, and less up and down and side to side movement. Downside,
in my experience, is they take more time to build and install and, if you buy
the wooden slide parts, which are commercially available, they are much more
expensive. I often will use this method for banks of wooden drawers with
overlay false drawer fronts.
 I got permission
from the fine folks at the historic "Heights City Hall and Fire Station" here in
Houston to photograph this old 8 legged sideboard/buffet that has what is, at least to
me, an unusual wooden drawer slide configuration.
While it is
not unusual to see a groove cut into a drawer side, with wooden slides
mounted on the side walls of the drawer cavity for the drawer to ride on, this particular piece
has the wooden "slide" glued into a groove/dado in each side of the drawer, which act as spacers to keep
the drawer centered in the cavity.
Except for a
rebated drawer front necessary to keep it flush with these built-in
slides/spacers, the method is elegantly simple, puts the weight of the drawer
on the frame, and has apparently stood the test of time because these drawers
operate as if they were on modern metal slides.
Careful
study of the photographs will reveal several ideas, including two way drawer
stops in the last two photos below, that are handy to have in your bag of
wooden drawer slide tricks:
Page
1 (Bedside
Table; Kitchen Cabinets)
Page
2 (Trivet; Writing
Desk; Trad. End Table; Lamp)
Page 3 (A&C Coffee
Table; TV Cabinet; Walnut Coffee Table; A&C End Table)
Page
4 (Walnut Hall
Table; Granite Top Mission Table; Mission Hall Table)
Page
5 (708 Style Writing Table) (Mission Trestle Table)
Page
6 (Arts and Crafts
Bench)
Page
7 (New
Construction-2005 Kitchen)
Page
8 (Tool
Drawers; Stacked Tansu)
Page 9 (Plan
Rack; Door Restoration; Spice Rack; A&C House# Frame)
Page 10 (Craftsman
Chair Reproduction)
Page 11 (A&C
Kitchen Dining Set)
Page 12
(Cherry/Walnut Hope Chest)
Page 13 (Mission
Sideboard)
Page 14 (Kitchen
Drawers; Calendar Frames)
Page 15 (Corner
Cabinet)
Page 16 (2008
Kitchen Project/Trash Pullout)
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