Tool Drawers
Shop
tool drawers are pictured on Shop Fixtures and
Jigs Page.
Stackable Tansu Chests
On the
drawing board - a set of stackable 'tansu' with drawers, doors and adjustable shelves. Made with contrasting woods, the primary material
is oak plywood, with walnut face frames
and oak drawer fronts and doors, outfitted with walnut pulls. A desktop will fit between the two
stacks, which can be configured any number of ways.
Stacked/stepped Tansu? The functional aspects of these stackable pieces fill a current need
in my home office, and knowing absolutely nothing about Japanese furniture
design, and being inspired by a magazine clipping I'd saved years ago of
a stacked set of what I'd heretofore called "cubes", I originally
embarked upon this project with no inkling that it may well be an
authentic furniture "style". I've recently discovered that it is
indeed a style of Japanese furniture called "tansu", which is comprised of
chests, or boxes, that are often stacked in a "stepped" pattern. Hmmm
... maybe there's some Mongol mixed in with that coonass?
On the left is one of two very plain bases for the largest of the "tansu" (you can see the glue-up of the second
on the table saw in the background). Except for being mirrored, the two bottom cubes are
identical and each will contain five inset drawers. To maintain the square,
sparseness of the design, the plan is to add a single piece of beveled walnut
trim to three sides at the bottom of each base, much like 'shoe molding'.
The corners
of the bases are glued miter joints reinforced with biscuits. The ability to
level the two stacks individually will be a necessity, and since I happened to have metal corner
braces/levelers left over from a previous project, I was glad to get those
bits and pieces out of the way and into use, undoubtedly causing the Japanese
woodworking gods to turn over in their tansu tombs.
Pictured is one half of the
"stack" of tansu chests, still just basic casework at this point, with 6' of yours
truly adding a bit of perplexed perspective as to the final height of the
project.
The desk top, 46 1/2" wide by 24" deep, is oak plywood edged with 1 1/2" wide
walnut and 'matched curve' walnut trim along the front edge ... the matching
curve between the contrasting woods is just a little
touch to give it some zing and take it out of the world of "cube".
Pictured
above is a trial run of just one possible configuration of the "stacks", close
to their ultimate destination, and to make sure that the "French Cleats" I was
thinking of using to attach the desk top to the tansu chests was going to be
feasible in practice.
The picture
on the top left shows the desk top in position between the two bases. In the
picture on the top right, the stained half of the French cleat is easily
discernable against the unstained, and you can see the way the cleats will
work to hold the table top in place. Using French cleats in this manner allows
you to easily slide the desk top into place, much as you would a drawer.
The desk top
half of the cleats (bottom left) are permanently attached to the underside of
the desk top, and the chest half of the cleats (bottom right, and seen
temporarily clamped in place in the first two photos) are removable in the
event a future user does not want use the desk top. They have a routed slot
for wing nut/bolt adjustment of the height of the desk top, as can be seen in
the last photo above.
10/16/05 -
The casework finished with five coats of clear shellac sprayed on top of an
oil based stain, the tansu chests put in place, and the drawers and drawer
fronts fabricated and installed.
Remaining on
the "to do" list are the seven doors; three each for the top left and right
stacks; and one for the computer drawer.
In the
meantime the "tansu" stacks can be put to good use, replacing an old banquet
table and twenty year old, cheesy bookshelves from an 80's office supply
store.
10/22/05 -
Inset doors completed, stained, hung and adjusted. The flipper door ( bottom
right of the left photo) was the last to be installed this morning. Now that
they all fit to perfection, I'll pull them off, remove the hardware and spray
shellac while the weather is nice.
10/23/05 -
Finished and in use. Just one possible configuration of many.
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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