Hello everyone…I’m an intermediate level DIY woodworker and was wondering if I can get some advice on how to cut the my pieces to make an approximately 14″ x 14″ or 36cm x 36cm cheese board with a drawer and a cracker groove (see attached pictures). I am trying to replicate the bamboo cheese board that is in the pictures using different woods (walnut, cherry, maple, etc. not sure yet which type, or combination of, wood to use).
My instinct tells me to:
1. cut/joint/plane a 14″ x 14″ piece then router the groove for the crackers,
2. then cut a middle section out that will be the sliding drawer. I would start by making the 2 longer side cuts (cuts 1 & 2) then cut 3. Once the 3 cuts are made I can glue the sides and top back together and have an opening in the middle where the drawer will slide in/out. Lastly I would cut the sections for the utensils using a CNC machine. Not sure how to make the insert where the groove on the drawer will slide on.
Replies
That looks about right. The groove is cut entirely in the piece you have marked for cutting then a thin top has been glued on to that. Looks to be about 3/8".
I would cut as you suggest, create the entire bottom section including the guides for the drawer and glue up. Cut the back piece a touch short so you have tiny gaps for the drawer.
Rout the groove, glue on the top, remove the tray and rout the tray insert.
All the routing is best done on a CNC, but could be done with a router, core box bit (groove), spiral upcut bit (drawer) and a few templates.
Thank you for your advice rob_ss. I appreciate the time that you made to reply. I spoke to a friend who is very knowledgeable using an industrial CNC and he said that he will help me with the routing.
The insert the drawer groove rides on is just a spline.. Cut grooves in the edge parts before you glue the body back together.
Cut the same grooves in the back part so the splines will help align the glueup when you reassemble.
The drawer will probably need to be planed a little thinner and have its grooves offset from center to keep it from dragging on the table so maybe testing on scrap is a good idea.
Thank you for the suggestions _mj_. I will cut the grooves in the edge parts & the back part before gluing the body back together...and thanks for the heads up to offset the drawer grooves from center.
I'm not sure you're accounting for the top being a separate applied piece, I would guess it would need to be at least 3/8" thick to be strong and stable enough when made out of hardwoods. Bamboo has some excellent characteristics when it comes to strength and stability in thin pieces that hardwoods don't have that could pose a challenge on this project.
Thanks esch5995 for the advice. I took into account that the top is a separate applied piece, but I didn't know about the different characteristics of bamboo vs hardwoods. I will need to do more research on the type of wood to use...bamboo vs walnut, maple, cherry, etc. I also need to see what the availability of bamboo is in my area should I go that route.
You can order samples from both Plyboo and Cali. They will tell you their closest retailers.
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