I’m not sure if this is the right section to post this question in, but it seems to be the best fit so I’ll ask… I’m building a nice jewelry box for my girlfriend for Valentine’s Day and I am looking to make some dividers and trays, especially one for that nice big diamond that she is wanting some day soon.
My question is how do you normally connect the different pieces of the trays? I have lined the side of the box with a 1/4″ strip that I just tacked on with 3/4″ 23 gauge brads so the upper tray will be able to ride on, but I don’t know how to properly secure the dividers for the bottom trays or the top. Do you simply wedge them in and put a dab of glue on them or do I notch them out and then connect them as a grid that way. I’m scared of the later option because I don’t think running them through a tool will be to save because the members will be fairly small. To make a long story short, I want to create a group of dividers like this in the picture below. Please note that the picture is NOT of my work, all credit is given to a fellow Knotter named as Srober.
Bio
Replies
I made a jewelry chest for my daughter and I was going to use 3/16" wood dividers and cover them with felt but she went on line and found a place and ordered just what she wanted. So I would check the web for dividers. They als had ring holders and earring holders etc.
I would rather build them since I already have the fabric and it shouldn't be that difficult, I just need to figure out how to tack everything together.
Bio
Options include: for lift out tray, 1/8" or 3/16" dados for dividers that can cross each other with half-laps. Using one of the blades from the Freud (or others now) box joint dual blade set up gives a nice width kerf for this kind of work, and if not nneded to be stopped, much easier than router table. For bottom dividers that can entirely lift out, simply create a close fit on each piece before cutting the half laps, and then cut half laps. The friction from it all will make installation a little tricky, but they'll stay put nicely without needing to glue them in. This from a guy who does far too much of this stuff. See for instance this piece http://www.alladd.com/koa_and_ebony_dovetailed_jewelry_box.htm. Here the bottom dividers are retained in stopped dados in the long pieces that act as a tray support as well. Then the grid in the middle is friction fit , and so easily removed. The whole divider system is removable with some work, yet very solid.
The thing I wonder is how safe will it be to cut a dado in a 1/4" piece of material? that at best will be 6" wide?
Bio
I have done a couple of boxes. I was working with 4/4 mahogany. I ripped to width, crosscut to rough length and then resawed to just over 1/8" thickness (all hand tool).
I then matched planed to final width, and shot to final length. I then planed the thickness to remove tool marks but left them a slight bit thick. I then ganged verticals together and ran them over a standard combination blade set at a depth of half the width with a cross cut box. Then did the same with the horizontals. Then planed to final thickness taking very fine shavings and checking after each pass until I had a tight fit. Assemble and try in drawer or tray. If tight remove, disassemble, and shoot ends where tight.
It sounds a lot more complicated than it was.
Bill
"The thing I wonder is how safe will it be to cut a dado in a 1/4" piece of material? that at best will be 6" wide?" Backer board and cllamps?forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
Sounds like a plan.
Bio
It is a dado but only 1/8" or so wide and 2/8" deep at most. Not a cut of any significance. I use my Incra 3000 miter gauge, a sharp blade, and a slow and careful feed rate. The Incra gauge is within 1/2" of the left side of the blade so it is easy to clamp the work with your hand to the gauge and make the cut. I do not find it is unsafe to have my hand within a couple inches of the blade on this small cut. Paying attention and staying focused takes care of the safety issue. If I was making a 3/4" dado in a wide board I would have my hands farther away from the blade; but with this light material control is not a problem.
I have also skipped the dado cut and butt jointed the sides on small partitions. I put on one piece at a time using TightBond II glue and clamp the partition piece to the tray bottom with spring clamps. I haven't had one come back yet.
Bruce"A man's got to know his limitations." Dirty Harry Calahan
I like the idea but I think I'll go with the clamp :)
Bio
BioHaz
this could be the AHA! moment when you realize you can cut them by hand in a fraction of the time to set up all that other equipment.
PS I advise not to make the box too big or you'll be forever trying to fill it.
Cross cut sled on your TS and I cut much smaller pieces than than that. You can clamp onto the sled or use a pencil with an eraser to hold it in place, much easier than you think. Lots of links here on Knots to versions. "
I would cut the dados first then rip the material to thickness 1/8". Cut one peice, plane the new raw edge, then rip another. All the dados match that way, and you can trim the ends to fit. Built some sidebeds to toy trucks that way, pretty easy to do.
"And you thought you could get away without building a jig" grin.... always one more step....
AZMO <!----><!----><!---->
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-------(*)/ (*) http://www.EarthArtLandscape.com
handsome box - would you share how you make the ring pad?"there's enough for everyone"
We rip rectangular cross sections of upholstery foam on the bandsaw, and wrap with synthetic velvet in a jig consisting of two 1/16" thick maple slats standing vertically defining the shape of the pad. The jig has some fine points for ease of use I won't go into here. The velvet is tucked in 20 " or so lentghs into the cavities, and a layer of doublestick tape applied, and the velvet wrapped onto the tape. The resulting length is pulled out of the jig and cut to finish lengths with a guoillitine-like fixture. The stuff will fall apart if left out, but works great in place, a friction fit bteween dividers, and can be wrapped with paper and elastic bands for storage. This method avoids using noxious spray adhesive.
Edited 2/14/2009 9:41 pm ET by endgrainguy
thanks - so the assembly we see in the pict is 3 separate velvet wrapped foam shapes placed in the tray?"there's enough for everyone"
Yup, that way you get a little adhesion in the bottom of each slot, the velvet to the double stick tape.Using spray adhesive can make the finished pad too stiff too. i used to buy pad from a shop that did display stuff, and it often was too stiff, the problem sometimes developing months after being made.
indeed - I've been working on jewelry chests for the women in my life - I have been well and truly humbled building the trays - I've seldom worked on this small of scale and I've come up against both my own limitations and my tools limitations - this is a timely thread, I finished the trays (3 per + one built-in) today, now I need to work smaller yet on the dividers - thanks for sharing -
D"there's enough for everyone"
I'm making the ring holders next, but I found that using those rubber foamies are great for the fabric lining when you wrap the velvet around because the spray adhesive is a pain. While I'm sitting here I just realized that the answer may be using 2 foamies because they come 1 side with a sticky back that I normally apply the velvet directly too because you don't have the fear of the adhesive coming through it and making it hard. Well I could spary the back of that foamie and glue it to the back of another foamie which would then give me the sticky part of the other foamie to press my fabric on and then press it into the box so it will be tacked in there too.
Bio
Hello,
I think I had the exact same delima your are inquiring about. I recently finished a jewelry box with a tray and dividers on the bottom that the tray sat on. My delima; how to make the dividers.
I tried citting the half laps on the table saw, a half a hair too wide and the joint was sloppy, made another divider. Then I tried to use a dremmel with numerous passes, the first one turned out great; the second, half a hair too wide; made another divider.
Finally, I cut them by hand, pared and fit each one, everything turned out great. There was a total of eight half laps I had to make.
For those who can cut a nice and tight joint consistantly with a table saw or other power equipment for delicate dividers, my hats off to you, I could not.
One last thing, once put together, it is just a nice tight friction fit going into the box, I did not see a need to glue them down or anything, there just sitting on top of the suade lining.
Maybe this helps
Edited 2/11/2009 2:08 pm ET by joker
Well, what I tried was this. I took the sides and put a dab of glue on them and then used a 3/4" 23 gauge brad to tack it on. The brads won't show overall, but the holding power is good. Then for the dividers, the ones I wanted to be stationary I simply tacked the ends then forced them into place with a dab of glue on them to once again hold it in, seemed to work fine. I think I'll try the half lap joints on the next one. was thinking about simply taking a scroll or band saw and clearing out most of the waste then taking a sharp chisel and doing the rest. I would have to try it, but right off hand I don't see how it would be to safe running the piece over a dado blade unless you did it while the pieces are still bigger. I'll post pictures in a little while. Thanks for the help.
Bio
By the sides, I take you to mean the sides of the tray? I have a Ryobi biscuit joiner that uses itty bitty biscuits to put my tray together and dadoed the bottom in.
Using a scroll saw might work, I didn't think to try mine. I was trying to achieve a tight friction fit with the dividers going together thus not having to use glue to keep them aligned and avoiding unsightly gaps.
As far as cutting a small piece such as this on a table saw, it wasn't that big of a deal using a sled as far as feeling unsafe with the technique, I just couldn't get the fit and I got tired of making spare dividers.
Doing it by hand was simple and the precision I was able to achieve was more than I could with power tools as I was truely able to "sneak" up on the fit.
If I can get a picture of the box I will post it so you can see the dividers.
Anyway, like I said, my hats off to those who can do it on a table saw because it would make it much faster. Something for me to practice I suppose.
Biohaz1906,
I'm trying to attach some pictures of the jewelry box I just made showing the dividers, don't know if it worked.
Very nice, now did you do this with half lap joints?
Bio
Hi,
Yes I did. I marked the half way point plus a little bit with a blade, cut with hand saw (zona) then pared until they fit nicely. It probably took an hour I would guess.
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