Replies

1. 
   Major_H._Patterson | Nov 07, 2000 05:53am | #1

   *
   Jon: I have been making blanket chests of this wood for many years.The wood makes the whole shop smell ,well ,really good. I have found cedar to work relatively easy. It requires care as it bruises quite easily. Until you become accustomed to working it,the knots and snearly grain will drive you nuts. I construct glued up panels using boards no wider than 6".The corners are dovetailed. To minimize the problem with the grain and knots,I used to face one side of the 6" boards and then use the bandsaw to resaw the thickness slightly oversize. After glueup the sawed faces are the outside of the chest. Now I use a drum thickness sander to finish both faces before glue up .After joining the corners, a portable belt sander does a good job of finishing the outside.I use the less desirable boards for the bottom, which is set in a 5/8" wide groove about 1/2' above the bottom edge of the side panels.I cut the length of the bottom panel to just fill the grooves in the ends,no allowance for wood movement being necessary in this direction.An allowance of 1/8' per side is used on the bottom width.After centering the bottom panel, a piece of scrap 1/2x1/2x1in long glued to the bottom on the end centerline assures that movement can occur equally on both sides. The top is made of the best boards.Glued up panels with breadboard ends.I use screws and washers set in slotted holes covered with plugs. A piano hinge along the entire back panel distributes the strains of opening and closing the lid much better than the pair of "chest hinges"usually called for in most plans. Don`t forget the lid closer and felt pads to take the BANG out of the top closing. The usual size of my chests is 18"x20"x44"The base is usually 4" high and cut out to make moving it easier. Most cedar lumber in my area is in 8ft. lengths. This size produces very little waste. PAT

1. 
   Cliff_Steele | Jan 27, 2001 10:54pm | #2

   *Blanket Chest Beginner StrengthI am building my first. No pattern, just some pictures. It is rail and style which I built using my outer bits, without any mortise and tenon construction. Because it is three panel on the sides and one panel on the ends, I am hoping that the cross members will yield sufficient strength. I debated adding loose tenons, but because it will be reinforced with an inner skeleton of cedar [3/8"] I went without them. I plan on using multiple biscuits to join the sides and ends, with a decorative apron around the bottom which I will glue and screw to the frame bottom and to a plywood base inside the chest, effectively uniting them. I am also thinking of putting some biscuits between the plywood base and the carcass, but this may be overkill. Would love some thoughts on this.HingesMy real question is on the piano hinge I will use for the top. I can easily rip the top rail on the hinge side between the styles to recess the hinge, but I am wondering if there is any disadvantage to doubling the width of the cut so the hinge will lie flush with the top of the chest and the top will seat flat against it and the top of the chest. I don't know why, but for some reason I figured that both surfaces needed to have a mortise for the hinge, as all doors in my house meet the casing that way. It would sure be easier to just rip a recess in the top rail wide enough for both leaves of the hinge and be done with it before glue up, but I know short cuts frequently mean a lot of backtracking later. Have you any advice? If I go with this plan, I guess I have to open the hinge slightly and use the measurement with the leaves parallel, not just double the leaf thickness which would not account for the thickness of the hinge. Am I asking for trouble, or am I on the right track?Wood MovementI plan on lining all six sides with aromatic cedar, and to cope with wood movement, I will leave about 3/16" on each side of the cedar bottom, and cover it with the side and end slats. I figured to glue the center six inches and either let the sides float, or use construction glue which might allow a little movement. I don't know how much movement to expect, but I suspect even in this 17" wide chest, I cannot just glue the cedar to the plywood base. I am still thinking about the sides and ends, but I think I will glue up a panel from the cedar strips and glue the bottom six inches. The sides can hold in the ends, but I don't know how to anchor the top 9" of the 15" sidewalls, unless I use construction glue. Here again, I would love some good ideas.SafetyFinally, I will not be putting any lock or latch on the chest, but even without any such device, I am worried a child might let himself get closed in and not have the strength to raise the lid. I can picture a safety device, perhaps spring loaded, that drops down whenever the door is opened, and prevents closure making the chest airtight unless the device is "reset". Does such a device exist?Thanks for any help you can provide.Cliff Steel

1. 
   Cliff_Steele | Jan 27, 2001 11:25pm | #3

   *Blanket Chest Beginner StrengthI am building my first. No pattern, just some pictures. It is rail and style which I built using my router bits, without any mortise and tenon construction. Because it is three panel on the sides and one panel on the ends, I am hoping that the cross members will yield sufficient strength. I debated adding loose tenons, but because it will be reinforced with an inner skeleton of cedar [3/8"] I went without them. I plan on using multiple biscuits to join the sides and ends, with a decorative apron around the bottom which I will glue and screw to the frame bottom and to a plywood base inside the chest, effectively uniting them. I am also thinking of putting some biscuits between the plywood base and the carcase, but this may be overkill. Would love your thoughts on this.HingesMy real question is on the piano hinge I will use for the top. I can easily rip the top rail on the hinge side between the styles to recess the hinge, but I am wondering if there is any disadvantage to doubling the width of the cut so the hinge will lie flush with the top of the chest and the top will seat flat against it and the top of the chest. I don't know why, but for some reason I figured that both surfaces needed to have a mortise for the hinge, as all doors in my house meet the casing that way. It would sure be easier to just rip a recess in the top rail wide enough for both leaves of the hinge and be done with it before glue up, but I know shortcuts frequently mean a lot of backtracking later. Have you any advice? If I go with this plan, I guess I have to open the hinge slightly and use the measurement with the leaves parallel, not just double the leaf thickness which would not account for the thickness of the hinge. Am I asking for trouble, or am I on the right track?Wood MovementI plan on lining all six sides with aromatic cedar, and to cope with wood movement, I will leave about 3/16" on each side of the cedar bottom, and cover it with the side and end slats. I figured to glue the center six inches and either let the sides float, or use construction glue which might allow a little movement. I don't know how much movement to expect, but I suspect even in this 17" wide chest, I cannot just glue the cedar to the plywood base. I am still thinking about the sides and ends, but I think I will glue up a panel from the cedar strips and glue the bottom six inches. The sides can hold in the ends, but I don't know how to anchor the top 9" of the 15" sidewalls, unless I use construction glue. Here again, I would love some good ideas.SafetyFinally, I will not be putting any lock or latch on the chest, but even without any such device, I am worried a child might let himself get closed in and not have the strength to raise the lid. I can picture a safety device, perhaps spring loaded, that drops down whenever the door is opened, and prevents closure making the chest airtight unless the device is "reset". Does such a device exist?Thanks for any help you can provide.Cliff Steele