Replies

1. 
   Pondfish | Dec 30, 2004 12:30am | #1

   What style is the cabinet (Federal, Shaker, A/c, etc.)? 

1. 
   DaleKrech | Dec 30, 2004 01:35am | #2

   Arts & Crafts

1. 
   Pondfish | Dec 30, 2004 05:41pm | #3

   First, there are some nice metal pulls in the A/C style that can be found at several suppliers--do a google on "arts crafts drawer pulls" and you'll get many hits.

   If you want wooden (which is a good choice, despite what I said above), you'lll probably have to make your own.  The only wooden plugs I've ever found pre-made are fine for Shaker style funiture, but would probably be out of place for what you have.  I tried to find a source on-line, but failed to find anything in the first search results.

   I encourage you to try to design and make your own pulls.  It isn't as hard as it might seem, and you can do much with a bandsaw and a drill press with a sanding drum in it.  One benefit of making your own pulls is that you can match the wood in the rest of the piece.  It's a good way to use expensive scraps of figured woods (like your claro).

   Take a look at the handles I made for a dresser at http://home.comcast.net/~paulchapko/gallery.html (the 4drawer, 2door dresser).  I made these by laminating 4"x6" sheets of thin cherry, ebony and canarywood, then routing out the back of the pulls to leave two attachment points.  I then cut out the pieces on a bandsaw and rounded them using a sanding drum or a flat sander (my belt sander mounted upside down in a vise).  They didn't take long and made the piece unique. 

   If you have a lathe, you can turn small pulls, perhaps cherry with a walnut center. There was a FWW article on this sometime in the past year or so if you want more help with turning pulls.

   Good luck, and I again encourage you to try your hand at it.  It isn't that hard and adds much to the handcrafted appearance of your work.

   Paul

    

1. 
   DaleKrech | Dec 30, 2004 07:57pm | #4

   Paul,

    

   Thanks for your reply! I have made a number of pulls in the past with my router. You're right of course, they do add to the look of the finished piece. I will go back to the "drawing board" and try to make something sexier.

   I hadn't thought of laminating, different woods for the pulls. And with the cabinet design I've chosen, I think this would be a nice touch. The carcase is Claro, while the door panels, and back are book matched figured Cherry. the drawer fronts are a continuous piece of Cherry as well.

   I checked out your link, looks great!

   Thanks again for the "nudge"!

   Dale

1. 
   Pondfish | Dec 31, 2004 12:48am | #6

   You're welcome.  With the cherry and walnut, you might consider a thin (1/8-3/16") layer of maple in the pull.  The light color will help to define the pull against the darker background (the cherry may not be dark now, but wait 10 years).  If you do this, be sure to use Tung oil and not BLO to keep the maple light.

2. 
   DaleKrech | Dec 31, 2004 07:24pm | #7

   Thanks!

   Dale

2. 
   PhillipB | Dec 30, 2004 08:39pm | #5

   Dale,

   Try Lee Valley/Veritas. Here's the link

   http://www.leevalley.com/hardware/index.asp?SID=&ccurrency=2

   Good luck

   Phillip

3. 
   lwj2 | Dec 31, 2004 09:59pm | #8

   Dale:

   Attached is a drawing of a fairly simple pull that can be made with a sander, the top is a faceted square, the sides are faired to a pleasing curve with a sanding drum.

   I drew it with a dowel to attach, a screw could also be used.

   Drawing is proportional, but not to scale.

   Good luck,

   Leon Jester

   
1. 
   DaleKrech | Jan 04, 2005 07:24pm | #9

   Leon,

   Thank you for your reply!

   I was actually looking at someting very similar. I plan to elongate the profile to make more of a "pull" than a "knob". Also, I'm thinking of adding a thin (1/16") veneer of a contrasting wood between the faceted top and the curved base.

    

   Dale

    

1. 
   lwj2 | Feb 16, 2005 04:25am | #10

   Sorry for the tardy reply, Dale.Instead of veneer, you might consider sandwiching your top and base of solid woods, I think it would be a lot easier than veneering.Regards,Leon Jester

1. 
   DaleKrech | Feb 16, 2005 11:04pm | #11

   Thanks Leon.

    

   That's pretty much what I did. The cabinet carcase is Claro Walnut, while door panels and drawer fronts are figured cherry. I know most would say this is not a great combination, but with a little help from Jeff Jewett, the color contrast is terrific. If you haven't done so already, you may want to play around with his TransTint dyes.

   My handles are 4 X 3/4 X 1 inch high. I sandwiched a 3/16 piece of cherry between 2 pieces of walnut. They look great, they match the cabinet, and I made them myself.

    

   Thanks again!

    

   Dale

1. 
   lwj2 | Feb 17, 2005 07:13am | #12

   Glad to have been of help, Dale.How about a photo or two?Leon Jester