Dr.Al
Old Oak
I had a couple of hours free this evening so I thought I'd get on with the box. I started by planing a small piece of ash to get it smooth and to the same thickness as the other parts of the box:
I then marked it up...
... and chopped it into three bits.
After planing all the edges square and straight, I planed one edge a few times with my #5, using the one side of the cutting edge in the way I would if I were trying to correct an off-square edge, except this time I was trying to introduce an off-square edge. It's only a degree or so out of square, but hopefully that's ample. I tried to take a photo, but I don't think the angle is that obvious:
I then lined the pieces up on the box and marked the approximate length:
After chopping them slightly oversize, I took the box apart and chamfered the ends of the tenons on the wenge bits. I did that using a chisel on the edges that would end up horizontal in the finished box and then a block plane for those that would end up vertical (the difference was partly so I could chop down onto a flat surface, acting as a back stop, with the chisel to protect breakout and partly because getting a plane in between the two tenons seemed like it would be a bit awkward).
With that done, I gave all the faces a quick skim with a smoothing plane (I won't be able to plane the outside after assembly due to the protruding tenons) and then glued it together. Once the box body was assembled and clamped together, I used the shooting board to bring the top pieces down to length until they matched the width of the base perfectly (again, it won't be easy to adjust these later due to the tenons). I then glued them in place, using some wooden cam clamps with cork faces, which are quite handy for clamping lightly and then tweaking the position before tightening further:
I'll drill the holes for the dowels once the glue has dried.
I then marked it up...
... and chopped it into three bits.
After planing all the edges square and straight, I planed one edge a few times with my #5, using the one side of the cutting edge in the way I would if I were trying to correct an off-square edge, except this time I was trying to introduce an off-square edge. It's only a degree or so out of square, but hopefully that's ample. I tried to take a photo, but I don't think the angle is that obvious:
I then lined the pieces up on the box and marked the approximate length:
After chopping them slightly oversize, I took the box apart and chamfered the ends of the tenons on the wenge bits. I did that using a chisel on the edges that would end up horizontal in the finished box and then a block plane for those that would end up vertical (the difference was partly so I could chop down onto a flat surface, acting as a back stop, with the chisel to protect breakout and partly because getting a plane in between the two tenons seemed like it would be a bit awkward).
With that done, I gave all the faces a quick skim with a smoothing plane (I won't be able to plane the outside after assembly due to the protruding tenons) and then glued it together. Once the box body was assembled and clamped together, I used the shooting board to bring the top pieces down to length until they matched the width of the base perfectly (again, it won't be easy to adjust these later due to the tenons). I then glued them in place, using some wooden cam clamps with cork faces, which are quite handy for clamping lightly and then tweaking the position before tightening further:
I'll drill the holes for the dowels once the glue has dried.