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Wednesday, June 30, 2010

The jigsaw puzzle

I always find that one of those "moments of truth" in any woodworking project is when the glue-up is completed.  In this episode, I finally taper the legs and glue up the carcass components.  I don't show every single detail, but there are lots of little things that have to happen before the glue-up.  I pre-finished the floating side panels, routed the hinge mortises, and sanded all my components to 400 grit.  Basically, anything that is easier to do before assembly should be done before applying glue to wood.  But now I have a great idea what this thing is going to look like, and I can get going on the drawers and door panels.  I still have a ways to go, but now I feel like I'm working with a piece of furniture, not just piles of wood, cutoffs, and sawdust.

5 comments:

Shannon said...

I have been so tempted for a long time to use the Benny Hill music for a fast motion sequence. Well done. How are you doing in relation to your deadline on this piece. Seems like it is coming together but the final details seem to always take the longest.

Rob Bois said...

I'm tracking well. The actual carcass assembly took a few weeks, so I had time to build the doors and drawers in parallel. I just need to edit and publish that video. So as of now, I just need to glue up the top, and install the drawer runners and cabinet bottoms. Oh, and that small step of the finish. OK, now I'm just depressed again.

Extremely Average said...

That was fantastic. I am a long ways from trying that sort of project, but as a beginner, it was fun to see the process.

Thanks for posting.

Rob Bois said...

While the final glue-up on this piece is a bit complex, this is really three smaller cabinets that happen to share a single large back piece. Like most things in woodworking, it's simply a matter of breaking something large down into smaller components and tackling them one at a time. Anyone that has built a shaker table could build this piece.

Walt's Wood's said...

Well done Rob. It's always a nervous time doing glue ups. Looking forward to the rest.