The Exotic wood fly box build

[Carver 0]

The build is now underway as you all have picked the wood and the size.

Step 1 is plaining the wood from rough sawn to smooth.

 

Step 2 is to join the edges(my joiner is busted so I used the plainer)

 

Step 3 is to cut the board to size on the saw.

 

And thats as faar as we have gone so far. Here's a few pics of the grain pattern on the box.

These pics don't do the grain justice, there are lots of purples, oranges, browns, and blacks with small spots of yellow. The grain is very tight and this piece is rock hard!

 

I'm having fun already! :yahoo: My next step is to do some test pieces for finishing. We may be limited to what we can do here because this is very oily wood!

[Redwings1 0]

This looks like a really nice piece. I look forward to seeing the progress. :jumpy:

[Husker234 0]

Looks really nice. What kind of wood are you using?

[Carver 0]

Now the next step in making the box is to make the template for the router to follow.

The materials need for this step are a 1/4" piece of hard board(masonite) large enough to hold the piece to be routed without the router going past the side very much, blocks of wood(I used plastic because I will likely use the form alot over the next couple of years, 3/4" #10 flat head wood screws, drill, drill bits, jigsaw, pencil, measuring tape, and sand paper.

The first thing you need to do is trace the outline of the box onto the hard board, you'll see why in a minut.

 

Once you have done that you need to figure out how much wood you need to hold the hardware(hinges) on the side of the box, in this case its 1/2". Mark that on one side of the hard board from the line you just traced on.

 

For this box I have desided to make the rest of the sides 1/4", so mark that on the form as well. now take a square an mark solid line all the way around at the disired dimentions. this is now the size the inside of the box is going to be.

 

Now you need to deside what size of curve to use on the corners (has to be a curve unless you want to bust out the chisel. ) I have picked a 1" curve which I use a 1" holesaw to trace onto the template. Make sure all your corners are the same or it will show up in the final product.

 

Once the lines are all drawn and your happy with the shape take a large enough drill bit to alow the jigsaw blade to pass through with lots of room to spare. I drill the holes about an 1 1/2" from the edges to alow for a carefull cut and so OH CRAP room.

 

Now for the fun part. Plug in the saw! Now take your time here because this is the most important step. I use a scroll blade in my sam for this part because it gives me better control and alows me to make tighter curves. Cut to the inside of the line(leave only the line on the hard board). This will alow you to sand the edges to make sure the template is smooth.

 

Now take the box and place it on the form in the original set of line you traced on the hard board. Make sure it is dead center!!!!! Now take your stop blocks for the sides and carfully place them next to the box and clamp them in place.

 

Now take a 1/8" drillbit and drill through the hard board into the stop blocks. Put on of the #10 screws in the hole but don't tighten it up completly. Add a second screw to each side(2 is enough). Do the same on the ends making sure the end blocks fit inside the side block. This will ensure a tight fit ( you really don't want the box to move in the form when your done!).

 

Once your finish drilling all four block go back and counter sink each screw so that you can feel no lip btween the screw and the hard board. This step will keep the bottom of the box perfctly smooth when you rout it out.

 

This is what the form will look like from the back when your finished.

 

The next step is actually routing out the inside of the box. Stay tuned for that installment! I hope you guys are enjoying this as much as I am.

[CapeBSalar 0]

Wow Carver! This looks awesome!!!

[Carver 0]

Now for the noisy part, hogging out the box!

The first thing you need to do is set up your router. If your using a plunge router with a incremental depth guide set your deepest cut first. In this case I will be setting up the deepest cut for 11/16". The depth gauge will alow me to make two passes at increasing depths in 1/4" increments.

 

Now place your wood in the form, set the router templet guide in the hole, and start the router. Once it reaches full speed plunge it into the wood. The harder the wood the shallower and slower you need to go. Take your time here to make sure you don't have to much interior sanding to do. I'm using a 1/4" Onsrud carbide spiral bit for this as it will give you the best results for this type of work.

 

For your second pass incress the depth and follow the form again. This takes a little time to do this way but its the safest way to do it. When your all finished the box should look like this.

 

Next step is to round out the outside corners af the box and sand all the faces to mate them so that when the box is closed the join correctly. Stat tuned for that one folks.

[duckydoty 0]

Lookin good Carver. Keep it coming

Duckydoty

[Carver 0]

The next step is to round off the corners of the box. There are a few ways to do this but I like to use a disk sander for speed. Pick the radius you want, I used a 1 1/2" hole saw as a guide, and draw on lines in the corners to follow. now sand almost to the line. We'll finish them off later.

 

Once all of the corners are rounded we need to mate the two halves of the box so they fit together well. To do this I use 180 grit sandpaper laid on a flat surface (workbench will do). and sand both interior faces of the box untill they mate together.

 

when your happy with the 2 faces clamp both halves together the way they will be when the box is finished.

 

Now sand all four sides and the corners so they are all even with no disernable lip between them. I use a palm sander for the primary shaping and then move to a sanding block and finish it off by hand. When all the sides are smooth and even soften the corners of the box by taking a piece 240 grit and sanding the edges of the box with you finger at a 45' angle. Your not looking to remove much material just soften the edges and give the box a slightly worn look. when your finished it should be smooth and sliver free when you run your hand over all surfaces.

 

The next step is to set the hardware. My vernier is out for calibration, as soon as I get it back we'll start drilling. Stay tuned folks!

[duckydoty 0]

Looking great Carver. Its getting close now

Duckydoty

[Faster Fish 0]

Any chance of getting the last steps for this?

[Carver 0]

Since this started I lost everything on my hard drive so I'll just talk you through it.

 

 

To set the hardware, measure the length of the box and divide by 2. That will give you the exact center of the box. While the 2 pieces are together mark the center of the box on the side you want the hinges. Now divide half of the box in half again, that measurment is where you want to put each hinge. Put a mark on both halves of box at that point. On the Cocobolo box that was 1 1/4" from the center line.

 

Now with a vernier caliper measure the thickness on the hinge side and divide it in half. That is the center point of that wall. Set you caliper to that measurment and scribe a line down the face of the hinged surface, transfer the lines you drew on the side of the box for the hinge locations using a square. Where the two lines cross is the hole location on each side.

 

Match your drill bit size to the barrel size of the hinge and drill to the apropiate depth. ( a brad point drill is the best choice for this step) Set the hinges in the holes and close the box. If you did this right both sides should meet tight and square.

 

To set the magnetic catch, in this case rare earth magnetic rods, mark the center line on the other side (oposite the hinge) and mark a line 3/4" from the center. Repeat the steps for the wall thickness and scribe that line. Drill the appropriate sized hole for the magnets and set them in the holes. I usually go 1/32" smaller than the diameter of the magnets for this step and press the rods in.

 

To cut the ripple foam for the inside just trace the templet you used for the hollowing on to the paper on the foam. Cut to the inside of this line and your foam should fit tight in the box.

 

As for the finish pick your favorite finish and follow the manufactures directions, unless you are using an exotic wood, in that case PM me and I'll find out the best way to finish your wood.

 

 

 

For those of you that are wondering what happened to the box, Will has it and is waiting to put it up for auction. If you him really nice, he might post a couple of teaser pics for you.

 

If any one has any other questions dont hesitate to ask.

 

Paul

[Faster Fish 0]

This may be a stupid question but where to do you get the ripple foam from?

 

Randy

[Carver 0]

I got it at Bass Pro.

 

Paul

[beaverfsu 0]

Nice work Carver, thank you for sharing AND the donation to the forum.

[Carver 0]

Thank you it was my pleasure and wait until you see my next donation!

 

 

Paul