An Entertainment Center A Year In The Making.... So Far...

Stuart Ablett

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Tokyo Japan
Almost a year a go a client inquired about me making an entertainment center for his new condo that him and his wife had just moved into. My workshop is not spacious, so I was not very enthusiastic about building it. He has been a good client, I've done a lot of work for his TV studio, and he really likes my work and did not want an Ikea type of entertainment center. I was not very busy at the time, just plain old busy, LOL so I said yes, but I stipulated that it might take a while. Fast forward to last December, after many starts and stops, mine, his, life in general, I was ready to bang this bad boy out, and then he told me that he will be gone from the end of December until March/April sometime. I tried to get it done before he was due to leave, but then his departure date moved up a full ten days and there was just no way I'd be able to get it done, applying a finish is something that is not easy, no room to spray, and we were having a bit of a time getting a color/stain they like and that looked good on the high end shina (basswood) plywood we would be using.

Then in January I got really, really busy, with a bunch of work that just fell in my lap. I'm behind at least a couple of months, and there is no end in sight (yes I've raised my prices again). Yes it does not take much to keep a one man shop like me busy, and with all the other things life throws at you. For example a completely crazy tenant that has brain cancer, is a pathological liar, not Japanese, and has been charged with drug smuggling, the ensuing search, and damage of the apartment she rented from us, the police trying to link me to her somehow, (you know we are both foreigners), etc made for an interesting 2016.

I just glanced at the calendar the other day and, uh-oh it's March, time to get this done.

The plywood, well it comes in sheets that are basically 3' x 6' here, you can get the 4x8 but they are usually not the best quality. I had trouble finding some that would work. Eventually I found a company in Hokkaido (the Northern most island in Japan) that could supply it. I ordered it and it took them three weeks to deliver it, and they ended up putting the orientation of the grain the wrong way on the sheets, so I sent it back, they usually make high end speakers out of this plywood, so they have the grain running the opposite of what you normally have on a 4x8 sheet, because you get more speakers out of a sheet. I specified the other way, I even sent them a hand drawn image of what I wanted, they still screwed it up. They took it back no problem and sent the next batch in 2 weeks. This all happened in late October to early December. The finish was another problem which I did post about >> HERE << I finally got that worked out too.

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This is the basic idea of the build.

There are four boxes, two tall ones on each side, and then one each top and bottom.
The bottom box in the middle will most likely get doors, but that has not been decided at yet.
It will all stand on a base that I will level etc in place and then put the boxes onto it.
The tall skinny side boxes will have his high end speaker in them on the bottom and then just shelves above.
The whole thing has to have chimneys for wires and for heat from the audio components that will fill the bottom box.
There sill be a flatscreen wall mount on the wall at the back, with a false front hiding the wires and the chimney for air flow.
The wall outlets for the cable TV, digital antenna and the electrics will be behind the tall box on the right.
The front edge of all the boxes will be covered with a strip of maple hardwood.

It will all be stained with the Breewax water stain in a deep walnut color, I think it looks good. Everything else I tried looked blotchy on the shina plywood.
Finally it will be top coated with a wipe on poly.

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All of the parts for the boxes have been cut, and here is a dry fit of the first box, one of the middle boxes.

It is all made from this high quality 18mm (3/4") plywood, all dado joints and the back is 9mm (3/8") plywood that is also dadoed in.
Glue and staples where you cannot see them.

The finish is what I see as the biggest challenge time wise.

I've got to get this done, but I do want to document it, been a while since I've posted a build thread, sorry about that.

Wish me luck!
 
The dye I'm using is water based, it will raise the grain. I do not want to try to sand the inside of these after the grain has been raised, so before I put things together, I'm going to wet it all down and then do my sanding.

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Yeah, the old Dungeon is kind of cramped.

Cheers!
 
Quick question, I want to apply all of my finish before I assemble this cabinet, the dye I'm using is BreeWax water based dye, a dark walnut.
I think wiping it on will take a LONG time and it will be hard to keep it consistent. I want to spray it, but I don't have a spray gun or any such thing, over spray is also a concern.

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I've been thinking that a Hudson type sprayer might be the ticket.

Of course I'll do some tests first, but my thinking is to reduce the dye maybe 3 to 1 and take several passed on each piece so I can get a consistent coloration.

I understand that I would still have to wipe each piece after I spray it, but it seems to me this might work well, to apply it evenly, reduce the amount of time wiping it on, and to reduce waste, this stuff is expensive here in Tokyo.



Thoughts?

 
IMHO the quality spray is based on the fine mist. I have never been happy with a spray gun under US$100. Some of the Harbor Freight and other copies of the classic Porter Cable PSH-1 (Which worked well) don't do nearly as well, even though they look identical. I assume the issue is precision of the milling of the air holes, internal air passages, etc. I have seen a $400 version of the PSH-1 that creates a fine mist that seems to drift to the work piece and creates a beautiful finish

Using a turbine gun I have been able to spray in living rooms with drapes and carpet by using very low pressure to minimize (virtually eliminate) overspray. I still don't spray in my shop, but the weather in Texas allows me to spray outdoors most of the year.

I can't imagine a plant mister having an even fine mist to give satisfactory results.
 
IMHO the quality spray is based on the fine mist. I have never been happy with a spray gun under US$100. Some of the Harbor Freight and other copies of the classic Porter Cable PSH-1 (Which worked well) don't do nearly as well, even though they look identical. I assume the issue is precision of the milling of the air holes, internal air passages, etc. I have seen a $400 version of the PSH-1 that creates a fine mist that seems to drift to the work piece and creates a beautiful finish

Using a turbine gun I have been able to spray in living rooms with drapes and carpet by using very low pressure to minimize (virtually eliminate) overspray. I still don't spray in my shop, but the weather in Texas allows me to spray outdoors most of the year.

I can't imagine a plant mister having an even fine mist to give satisfactory results.

Thanks for the info Charlie.

I think I'm going to just wipe on with a sponge.
 
Whew... looks WAY better, Stu! (IMHO)

Thanks Art, I totally agree, the wipe on poly makes the dye look so much better.

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Boy all this finishing stuff is not a barrel of laughs, but it is looking good, I think.
Two coats of dye on one side of the small panels, 1 coat on the other side.
One coat on one side of the large panels, so more to go. I had six bottles of dye, but I think I might order one more, just in case. My workshop is too small for this kind of work.



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Stu that looks like a huge job for shop your size. I would be a real bear after working through all those panels.

The stain looks a bit blotchy in the photos is that the ply grain or what.
Is the wipe on going to be sheen or gloss? Would have thought client would want a lacquer type finish and gloss like is on the mealboxes in Japan.
 
Stu that looks like a huge job for shop your size. I would be a real bear after working through all those panels.

The stain looks a bit blotchy in the photos is that the ply grain or what.
Is the wipe on going to be sheen or gloss? Would have thought client would want a lacquer type finish and gloss like is on the mealboxes in Japan.

It is a bit blotchy, but much, MUCH, less than the stain test boards I tried. The wipe on will not be glossy, they want a satin finish.

I've run out of dye, more udon the way. I got s lot of it done, only the cabinet backs and the large false wall behind the TV to do.

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This how's the difference between on coat of dye and two coats. Quite the difference, and with the wipe on poly the color gets even richer.

Cheers




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Except for a quick trip to the home center, and spending a few VERY enjoyable hours chatting with our youngest on Skype, I've been padding padding and then some more padding, not exactly fun, but I think it the results are starting to show promise.


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Looking good Stu.
I saw the the color 1 coat 2 coat post and when I saw the 1st tone I thought this would look great for rosewood base faux. So if you change your mind on finishing let me know and I'll walk you through the process.
 
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Last coats of urethane done, final light sanding then a coat of wax.

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I think these pieces are looking good. Should FINALLY be able to assemble this unit and get it out the door.


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