Guest Bedroom Dresser

[glenn bradley]

Finally. I never thought I would get those drawer boxes in.

Ah, the Planer Sled . . . my dear old friend.

Just as with any jointing operation, you want to try to split the difference of the irregularity. A smidge at the rear (the pic shows the deviation. The wedge is adjusted to take that out).

A smidge at the front.

Find the greatest difference between your adjusted surface and a reference table.

Adjust your planer to just under that and take a swipe at it.

Got some of it but, not all.

There we go.

We've had these conversations before; the smaller your blank the less any irregularities cause you problems. I break these pieces down to about 1/2" to 3/4" oversize.

Use the planer sled to make one face flat. Flip the pieces and use that milled face as the reference face against the planer table to make the opposite face parallel.

And you end up here. One blank will be the top center false front. The other pieces will be the middle and bottom false fronts. I am going to break for lunch and then come back and resaw these blanks. We'll see you after chow.

 

[Mike Stafford]

The quality of your work is amazing. The quality of your pictorial tutorials is also amazing. You should put all these project tutorials/pictorials into a book. It would be a tragedy to lose all this knowledge and skill.

Love seeing quality work, Glenn, and you do quality work.

 

[glenn bradley]

You guys are too kind. I'm just an aging wood butcher trying to muddle through like the rest of you.

So I got the walnut false fronts resawn.

I picked out a couple chunks of figured maple for the upper left and right false fronts. I choose the figure I am after and draw a center-line down the middle of that figure.

I then draw an offset from that center-line to give me the width I need plus some working room.

It has the same feeling as "I told you so" but . . . I knew this was in there.

 

[glenn bradley]

Realized too late that I had a booger on the lens so there is a weird smudge in these pics. I overslept and so skipped breakfast. That means an early lunch so here is a small blurb of this morning's activities. The curly maple blanks are thicker than I need. I hate to just plane away or sand away material so I will resaw these.

Yep, I can use these as veneers for something down the road.

That leaves me the blanks as I've shown before.

This is what happens when you are stubborn about your design. I wanted what I wanted and so the proud legs act as the outer frame parts of the drawer carcass. I also wanted overlay drawers. The result is that there will be a gap relief at the post intersection . . .

. . . and an overlay at the balance of the frame. Doable but, a bit squirrely.

Here's another example of pulling your boards from your stock. I wanted the laid out section of grain for the top middle drawer. That means it doesn't come out of the blank square. I had to wait till I had the curly maple false front blanks till I could judge this very well. Now that I know what I want its off to the bandsaw.

Rip off an edge fat of the line.

Joint that edge true.

Rip to final width.

And here is a rough view of the top row of drawers figure-wise.

Time for some chow.

 

[glenn bradley]

I'm a dedicated blade to purpose kinda guy. Some are, some aren't, no wrong way

There will be anomalies in your material. Knowing where you are going with the blank can help you. I didn't care about this irregularity because I knew I was going to cut it off later on. I do mark them super-obviously to help me stay on track.

Another one.

I try to always de-energize my meat-eating machines before getting my pinkies close to the cutters. Every now and then I will finish setting up a blade or a bit and go over to the power feed to re-energize only to realize the system has been hot the whole time. After I change my shorts I move on.

My Muscle Chuck started to slip. I went through the troubleshooting exercises to no avail. Muscle Chuck sent me a new one, I just haven't installed it yet. It was rock solid for two years but then started to slip no matter what I did. I will report back after I install the replacement.

One of the great things about documenting a build journal is that I can go back and remember how I did something.

I was wondering what bit I used for that profile. I didn't document a lot on the side tables because I never dreamed I would be building a dresser to match

At any rate I found the bit in an old thread and matched the profile.

I find the shop vac to do a better job at the fence than the DC. I routinely drag the hose over, weigh it down with a couple of tube socks loaded with marbles and go at it.

I use a push-plate (maybe I made that up) to act as a backer board for cross cut profiling where tear out can be a problem.

I use the plate till it gets eaten up on all four corners. I cut it down to reveal new corners but . . . after a while . . .

When it is dead I just cut a few more plates from the "found at the curb" particle board I keep around.

Once all edges are profiled things start to look a little more civilized.

This is just off the machine so there will be some more prep before I call it "done".

 

[glenn bradley]

Time for some pulls. I want these to have a reasonable amount of face surface so that they show off the tiger maple.

The tiger maple drawer fronts will have walnut pulls and I find an odd-ball piece of scrap in the bin that will yield the two pulls I need.

I end up with these five maple pull and two walnut pull blanks.

I drill the holes for the inserts.

Its a process . . .

I seem to have missed the router table cove process but it is pretty obvious.

I swear I have been using the same "toilet ring" of wax for a decade to lube screws and such. I put a dab of it in the holes to make the inserts drive in easier. The hole is drilled to the diameter of the insert shaft to prevent splitting.

I do this at the drill press to make sure things go in perpendicular and true.

I use an insert tool from . . . Oh, here it is . . . E-Z-LOK.

I open the top of the DP and turn the drive sheave by hand to drive in the inserts. This take a little more time but I find well placed inserts to beat misaligned inserts every time ;-)

And there we go so I have to go oven bake some thick-cut bacon now in anticipation of dinner tonight.

 

[Rennie Heuer]

I swear I have been using the same "toilet ring" of wax for a decade to lube screws and such. I put a dab of it in the holes to make the inserts drive in easier. The hole is drilled to the diameter of the insert shaft to prevent splitting.

I've used canning paraffin for a long time but have been moving over to a drop of BLO administered to the hole with a toothpick. In my mind it lubricates the screw, won't get in the way of a finish in case I fail to do proper inspection prior to, and (this is pure speculation) it eventually cures in the wood locking the screw in place.

 

[glenn bradley]

One of those phases where there is a lot going on but not much to show for it. I hand shape one of the pull blanks.

Then use it to mark out the balance and hand shape them at the edge sander as well.

 

[glenn bradley]

Inching along . . . I use the ROS-Table-Jig-Thingy yet again. This POS is made from an old IKEA TV stand. I keep swearing I am going to build a version 2 but it just never seems to happen.

At any rate it allows you to random orbit sand small parts without launching them across the shop or sanding off your fingernails.

Here's a first run of what I think of as shellac flooding. For light colored figured woods this lets the shellc dive deep into the softer material and emphasize the figure.

These will be top coated with a lacquer later on in the process for protective reasons but, I really like the look of the shellac on the tiger maple. Speaking of liking the look . . . as mentioned I didn't document the side tables very well because I thought they were a "one-and-done" sort of build. Life says "Nay-Nay". I do a test board to figure out what mad scientist formula I used with the side tables.

LOML says "they all look the same" until I hold the test board up against the side tables. Then she says "Ah-ha" . . . ;-)

I have received her blessing on the pulls so away we go . . . the iPhone auto-adjust coloration makes this look a bit odd but, you get the drift.

 

[glenn bradley]

Still limping along. I had way too many yard chores today but it was cooler than recent days so I wanted to take advantage. At any rate, I got some drawer fronts mounted. I hope to get the last three before company comes for dinner tonight.

If I get that done I can fit pulls tomorrow and surface prep the drawers. Then I can glue up the top and see some light at the end of the tunnel.
Funny how some of these gimmicky things can actually be useful.

Yay!

 

[glenn bradley]

Closing in.

We get the youngest grandson today so I am hoping to mount the last four pulls before he gets here.

 

[Phill Clay]

That is looking real good

 

[glenn bradley]

Finally. Man that seemed to take forever . . .

It's a good thing I enjoy the journey more than the finish line.
Again the iPhone tends to distort things but I had left the Canon in the house and was too lazy to go get it. Time to start material selection for the top.

 

[Rennie Heuer]

Looking good! Like those little doohickies you have on the corners of the tables for lashing them together!

 

[glenn bradley]

Yeah, draw catches. They come in pretty handy now and again.
It is not uncommon for me to do field modifications to my designs now that I am only building for myself. LOML doesn't especially love the large overhang of the tops like I do so we often split the difference.

I had to break out the ladder but found some usable material in one of the overhead racks.

As with a lot of S2S lumber there is some deviation from flat.

The boards will be longer than my jointer tables. This allows the arc to affect the feed path; if ya git mah drift.

The end of the board will drop as it leaves the support of the table and you will never get a flat, true, surface.

Easy enough to add some support in plane with the jointer outfeed table.

I have the jointer set up to take about 1/16" per pass. The deviation is a fat 1/8". I will start in the middle where the cutter head does not touch the material.

I then reverse the board and do the same. I end up with both ends partially trimmed (the areas to the left and right of the chalk marks) but I still have an arc in the center.

I can now flip the board and make a full run (with the extended support) and I end up with a true, flat face. I then use this face as a reference on the planer and get a set of parallel face blanks.

As I often preach, I will now dress the edges and glue up the panel that will make the top sooner rather than later.

 

[glenn bradley]

I got about 3-1/2 hours in this morning but have to knock off and make store run. I am wayyyy overdue on making chicken-ka-bobs and the natives are getting restless. I rip the boards for the top to final width before glue up. I do leave them a smidge fat so I can true up the edges of the glued up top.

The handy-dandy version 1 of the can shaker. I will use some rattle can lacquer on the pulls to make them a bit more durable. The guest bedroom is also the grandkids bedroom when they stay over and kids can be a little . . . dare I say . . . Tasmanian Devil?

I am happy with these.

The top glue up worked well. I align the seams on the show side as I go about the clamping during the glue up but this sometimes leaves glue lines or small irregularities on the bottom (of the top). I want things flat because irregularities on the bottom (of the top) may make the top seat poorly. Better a little more effort now than a lot later when I think I am almost done . . . that can be so disheartening. A cabinet scraper takes care of the leveling duties.

The red oak support board under the right hand side of the piece being crosscut at the sled has an interesting tale that I believe I have told before. It was a finish test-board for one of the first things I ever made for LOML. It got repurposed as a support board and has been with me for . . . (had to go look) . . . 21 years!!! This is a good example of how the router table and tablesaw being co-located provides a greater work surface for both machines.

I want a chamfer profile to make the edge of the top look thinner to better match the end tables. I clamp a backer board to avoid blow out.

It does this for me.

Another example of the shared work surface.

These work supports come in many flavors. I also have glued up dimensional lumber that has been milled to consistent dimensions for when I need a bit more height. At any rate these Lee Valley hockey puck doo-dads were about a buck each back in the day. I don't know what they get for them now. Super useful.



My back is barking at me from the cabinet scraper and card scraper work earlier this morning. I am going for the ROS to prep the top. I use the Charles Neil method; I sand across the grain at 150, then with the grain at 150, with the grain at 180, and with the grain at 220.

And I end up here. I will want to tint some of that sappy material before I apply the 1:1:1 blend.

I may or may not leave that band of sapwood on the right front edge as a design element. I need to percolate on that a bit.

 

[Rennie Heuer]

Handsome looking top!

 

[allen levine]

i wanna woodwork like glenn when I grow up.....oh crap...that ship has sailed. beautiful piece of work find a scroller in your area for all those little pieces before you burn them.

 

[glenn bradley]

@allen levine I've also watched that ship sail. Trying to stay positive ;-) I have this 788 that was used in my previous shop. It is now packed away awaiting my demise. I will reach a point where building 400lb pieces of furniture will become unreasonable for me. My bandsaws and scroll saw await my move into this next chapter of my wood working life.

I don't often use z-clips but have several and am trying to use them up.

The frame sections I want to put the mortises in do not provide a lot of "riding" area for the router. A biscuit joiner is a great tool for making these slots but, I do not have one.

I opt for a small Lee Valley bit that when compared to a 2" spindle mounted slot cutter bit is like comparing a 22 revolver to a 45 caliber Glock at the range. The feel is super lightweight and very controllable.

I check for the shallowest space I have to clamp the support block.

I cut a blank from a piece of butcher block leftover from when I made an outdoor bar for a friend. He supplied the stock.

Length is good.

Joint edge to face.

Rip off a support block.

I lost a couple of pics but you guys know how these things work.

I will have a total of eight of these z-clips plus an anchor point amidships with room to move.

 

[glenn bradley]

Here are the two curly maple drawer fronts ready for the first phase of finish.

I do the "shellac flooding" to the one on the left for comparison. There will still be additional top coat work on these that will differ from the walnut balance of the piece.

Here is my rouge's gallery of finish components.

It is nice and hot so I will skip the Japan Drier although it is useful in winter months. I use those throw-away scoops you get with protein powder or coco as chemical dippers. I have a large freezer bag full of them so just use them and toss them into my trusty Bucket-o-water (I failed to take a pic of that) that I have on hand whenever I am using high-VOC materials

I mix everything in a throw away container and then strain it into an old Costco Peach jar.

And here is where I end up.

I don't use a lot of colorants but walnut fades after 10 years or so. I have learned to simulate the color of freshly oiled walnut so that when the material naturally lightens the colorants keep that fresh oiled look.