Dave Richards
Member
- Messages
- 2,930
- Location
- SE Minnesota
Ok, I'm in a quandry and I'm not sure how to resolve it. Maybe some of you wiser, much more experienced folks have some suggestions.
Yesterday my in-laws came over with some walnut to get my help. My F-I-L had glued up (I'm using that term loosely) these pieces of walnut into 6 panels from which he expects to build a blanket chest for my wife. From what I can tell the edges weren't prepared in anyway and evidently he didn't have any clamps that would span the panels. I don't know how he clamped them while gluing.
After he glued everything up, he took it to the local hardwood dealer who ran the panels through his big sander. The panels are now about 5/8" thick. On one panel, a joint failed during sanding. Another one was about to come apart. I fixed both of them.
So now I have these panels. Not one of them is flat. There are knot holes and pith in some of the boards. There are gaps in glue joints. One of the panels contains a board that is nearly all sap wood. The panels aren't large enough to cut apart, repair and reassemble if I'm going to get a blanket chest out of it. And, to top it off, the walnut is some stuff from the family farm but there doesn't appear to be any more.
So, should I try to convince them that Kari really wants a cigar box or should I get some additional walnut and try to mix it in or should I just get some new walnut and start from scratch and, in the case of one of those last two choices, hope they don't notice?
I know my father-in-law really wants to build this chest for his daughter. It's to be a high school graduation gift even though it is 23 years late. He's got Parkinsons and really should be using power tools anymore not to mention that his power tools aren't safe for anyone to use.
I don't want to hurt their feelings. I know they feel like they've put a lot of work into this already. Unfortunately it seems to me the project is already beyond saving.
So, what do you think?
Yesterday my in-laws came over with some walnut to get my help. My F-I-L had glued up (I'm using that term loosely) these pieces of walnut into 6 panels from which he expects to build a blanket chest for my wife. From what I can tell the edges weren't prepared in anyway and evidently he didn't have any clamps that would span the panels. I don't know how he clamped them while gluing.
After he glued everything up, he took it to the local hardwood dealer who ran the panels through his big sander. The panels are now about 5/8" thick. On one panel, a joint failed during sanding. Another one was about to come apart. I fixed both of them.
So now I have these panels. Not one of them is flat. There are knot holes and pith in some of the boards. There are gaps in glue joints. One of the panels contains a board that is nearly all sap wood. The panels aren't large enough to cut apart, repair and reassemble if I'm going to get a blanket chest out of it. And, to top it off, the walnut is some stuff from the family farm but there doesn't appear to be any more.
So, should I try to convince them that Kari really wants a cigar box or should I get some additional walnut and try to mix it in or should I just get some new walnut and start from scratch and, in the case of one of those last two choices, hope they don't notice?
I know my father-in-law really wants to build this chest for his daughter. It's to be a high school graduation gift even though it is 23 years late. He's got Parkinsons and really should be using power tools anymore not to mention that his power tools aren't safe for anyone to use.
I don't want to hurt their feelings. I know they feel like they've put a lot of work into this already. Unfortunately it seems to me the project is already beyond saving.
So, what do you think?