How stupid am I???

[bobscarle]

I was going to make this a poll, but I thought the results might be really depressing.

I finally got a little bit of time to put together a cherry and maple box which has been hanging around the shed in bits for ages. This was my first attempt at half blind dovetails, cut by hand. I made the box a while back and over the weekend made, sized and grooved the lid. So I have a box (four sides dovetailed together) and a base and top that both fit in grooves. As this was my first attempt I thought a dry fit was in order and it all went together remarkably well.

Now, how do I get it apart to glue it up? It took two of us over half an hour gently taping the front and back to get the dovetails apart. Very little wood to hit (blood blisters on fingers to prove that) and very little wood to hold.

So my question is: How stupid am I to dry assemble a box with no obvious means of getting it apart again?

Answers.
a. Very stupid indeed.
b. Really quite stupid.
c. Not stupid at all as I have done the same.

Bob

 

[maltrout512]

No need for the glue now. :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[Philly]

Bob
Use a couple of quick-clamps with the heads reversed to "spreader" mode - you can then gently push the box apart.
Hope this helps,
Philly

 

[wizer]

yep, spreaders was my first thought.

Oh and option A with a bit of C too

 

[kasandrich]

d None of the above. You would have been foolish indeed to glue it without a dry fit

 

[RogerS]

Option e - make the joints oversize so you can take it apart easily. Then use foamy glue to fill the gaps

 

[bobscarle]

Great tip to use spreader clamps........Not really.

The base and the lid were fitted as well!!!!!!!

Bob

 

[jimi43]

You have 6 minutes 30 seconds to get it apart...time starts NOW!!!

:wink:

Jim

 

[lurker]

Nah! thats not stupid, this is stupid:

Yesterday I put in a new kitchen sink

1. disconnect drain from old sink
2. isolate water at stopcocks
3. switch on sink taps to drain water pipes before disconnecting

:roll:

 

[wizer]

d None of the above. You would have been foolish indeed to glue it without a dry fit

Actually it's regularly recommended that you don't dry fit dovetails. By dry fitting and disassembling you bruise the fibres and the joint will never go back together as nicely. That's the theory anyway

 

[wobblycogs]

I was taught that on wood that brusies easily just partially dry fit the dovetails say about half way. Then the piece of tail that will show doesn't get squashed. I've tried it and it seems to work but it feels like a leap of faith during the glue up.

I fitted a sink while SWMBO was at work a couple of weeks back. I wanted her to see the first water come out of her new sink so I didn't test it. When she got home I opened the tap and proudly started turning on the stop cock. No water came out the tap it all came out the washing machine spur where I'd forgotten to put a stop end #-o

 

[RogerS]

I was taught that on wood that brusies easily just partially dry fit the dovetails say about half way. Then the piece of tail that will show doesn't get squashed. I've tried it and it seems to work but it feels like a leap of faith during the glue up.

I fitted a sink while SWMBO was at work a couple of weeks back. I wanted her to see the first water come out of her new sink so I didn't test it. When she got home I opened the tap and proudly started turning on the stop cock. No water came out the tap it all came out the washing machine spur where I'd forgotten to put a stop end #-o

LOL - I was having a combi boiler commissioned. The engineer was in the process of filling and pressurising the system including the hot water. I wandered off to let him do his stuff. About five minutes later I popped round to see how he was doing.

"Seems to be taking a long time to pressurise" he said.

Then I remembered that I'd left the hot tap open in the downstairs WC.

Then again when I went to turn it off, I realised that I'd not got round to connecting up the basin waste.

Sorry to hijack....

 

[Chris Knight]

I was going to make this a poll, but I thought the results might be really depressing.

I finally got a little bit of time to put together a cherry and maple box which has been hanging around the shed in bits for ages. This was my first attempt at half blind dovetails, cut by hand. I made the box a while back and over the weekend made, sized and grooved the lid. So I have a box (four sides dovetailed together) and a base and top that both fit in grooves. As this was my first attempt I thought a dry fit was in order and it all went together remarkably well.

Now, how do I get it apart to glue it up? It took two of us over half an hour gently taping the front and back to get the dovetails apart. Very little wood to hit (blood blisters on fingers to prove that) and very little wood to hold.

So my question is: How stupid am I to dry assemble a box with no obvious means of getting it apart again?

Answers.
a. Very stupid indeed.
b. Really quite stupid.
c. Not stupid at all as I have done the same.

Bob

Just use superglue. It will "wick" into the joints.

 

[woodbloke]

Actually it's regularly recommended that you don't dry fit dovetails. By dry fitting and disassembling you bruise the fibres and the joint will never go back together as nicely. That's the theory anyway

Depends what and who is doing the recommending. The Barnsley 'shop fit then fettle with chisels...other's fit them straight from the saw (Peters was one if memory serves) - Rob

 

[Digit]

I'm sorry Bob but it must be me! I don't see a problem.
Obviously you intend eventually cutting through the sides to separate the top from the base so why not do it now?

Roy.

 

[special bone]

Nope, not stupid at all. Stupid is gluing it together without putting the bottom in. At least, that's what the other students said to me :? .

 

[bobscarle]

You know, I feel a lot better knowing that it isn't just me that makes silly mistakes.

Roy. Yes, I had intended to cut the sides to make the lid. Didn't think about cutting it open and then glueing it up.

Chris. What a shout! Superglue. I could have left it together and just put superglue into the joints. Have you tried that? Does it work? Can't see any reason for it not to work.

Bob

 

[LocalOak]

f) entertainingly honest