WIP - Moxon Cabinet

[cowfoot]

Thought I'd weigh in with a work in progress thread.
I'm fairly new to woodwork so any tips, advice or criticism welcomed!

My mission is to build a cabinet to store tools that incorporates a Moxon vice and benchtop. The bench I built last year is perfect for planing, chopping mortices etc but not so comfortable for other stuff. I'm hoping to do a bit of inlay work in the future so a slightly higher work area would be nice. I've sketched out some plans and measurements but I'm guessing none of you can translate hieroglyphics so I won't bother scanning them in...

First things first, I headed over to Oxford Wood Recycling to see what they had in stock.
Shedloads of lovely old redwood, as it happens -

£40 for 30 metres of 2x4 with growth rings tighter than the last week in January, have some of that Wickes!
Trusty old Stanley 5 at the ready, I set about scrubbing them off before they go anywhere near the PT.

Good thing too, as there were still a couple of nails lurking under that grime.
I'm back in the workshop this afternoon, more as it happens...

 

[cowfoot]

This afternoon I've managed to stick it all through the planer/thicknesser.
I shelled out for a Record Power PT260 a while back...just after I'd spent days planing all the timber for my bench by hand, in fact. Working with hand tools is all very well, but I suspect Thomas Chippendale (or one of his apprentices) would have bitten your hand off if offered a planer!
I've taken everything down to 100x50mm, PAR. That way I can easily resaw any smaller parts and all they'll need is a quick pass through the thicknesser.

Quick swipe over with my no.6, just to remove any marks and make some lovely shavings.

I need a woodburner, can't keep hiding these under grass clippings in the garden waste bin...

 

[cowfoot]

All day in the workshop today (sunshine, what sunshine?).
I snuck in last night and glued up the legs. Unclamped em this morning, quick swipe or two with my jointer and they were cut to size.

Getting the ends perfectly square is a bit of a task, I've found skewing the block plane and planing on the diagonal in opposite directions gets me there...if that makes any sense.

All squared up, I chose the prettiest ones for the front and hid the mingers round the back.

Next step was to sort out the short stretchers for the sides.

My mind started wandering at this point, as did my saw...

Time for a cup of tea, surely.
After a refreshing beverage I chopped all the mortises (no footage of this, I just went straight at it, you'll have to trust me). All looking pretty square when clamped up, so I made the top stretcher.

I love this joint - pulls everything together (and easy to adjust). Tomorrow I'll chop out the socket for the tail, plough a couple of grooves in the stretchers and think about making some T&G panelling to fill that gap. In the mean time, anyone fancy a pint?

 

[Bm101]

Looking forward to more.

 

[cowfoot]

Cheers Bm101, glad to know I'm not just gibbering away to myself!

I've decided that Sunday is "no power tools" day - my workshop is next door to the neighbours ("The Old Vicarage", you get the picture...) so I'm on my best behaviour. Might get a bit part in Midsomer Murders if I play my cards right.
Not a problem at this stage in the project, though - it's plough plane action all the way.
Twenty minutes faffing about fitting the tongue blade, it's a right old fiddle but I don't make T&G often enough to justify one of those fancy Lie-Nielsen jobs.

Swap it out, cut a matching groove.

I then ran a bead along the edge of the tongue board. The Veritas plough is a lovely bit of kit other than the fence - it doesn't stay put. Some of the beading went a bit askew, but as painter and decorators used to say - you can't see it from my bedroom...

The stretcher and rail are grooved to accept the tongue too. I nailed a 25mm strip running from top to bottom behind the panels to pin them on. Bit of work on the shooting board to get a tight fit for each panel - too loose and there's gaps, too tight and we're out of square.

Anyway, one down one to go. I'll probably paint the panels, but for now it's Sunday night telly and a roast.

 

[AndyT]

I'm enjoying this - recycled wood and hand planing - two of my favourite things!

 

[Bm101]

Some of the beading went a bit askew, but as painter and decorators used to say - you can't see it from my bedroom...

You should hear what window cleaners say.... :wink:

Enjoying this one.

Regards
Chris

 

[cowfoot]

Reminds me...I once landed a job painting the exterior of an old people's home. We had to use a cherry picker to access the upper windows, which means you turn up a bit unannounced...put it this way, there are some things you can't unsee.

 

[Bm101]

Try abseiling a 20 storey hotel at 6 am. If there's one thing I've learnt from 15 years as a window cleaner, its that blue movies have suspiciously spurious plots unless they involve fat old business men walking round their hotel rooms in the altogether while working away from home. Not once (once!) have I seen 3 Randy Nurses and a plumber getting friendly. Can't understand it. Only reason I took the job tbh.

 

[cowfoot]

Plumbers getting friendly? I've got a mental image of Ron from the Black Lion getting frisky now

Not much workshop time today, I was on Daddy duty. I could give you a step by step account of what was on CBeebies (including every single bloody theme tune) but Mumsnet's that way ->
I did manage to sneak away and make a start on painting panels, though.

Roll of lining paper over the bench - it's useful stuff, I used it for a full scale drawing on my last project.
Lurking in the background is a tin of Zinsser Coverstain, which pretty much every decorator I know is using as undercoat nowadays. Good opacity (ie covers well) and dries in a couple of hours. Needs a drop of spirit to loosen it up but pretty much all decent paint benefits from a bit of thinning from the tin. I'll give them a first coat of eggshell tomorrow, second once it's assembled.

 

[cowfoot]

Slightly relevant grumble...
Axminster email just arrived - 36 disposable brushes for twenty odd quid, because "Life's too short to spend cleaning brushes after a hard day's work".
Life's too short to spend your time picking hairs out of your finish because your cheapo brush sheds them quicker than a Newfoundland on holiday in Jamaica, you mean.
Buy a Purdy, save a fiver, they get better after a couple of washes anyway.

 

[Bm101]

Love a trade tip on the Zinnser. Cheers.
I got some screwfix medium cost brushes to do the front room. T-Class range. Been well impressed tbh for the money although you will probably laugh. Hold paint, cut well, finish well, wash well. no loss. Great brushes tbh. For the price I can't fault them if I'm honest.
Tbh I hate the idea of painting but once I start, I start snagging like a Building Inspector.... 6 days later my mrs is pulling her hair out.

 

[cowfoot]

Those T Class are pretty decent, I just dislike the idea of disposable brushes, more trouble than it's worth. I see people shelling out £100 + for paint in B&Q and buying a set of brushes for a quid!

 

[cowfoot]

UK Power Networks have put the kibosh on my plans to resize some timber - electric's off until 3pm.
Oh well, I had plenty of joints to cut/chisel/fiddle about aimlessly with this morning anyway.

That's right, it's looking like an actual thing!
Next up - couple of top rails, bit of hot plough plane action, stick a ply panel in the back.
I've been ummming and ahhhing over the need for a central drawer runner (and thus a divider at the back) but have come to the decision that I'll just make the drawers bombproof (9mm ply bottoms) and rely on wide runners either side.
Did I mention I'm making drawers? Where's that soft focus filter, I'll need it for the dovetail footage...

 

[cowfoot]

Last update for a few days, I'm off on my holidays to sunny Hexham.

Definitely coming together...

Made a full size drawing to fiddle about with drawer sizes -

Useful article here on proportions -

http://www.popularwoodworking.com/techn ... ing_design

 

[DTR]

Watching with interest

 

[cowfoot]

Back in the workshop today...
Felt the need to push things forward a bit so the Domino came into play.

Lovely bit of kit, perfect for when you've got lots of the same joint to make. Took me a while to work out the best way of clamping/work holding (not sure I've sussed it yet, to be honest).

Looks like a bit of drawer making will be in the cards next -

 

[cowfoot]

Apologies for the lack of updates, I dropped my phone in a pot of wood stain then the dog ate my homework etc.
Actually, the dropped phone one is true. Top tip - don't do it, phones don't need staining.
Anyway, progress has been made. I jointed up a girt great worktop including rear jaw for the vice. Ran out of suitable sized timber for the front jaw so raided the stock of Cherry I bought in for my next project.

Eagle-eyed viewers will notice a couple of things going on...
The rear jaw now sits (sort of) flush with the legs - bit of an adjustment, but it would have impeded the drawers otherwise.
There's a couple of hefty bits of threaded rod sticking out of the front...
...because I shelled out for a Benchcrafted Moxon kit. I was planning to make one myself (plenty of inspiration on this here forum, after all). Still, I had a windfall - unpayed invoice from over a year ago finally got settled, if you can't blow a bit of cash on fancy gubbins/superior workshop solutions when that happens, when can you?!
So, with that fella in place, knocking out drawers should be a piece of the old proverbial...

 

[cowfoot]

Hold on, I left out doing the stopped chamfers.
I did some stopped chamfers.
On the legs.
Followed Charles Hayward's method; pretty sure he didn't start swearing and reach for the 80 grit, but they turned out OK.

 

[AndyT]

That's looking like it will be really useful!