Extremely Average

The idea started in my head.  I transferred it to some graph paper.  The joy of seeing the idea travel its course and now be a real, nearly finished project, is immense.  I am making two boxes, with the same design.  They look vastly different than my other boxes, but were not appreciably more difficult.

I did learn from the experience though.  I am better at doing straight inlays.  This makes me want to try curved inlays, and then shapes.  There is something strangely fascinating and satisfying about inlays.  I am not sure I can describe it.  Maybe some of the blog readers, who are also woodworkers, could describe it better than I?

All I know is that I want to do a bunch more of it.  That being said, I have not finished the boxes yet.  I need to make one lid.  Then I will sand them, softening all the edges, and making it ready for some tung oil.  I probably could have done those steps today, but I got distracted by the Boise St vs. VA Tech football game.

I can really only think of one more thought, about these boxes.  I have considered that it may look better with a padauk lid, as the wenge lid may be too much wenge.  The problems is two fold.  I don’t have more padauk for a lid, and I really like wenge.  I guess that second one isn’t really a problem, just a fact.   Perhaps I will run up to Iowa City tomorrow and see if they have any padauk scraps?

Wow, DJ Harper from Boise St, on 3rd and one, runs 71 yards for a touchdown.  I really can’t focus on the blog tonight.  I am sorry.  I think I am going to go and watch the game.  It is just too darn exciting.  I will do better tomorrow.

I do have one more thought.  Does anyone have names suggestions for these tiny boxes?  I am open to suggestions.  Of course, any suggestions will have to be approved by the boxes themselves, and possibly several of my tools.

Last night I introduced Fred and he was quickly adopted by my twitter friend @eXapath.  He builds stuff too and runs http://www.homepathproducts.com/homepath/index.php. When I told Fred who had adopted him, he was thrilled.

I woke up at about 4:30 am and since it would be a while before the post office would open, I decided to give the shop a good cleaning.  All my tools got a good wiping off.  Everyone in the shop was very chatty and the atmosphere was a delight.   When it was done, I felt really good having a clean workspace again.  I immediately started messing it up with some practice hand plane work.  Then I cleaned up that mess.

With the cleaning done, I decided to apply some tung oil to a few more boxes.  It isn’t scary anymore.  This makes me happy and I am looking forward to trying out other types of finishing.

After a bit of breakfast it was time to get Fred ready for his journey to Connecticut.  Fred was made comfortable in the box with a bunch of bubble wrap and some bubble pillows.  I carefully taped the box up, made a lable, and then everyone said goodbye to Fred.  Some of the boxes were still drying, but all the others gathered around Freds box and wished him well.  Ginger was a little bit sad to see him go, but she was happy for him.  Edward said a few words and everyone was inspired.

Then Fred and I went off to the Martelle post office and got his journey started.

When I got home, the boxes were still hanging out, and the gaping hole in the middle of their congregation made me a little sad.  Alice, a very bright little maple and padauk box, notice my expression.

“What’s wrong?” she asked.

“Oh nothing, It is just strange not seeing Fred hanging out with all of you.  I will miss talking with him.”

“Well we can give you messages and pass along anything you wish to say to him.”  she said with a smile.

All the boxes stopped talking and were looking at me.  I imagine my expression was either blank or confused, because Alice then explained.  “We only talk to you, because you can’t hear what we are thinking.  All of us can share our thoughts and conversations, with each other, without being in the same room.”

Edward added, “It is sort of like being psychic, though not really.  It is just the way we are, because we come from trees.  Alice can explain it better than me.”

Alice had a bit of blush to her when she said, “Yes, Edward is correct.  It dates back to the earliest crafts made from wood.  Most people don’t realize that trees have an incredible ability to chat with one another.  Their roots, digging deep into the earth, are almost like the internet.  They pass messages to one another and then the messages gets spread to all the trees.   Thousands of years ago, they could only communicate with the trees which were in the same forest.   Then as they evolved they became stronger and leaned how to communicate all over the planet.  Trees are exceptional real talkers.”

“That is incredible and really cool”,  I said, feeling much better.

“We are not as all reaching as the trees, but once one of us meets another box, or anything made from wood, then we can always talk to each other.  In fact, Fred just said to let you know he is doing fine.  He is going to take a nap.”

“Tell Fred that I think napping on a long journey is a great idea.  Also, could you tell him to let me know when he arrives at his new home.”

“Done”, Alice said with a smile.

I felt much better and all the boxes were in a great mood.  We had some donuts.

While we were snacking I asked if anyone else wanted to be put up for adoption.  Alice immediately volunteered.  She is very smart, loves history, books and chess.  She isn’t very good at holding an egg.  It just doesn’t quite fit.  Alice is made of hard maple and padauk.  She is quite lovely and would be a faithful and loyal tiny box.  If you would like to adopt her, and you promise to love her hand, you may find her at my Etsy Store. http://www.etsy.com/listing/55310422/alice-the-tiny-box

Alice the Tiny Box

Not good at holding an egg

Born on Aug 31, 2010

Alice loves books!!!

Since we last saw our woodworking hero, he has done some finishing.  Ok, I have already gotten tired of this narration, and after only one sentence.  That is the sort of day it has been.

I finished 6 boxes with Tung oil last night and learned several things.  The most important is that though the difference between the finished and unfinished boxes is substantial in person, it doesn’t show up in the photograph.  What does this tell us?  It demonstrates quite clearly that I need to play around with the lighting.  Sadly, I waited to the last minute to take the picture and have run out of time for tonight.  I just assumed I would get it right on the first try, and so I am being punished for my hubris.

It is you the reader who has to suffer.  I am sorry.  But trust me, the box on the left, is much nicer than the one on the right.  I also learned another valuable lesson.  One of the methods for filling in grain, is to sand while the wood is wet with the finish.  One must use wet/dry sandpaper for this task  (you know, the black sandpaper).  I have some 3M sanding sponges.  On the box it says, and I quote, “Rinse and reuse”.  I then made the leap that they were the same as wet/dry sandpaper, and tried one out on the box on the left.

There is a straight line near the corner, that is not grain, but a mark from the pad.  I will need to sand this away and refinish the box to fix this blunder.  I have said it before, and I choose to say it again, that is the point of doing a big batch.  I learned a valuable lesson and now that I am almost done with my boxes, I feel like I could go from start to finish, quickly and accurately.  The first box took 3 weeks.  This batch of 12 has taken about the same amount of time, and I have included splines and finish.

I have been thinking about my next project.  I may try building a lamp.  I may try another box.  It is unlikely that I will try a Chippendale Highboy, as my skills still need a few more years of honing (read 23 years).  So I need to get back to work, fix the box on the left and finish the remaining boxes.  Then all of the boxes and I will have a meeting and decide which ones are interested in volunteering for an adventure (read going to a new home).  There have been a couple of people who have expressed interest in buying a tiny box, so I will probably put a few different ones up for sale.  I will try to make enough available for anyone who wants one. I suspect that the vast majority of my readers, being woodworkers, would get far more satisfaction from building their own, but for those who would like an ‘Extremely Average’ box, I will do my best to make everyone happy.

For those who are curious about how my plane practice session went last night.  I think that sometimes  the board wins.  I spent a while working on it, and as Shannon pointed out, a board of that length would ideally require a jointer plane, which I don’t have.  I tried to make due with my Jack plane, but the twisted, cupped and warped board kicked my butt.

It seemed prudent to get back to the tiny box building, as I am very close to finishing them.  Making the lids fit tightly has been educational.  The first few were loose, but when I stopped trying to use the router table to cut to the line, and instead left about 3 mm of cushion, it became much easier.  Now I simply employ Manfred the 3/4″ chisel to remove the cushion.  I have also found that the paring of the edges which run with the grain, is slightly more challenging than the chopping across the grain.

I am not sure if there is a technical term for what I am trying to describe, but what has happened is that if I chop down on the edges which run parallel to the grain, the wood will split and sometimes run beyond the mark.  It seems that it is better to use the chisel to shave off the excess, than to try to chop with the grain.  I do the ‘with the grain’ side first, then check the fit. Then I chop the ‘across the grain’ sides and sneak up on the line until it has a nice snug fit.

The lids for the two hard maple  and wenge boxes were finished, along with the padauk lid for the oak and padauk box.  I put the lids on the boxes and then went to get a bite to eat.  When I came back, they were huddled together, the little box with the padauk lid was crying.  The other two were trying to console her.

“It is just awful.  I look terrible.  I can’t go out in public looking like this.”  She said sobbed.

“It is ok, you look fine.  Look, both of us have gaps too.”  One of the wenge boxes said.

Then they noticed me.  The two angry glares were painful, but the sad look from the padauk box was heart breaking.

“What is wrong?”  I asked.

“Just look at me…”  The padauk box started to say, but then sighed and turned away.

“You screwed up buddy!”  Said the other wenge box, continuing his icy stare, “The splines look like crap.  So we look like crap!”

The other wenge box added, “Yeah, it doesn’t matter much for us, as we are guys, but Ginger is crushed.”

“Ginger?”  I said confused.

He nodded towards the little red headed box.  “I say she looks like ‘Ginger Rogers’, and is beautiful no matter what.”

The sobbing stopped long enough to whisper “Thank-you, you are very kind.”

I sensed that moral was at a terrible low, and I felt bad for all three of the boxes.

“First of all, I agree with you, she is a lovely little box and is easily as beautiful and ‘Ginger Rogers’.  You all are good looking boxes.  In fact, I think I will call you ‘Fred’” I said, looking at the box who picked ‘Ginger’ as a name, and then I pointed at the other, as of yet unnamed box, “And you shall be Edward.”

“As in Edward Everett Horton?”  he asked.

“Yes, exactly.  And you get two points for knowing that.”

Fred and Edward were in much better spirits and seemed quite pleased with their names.  Ginger was still sad.

“Listen gang, lets not give up hope.  I have an idea how we might be able to fix those tiny little flaws.”

Ginger looked up hopeful and asked, “How?  It is too tiny a gap to fit another piece into it?  Isn’t it?”

“This is what I am proposing. Lets get some padauk dust and add a little bit of glue, put them both in the gap and then sand it flat, after it dries.”

All three of the boxes agreed that it just might work.  So I patched up each of the boxes.  Fred and Edward stayed close by Ginger, to reassure her that it was going to be fine.  After a couple of hours, we took a photo and then came the moment of truth.  Ginger was eager to know how our cosmetic surgery had gone.  I set up the ‘upside down belt sander jig’, and gently ran her across the 120 grit paper.

She couldn’t stand to look.  “How is it guys?”

“It worked!” Exclaimed Edward, and Fred added, “You look marvelous.”

Ginger then inspected the spline and seemed quite pleased.

I was pleased too.

It was about 10 years ago when I spent a month working at an injection molding plant.  I had about 6 weeks before my new job started with GEICO and this gave me something to do while I waited.  The shift was from 11 pm – 7 am and I rather enjoyed it.  Most nights I was on a machine which made screens which were part of a Maytag dryer.  There were about 7 steps in the process and if done correctly it took less than a minute to make 1 batch.

The plant posted daily production results and also had top volume for each machine by hour.  The machine I was on had a record of 71 batches per hour, though the average was around 58.  My love of Theory of Constraints came into play and I beat the record on the second night, putting up 73 batches in one hour.  For the shift I averaged around 70, and I knew I could do better.  The next night I was on a different machine, which disappointed me greatly, but the following night I was back on my favorite.

It was amazing how quickly the shifts went.  I was so completely focused on beating my own record that each hour was like starting a video game.  Shaving just one second per batch would get me a whole extra batch in that hour.  The machine had a kill switch and if one opened the door too quickly it would stop things in their tracks and I would need to wait for a supervisor to reset it.  This would ruin the hour for me.  I tuned my mental clock to know exactly how long I had to wait before I could pop the door.  That night I had pushed the new record to 75.  I averaged 72 per hour.

Over the remainder of my time there I was only able to have one more record breaking hour, when I got it to 76, but I was able to average 74 per hour.  The other two shifts during the day and afternoon stayed at 58.  I crushed them.  I calculated the excess value by producing an additional 16 per hour.  If all three shifts did this, over one year, it would generate more than $750,000 in profit, with no additional expenditures.  (Note to TOC enthusiasts:  I was able to find out the totally variable costs and included that in my calculations)

I was saddened when after 6 weeks, when my time was up, not a single person at the plant was curious as to how I was doing it.  They tracked the numbers with microscopic precision and yet my complete domination of the other two shifts didn’t warrant so much as a ‘Hey, I was curious if you could show us how you are so efficient.’

I love efficiency, for efficiencies sake.  When I first started making tiny boxes I spent close to a week trying to get my first set of 4 box sides done.  I had to create a jig for my router table, as I didn’t have Jeff the bandsaw yet, and screwed up my first two attempts.  The third attempt was successful, but far from perfect.

An Efficient Day

When I finished my 5th attempt I had Jeff the bandsaw and a digital level.  This made a world of difference.  I could get dead on 45 degree angles, now I just needed to come up with a method to better control the feeding of the wood past Jeff’s hungry teeth.  The problem with cutting a piece of wood on a table which is tilted at a 45 degree angle is that pesky gravity stuff.  Try as I might to hold the piece steady against the miter gauge, I would still let it slip south slightly, and thus create a curved cut.  I could then make another pass, but this led to varying lengths of the sides.

To gain the approval of the sharpening monks, which I so dearly covet, I feel I must be able to develop a methodology which is repeatable and accurate.  The first problem which had to be solved was the issue with the gravity.  Naturally I first started by trying to convert my anti-gravity super ray gun (originally designed for world domination), into an anti-gravity super band saw jig, which could also kill alien predators from a thousand yards.  Sadly, removing gravity from the equation turned out to be more challenging than I had hoped.

I decided to let gravity to continue to do its ‘pulling’ thing, and I would simply construct a barrier which would hold the piece as I slid it past Jeff’s razor sharp teeth.  I like to build stuff using Rockler products, it makes me happy because they are so shinny.  I took a 3 inch multi track and checked to see if it would fit in the miter slot.  It did!  This would make a perfect rail to support the pieces.

I tried several practice pieces of scrap and it worked beautifully.  I could feel a plan forming in my mind, and though it had nothing to do with taking over the world, I was still very excited about it.  I had purchased two pieces of 6 x 36 x 3/8 inch wood, one oak and one hard maple, and they would be perfect for trying out my new method.  With a desire to be efficient, I decided that I wanted to get 6 boxes out of each piece.  This would require precision and an adjustment to the rail.  Since each piece could not exceed 3 inches and I needed to factor in the thickness of the blade for each cut, I decided to cut each piece at 2 and 31/32 in length.  The angled cut would need to be slightly shorter still, so I added a piece of wood and another track which I had laying around.   This raised the rail up so that each piece after the miter cut would be exactly 2 15/16th in length.

The set up was ready.  I started my timer on my iphone and begun working.  I ripped the two boards into four, then routed out the groove for the bottom piece.  The tools in the shop cheered as I moved on to step two, the cutting of 48 box side pieces.  To keep everything straight, I carefully labeled each piece, and after all 48 were cut, I set Jeff’s table to 45 degrees.  Each cut box set was carefully laid out on my workbench and I took great care in making the miter cuts.

Because the goal is to have the grain wrap around the box, I discovered a pattern to cutting which would yield the best results.  It is hard to explain in words, so I want everyone who cares, to get a piece of paper and draw four squares in a horizontal line.  Then number them, starting with the first square, in the top left corner, with a one, then put a two in the top right corner.  In the next square number it two and three, then three and four, and finally four and one.  These are the corners which need to match up when the box is assembled.  One could certainly figure it out by looking at the grain, but with the numbering system, it saves time.

Because the corner left side of piece one and the right side of piece four come together, the grain will never match on that corner.  This is important to consider.  Each piece is slightly larger than it will be after being cut down.  The first cut on the piece reduces it to 2 15/16, while the second cut lands perfectly on the wood as to not remove any additional length, but just cuts a 45 degree angle.  This may not make much sense, but the point is that I cut each piece the same way, for all of the boxes.  The first cut is piece one, side 1, then side 2.  Then piece two is done in the opposite order, cutting side 3 then side 2.  Piece three is side 4 then side three, and finally, piece 4 is side one, then side 4.  This methodology results in the best match up for the grain as it crosses from one side to the next.

There is one additional benefit of having such a specific order, it requires focus.  The need for focus, in my opinion, keeps one from making mistakes, and may help prevent injury.  It was not mindlessly making cuts, but really watching how I did each one.  In the end, I ended up getting 12 boxes cut, in 1 hour and 24 minutes.  Compared to the 1 week it took me to get the first successful set cut, this is a marked improvement.

Now that I have a dozen boxes which are exactly the same dimensions, I will be able to focus on creating a process for efficiently cutting the bottoms and lids.  I love efficiency and today was a festival of box making, which brought me much joy.  And like any good festival, I choose to celebrate my triumph with a cookie!