Are 23" miters possible????

[Sam Murdoch]

1:8 Woodjoy

Very very nice Sean. Excellent craftsmanship. Still I think for the piece being discussed the full miter will be the most elegant. Stanley C's suggestion of splines will make for a rugged cabinet too. Look forward to seeing the completed work in any case.


and now I see that this thread got started in February. Was this cabinet built? Problem solved and joinery used = please?

[Jim Belair]

and now I see that this thread got started in February. Was this cabinet built? Problem solved and joinery used = please?

Here is the recent continuation as far as I know....

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthre...-panel-glue-up

[David Wadstrup]

I was hoping no one would notice, but yes, this is the same project/same problem I was writing about in February. I told you I was really nervous about these joints!

Somehow, the year has gotten away from me, and still no dresser. On the upside, I'm happy to be able to report that I've put a fair amount of effort into improving my dovetails(for the drawers.) I've also experimented quite a bit with homemade paste waxes and the type and application of the finish I'll use on this piece. A polymerized tung oil that I'll sand while wet to fill the pores of the walnut. The sanding results in a duller surface than a plane would leave behind, but in this case, I think the feel of the finish and the softness of the look is actually more desirable considering this is a bedroom piece. Also, because I couldn't find ones for sale that I liked, I've built a couple of pairs of winding sticks. I think they came out really nice -- quarter sawn teak with inlayed ebony and holly and mother of pearl. I discovered that while I'm not a big fan of the look of inlay, I do find it really fun and satisfying to make. I also found that an obsession with purchasing and rehabbing saws was another good way of putting this project off without feeling too guilty. So I dived right in. At this point, I think I've become pretty good at sharpening them. It's a really nice feeling being able to do this myself.

I'm actually starting to maybe, just possibly, consider using dovetails on this case. I really do tend towards the clean looks of mid century modern furniture, but am afraid that miters like this in solid wood, which I know aren't practical, might in the end look a bit less clean than veneer(what is typically used in pieces like this in this style) thereby ruining the whole effect --miniscule gaps, rounded over edges, etc. I'm not really interested in working with sheet goods(for no other reason than I'm a hand tool person and like to work with real wood,) and so might have to resign myself to combining traditional solid wood joinery with the kind of mid century look that modern materials and production methods made possible. I don't know. I'm gluing up these panels now, so have a little longer to think it through.

Thanks, everyone, for your help and advice, and for your interest in this project/saga.

[Brian Holcombe]

FWIW, I believe it's possible to cut a locking miter by hand.

Also, modern furniture does not necessarily eliminate hand joinery or even exposed joinery, for instance the Mogens Koch bookcases use mitered corner dovetails.

[Mike Hollingsworth]

Crazy way to do it.
new wife