Looks great, too bad the rail wasn't a tad thicker; you could have draw-bored from the inside just shy of the outer surface. Oh well, you made the best of the situation, me thinks.
Member
Looks great, too bad the rail wasn't a tad thicker; you could have draw-bored from the inside just shy of the outer surface. Oh well, you made the best of the situation, me thinks.
[OP]
Member
Luckily I won't loose even a second sleep over this. It's going to be a piece, based on 17th century stuff and antiques like this are often full off weird patches, strange solutions or unexplained items. More important to me is that it really looks like a 17th century botch, so no steel hardware.
Contributor
It looks good Kees.
Contributor
Cool, I think it will work nicely.
Member
Certainly a more elegant, traditional solution than my bombarding it with screws!
Member
Can you adjust the female dovetails by gluing veneer or thin tapered strips on one side, and widening the other side of the SAME dovetail ? Do the same shiming and recutting on both sides of the top's dovetails till it will fit?
I know you won't like it, but this will not show on the finished piece after it is assembled. I know you don't want to do this sort of thing, but if it doesn't show,and works, why not. You didn't make this for the Queen of England (like I have!), did you?
I have an inlaid,marquetry faced tall chest of drawers in my bedroom that I bought in the 60's at an auction. Its legs were shortened at some point,and THE TOP IS JUST GLUED ON WITH SHORT DOWELS. And,the darn thing can be pulled OFF,too!! Yours will still be stronger than this once expensive piece. I enjoy the marquetry though. And leave the top alone!!! It isn't the end of the World.
I worked for many years very frequently for the most particular lady in this country. She has micrometer eyes,and at the smallest mistake,I've had to totally REMAKE a $2,000.00 part! And no charge except the original one. No one else in Williamsburg would do this kind of work for the lady.(Nor could they). I was quite happy to,and did not fuss or cast a fit if I had to de make a complicated part that WAS,as she said,a bit off. It made me a better craftsman. Such things happen even to seasoned craftsmen. Get used to it. I guarantee it WILL happen again. And you'll get tough and hard headed enough to fix it or start over.
P.S.: What happened to me was I got very proud when she would take both the original part(if the device had multiple same parts),and ask "Which one is the old one?" That happened with the spinning wheel arbor and ivory and boxwood bobbin I have posted pictures of here before. She collected those mahogany,ivory,and inlaid spinning wheels that only the wealthy ladies had in the 18th. C. Spinning was a traditional part of a ladie's edcation back then. Only if it was just "ceremonial. Even Queen Elizabeth the First learned to spin. Curiously,all the weavers were MEN! (maybe sometimes they would have to knock apart a heavy loom and re configure it. They do that to spin extra large,special order rugs even today). Ladies would spin enough thread to weave into cloth. Then,the weaver took it and made cloth from it. Textiles were VERY valuable back then. I recall hearing how Bacon's Castle,near here,was threatened by British forces during a pre revolutionary spat. It was mentioned that the residents took the drapes,bedspread,etc,off their 4 poster bed when they fled. They had servants,but did not have them knock the bed down and carry the parts.
Last edited by george wilson; 06-28-2017 at 9:26 AM.
Member
Kees,
That's a practical, innovative solution--even if you might have sacrificed some holding confidence on the re-cut side. Nonetheless, as one of those who struggled to comprehend the conversation, I think your solution is an excellent one. Thanks for sharing the thought process for dealing with mistakes. I appreciate your attitude in handling this.
Archie
[OP]
Member
Sure, it's not for the queen of England, it's only for my bathroom! I do all this in the first place for fun. Working out a solution was fun. Running back to the lumberyard and getting a new 180 euro piece of wood might make me a better craftsman, but certainly wouldn't be fun!
Anyway, on to the rest of the piece. I am going to botch up the interior parts now.
(And I like your story George, thanks for sharing, I might learn something from it in the end anyway).
Contributor
Great save Kees.
jtk
"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
- Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)
Contributor
Kees, I really like your solution and the piece looks really good.
"The reward of a thing well done is having done it." - Ralph Waldo Emerson
Member
Now THAT is a gloat (and a well-earned one at that).Originally Posted by george wilson
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