Grandson's Toy Chest

[Waymon Campbell]

The grandson's toy chest is finished! That's a good thing since his birthday is tomorrow! This is only my second woodworking project in the modern era (I define the modern era as anything after I attended woodshop in HS some 25yrs ago ). This is the first time that I have sprayed lacquer or used raised panels. I decided to use red oak in hopes that it would take the abuse that youngsters can dish out. Chest is 22"H x 44"W x 22"T and has a plywood bottom. Finish is oil based wipe on stain (Wild Cherry). After finish coating the color is an exact match to my oak desk in the home office! Finish coat is 3 coats of satin pre-cat lacquer sprayed on with the Wagner HVLP Conversion Gun. Hinges came from Rockler.

Some of the things I learned on this project were:

1) Mask off areas that have already been sprayed and are dry. Overspray plus a little wind equals fuzzies on a dry lacquer finish.
2) Don't spray lacquer on a windy day (I spray outside), because it can cause bubbles in the finish from out-gasing.
3) A little retarder in the lacquer sure helps with flow out and blush in the humid Texas Gulf Coast environment.
4) Clearly mark your parts before machining. I inadvertantly put a dado in the top rails because I confused it with the bottom rail . Fortunately I was able to glue in a strip and sand it flush for a seamless fix . I think this is what fighter pilots call "situational awareness", knowing where everything is in relation to everything else.
5) Make sure you understand the hinge geometry (both opened and closed) of any hinges you have never used before. My first attempt to install the Rockler toy chest hinges resulted in the top not closing completely . I had to remove and reinstall and then plug the previous screw holes .

Thanks for looking.

[Bob Burke]

Very nice job! Your grandson is one lucky little dude! Thanks for sharing.

Bob

[Tyler Howell]

HooYa! To nice.

[Ron McNeil]

Waymon, the toy chest is very nice. You did good. Thanks for sharing.

[Wes Bischel]

Waymon,
Very nice - and the piano hinge was a good call even if it did cause some stress initially. I repaired my wife's old toybox for our son. There were at least a dozen holes in the top and back where the little hinges were ripped out. I plugged them and promptly installed a piano hinge. Two years without a problem. I think your grandson will enjoy playing with the box more than the toys in it!

Wes

[Dick Parr]

Very Nice Waymon!

[Todd Burch]

Good job Waymon! It's been windy these last few days, hasn't it!!!

Did you mortise the piano hine in? I've made a 30" long jig for mortising piano hinges. Jigs are the way to go for mortising.

The chest looks great! In 20 years, your grandson will appreciate it even more!

[Jason Tuinstra]

Waymon, great job.

[Mike Kelly]

Beautiful piece of furniture. I hope the toys are "soft"!

[Waymon Campbell]

Did you mortise the piano hine in? I've made a 30" long jig for mortising piano hinges. Jigs are the way to go for mortising.

Todd - Since I was going to use a full width piano hinge I just made the back stiles 1/8" shorter to accomodate the hinge. It worked great. I do have a plywood jig for mortising single butt type hinges.

[Jim Becker]

Very nice, Waymon. I'm sure it will be overflowing with toys very quickly, especially from the grandparents!

[Waymon Campbell]

Very nice, Waymon. I'm sure it will be overflowing with toys very quickly, especially from the grandparents!

I hear ya Jim. It is absolutely amaazing how many toys he has collected at Mamaw and PaPaw's house. Of course, he has his own room and a tv and DVD player to boot! I feel it is my duty to spoil him as much as possible .

[Dale Thompson]

Waymon,
That is beautiful!! As opposed to a toy chest, however, I would like to be able to make one like that for my own HOPE CHEST!! I'll think of something to hope for.

I've got one! I'm hoping that my own grandson's toy chest (he's only 7 months old right now) looks HALF that good when he needs one! Thanks for sharing.

Dale T.

[Mark Angle]

Super job, now for the next project. Just remember, your grandchildren are like my neices and nephews, spoil them rotten then send them home to Mom and Dad.

[John Miliunas]

"Second project" he says! Hrrrrrmph! I wish my (insert number here)-th project looked that good! And, as said somewhere before, the true art in craftsmanship is not necessarily to build the perfect piece, but know how to hide the imperfections! I don't see any, so it's got to be one of the above! Great job, Wymon and I'm positive your grandson will think so, too! Keep it up!