Hutch Update and an Invitation
Moving inside for just a bit... The cherry hutch project is finally (read that umpteen years) winding down...
The photos above mislead concerning the simplicity of the build... While the carcases are box-like (our design was for for something between arts & crafts and Shaker) the devil is in the details. And in this case, the detail is the wood itself - cherry. What an obstinate, twisting, warping, heavy, tool-busting stuff it is. If ever I am so foolish as to try another project in cherry, you have my personal permission to come to my very domicile and kick me right in the tail section and demand to know if that I've once and for all lost my mind. Creating the through mortise and tenon joints, dovetails, and recesses for the stained glass (below) were nothing short of Herculean tasks, and in retrospect, the Augean Stables don't look all that bad...
Still, the whole thing should be pretty neat when all is said and done...
Now... About that invitation... Sometime on or about December 11 or 18, Mrs. CCA and I and a few suckers friends are going finish this beast, take it apart, and stevedore it up to its final resting place in the dining room. My plan is to turn our bird cam inward to stream the whole event live. Yes, you too can be a part of the laughter, triumph, beer, skinned knuckles, and cussing. (I'll leave the volume off... My suckers friends are an earthy lot who've taken obscenity to a sublime level.) Consider yourselves invited, but be forewarned that this ain't going to be pretty.
I'll be glad when this behemoth is done so I can go back to building simple stuff like boats...
See you by the feeders,
CapeCodAlan
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Comments
Hi CCA.
Believe me. I feel your pain about finishing the Hutch. It's looking pretty good. I admire and deeply respect those, like you, who dare take up a challenge like building a Hutch or any other piece of furniture. I especially admire those who can accurately cut mortises and tenons. I'm facing cutting multiple mortises, .25x.25x.5 in the side of a 2.125" diameter wood cylinder, all at different elevations, for my current birdhouse.
Can I borrow you for a while? LOL.
Will be at the celebration in spirit, for sure.
Cheers,
Harry "Gipper" Morris
Posted by: Harry "Gipper" Morris | November 11, 2010 11:28 AM
Hi Harry,
I believe that there are a number of ways to put a mortise in the side of a wooden cylinder:
* You can mount the wood cylinder in a lathe (you may need to use a face plate), make a bed over it, and route from there...
* Some choose to cut a "V" in 2X sock and place the cylinder in that and have at it...
* I'd just consider dowels or biscuits... :)
Alan
Posted by: CapeCodAlan
|
November 13, 2010 2:16 PM
Good morning CCA.
Thanks for the tips. I've only had partial success with dowels and don't have the hardware for biscuits, so I used the old "hand-method". Draw location and size of each mortise, drill center hole for depth, wood chisel to start cuts, and finally used "Dremel" drill to finish the mortise. 3-mortises per day, 12-mortises, four days to do the job. Whewww!! Now I'm tired. LOL.
Cheers,
Harry "Gipper" Morris
Posted by: Harry "Gipper" Morris | November 15, 2010 9:06 AM