Sandal Woods | Fine Woodworking
Woodworking with passion - The woodworking blog and podcast of Al Navas
Credit for the overlapping rabbet solution belongs to Norman Pirollo, who publishes the blog The Refined Edge. Thanks, Norman!
In this episode I show how I did the layout, and chopped the mortises for the knife hinges in the doors, and in the carcase. Then, for the first time, I do a dry fit of the frame and panel doors to the carcase.
The knife hinges provide an elegant solution in this cabinet, because they are unobtrusive; they remain hidden for the most part, with only the heel showing a fraction of the hinge. They are seen only when we open the doors.
The tricky part of using this type of hinge is the layout: The more accurate the layout, and the more accurately we cut the mortises for these hinges, the better they appear once we finish chopping the mortises. The secret (I can’t remember where I read it) is to cut inside the dimension of the hinge, and then enlarge the mortises to final dimension when we reach at least half the final mortise depth. This ensures a tight fit; on the other hand, if we start at full mortise width, we run the chance of ending with sloppy mortises, much wider than the hinges.
Chopping the mortises using hand tools, using only sharp chisels and a small hammer, is a pleasurable experience. This is the time to take our time, and do a good job, for the reward is nice-looking, and tight-fitting mortises around the hinges. I found myself taking breaks, both planned and unplanned, during the time I was chopping the hinges. Planned, to allow me to retain my concentration, and unplanned due to powerful storms that swept through our region. But over the course of two days I finished the eight mortises, with total time of about 6 hours on the 8 mortises.
Remaining patient is absolutely key, to make it a pleasure to do this job. Turn on some jazz, or whatever favorite music you enjoy, and get it done!
Now, an apology to Norman Pirollo, of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Norman, I made a typo on the web site address I gave for your blog. The correct URL for Norman’s The Refined Edge web site is: http://refinededge.blogspot.com/ . Norman does superb work in his studio; from reading his blog I have learned several hand tool techniques I employ in the building of this cabinet. And, after reformatting my 500GB hard disk drive (the result of one of the brutal storms that swept through here), and other video rendering problems possibly caused by power surges, I did not dare go back to make changes to the final version of the video.
Relevant links: All posts in my blog dealing with the Krenov-inspired cabinet, from veneering, book- and slip-matching, to making the doors.
I had an opportunity today to take three of our granddaughters to one of the local home improvement stores (guess which one…), for an exciting Catamaran build. This is a free program at both orange, and blue, home improvement centers, for children of all ages.
Mellisa, from our local orange store Customer Service Department, was charged to conduct the program for two hours, which she did wonderfully! And in less than a half an hour, our three girls had built their first sailing ship, with canvas sail and pontoons.
Of course, the questions went from “Papa, will this kato-moroon really float?”, to “Papa, this wood is really hard!” I was busy taking photographs, and concentrated primarily on the facial expressions. What do you think? Looking through several dozen photos I took during this construction project was priceless – I will probably go along for the next several project builds.
The local home improvement retailers all have active programs for the children year-round. It is a terrific Community activity in which more parents should enroll their children, as it will plant woodworking seeds that are likely to last a lifetime.
Our granddaughter #2, S., never misses an opportunity to spend quality time with me in the shop. And I enjoy the experience every single time, for lasting memories are made of such special moments.
I present three of our granddaughters, immediately after completing their catamaran. Mellisa, the instructor, is the young lady on the left. To her left is E., four years old (granddaughter #4); then S., (#2), seven; and on the right is M. (#3), six:
E. had to try even the floor, to drive the nails in “…this really hard wood!”, while her two sisters worked away and concentrated on their project:
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