The Two Decks

My friend moved to North Carolina recently and decided to rent out his duplex rather than selling. Before leaving he realized his decks we both unsafe and he contacted me to ask if I’d like the job. I got in touch with my pro construction contractor friend Andrew and we soon signed a contract.

Step one in resolving a disaster

My friend opted for the best composite boards possible so I special ordered Trex Transcend which took 3 weeks to get here. A couple days before the order arrived, Andrew and I tore out the old decks in a short amount of time; too short. The old decks looked miserable in every aspect from cheap materials to incompetent construction.

Construction of the new decks went smoothly and we spared no expense or quality. From the concrete Sonotube bases to the individually drilled plug holes for every single flush deck screw, Andrew and I ensured the highest stability and craftsmanship possible. It wasn’t too difficult though, since the ground was easy to work with and the deck required no railing.

Doing it right

One challenge was the fuel-oil pipes the stuck out the middle of the smaller deck. After measuring, we learned that we could raise the overall height of that deck above the pipes and provide access panels. Best of all, we got to enjoy some nice outdoor time during some great weather.

These will last for decades

Elections

Now that I am out of the military, I can participate in partisan politics. Alaska, esp. the interior, is experiencing an unprecedented time with democratic challengers gaining more and more ground, one seat at a time. This year, my district is key to what may possibly be a flip in state house majority. The HQ in town has been a really good team and I am glad to be involved helping out whenever and however I can. So far, it’s been an exciting year and there is more yet to come.

Fireplace Mantel

A couple weeks ago, I was asked to check out a drawing and take on a solid cherry surround fireplace mantel for a new home construction. This project had it’s own particular set of challenges. Several of the components measured over 80″ including the top shelf/ledge board coming in at 85″ L x 10″ W x 1 1/2″ T. First off, the longer boards become more difficult to handle precisely so I took this opportunity to purchase a track saw.

Hard to hide new toys from the wife this way

Cherry burns easily, esp on a table saw and the track saw performed brilliantly. The top shelf board weighed about 50 lbs which required me to factor in adequate support engineering. I tend to over-engineer my work in the first place cause it makes no sense to me to put a project in jeopardy trying to cheap out for what amounts to very little -to- no cost saving in the end.

Never compromise on strength

In fact, taking short cuts usually ends up in lost time and money doing it again the way it should’ve been done from the very beginning. I decided my approach should be similar to code construction standards and built two of the steps using a wall stud layout.

Cutting a 63" arch on my band saw - slow and consistent feed rate is key

During the whole time I had to think about the installation method also, and in the case of the major support layers, I am confident a few lag bolts with oversize washers anchored into actual wall studs will be able to support a few hundred pounds.

The corbels worried me a bit, but a methodical approach resulted in one of the more satisfying components of the build.

6" of solid cherry is a formidable block of wood

I used two layers of 12/4 cherry and just took my time anticipating each move through the more difficult aspects. I may blog about this part in more detail for the other site soon.

Slowly refining the shape and smoothness

The columns required flutes and I did blog about this in more detail here.

One neat thing about doing this level of work is the freedom to execute. I get a drawing with measurements and people depend on me in different ways to find the best solutions.

Backer boards ensure crisp cuts - ZERO tear out

had a chance to do this on this project with the addition of one more layer than originally designed by the client and the result was beyond even my expectations.

Another great project - learned plenty & had fun

It was a situation where that one little thing finished the project perfectly. I talked with Todd about this and other things, sometimes for his absolute expert opinion, and sometimes just to talk. We both agree emphatically that our in-shop decisions remain a compelling aspect to professional confidence and pride.
 
 
 
Thanks for reading!

Your Arctic Woodworking Friend,
Troy

Last week, I received a phone call to help a gentlemen rebuild a window for his cabin. The old one deteriorated badly and fell apart. The build is as simple as possible since the window swings opens via hinges. As a result, I focused more on an enduring product using oak and a 1/4″ slab of glass. To bring it all together, I assembled the frame using a bridal joints which creates a significant amount of gluing surfaces. The glass pane got locked in with hefty and decorative stops.

Time for a replacement

Handy jig

Initial tenon cuts - measure and sight on the mark

To make the bridal joints, I turned to my tenoning jig made by Delta. As usual, the mortise gets cut first followed by the tenons. If the tenons do not fit at first, fine tune them with a hand plane. Avoid any adjustments to the mortises.

Complete with beveled edge

A table saw and miter gauge work well for making the shoulder cuts. When using a tenoning jig to make the final cut for the tenons, ensure that the piece being cut is on the outside of the blade away from the jig or the blade will launch the cutoff back at you.

This leads me to the next part of the variety mentioned in the beginning. The glass stops became part of a blog that I recently joined. Ed Pirnik, an editor from Fine Woodworking of Taunton Press talked with me about joining  their new effort and upcoming website, in particular, contributing to the blog. Working with Ed has been great and I really appreciate his encouragement and professionalism. I’ve posted a couple entries so far, which will be migrated to the new site once it’s launched. So back to the glass stops…one of the recent entries covered a method for making and installing them, which you can read here and also includes a process for making a simple jig. Writing one blog like this one seems like enough work already, but I am glad to branch out while improving and trying different project writing practices. Getting involved with a well known publication certainly offers a measure of pride too. My goal is to try to pull out segments of actual client work or other projects and provide greater detail for the intended audience, which in this case is the brand new woodworker. This approach should minimize the amount of additional work without detracting from quality posts. So on occasion, I’ll link to those posts as required. as I did above.

As mentioned in a previous post, summer time in Alaska is a concentrated construction season. Last week, I joined a friend for a garage building project. Trading in the 23 gauge pin nailer for a framing nailer helps change things up nicely. Even when I am able to open up the shop, it’s not the same as being outside. Fine woodworkers and finish carpenters have to change gears when doing this kind of work though.

Garage framed

While a 1/16th inch gap mistake is unthinkable in our shop, that same “error” qualifies as perfectly fine for rough construction. I thoroughly enjoy construction though and my friend Andrew is a pro who takes pride in ensuring quality work, from planning to execution and finish. Work ethic applies equally in or out of the shop. I look forward to more construction work before that other season starts.

Finally, the shop received a much needed improvement. For entirely too long, my fastener collection grew more cluttered and disorganized. The mess actually began to negatively impact my work flow so something had to be done. After a bit of research, I decided to go with tip out bins, esp. after using the generic plastic pull out types for years. The only suitable manufacturer I could find was Quantum and their products are well thought out, offering several sizes that all stack evenly. Tracking down a retailer took more than a few minutes, but I finally settled on Global Industrial for the best price. I ordered eight rows and installed six of them in an alder frame, leaving the other two for future use. Many people might find the smaller bin more practical for their needs, or even a mix.

Waited too long to do this

The bins will be labeled also

Now for the balance part of all this. Different and/or many things do not necessarily mean automatic balance either, but in this situation, I think I got it. I am blogging on a personal website as well as a professional site. I spend time with fine woodworking indoors in addition to rough construction outdoors. And lastly, I work on client projects without ignoring the need to enjoy recreational woodworking and shop improvements. This overall stability really helps make each day a rewarding part that adds to quality of life and job satisfaction rather than unfulfilled stress and the enduring grind. Since you’re reading this, it’s like that you already enjoy a balance between woodworking and the other stuff that’s not woodworking.

Thanks for reading.

Your Arctic Woodworking Friend,
Troy

G&G Frame, designed by Marc from "The Wood Whisperer"

For the last couple of weeks, I spent a lot of time preparing for a couple building projects, including one that involves the shop. Before that other season sets in, we are going to expand the shop another 672 sq ft (24′ x 28′). The driving reason behind this hinges around the need for a proper spray room as well as additional storage space. I plan to blog about the entire build so check back regularly. At the same time, in order to avoid going into any debt over this, we sold a bit of land. Along with taking advantage of very low interest rates to streamline refinance our mortgage, things worked out financially above our expectations. My friend Andrew and I took on a light construction job also, which will pay well. Thankfully, things fell in place nicely to accomplish all goals which is an important part of reducing the anxiety of running a small business.

Supplemental Dust Collection - Air Filters

Still, things need to get done in the shop. I fulfilled part of an order for additional Alaska plaques. For some reason, another deck post cap (from previous post) was required. I managed to finally get a chance to make one of Marc’s Greene & Greene frames. I took time for more recreational woodworking and made another cabinet for tools I use most often. After reading the shop air filter comparison article in the current issue of Fine Woodworking, I went and got the winner and installed it.

Recent upgrade - every little bit helps

Much needed storage and organization

Finally, I began another commission for a lady who wants a Kitchen Island Butcher Block for her cabin. It’s an interesting project utilizing common wire shelving which I’ll post more details about later.

What’s more interesting though, as I began that project, I received a call from a prominent woodworking magazine online editor about contributing to their upcoming new site. I look forward to this development and hope to have more to share soon. As a trial run, I developed a blog entry for them using part of the current commission. I am not sure of all the details and requirements concerning the separation of content on my personal/business blog vs. their blog so I must refrain from saying too much for now. More to follow in the future.

Regardless of the turmoil, whether in the shop or not, progress is still progress. Significant goals are being met and the important tasks are getting checked off the list. I am learning that an individually run, full time pro shop requires a whole variety of support, inside and out, administratively and operationally. When it gets intense and stressful, I often think “just keep swimming, just keep swimming” and I can’t help but smile and drive on.

Thanks for reading,

Your Arctic Woodworking Friend,
Troy

Hand Plane Cabinet

My planes deserve a better place for storage than a drawer. I’ve seen plenty of woodworkers with cabinets which not only looked respectable, but also provided optimal organization and access. The dimensions were tricky though, mainly because I want my cabinet hanging on a wall shallow as possible.

Hand Plane Cabinet

I also wanted to stand the planes at an angle in their own individual spots. Since the height of the largest plane is near 7″, this made “shallow” pretty hopeless. The angled rack received dividers via grooves and then each plane was fitted to its slot with a toe holder.  I left enough height for a lower shelf. The door is hung via a piano hinge and closes on a couple rare earth magnets. The entire cabinet was made with scrap woods.

Hand Planes

Next were the planes themselves. It was time to sharpen the blades and touch up the tuning. Plus I had a new block plane to completely work into a precision cutter. There are plenty of tutorials on that process, such as this video. I forgot that long ago I replaced the blade on my ~99-year old #4 Stanley hand plane with a crappy iron. It seemed to work well enough, but it was time to put a proper cutter in that thing so I ordered an O1 Lie-Nielsen replacement. In accordance with the manufacturers recommendations, I set that hand plane for very fine smoothing. My other #4, a Lie-Nielsen is set for more aggressive smoothing. Besides those, I have a ~50-year old Stanley #7 corrugated jointer, a #5 and #6 Lie-Nielsen Jack and a Lie-Nielsen rabbeting block plane. I hope to get a #8 Lie-Nielsen jointer next.

Deck Post Caps

Following that project and weekend, I was asked to make a deck post cap prototype. The only challenge was the 1/2″ underside inset on which the cap would fit onto the posts. In order to make it a clean cutout, I used a 1/4″ up spiral router bit to establish an outline. Using start and finish marks on the router table fence helped ensure a square outline cutout. I looked to the router again to remove the rest of the waste, but it was far easier and just as fast to use a large forstner bit. With a few requested changes, the job was approved for 9 caps total, made of tulip poplar.

Demo Drawer

The next project was an interesting challenge. I got a pair of concealed, soft-close drawer slides with no idea how to properly install them.

Full Mock-up Assembly

I researched several manufacturers and it turns out that they are all very similar in design and function. They all had miserable instructions, which at best read like technical drawings made for the professional cabinet making shop alone. It became more apparent that a demo of this system would likely be helpful. Using all scrap material again, I built a drawer and then a case around that.

Drawer underside with lockers

These type of slides all require two holes in the drawer back which act as the rear alignment while there is a underside locker which secures the front end, as well as allows for vertical adjustment. The idea of the mock-up is to be able to see the all the components and installation. The drawer comes out easily and when flipped, readily shows the position of the adjusting lockers. The next step was to figure out a method to make it simple to inspect the inside of the case. Even though it’s not difficult to see inside without the drawer, I knew it would be better if the top could come off.

Inside look at the slides

I turned to the Festool domino to provide alignment and stability. I tapered each domino carefully with sandpaper to assist in seating and removing the top as needed. Overall, the demo seems effective. As for the slides, I think they add quality to any construction and certainly will allow high-quality craftsmanship, like dovetails, to remain visually unobstructed. I will likely purchase available installation aids if I need to do many of these.

Time for a break now. It’s the 4th of July weekend and I plan on enjoying it, maybe with some traditional craftsmanship reading representative of the time for which we celebrate this holiday. Take care and be safe.

Thanks for reading.

Your Arctic Woodworking Friend,
Troy

p.s. I just received my Lie-Nielsen straight handle crosscut saw. I may have to spend a little time in the shop after all. Saw ya later!

Last week, a gentlemen called me about a project he had in mind for his daughter. He brought over a custom, stained-glass panel that he wanted to use for a wall-mounted, spice cabinet door panel.  The client is no stranger to woodworking but doesn’t have time and all his tools on hand or he would have done it himself. I am thankful that he trusted me to create his vision of a lovely gift though. We also had a good time talking about tools and such and I was pretty happy that he seemed to appreciate my shop setup.

Design

The other requirements were glass shelving, highly figured maple and splines in each corner; all things well within my own personal tastes. The design wasn’t difficult, esp. using Google SketchUp. Going off the dimensions of the panel, it didn’t take long to design the cabinet.

SketchUp Design

As is often the case (pun intended), developing the perfect dimensions from scratch with no example (the whole point of custom – to me), always proves the most time intensive.

SketchUp Design

I am not one to do many mock-ups either. I am a math guy and I believe in the capabilities of SketchUp and good design principles.  As it turned out, the client was happy with the first draft so as soon as I delivered the previous project, I dove right into this one.

THE PROJECT

Prepping the Boards

I picked out the best of the full-length figured maple boards I had and discovered it was just long enough to cover the entire project’s material needs. I am not yet as skilled as Tommy Mac in perfecting wood grain collaboration, but using one board would certainly make it easier for this project.

Jointing a flat face

After rough cutting several boards to more manageable sizes, I put the pieces through the normal paces: jointing one face, planing a parallel face, and dead-flattening through the sander.

Creating parallel flat faces

That process will always create excellent boards to further precision mill.

Sanding dead-flat

This is also at the one point that I am quickly learning, but not fast enough, to allow for final cross cuts and rips as much as possible. I can’t stress this part enough: leave extra material no matter the extra work. Example.

Rabbeting

I ripped the boards to 3 1/2″ wide (finish dimension) and took them to router for the back panel rabbets. I have a very good router bit specifically for this but it still tore out a little of the inner edge. I badly wanted to trim off 1/4″ from that but I couldn’t because I had to use 1/2″ plywood for the back panel and couldn’t afford to lose any shelf depth. Since this would be mounted to a wall, I knew it could not and would not be seen. If there was any chance it could be seen, I would have started over without question. The point is, I could have completely avoided this by leaving the boards at 3 3/4″ wide, rabbeting an extra 1/4″ deep and trimming off a 1/4″ guaranteeing a perfectly clean, tear-free edge. Routing often creates those issues, so expect it and factor it in to your forward-thinking and material requirements.

Shelf Supports

I wasn’t sure how this part would turn out and thought it might be too difficult without a template.

Accuracy counts

But like my friend Todd Clippinger, I am a big fan in the ultra-accurate rules of Starrett so I got to measuring and marking. Keeping a pencil sharp is also key during this process.The next step is especially critical though – establishing the beginning of pilot holes. This part is most important because those little indents will dictate where a drill bit will go, regardless of the pencil marks. So instead of starting with my normal tool, I first went with a small nail to ensure the holes would end up at the exact intended points. This worked absolutely perfectly.

Straight and true

Following those steps, I could take the boards to the drill press and bore any amount of  holes accurately. Why not just use a template though? Because the whole idea of custom is that I can make a layout of holes in ANY dimensional requirement.

Slight chamfer

Joining and Assembly

I am a believer in quality table saw sleds. They are beyond the worth in time and money to build them.

Preferred method

It took only a few moments to accurately cut miters well enough that I only need to use tape during glue-up.

Spline cuts made easy

The splines took all of 5 whole minutes to cut. The door face frame was easily handled on my Makita 10″ CSMS; a saw that is bit more money than others, but allows me much peace of mind and confidence in quality.

Great tools = great results

I used some scrap walnut for the splines but I have yet to find a way to rip them accurately. They always need surface sanding to make them fit just right.

Accent and strength

Once that’s done though, nothing works better than a mini glue injector for the glue up.

Blue-clamp special

After an hour or so, I took the door and case to the oscillating bench top sander in order to grind away most of the spline material. A clamp and block hand sander quickly provides a flush surface.

Hinges and Finishing

I shot a picture to Todd to get his opinion on something and he responded with what I should have thought of, and normally do – “The space between the door and case is more than the thickness of the splines, do it right” (or something like that). He was right and I immediately saw it, so I mortised the hinges to meet this aesthetic aspect.

Precision marking

After the door was secured properly, I sanded all edges flush and took this time for final clean up on the miters.

Now came my favorite part of working with this kind of figured maple – finishing.

Almost a crime to not slice for veneers

I started with a mix of denatured alcohol and golden brown Transtint dye. This step actually makes the wood look splotchy. Following that, the wood gets sealed with clear shellac which starts to reveal the figure more. Once dried and sanded lightly, it’s time to fully bring out the figure with high quality gloss urethane from General Finishes (there is nothing better in my opinion). I also picked up a new brush for this part. I’ve tried many brushes and this one is brilliant for urethane finishes. It’s not only high quality ox hair, but just the right softness and thickness to make it easy to “feel” the layer being brushed on the surface.

Should I keep it?

The panel secured nicely and I used rare earth magnets for the door catches. After a few photos, I delivered the cabinet to the client and talked about the project details a bit, as well as his shop setup.

Glass shelves - good choice

I am very happy with this project. I am glad I was chosen to make this special item that I am confident will provide a smile each time his daughter prepares a meal at home.

Going for an appropriate result with such fine material

This kind of project is a great example of one of my goals – providing highly customized, heirloom quality artisan wood projects.

Thanks for reading!

Your Arctic Woodworking Friend,
Troy

Dogs - 1 || Door Insert - 0

I hesitated a bit because it seemed liked a boring production item, but I am not one to usually turn down a woodworking project.

No better softwood

So I got some high-grade Douglass Fir and went to work replicating the screened versions.

The mangled model was made with bridal joints in each corner and separate strips of wood throughout with mortises for the cross rails. I decided to use half-lap joints in the corners, all one piece with Festool Dominoes to connect the cross rails. The screen keepers had to be separate strips though.

A stacked dado setup took care of most of the initial precision milling following planing for thickness.

Good start

Feather-boards make this kind of work simple and accurate. Using my reliable Incra Miter gauge, I made the half-lap joints the same way, but instead of measuring, I lined up the rails and stiles and marked them off of each other.

Once the outer frame was complete and dry-fit, I moved to the cross rails.

Cross rails - Dominoed

The example had 3/4″ tall strips, but that wouldn’t work with the smallest dominos from Festool, so I went with 1″ instead, which was unnoticeable and stronger. Those who have used this Festool machine know its usefulness and excellence. (Disclosure: I am still not affiliated or sponsored by anyone or thing).

Superior tools...

The tool works like a biscuit joiner with the same purpose of dowels, except that it is far stronger, doesn’t allow rotating and provides much more gluing surface. I seriously doubt that there is a better way to glue up butt joints.

With all pieces prepared, a full-frame glue up was the next step. The corners received finish nails from an air tool as well as glue. For some reason, I pulled out one of the nailers, removed the nails within it, compared them to the frame thickness, realized they were too long, got out the shorter nails, put the original ones back into the nailer and proceeded to secure one end of the frame to the table. Luckily, they bent and twisted out cleanly and recessed easily with a punch.

Once the assembly was dry, the next step involved mimicking the inner-edge profile as close as possible.

Larger bearing for shallow profile

After some comparison, it was clear that I could accomplish this well enough with a Roman-Ogee router bit fitted with a larger bearing. Since the rails and stiles were so narrow, the router table became the only reliable option – with good results. Of course, the corners required a bit of chisel work.

The -44 part of this sander did well

After some sanding, including edge and flat, I had to figure out how to color match somewhat. I tried several variations of shellac and dyes. I ran out  of fresh shellac so I went to HD to get more and reluctantly purchased amber-colored as well. That decision turned out to be money…it matched near perfect, esp with a couple drops of brown dye.

I think I found the universal rustic finish color-match

Following that, I used spar urethane for the top coat. Since all surfaces were so narrow, I opted to brush after debating on whether or not to use the spray system. Brushing certainly reduced waste, but created unpleasant problems. The shellac would build up on the underside and leave darker splotches and the spar would leave dried-up drip bumps. Fortunately the shellac was easy to clean up with denatured alcohol and the spar could be leveled with a plane iron and blended effectively.

After a night of pseudo-baking the spar, it was time to secure the screen material. Each keeper strip was evenly drilled with pilot holes with a little countersinking. Instead of using nails like those found on the destroyed version, I went with screws. Trying to remove the nails from the example only further ripped apart the strips. Screws allow anyone to easily replace the screen as needed; nails don’t.

Pilot holes countersunk

The longer strips were secured at the first hole with a screw in order to ensure the rest of the holes lined up throughout. The screen material had straight edges, but no straight ends so it was necessary to establish straight lines on each bottom.

Gotta have clean lines

I used tin-snips to cut out each panel of screen a half-inch shy from length and width measurements.

Sides first

Using the clean side and starting from the middle outwards, the first side strip was secured, as well as the opposite side.

Middle out prevents bunching

The last two screws from each end were left out in order to tighten up the corners after securing the ends in the same manner.

Use a level surface to assist with tightening

Eye-level result

Believe me, less than great results show in obvious ways that such as bumps and creases as opposed to a smooth and flat surface.

Although this project was far more functional than aesthetically pleasant, the inserts still provided a degree of challenge and skill.

Chalk it up - done

Not all commissions or jobs will be epic design  and master builds. When those times arrive though, any and all woodworking experience will come into play.

Thanks for reading!

Your Arctic Woodworking Friend,
Troy

The Arch

The first part starts with a nervous step in the project – the arch cut. Any and all mistakes would be very noticeable and unrepairable, cosmetically anyhow. The only tool I could turn to for this operation was my jigsaw.

Arch cut

I put on a new blade and clamped on an in-feed board to serve as a reverse backer, a “fronter” of sorts. It worked perfectly, the starting cut was smooth and straight into the door.

Extruded arch prep

The extruded arch was next, and by no means easy. My first attempt was to try a bent lamination for the underside. I created a mold and prepared thinner red oak boards. After much trouble trying to clamp them, I realized I didn’t make the shape mold correctly. It needed to be much wider than the final dimensions for the clamps and at a shorter radius in order to control the result of spring-back. What I ended up with after the overnight glue up was difficult at best.

Bent lamination - fail

With a clamp, I was able to fit the board to the bend securing it with hefty fasteners. Once the clamps were off though,the entire assembly succumb to the twisting forces of the bent lamination.

Plan "B" - much better

That was it for me, I took it off and went to plan “B”, lining the arch perpendicularly with strips of boards. Each end piece got its own custom angle cut after I ensured the end pieces had enough material. Then it was just a matter of finishing nailing which only took a few minutes.

The Jamb

The next step was to get the frame/jamb built so the remaining pieces could be fit properly, in particular the extruded arch. Besides the sill and thresh hold, all the remaining parts were constructed using the same material, red oak.

Jamb construction

The narrower boards were rabbeted for the weather stripping and the bottoms were cut at an angle to accommodate the thresh hold. The jamb was built for 2 x 6 construction even though the new entryway was built with 2 x 4′s. Most Alaska walls are double thick construction for extra insulation, but for this purpose for the additional width allowed for the face material thickness; in this case, stones.

The Finish

The client opted for a dark finish so I went to Sherwin-Williams to pick up the stain and top coat. I chose brazil nut as the color and spar urethane for the protectant.

Surface prep

Sanding all the parts to 220-grit was essential to the process. Stain brushes on easily, but wiping it off is directly affected the quality of prepared surfaces. The smoother the sanding job, the easier the wipe-off and there was a plenty of wiping. I went through two rolls of shop paper towels easily in about 3/4 of a quart of stain.

Stain application - Brush on, wipe off

It was a bit of a chore to get full coverage in the tongue and grooves, but that part added a nice linear contrast because they couldn’t be wiped down. Within a couple hours, the stain was dry enough to apply the urethane with a sprayer. I am not sure the stain would have ever dried enough to brush on since the surface was so smooth and the dye/pigment seemed easily affected by any liquids. I tried brushing it on the arch and it caused a mess even after I let the stain sit for two days. The sprayer did a super job though and really sealed the color and door nicely. It can now be brushed with future applications.

The Assembly

All parts were fully prepared for final assembly at this point. The first order of business was to set the hinges in place. The door is 2″ thick and I was a bit concerned when I bought 4 1/2″ ball bearing hinges only to find that the jamb screws were very stubby, but they worked fine.

Old school

If I do another door, I will make a full-sized routing template for hinges, but at this point, we went ahead with chisels and mallets.

One chance to get it right

We attached each hings in it’s place on the door and jamb leg with a couple of screws and traced the outline with a sharp marking knife until there was a nice deep line. Once that mortise was recessed enough, we did the same thing on the appropriate jamb leg. Next was the lock and handle set holes followed by the strike and deadbolt plate. The door was heavy, but we still used the drill press. We didn’t punch all the way through though.

Very thankful for something as simple as a paper template

Once the bit of the hole cutter went through we stopped, flipped over the door and finished cleanly with a drill. The client bought very nice hardware and I had it on hand to use which was esp. useful. The rest of the frame was fastened working around the door from the hinged jamb.

Gaps all around

We slid the entire assembly over the end, stood it up and clamped the side to the miter bench. The fit of the door in the frame was a bit snug, but there was plenty of room to shim it properly. I already gave the exact dimensions to the construction crew so they knew what to expect and left appropriate shim gaps.

The Delivery

We loaded up the door and frame separately since it was fairly heavy.

Ready to roll

Upon arriving on site, the guys were busy working on the shingles. We unloaded the door and stuck around to help install. I needed to ensure the strike plates lined up after the frame was plumb and secure. The client also asked me to make matching lamp backers. There was still stonework, trim and other components to complete, but it was apparent that impending results would be excellent.

An excellent collaboration

This was a complex project that required as much engineering as craftsmanship. The door needs to be complimentary to the entire facade as well as survive the very harsh climate. We worked to our utmost meeting this goal and we are very happy with the results. In time, I hope that others  appreciate this symbolic project that represents not only a protective gateway, but most importantly, a welcoming passage into someone’s most sacred life resource – their home.

Thank you for reading.

Your Arctic Woodworking Friend,
Troy

About the beginning of May, I met with a friend of a friend at their new photography studio in Fairbanks, Alaska. Heath and his wife Audrey worked the last several months to establish their business in a new location and they had a need for some specialized woodworking. Between the two, it’s obvious that they have a complimentary advanced sense of design and spacial relation. On entering the new studio and office of Focus Unbound Photography, it’s immediately apparent that a good amount of thought and resources went into the look and layout of each section.

Heath wants a few things from us to help him achieve his goals and vision for the place, but the first and foremost was a hanging wall for the reception area. The project consists of total form and function. The idea is to create a hardwood, visual separator between a seating area and a bathroom door as well as provide additional vertical display space for select photo prints. Heath expressed his concern to use as much local material as possible and he had his mind set on using aspen for the rails and walnut for the contrasting stiles.

The Project

This is one of those projects that is exciting for artisans. It’s a significant design element for a professional and visually appealing setting. I sent several SketchUp drafts for review and they decided on one with the cleanest linearity.

Chosen SketchUp Design

|| Stiles ||

The specs required 2 1/2″ square walnut stiles and ~1/2″ thick aspen rails. The approximate overall dimensions 8′ wide by 7′ tall.  The rails are 3″ x 96″ x 1/2″ and the clients wanted a 3/4″ space/gap between them. Each rail needed to be mortised through each stile and everything had to end up parallel, starting 6″ from the ground and ending ~12″ from top. As you can imagine, it was far easier to draw this all nice and square and pretty, but far more complicated in execution.

Rough sizing the walnut stiles

The first thing we started on was, as usual, major components that would require glue ups. In this case, it only the stiles. At the requested dimensions, I calculated that the wall would end up with 19 rails.

Very thankful for ink rollers

In order to prepare for mortising operations and a final thickness of 2 1/2″, we glued two 5 1/2″ 4/4 boards of walnut together twice (then thrice – later on that one).

Got enough clamps? Never!!

Those boards, mortised and ripped at  2 1/2″ wide, flipped and secured together would take care of the stiles nicely and efficiently.

Total coverage as indicated by squeeze out

|| Rails ||

The next step was to mill the aspen to equal dimensions. As with the stiles, it’s critical that all dimensions and cuts are super tight for this project because of the through mortises.

Final thickness passes

Unlike typical through-mortises, there were no real tenons or shoulders to mask any inaccuracies. Milling each board in equal width and thickness is not too difficult though, but structurally sound lengths at 8′ is a tall order.

Unique local material

Like many hardwood species in the interior of Alaska, aspen does not normally grow to impressive diameters. As a result there are many knots from branching. Most boards are milled to ~6″ wide (yah, very aggravating trying to get two 3″ boards from that) and after they are ripped to 3″ wide, almost every other board will have a concerning defect. Cosmetically, the client enjoys any natural aspects, so that wasn’t an issue. What was  a problem was keeping some boards from falling apart at the several knots. Thankfully, we ended up with what we needed, and a couple extra for them also. Getting the boards to 3″ wide had it’s challenges also. These boards don’t come with a ripped edge from our supplier. That’s not normally a problem, except that these needed to be 96″ long.

No straight edge...no problem

Even with my longer infeed jointer bed, it wasn’t even close to long enough to properly establish an index edge. The solution was easy though and involved double-sided tape. We took a walnut board with a clean edge, made a clean pass on that edge to ensure, and taped each board on top and off edge to run through the table saw. The walnut board provided the straight edge along the fence as well as the platform to hold the aspen board. That’s all it took.

|| Mortises ||

At this point, I should catch you up on a late-breaking design change. Once I ripped the aspen to 3″ wide and let them sit, I noticed they all bowed at the edge, some more than others. There was even one that would have closed up the 3/4″ space between another. The solution became immediately apparent. I called Heath, since we were supposed to hang it at his grand opening event the next day, and told him we really needed to add a third stile in order to lock all the rails straight as possible. This species of wood likes to move radially and it was necessary, and simple, force the boards to conform with a middle stile. He agreed and I got the extra material right away. I conducted the same glue up as before and let it sit over night. We got to work early in hopes of meeting the deadline of their event. There are a couple ways to approach the method of cutting these mortises.

Nothing else would've worked as well

I prefer using a table saw or router. In this case, a router was clearly the better choice. The complete focus was to establish each edge exactly at 3″ width. The solution was a custom guide system. A little time spent creating a dead accurate guide would pay off huge, in time and accuracy. All told, there were nearly 120 half-mortises required.

Full-length view

No other method would have worked this well. It was also the only way to ensure every single cut lined up perfectly upon assembly.

Success!

It took about 6 passes per to remove the material in each, but it was completely worth the effort.

The Result

I don’t recall a previous project this size that didn’t require lots of little touch ups and tuning.

Pleasant result - (aspen leaning on birch)

This one is an exception. The extra care and time spent ensuring accuracy worked wonderfully. The assembly occurred without a single problem or modification and the 19 rails are parallel on perfectly plumb stiles. Each top end of the stiles got a groove to hold a threaded rod and a chiseled out portion for the long nut in order to hang the wall to the ceiling above the tiles. The final fitting is so good that we will likely only need 9 fasteners to lock it all on place. We decided not to use glue which would’ve been a hundred times more and unnecessarily difficult. Plus the wall can be disassembled if needed and if a rail is ever damaged, it can be easily replaced with one of the extra provided. I’ll follow up with images of this piece oiled and hung in it’s final setting.

Thanks for reading!

Your Arctic Woodworking Friend,
Troy

A door doesn’t sound like a significant project, until there are other details added like annual outdoor temperature fluxuations of 150° F, 90-100° F temp difference between in/outdoors, and a sporadic humidity level.

Approved SketchUp Design

One day I received a phone call from a lady who wanted an arched, solid wood door for her daughter’s upcoming new construction this May. Not one to turn down a challenge, I agreed and began a ton of research. Building a stylish, 36″ x 80″ door isn’t a problem. Preventing said door from exploding and/or tearing itself apart in Interior Alaska conditions is quite a problem.

Resawing Hi-Grade D-Fir

The Frame

I initially tried to obtain a sheet of material specifically engineered for this purpose; a laminate core, dead-flat @ 1 3/8″ thick made just for exterior door construction, but it proved out of reach for all of my local suppliers (I even gave them the number to the corporate HQ).

Creating the half-lap joints

So on to plan “B”, which was to make a plan “B” if needed. After considering a few options, I went with a marine-grade approach. The idea was to make the inner core frame from Douglas Fir and sheath it in marine-grade 1/4″ plywood. The D-Fir we got was incredibly gorgeous. I was picking through a standing stack of 16′ long 2×4 boards instinctively looking for the best boards, but that was unnecessary. At 16 feet long, every board was dead flat. I’ve never seen anything like it. Across each face (the radial grain) ran 20-30 parallel, tight grain lines the entire length of the board. What could possibly be considered more stable than this?

Tune ups

We got the boards back and prepared them for the frame. In order to create a door at normal 1 3/4″ thickness within the clients requirements, the inner frame had to be 1/2″ thick, with 1/4″ sheathing on both sides and 3/8″ hardwoods on each face. We re-sawed the D-Fir to a little over 1/2″ and ran them through the planer and sander. The results we exceptional.

Accuracy counts

Inner frame

The next step was to identify, mark and cut out the lap joints that would interconnect all parts for the frame. Before glue-up, we tuned up each joint using a classic, and most effective process. My Lie-Neilsen rabbet block plane is my favorite tool to perfect joints like this. Prior to adding the plywood, we had to cut out the window hole for a 10″ x 12″ dual pane, gas-sealed (argon), inch-thick assembly, safety glass window.

Sheathing glue up

We left the plywood proud along each edge which allowed us to center the window hole and trim each edge of the plywood to the frame after glue up (again with the favored block plane).

1/2" insulation, decreases weight also

Before the second sheet of plywood was added, we took a little time to add R-Max insulation between frame parts.

The Panels

Now that the frame was assembled, secured and dead-square it was time to prepare the hardwood face panels. The choice material was Red Oak which has favorable low characteristics concerning movement (contraction and expansion).

Laminating upper and lower panels

Regardless, this type of construction requires allowance for any and all movement, so the door face panels were prepared with 1/4″ tongue and groove with 1/8″ spacing between all boards. In order to create the arch, we figured out the radius in accordance with the designs and made a compass to scribe the upper and lower arcs.

T&G Ops

The arc for the bottom of the top face panel was completed using the band saw and oscillating spindle sander. The door arch will be cut later. Once all T&G and arch cuts were done, we sealed the back of the boards with three coats of a catalyzed vinyl sealant using our HVLP system, in under one hour.

Initial Arcs

The next challenge was securing the panels to the core frame. Flexibility remained key so silicone and nails became choice which worked out very well. Hardboard strips made for excellent 1/8″ spacers.

Silicone application

After several dry-fits, we got the clamps out and lined up everything. Happy with the overall fit, we turned over all the boards and spread the silicone carefully away from all edges (this is not the time for squeeze out). I wasn’t sure what to expect, but the boards sat nice and flat on the frame while the silicone provided just the right amount of adhesion and movement. A generous number of nails finished the job and locked everything in as well as I could expect.

Satisfying progress

This ends Parts I of the door construction. Hopefully it’s done in a few days cause despite what you may think, there is still very much to do.

Thanks for reading!

Your Arctic Woodworking Friend,
Troy

SketchUp Design

inspection, it turned out that the entire cabinet was beyond saving. The amount of weight on it over the years, including a hutch, took it’s toll. After a few days, I sent them a design to view and they agreed to a new cabinet, one built to withstand far more weight which would be a pseudo-replica. In order to keep it economical, the project called for mainly 3/4″ plywood, A1 (furniture grade). It can easily be made with all hardwood, but at much more cost. Plywood is far more stable also, completely resistant to expansion and contraction. A1 face veneer is as good as it gets for grain consistency also.

The design called for double layer top and sides. After cutting a couple sheets down to required sizes, the glue ups began. normally, laminate glue ups allow for trimming to size later with clean up cuts. Since the design had the rabbets built in for the top to sit in as

Sled Cuts

well as a backing, the sides and top had to be glued carefully. The sides weren’t too difficult, but extra care was needed for the top to ensure the pressure was evenly distributed from the center outwards in order to prevent gaps. The new torsion box flat top really helped, the 72″ cabinet top glue up was completely manageable.

Following that, we needed to cut a bunch of dado’s. This part was more complex; some were through, others stopped. In either case,

Side Glue Up

the actual thickness of the plywood was a consideration, since most sheets are not actually 3/4″. The stuff we had, from Canada, was close to 23/32″ (or .706″ to be exact). The Freud Dial-a-Width Stacked Dado blade set excels in these operations. The DeWalt plunge router handled the rest nicely. Any mistakes during this process likely results in a complete do-over. Test cuts are a must; triple checking all measurements is just a start.

Glue roller, much faster

Once all the dado’s were properly cut, it was time to begin a series of dry assemblies. It’s much easier to prevent minor tear-outs and such if all edges are lightly sanded. The parts tend to fit easier also. Once we had the thing together, we needed a strategy for the case glue up process. I didn’t have enough really long clamps and I didn’t want to do an entire case glue up at once anyhow. We ended up assembling in two stages, which worked out very well. The bottom, sides and lower middle were done first, then the rest later.

Edge banding (not house work)

After the case was put together, the remaining steps were much simpler. Putting the final components on the cabinet is esp. rewarding as the project comes to fulfillment. The clients wanted sliding doors, so I made hardwood tracks for three 1/2″ thick doors. In order to get the doors into the grooves, the upper tracks had to be at least twice as

Door tracks

deep which worked out well. The drawer installed nicely also.

The last part was the face frame, which is all solid, red oak hardwood. It provided a good opportunity to show Miranda how to sneak up on a perfect fit with flush edges and such using a plane, card scraper and a bit of sanding. All these pieces can be left a touch over-sized in many respects which allows for a chance to sneak up on perfect fits and edges. I’ve noticed over the years that I do much less sanding which saves a ton of time with better results.

Testing is critical

With the cabinet assembly and preparation complete, the only step left was to apply the finish. Since the project required color-matching, we planned this part with a more deliberate, 3-step approach.  First step: seal || Second step: toner || Final step: top coat. As usual, it’s best to conduct tests prior to the real thing especially for color-matching. I wasn’t entirely sure how to do this properly, but my friend Todd and the the pros at Sherwin-Williams gave me great advice.

Toner step

(disclaimer: I have zero sponsorship or ties to any manufacturers). We spent the whole day spraying until complete. The sealer is a vinyl material reduced slightly with lacquer thinner and manually catalyzed. It leaves a white dust everywhere, but does a great job sealing. The toner step took about 3 hours. We used a greener product lacquer thinner and dye to achieve as close a color-match as we could. During this step, the HVLP gun was dialed down significantly and the over-spray was non-existent with all the doors open. The top coat was a lacquer product, pre-cat, (required for catalyzed sealer – must match) and thinned. Each coat took about 15-minutes at most to dry. The sealer too about 30 minutes to dry maybe. The shop was about 58 degrees with the doors open. Only lacquers will work this well in these kinds of conditions.

Final Touches

The very last steps included reinstalling the drawer hardware, adding the door handles, and going over the entire assembly for a super-fine grit light sanding and rubdown with a light oil soap. We also added non-friction tape to the bottoms of the doors and sanded / waxed all contact points. Hard to believe at this point it was completely done, but that was it. We deliver it tomorrow morning. I look forward to the next one.

Finished product

Right side

Left side and drawer

Thanks for reading!

Your Arctic Woodworking Friend,
Troy