How to get box and lid to fit just a little bit better?
Philip Hallstrom
I'm newly addicted :) to wood turning and have turned some nice
round firewood, a bowl, several pens, some round "things", and finally an
acorn box (photo at: http://pics.eilio.com/image_view.php?img_id=554). My
question is this:
The lid is just a *tad* too loose and I want to tighten it up a bit. I've
read about how to properly do it and I did my best, but I'm new so I
figure I got really close. It doesn't just fall off and it doesn't slide
around, but it comes off a bit too easy. I was wondering if there's a way
to thicken either the top of the box or the inside of the lid just a bit
so that it's a little more snug? I was thinking maybe spread a little
super glue and sand it...??
Any other ideas?
Thanks!
-philip
Bill Brachhold
This sounds familar :)
You need to follow my credo:
"I've cut it twice and it is STILL too short !!"
All kidding aside. You might try applying some sort of finish and building
up several coats. Put a lid of a different kind of wood on it then turn a
new bottow for the old lid. Or you could just TRY AGAIN on another piece
of wood !! That is the beauty of woodturning, we can burn our mistakes !!
Bill in Gainesville, FL
phi...@adhesivemedia.com (Philip Hallstrom) wrote in
<20010906220550...@teak.adhesivemedia.com>:
Steve Tiedman
Steve.
--
Steve Tiedman
stevet...@qwest.net
St. Paul (soon to be Minneapolis), MN, USA
-------------------------------------------
John Trant
wax to the box's rim during the turning process. However, your box is
free from its fixing so maybe you can try to apply the wax to it with
a buffer wheel. Never tried it this way so let me know how it works.
John
With the boxPhilip Hallstrom <phi...@adhesivemedia.com> wrote in message news:<20010906220550...@teak.adhesivemedia.com>...
Michael Latcha
Actually there is a much cooler way that is not difficult to pull off,
courtesy of Joseph Wisnewski (sp?) here about a year ago. The joints in
wood instruments are nice and snug and are not formed by careful turning
but after the fact and you can use this technique whenever a box lid is
loose.
Deliberately turn the lid, or bottom, whichever is the male portion, a
little small. Turn a shallow flat-bottomed groove, 4-5 times wider than
deep, in the middle of the male tenon. Get yourself some thick thread
(like carpet thread, available in fabric stores), wax it (just rub a
chunk of beeswax onto the thread) and wind it into the groove, making
layer upon layer until it builds up over the groove, adjusting the build
until the lid fits the way you like it. When you have a fit you like,
tuck the end of the thread into/under the mass of thread with a needle
and you're done.
If you can get a look at the joints of a wood clarinet, you'll see
exactly how this works.
Michael Latcha - at home in Redford, MI
SNavicula
expertise from what I've heard is that many buyers avoid these boxes since they
require two hands to open. Since they are the ones who are paying the bills
who are we to argue.
e
tighten up the string pegs (not knowing the proper terms of the instrument
parts).
e
"Philip Hallstrom" <phi...@adhesivemedia.com> wrote in message
news:20010906220550...@teak.adhesivemedia.com...
Randy Rhine
fit on a box. But only if it's close and just a bit loose. If it's real
sloppy...forget it. I use medium CA and dribble it on and then let the piece
slowly (and I mean slow....lowest speed on the Oneway) revolve for a few minutes
so that it dries evenly and doesn't build up in any one area. Then turn down
again until you get the fit you want. It's clear and just a very thin layer.
But...it's a pain in the neck. Better to just take your time in the first place.
Go slow, take light cuts, and check often. Sometimes you'll hit it with just a
few cuts, other times it'll take forever.
rr
Bill Brachhold
You probably meant this for Phillip, right ?? I own the book AND the tape.
My lids are always perfect ;)
BTW, a method that hasn't been mentioned is to wet the wood at the join,
swelling the fibers slightly. Haven't tried it, just a thought. On
another angle, a well-known regional turner of boxes, Charlie Mount, says
that in the hundreds of boxes he has sold, that women always want a loose
fitting lid, and that men usually buy a box with a tight fitting lid. He
has concluded that women want to be able to lift off the lid with one hand,
probably because they a fishing for a piece of jewelry out of it.
Bill in Gainesville, Florida, USA
http://www.geocities.com/billbrachh
http://www.surfingto.com/treecity/
stevet...@qwest.net (Steve Tiedman) wrote in
<3B994ABA...@qwest.net>:
Steve Tiedman
Yup, I meant the tape reference for Phil. You know, I just might watch my copy
today.
You know something, I personally like the one handed lid removal better than
the 2 handed lid removal. I like a real slip fit; no slop, but no friction,
either. I'm not fishing jewelry out of the box, though, more like a piece of
candy or a paperclip.
Although, with non-descript woods where grain patterns mean little, sometimes
just rotating the lid 90 degrees on the base will create loose and snug spots
all by itself due to the wood's natural movement.
Donald R. Watland
One thing imperative about making a snug fit is being able to turn the
"step" perpendicular to the end, without an inward or outward taper (for a
piston-like fit). Another thing to weigh when trying for a snug finish is
that wood expands and contracts with the changing ambient air humidity. For
a while I tried for a snug finish, thinking this would impress any buyers.
However, I turned my boxes in the low humidity of Arizona, then took a trip
to the coast of California, where the humidity was much higher. The result:
boxes that had such a snug fit that I could not remove the lids from half of
the boxes until I returned home to Arizona and they reaclimated. These,
now, are Arizona-only boxes! They became effectively hollow, but sealed,
objects which could not be sold. A lesson learned in snug fits. On top of
that, if a box is destined for a lady who might keep her rings and/or
jewelry in, she usually doesn't want to have the lid removal become a
two-handed exercise. She wants to lift the lid off, without the box coming
off the shelf at the same time.
Regards,
--
Donald R. Watland
Watland Design
Peoria, AZ 85383 USA
d...@donwatland.com
Philip Hallstrom <phi...@adhesivemedia.com> wrote in message
news:20010906220550...@teak.adhesivemedia.com...
...snip...
> The lid is just a *tad* too loose and I want to tighten it up a bit. I've
> read about how to properly do it and I did my best, but I'm new so I
> figure I got really close.
> -philip
>
Bill Day
super glue and sand it...??
yep..like Randy Rhine said, it can be done this way....but the extra
time fitting to avoid this is the best trick..but when you do miss, it
can work..(I use thin glue and let it run around the INSIDE of the lid
first, as it doesn't run all over the box....then when it has
distributed itself, spray it with accelerator and test the fit...it may
take a couple or 3 coats)...but...be sure you have allowed for natural
shrinkage/distortion first!. Also, I 'try' to design boxes so I can
re-grip both the lid or the base in a chuck before deciding the fit is
settled & right.....this sometimes means a tenon cut in the box top,
sometimes an inlay to grip...etc...then I turn, sand and fit the lit to
a quite tight fit, and do final lid turning & sanding with the lid ON
the box...the REALLY final fitting comes after I pop the lid off and
turn/sand to the tightness desired....it's an interesting dance and game
with the wood to end up 'just right'...*grin*.
I just finished a box of Live Oak, with a knob of red Box Elder..and it
seems to be JUST right...*happy smile*.....
hope you get it to please you!
.........................
remove BALDERDASH for email reply
Kevin_...@ci.juneau.ak.us
in a demonstration I was at that you need to take into consideration the
use. If you're making a pill box for an older person, they may have
arthritus and a crisp fit may be hard for them to undo. Similar if
you're making a coffee jar - lifting the lid w/one hand might cause the
jar to lift off the counter and spill. You want a good fit, but not
necessarily a friction or suction fit...
...Kevin
varnish...@gmail.com
Alex
Athens