I've been volunteering at a local "Repair Cafe", where several volunteers try to fix stuff that people bring in. The items can be anything from computers to little toy trucks, vacuum cleaners to jewelry - it spans a wide range. So far, I've been bringing some tools in my red metal toolbox, but each time I use that toolbox, I have to dump out all of the tools that I definitely won't need and add a bunch of tools that I might need. This is kind of a drag, so I though I'd make a wooden toolbox specifically for the repair events.
Here's a rendering of what I'm thinking.
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| Front View |
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| Rear View |
So here's where I had to scratch my head about the design of the toolbox. It has to do with the joinery and wood orientation. I'm planning to dovetail the box together, but I had to decide how best to do that, and how it might complicate the rest of the piece.
My first thought was to dovetail the ends with the bottom, in which case the grain of the ends would run vertically. Alternatively, I could dovetail the ends with the front and back - here the grain of the ends would have to be horizontal.
I didn't like the second idea because if the grain on the ends was oriented horizontally, a good jolt to the handle could easily split off the top of the end pieces. I'm making this out of soft wood and I don't think it would be strong enough in that orientation.
So I chose the first option, with the ends dovetailed to the bottom so the grain of the ends will run vertically. This also simplified the joinery of the horizontal divider to the ends - the grain will be compatible and I decided to use multiple through mortises and tenons at each end. That left me to figure out how to attach the front and back panels.
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| Front panel attachment |
It's a little hard to see in the picture, but I've put a groove near the front edge of the horizontal divider, as well as on the vertical ends, that will house the rabbeted tongues on the front panel.
For the back I did the same, grooving the bottom and end pieces to house the tongues of the back panel.
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| Back panel attachment. Note that I had to make the horizontal divider narrower to allow the back panel to fit. |
Putting the groove in the bottom forced me to adjust the dovetail spacing. The groove will show on the outside at the ends of the bottom, so I moved the rear-most tail in a bit (and adjusted the other tails accordingly) to allow the groove to fit fully in the end pin.
A couple other notes here. In the first picture above, you can see the upper tray is not the full length of the interior of the toolbox. This is so I could fit my battery drill at one end standing on the horizontal divider.
Lastly, I'm making this mostly out of reclaimed pine/spruce/fir. The thickness of most parts will be 5/8" to give a compromise between weight and strength. The horizontal divider will be 1/2" thick. The handle will be 3/4" thick oak - with the curve in the handle, I didn't want to risk a break due to lack of strength of soft wood.
I'm interested in feedback on the design. Do you have any comments on how the front and back panels could have been attached differently? Also, for the drawer shown in the first picture, I need some way of keeping it in place (and not sliding out) when it is closed in place. Any suggestions?
If you squint and stand on your head, this joinery looks kind of like a 6-board chest. so you might consider rabbet and nails (or dowels) as an option, like typical there. As for the drawer, I’d consider either a vertical drop lock like used in the DTC fall front or some sort of Quaker lock with the latch (hidden or otherwise.)
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Hey Jeremy, thanks for the comment. For the front and back panels, I ended up going with the grooves and tongues (without glue), so the panels float. I really like to avoid metal fasteners of any sort, though the dowels could have worked. As for the drawer, the main box is glued up now. If I had more forethought, I might have made a hole in the horizontal divider to allow a peg or drop lock like you mention. Got to think about this one a bit more.
DeleteI think the drawer is overkill mainly because it's too expensive and bulky to add runners that would lock the drawer in place. I would have a small tray on top that is removable. If you add dovetails you must remember that they will get banged up, afterall it is a tool box. Wrought iron nails 1 1/4" long would look awesome, that size is less likely to split the ends. There is another version called black steel diamond head forged nails made by Clouterie Rivierre that company isn't doing so well. Only Lee Valley stocks them unfortunately. They are much better than the wrought iron nails beause they are straight, tapered and square. The wrought iron has a bulge in it which can cause the wood to split. Remembe to keep it simple.
ReplyDeleteHey Salko, thanks for the comment. Yeah, I am planning a removable tray in the upper compartment (was just making it today). And the drawer will just slide in/out of the lower compartment - no slides. I added the drawer to gain a little extra capacity without having to rummage in the main compartment to find things. Time will tell if I like it.
DeleteWe have built dozens of these things which we give to young people setting up setting up house, stocked with basic tools like a hammer, screwdrivers, pliers, and of course a roll of duct tape. We use lengths of broomstick for handles, with pins on the outside of the ends. Most of ours are built out of salvage material, generally yellow pine. The top halves of the ends are half-round, and the ends and bottoms set into rabbets on the sides. Sometimes we will pin the sides on the bigger boxes, but usually we just use glue. Some of these boxes are ten years old and if the wood is solid, they don't break. We have found that a good glue joint is stronger than wood.
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paul@neuseriversailors.com
Hi Paul. Thanks for the comment. I didn't know about your blog until now - you've done some great work! And for good causes, too. Kudos to you. Rabbet joints are some that I've typically only used for fitting a back on a cabinet. Maybe I should look at them more for a project like this. But I do like a mechanical lock, too. That's why I went with the rabbeted tongue in a groove (hey, I guess I AM using a rabbet!).
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