So, it’s summer here in the desert and that usually means I stay indoors. Unfortunately, that also means that I don’t go near the garage either because it feels like a sauna. Thankfully, I had managed to get some of these steps finishes before it got too hot. Specifically, the case top.
Undoubtedly, the top of the chest will likely be the most visible part so I generally take extra care here. I managed to find a couple of very wide pieces that paneled seamlessly. As you can see, those pieces also had some of the heartwood so I made sure to keep those on the bottom face. This face will be inside the case so it will never be seen.
First step was to clean up the glue seam and any glue that had squeezed out. I started by flattening the bottom face. It’s tricky to plane flat such large panels. In this case I had to use the wall behind the workbench as sort of a stop as well as clamps in the vise to hold down the edge closest to me. I was only able to reach the front half of the panel so this meant that I had to turn it around to reach the other side. I kept a close eye on the middle to make sure I didn’t neglect it or take it too low. I didn’t focus too much energy here because this isn’t a show face. I focused mostly on just getting it flat.
From here, I flipped the panel over and started working on the top face. This went pretty much the same as the bottom, but I was much more careful with my planing and tried more to avoid tearout. I took lighter passes with the plane and alternated between the plane and a scraper to get it as flat and smooth as possible. Keep in mind that a finish pass would be made once the case was assembled so I didn’t go crazy here. With planing done, I had to cut down the panel to size. I made the crosscut to length first. This was to ensure that if there was any tearout on the edges, it would be removed when cutting to width. I then cut to width and planed all edges square and straight.
Last step was to cut the dados for the top of the case to join the top. I measured in from the side 1″ and used my knife to strike a line for the outside edge of the stopped dado. I grabbed the appropriate case side and placed it upright onto the dado mark and marked the opposite side with a pencil. A dado with hand tool starts by chiseling down into one long side of the dado and slowly chipping it down most of the way. I then place the case side into the chiseled edge and mark the actual width using a knife. I then chisel along that new line and chop down until I almost reach the right depth. I can then use the chisel to pair down the middle of the dado and remove whatever waste is left. Finally, I take light passes with the router plane until the dado if finally finished. Afterwards, I do test fits and adjustments until the case side fits into the dado snug. I do the other dado the exact same way.
At this point, the top is done. However, I opt to dry fit the case and top together. This is something I do repeatedly throughout a project as sort of a way to check myself and make sure things are progressing smoothly. It also allows me to make quick adjustments now before things get glued up.
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