Building a Toolbox, Finally

[Handfoolery]

Hi there!

 I basically consider myself still having a lot to learn about hand tool woodworking. I've been building with them for a bout 7 or 8 years now, although I have been building guitars for over 12, mostly electrics using power tools.

I don't have a shop, so work out back on an outdoor bench I built for the purpose. In that time I cannot count the number of trips back and forth to get this tool or that tool I forgot or did not realize I was going to need until i reached the point of realisation, in the middle of it all.

So my intentions are now to build a toolbox to house all of my essential tools. One light enough, hopefully, to tote out back.

I understand that a toolbos is probably one of the first things most hand tool woodworkers build, so what can I say' I'm a late bloomer.

This will be an ongoing thread, and it will be slow going. I'm in the middle of an acoustic build that I would like to complete before the freeze sets in, so will be building this where I can squeeze it in, and where lumber purchase  permits.

 

I start with the front panel, which I'll glue up from 1x8 pine.

So, put them togethe and pop them in the vise.

Then they get the plane.

[Handfoolery]

Checking for square

 

 

Eyeing the joint.

 

[Handfoolery]

Slather on the glue....

 

 

 

And clamp 'er up, using the plane shavings for glue cleanup at the joint. At least on the side i can access.

 

 

I will update this thread as I progress through this build.

It will be a simple dovetailed box; nothing fancy. If, after I put my tools in it I cannot carry the thing around back without rist of back injury, I will build a second box that this one will stack on top of. That box will hold my planes, which are the heaviest tools I own. No promises on that, though, as I'm hoping this one will be light enough. We shall see.

Thatks for looking.

 

 

[Fred W. Hargis Jr]

I have to admit I'm somewhat envious of you being able to work outside in such nice surroundings!

[Handfoolery]

Thanks, Fred.

I love it. But Virginia winter is coming, and it can be challenging at times. But I still go out there and do it to it as much as I can. Even in the winter it is lovely to be outside working.

[Grandpadave52]

Following along. Appreciate these type of stories, and journeys especially with pictures. Add in coffee and donuts it becomes a "love" story.

[Handfoolery]

46 minutes ago, Grandpadave52 said:

Following along. Appreciate these type of stories, and journeys especially with pictures. Add in coffee and donuts it becomes a "love" story.

I will have to endeavor to include that lovely black bean in there somewhere. No donuts for me.

[kmealy]

I was working at the theater shop yesterday and ended up taking in my tool tote.   I mentioned to one of the other newer guys there, who happened to be a carpenter or handyman, one of the early on lessons I  learned doing in-home repair work.  If you think you need a screwdriver, take in the whole tote.  If you don't, 5 minutes later you'll be running out to the van for something else.  Then another 5 minutes, a third or fourth thing.

 

I also developed what I  later learned was a phrase and method used by Adam Savage (Mythbusters) -- First order retrievability -- the principle that every tool can be located and obtained immediately without having to move anything else.  As much as I admire Chris Schwarz, his toolboxes with trays of tools piled in and slid back and forth seem against that principle.  But maybe he works differently.  I made a Frank Klausz toolbox a few years ago and found it not very useful.

 

My main tool tote is a nylon one with pockets around the outside and a divided insert on the inside.  Most everything is kept in a vertical orientation.

 

[Gunny]

Lot to be said about having easy access to tooling of any sort.

 

Edited September 8 by Gunny

[Al B]

Nothing like being totally organized..  Snap-on is a bit out of my league, but as a hobby, Craftsman tools worked well for me.

[Handfoolery]

Once I got the front and back panels sorted out, it was time to repeat the process for the sides. So.......

Measure it out....

 

  

And cut to rough length.

 

 

Then on to jointing the edges.

 

[Handfoolery]

Once that process was completed they spent some time on the shooting board.

 

 

Then I get to slather on some more glue....

 

 

And clamp 'er up.

 

 

Once again, thanks for looking!

[Grandpadave52]

So serene looking there. Another plus dust and shavings cleanup is minimized.

[Handfoolery]

8 hours ago, Grandpadave52 said:

So serene looking there. Another plus dust and shavings cleanup is minimized.

Yeah, I rake it up at least weekly, lol. Don't want it blowing into the neighbor's yard.

I plan to buy a large plastic tote and collect the plane shavings; I'm certain someone at my church heats with wood, and they would make slammin' great starter.

[Handfoolery]

Once all the parts are out of clamps, it's time to begin the dovetails.

Start with evenly spacing them out with dividers.

 

 

I don't use a dovetail marker, nor do I worry about what pitch they are. I just lay my sliding bevel on the wood and move it until I like how it looks, then mark them.

 

 

Then saw them out......

 

[Handfoolery]

And chop out the waste.

 

[Handfoolery]

After that is done, i mark for the pins....

 

....and cut those.

 

[Handfoolery]

Remove anything i don't want...

 

 

....and test the fit.

 

[Handfoolery]

Tap them home......

 

 

[Handfoolery]

And.......That's one corner done. Three more to go.