Cool idea for the hinge setup. 

 

Made me think of the pen box I made with stuff salvaged from the 200+ year old cupola. Mine was a bit larger than yours.

Original cut nails were used for the hinge pins and lid lift. The carpenters mark was salvaged and inlaid into the lid. Box is from the original mortise and peg beam.

 

 

 

 

I've made boxes with drop-on lids, a swivel lid, and hinged lids. This is my first attempt at a box with a slide-on lid.  Again all parts cut on the CNC.

Maple lid on a cherry box.

Dovetail undercut so it will only come off sliding forward. 

Snuck up on the fit of the lid with .005" resets of the X axis.  Split the dovetail vector into right and left sides so I could clamp the board down on the side that wasn't being cut.  Nice slip fit of the lid. 

 

I may try using a T-slot bit for the next slide-on lidded box. Might be simpler than calculating where to put the vectors for the 3/8"d 14° dovetail bit so the lid and box would mate. 

The only lid type (I can think of) that I haven't tried yet is a screw-on lid. Aspire has a thread cutting option so I may give that a try for a round box. 

4D

 

Sweet! Sorta like the old pencil/candle box design- for those stubby pencils and birthday candles 😁

Another clever approach. Does your CNC mind ever take a nap?😝

2 hours ago, Grandpadave52 said:

Another clever approach. Does your CNC mind ever take a nap?😝

While I taught it was used regularly making parts and cutting joinery for students over nights or on weekends so that I wasn't distracted from helping all the students during class times.  I rarely used it for my own projects, as my creative energy was spent helping students. As is true with every tool in my shop I feel I owe it to them to keep them busy and working.  These little boxes kept several tools busy during their creation.    🙂

4D

This one's lid slides into a slot cut with a t-slot bit.   It also shows why I should wait until the sun comes up and I've had breakfast before cutting out the lid.   Grain direction of the lid should match the grain direction of the box. Simple mistake means this is a temporary lid made from poplar. Box is red zebra wood. 

57% simpler to calculate the toolpaths for compared to using a dovetail bit.  

4D

 

8 hours ago, 4DThinker said:

Grain direction of the lid should match the grain direction of the box.

In theory yes, but in this case, considering the size, I like the contrast. I suspect it would be less susceptible to breaking or warping.

 

Regardless, another cool design.

Split a scrap of Ash, glued it side by side, then smoothed it out using my drum sander to make a new lid with the grain running the right way. 

It is a little thinner than the Poplar lid, but more interesting grain pattern as well as similar contrast to the Red Zebra wood box. 

 

4D

Missed it in the first iteration, but the radiused corners at the back are really neat. Adding a small recessed "finger pull" indentation would be cool.

18 minutes ago, Grandpadave52 said:

Missed it in the first iteration, but the radiused corners at the back are really neat. Adding a small recessed "finger pull" indentation would be cool.

Something like this

46 minutes ago, Grandpadave52 said:

Adding a small recessed "finger pull" indentation would be cool.

Woke up this morning with exactly that idea.  While it isn't needed with the protruding edge a thumb recess couldn't hurt.  Spent  a few REMs trying to figure out the best way to cut one using the CNC.  Fluting toolpath or moulding toolpath or a negative 3D model recess flashed by.   I do like the simplicity of forms as they are though. Maybe a finger groove hidden on the bottom edge of the protruding edge that wouldn't show normally. 

4D 

Someone on Router Forum suggested I make a pencil case for old fashioned pencils.   Thought I'd start small and work up to a larger box to hold more than just a pencil.  Here is  pencil case.  For a Pencil.  😉

Walnut strips.  A little tung oil but it needs another coat or two.  

Splits open where you can find the #2 pencil.

Still thinking about drilling out the tip to add a lead so the pencil case itself can be used to write/draw.   🙂

4D

Here's your bigger ones😂

 

Had an ugly 4-corners glued up scrap of maple that kept begging to be a box.  Biggest box I could cut from it is this 3" square box.

Didn't have any 3/8" thick or so scraps to use for the top, so used a 1/2" thick piece of walnut.  To reduce the thick appearance I cut a contour surface on the top that tapers down to a thinner edge. 

 

I started with a scrap of 1/2" thick beech, but it came loose while being cut and ruined itself.   I may darken the box with walnut stain eventually to lessen the contrast between box and lid. 

I left the overhang edge to make it easier to pop the lid off.  The fit is pretty snug.  

4D

You just keep coming up with cool iterations. Enjoying it.

 

My distorted mind just had a thought for these small boxes. What about a series of stackable boxes? I'll let your creative mind take it from here.

32 minutes ago, Grandpadave52 said:

My distorted mind just had a thought for these small boxes. What about a series of stackable boxes? I'll let your creative mind take it from here.

I've been contemplating the idea of nesting boxes.  Open the largest to find a slightly smaller one inside.  Open that one to find an even smaller one inside, etc..  Wall thickness would get thinner as the boxes got smaller.  Last would be a tiny box with a 1/16" thick edge and maybe a surprise inside. 😉

4D

45 minutes ago, Grandpadave52 said:

My distorted mind just had a thought for these small boxes.

...or Salt and Pepper Boxes

 

Started with one box.

And found it had a box inside it.

Opened that box to find another box inside IT!

Smallest box still needs a dovetail sliding lid for it.  That'll come when I stumble across the right scrap to make it from. 

4D

Edited October 11, 2025Oct 11 by 4DThinker

4D, you've just claimed the boxing champion of the world title.😉

49 minutes ago, Grandpadave52 said:

4D, you've just claimed the boxing champion of the world title.😉

 Absolutely!