Today was a holiday for our company, so I got to spend some time in the shop yesterday and today. I’m trying to finish up those Silverware Trays, I was going to give away at Christmas. Better late then never.
I completed one of them today, minus the finish. I have all four corners on another one done, and all the tails cut on the last two. I hope one more day in the shop will finish up the last 3.
For the most part it came out pretty well, with only a couple mess-ups.
You will see a small chamfer on the top of the sides. A chamfer wasn’t called for in the design. When I laid out the curve on the top, I misaligned the template so the curve came down too far. A small part of corner stuck out as a result. I just couldn’t leave the corner there, so I chamfer the edge. It doesn’t look too bad. I’ll pay closer attention to the other 3 I haven’t finished yet.
Speaking of the curved top, to got use one of my Christmas presents to clean up the curved tops on the ends.
I picked up a Lie-Nielsen Brian Boggs Spokeshave (flat bottom) as a Christmas present. I have to say it is a very sweet tool. It feels very nice in your hands and cuts like a dream. I used a slight skew cut and it produced a very smooth cut.
The dovetails turned out pretty nice over all. I did have to do some repairs in a couple places.
It seems I have the most problems with baselines and the shoulders on the tail-board. These seem to be common problem areas for “beginners”. I think I’m improving on the other trays.
I did my best on the close-ups. I think I need to get some good lighting to improve my close-up pictures. I hope this will improve in the future.
I’ll be getting some expert help on my dovetails this coming weekend. Rob Cosman will be at our local Woodcraft, and he will be teaching a hands-on class this Saturday. Myself and another fellow LumberJock will be at the class. It should be a fun day.
