My first Box Joints

[Splinter]

LOML wanted some boxes to store her old collection of 45 RPM records. I know some of you young folks don't know what I am talking about, but way back when some of us were kids this is what we played on a record player to hear music. Anyway this was a good project for my first attempt at box joints. I purchased Woodline's Router-R-Joint kit at the 2005 Charlotte Woodworking show and it included a set of table mounted router jigs for box joints (1/4", 3/8" & 1/2"). I had never used them so this was a good project to try them. I used some more of my recycled red oak planed down to 1/2".

The top box is a test box.

And I got to use this for the first time to sand down the proud tips at the corners. It worked great.

 

[nelsone]

Great looking boxes. By the way...what's a record player:lol:

 

[sapwood]

Great looking boxes. By the way...what's a record player:lol:

Phonograph :eusa_naug

Dolan, you've been busy again. The joints and boxes look perfect :icon_thum
And you snuck in a double gloat: Router-R-Joint and Rigid sander :mrgreen:
YOU SUCK!

Roger

 

[NCPete]

Victrola!

 

[Travis Porter]

The joints look really good. How do you like the jig/setup? Work pretty good? Easy to use?

 

[b4man]

You mean a Hi-fi?

 

[erasmussen]

You mean a Hi-fi?

Low-Fidelity and Monophonic
But they were great back then:lol::lol::lol::lol:

 

[Big Mike]

B.8.T.- Before 8 Track.....:rolf:

Dolan, fine looking box joints. They should hold together for a long time....

 

[Splinter]

The joints look really good. How do you like the jig/setup? Work pretty good? Easy to use?

Travis, the jig was easy to use. I attached it to my router top with two screws, used a 3/8" brass bar between the edge of the upcut spiral bit and the 3/8" fence on the jig for alignment and ran a test cut, adjusted for a good fit. Put two of the pieces together offset by 3/8" and ran then through the bit with a push block that runs down the 3/8" fence. Did both ends of all four pieces and the cuts were done. Routed a blind dado near the bottom edge of all four pieces for the box bottom, then glued and assembled the box.

 

[NZAPP1]

Nice tight joints Dolan :icon_thum The boxes look great :eusa_clap

 

[skeeter]

I won't make a comment about the records. May give away my age.

Very impressive joints. They look nice and tight and the boxes look good. Nice job.

 

[MikeH]

Dolan your box joints look great. What's a record player? :rolf: Is it new technology? All I have are 8 tracks at my house. :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[NCPete]

I won't make a comment about the records. May give away my age.

I'll hazard a guess and say that you are 59. Am I right? :rolf:

 

[Jim Hancock]

How do you fit one of these into the box? Nice looking joints BTW. What router bit did you use?

 

[Splinter]

How do you fit one of these into the box? Nice looking joints BTW. What router bit did you use?

A table mounted DeWalt DW618 with a 3/8" upcut spiral bit.

 

[stoneskippers]

Box joints looks like they fit very good. Don't know about record player, but LOML got me a new type of watch. It doesn't use batteries all you have to do is wind it up.

 

[Gofor]

Box joints looks like they fit very good. Don't know about record player, but LOML got me a new type of watch. It doesn't use batteries all you have to do is wind it up.

Wow, a "Neanderthal" watch. Kewl.:lol::lol:

Go

 

[FredP]

I got some old 78,s round here somewhere! and some 45,s too.;-) and 33.3,s. even got a spinny thingy that will play 2/3 of em! :rolf: the victrola box is still in use but not as originaly intended. the guts and crank are missing so i stuck a receiver in it and a 100 disk changer and set it up in the pool house with outdoor speakers. summer time is a hoot round here!

fred

 

[Mtnman]

I have been playing with box joints lately too. I have been cutting mine on the table saw using Freud's box joint cutter set.
I notice that the center box in your picture has different width box joints at the top left and the top right sides. Is there a reason for this, or is that just the way it worked out?
I'm asking because I want to know if there is a way to insure they are equal on both sides. I am not saying that yours are wrong, they look fine to me. I am just trying to learn all I can about making box joints.

 

[Splinter]

I have been playing with box joints lately too. I have been cutting mine on the table saw using Freud's box joint cutter set.
I notice that the center box in your picture has different width box joints at the top left and the top right sides. Is there a reason for this, or is that just the way it worked out?
I'm asking because I want to know if there is a way to insure they are equal on both sides. I am not saying that yours are wrong, they look fine to me. I am just trying to learn all I can about making box joints.

Very good eyes Talley, I wondered who was going to be the first to question this. All the joints are the same except there is a small sliver of a tail on the bottom of the large boxes. I should have trimmed the sides down after cutting the joints to get rid of the small sliver but decided against it to keep the height of the sides.

What you are seeing in the picture is on one side there is a joint at the top and on the other is a tail. But they are the same size. Most boxes I have seen are the same on both sides. Maybe it was the way I flipped the pieces when I cut the other end that caused mine to be different. I need to do a little testing to find out.