Embedded Files
A simple box style is the sliding lid. This box is easy to make if you have a table saw. Otherwise, not so much!
The instructions below give the steps in making this kind of box.
The first thing you will have to decide is what wood you will use in conjunction with the rock you have. I have a green jade-like rock so want that to be the center of attention. I chose to use an oak that was an in between color--not too dark, not too light. This is where art come into play and sometimes I am not good at it.
After you decide on wood and rock combination, I usually cut the rock first, but don't size or polish it until I have the box design figured out. In this case I decided to make a rock slide rather than a rock mounted on a slab of wood. I will first plane the wood to 1/4-3/8 thickness. This usually isn't a problem with pallet wood as the slats are often already thin or if they are thicker they need a great deal of planing to remove the bad parts. For most small boxes under 4X6 inches you will need a couple of slats to have enough for the four sides and bottom.
Once you have decided how deep the box will be then the slats need to be sized. I cover this in the Wood Preparation section. Each slat will need to have a channel cut for the wood bottom and rock top.
A wide kerf saw blade is a faster way to cut the channel as it may only require 2 or three passes to get the width needed. The slot on the bottom may be different from the top. This bottom is 1/8 thick.
In this case the flat slab is more than 1/8 inch thick, so an additional cut on the table saw allows ample room for the rock to travel the channel.
The next thing to do is size the rock to see what dimensions you need to set the sides. I had slabbed this piece at almost 1/4 inch thickness because I was somewhat skeptical of how strong the rock would be under some stressors of normal use. Harder rocks without nature cleavage lines can be much thinner.
When I cut the slab on the tile saw or trim saw I make sure to cut the edges to the center of the line, then turn it around to finish the cut. If you push the slab through the saw fully on one pass, the chances are high that a chip will break-out on the end ruining the piece and forcing you to resize. Cutting from both directions alleviates this problem.
Now that you have the rough size of the stone, you can size the box. Fitting the slab in the wide slot, arrange it so the end piece makes a corner. I am going to cut out the width of the end piece so it fits on the side. This may sound like gibberish so look ahead.
Set the other end of the stone to make the opposite corner and mark the outer point. This will be the length of the box. Cut two of these.
Once you have the sides made you can measure the width. I have made lots of mistakes at this point either over or under estimating. If you over estimate the box will be too big for your rock and there are no "rock stretchers" that I know of! If you make the box too small they you will have to trim your rock and miss out on all that it has to offer!
Once you have the size of the sides, hog-out the width of a slat on each end. The rabbit has to be deep enough to remove any sign of the slot that was cut.
It might take some adjusting to get the box to fit right. Remember if it is tight that is ok as the rock still has to be edge trimmed and polished. Just make sure the lapped box joints seat without a gap on each corner.
Once you have the box the right size and the corners all work, cut the bottom piece so that it can fit inside the slots. There are different ways to do this and sometimes it takes a bit of trial and error to find the best solution. I usually scribe the outside of the box onto the stock and then daw a line inside that that I cut on the band saw. You might find measuring to your liking!
When you have all the parts cut, make sure you sand the interior sides and bottom of the box before you assemble. Once it is a box, interior sanding just doesn't work. The last step you will need to do before glue-up is to take the end piece and cut it in two pieces. Basically cut the top 1/3 off the side so the wide rock slot side is a separate piece. Cutting small pieces on the table saw can be dangerous. See the Wood Preparation section on jigs required for this work.
You are finally ready for glue-up. Glue all the edges together being careful not to apply too much glue. Getting rid of squeeze-out or wiped glue on the surface is not easy. Important: Don't put glue on the top end piece that you cut off. But, put it in the box as it is glued up for clamping. It helps to clamp and retain proper side edges as you glue the box but will release when the clamps are released.
It takes a number of clamps to make sure each corner if flush. It takes a few passes of tightening and loosening to get each corner correct. The more time you spend getting this right, removing any glue squeeze-out and checking for square corners will pay-off in less filling, sanding and adjusting afterwards.
While the box is being glued you can polish the rock top. Square off the edges with a lap or grinder being careful to watch the scribed line. If you use a Sharpie© the line will persist even while bathed in the grinding water.
For this style of box lid I bevel the edge by hand by placing it on the lap at a 45 (or thereabouts) degree angle. Then using 100, 180, 240, 400, 600 on each face of the stone and then diamond and blue rouge, the lid is ready to fit.
If the rock is tight in the slots, then some edge trimming will be necessary. Be sure to leave enough on the ends so it can fit into the slot and have enough to glue to the end pull tab.
I will give the box a good 100 grit sanding before I fit the lid. If there are any gaps in the joints, cracks or anomalies you want filled, this trick is helpful: Place a few drops of poly acrylate glue on the crack. Wait a few seconds and then sand the area with 220 grit. The sawdust will fill the crack, dry hard, and match the color of the wood. No need for wood filler if the crack or edge is small.
Glue the end tab to the rock with a temporary dot of poly acrylate glue. After it sets, remove the lid and thoroughly glue the joints of the rock-wood interface with poly acrylate.
With this part glued and dried, you can now complete sanding and finishing the box. Move from 100 to 220, then depending on the wood, 400. Some woods like soft pine, redwood, and popular are not particularly advantaged to sand at 400.
After sanding the box, I polish the box rather than use varnish or shellac. A Tripoli buffing wheel leaves the surface of the wood with a mirror like sheen. The surface feels amazingly smooth and natural. When all the surfaces are polished, a waxy coating helps protect the wood and rock . Paste wax works well by applying with a soft cloth and buffing with a cloth wheel or separate cloth.
This one is going to my grandson, Josh. He found the rock!
Page updated
Report abuse