A Little Box for Push Pins

I got poked by a push pin while digging through a drawer.  I ask the push pin why it poked me.   It replied that it was jealous of the paper clips and straight pins that had their own dedicated box, and wants its own box so it doesn't have to live in a drawer of random junk. 

I complied.

White Oak.  V-Carved Text and Graphic 

Push Pins Happy

Push Pins can't read, so the push pin graphic is there for them.  I should have videoed the stampede as Push Pins rushed from places unknown in my house to gather together in this box.  They all seem happy to be together.   Job done.

4D

Compartmented Box for M6 Screw Assortment

I needed some flat head M6 screws for a project, and they came in a cheap subdivided plastic box. Sizes vary from 6mm to 22mm long.  The shiny stainless steel screws looked to me like they deserved a nicer box. This compartmented walnut box was made to hold them. 

Compartmented Box

The lid for the box slips onto the box easy and wedges down securely with a 3 degree tapered edge.  While I do have another piece of walnut that I could use for the top, a scrap of salvaged weathered wood with more interesting grain challenged that presumption. It was thick enough that a second use was cut into the top of it. 

Lid from a Weathered Wood Scrap

It now is a shallow tray to coral whatever small parts my current project may need. 

Parts Tray

A simple project.  Pocket toolpaths for the inner compartments. A profile toolpath for the perimeter. Another pocket for the rabbet edge on the underside of the lid.  Another profile toolpath for the outer shape of the lid.  Then the lid was flipped over to pocket cut the recess center of the tray, and round the inner edge of the recess using a profile on-the-line with a 3/8"d ball end bit.  

Comments encouraged!

4D

A Small Maple Box with a Contoured Lid.

This little box was cut from 4 corner scraps left over from a previous project.  The 4 corners were glued together to make a board with enough area for this 3" x 3" box. 

The lid was made from a scrap of Walnut wood I found in my scrap bin. The walnut was a bit thicker than I liked, so I cut the top to taper down to a thinner edge. 

Contoured Top

The bottom has a rabbet edge with a 3 degree slope for a fit that slips on easy but wedges tight.

Rabbeted edge

The lid overhangs the box by 1/16" to make it easier to pop the lid off. 

Overhanging Edge

The contrast between lid and box wasn't my original intent.  I started with a scrap of beech for the top but it worked loose while being cut and was ruined. A constant potential of using the CNC for making small parts.  I may darken the box with a walnut stain to lessen the contrast between box and lid. 

4D

 

Walnut Box with a Hinged Lid

  I've had this block of Claro Walnut in my stash for a month or so. Recently it dared me to make something from it. 

Rough Block in Vise

It took a few steps to turn this block into a hinged box.  First step was to cut out the inside and then the outer edge using a 1/4" end mill. 

Inside and Outer Edge Done

Next step was to use a 3/16" end mill to cut slots for a hinge plate near each end. 

Hinge Slots Cut

The last step using the CNC was to round over the back edge using a 3/16" ball nosed bit. 

Rounded Back Edge

While in the vise I couldn't cut the bottom 1/2" of the perimeter so the box moved over to my trim router table to be flush cut.

Ready to Flush Cut

The flush cut bit struggled cutting the end grain sides and left some sanding to be done to even out the surface.

Flush Cut. Some Sanding Needed.

A lid and hinges were still needed.  For the lid I found an old strip of 3/4" thick walnut.  I cut off 10" or so, then ripped it  2" wide using my table saw. Next I used my bandsaw to slice it in half.   I took one half and ran it through my drum sander to sand it smooth and uniformly thick.  That strip was cut into 3 pieces, which I then glued together side by side.  This left me with a thin piece large enough to cut the lid from. 

Lid.  CNC Done

Next came the band saw to free the shape from the rough block.

Bandsaw to free the lid.

Then to my trim router table to clean up the edges. 

Flush Cut the Edges

Now trimmed close to the shape of the box, and waiting for hinge plate inserts.

Slots align.

Hinge plates are cut from 6mm thick Baltic Birch plywood.  Glued into the slots in the lid. Pinned into the box with 1/8"d steel pins.

Lid Attached

The lid opens 90 degrees but no more. Action is smooth but I may test if a little wax on the hinge plate makes a difference. 

Lid closed.

All machining processes done.   Some manual sanding and a final coat of finish or two or three is all that is left to do.   A fun project. A good mental exercise. A useful box. Fewer wood scraps to deal with.  4 wins!

Comments encouraged!

4D 





 

Double Hinged Lidded Box

This is another project to use up some wood scraps.  It is also a personal challenge to see if I can make a working hinge for the lids from scraps. The box is red oak.  The lids are white oak.  The hinge plates are 6mm thick Baltic Birch plywood. Shorts lengths of 1/8" diameter stainless steel dowels are what the lids pivot over.  

Lids Open

A problem encountered was inconsistent pockets cut using my CNC.  The pockets for the hinge on the box end used the same vector as the pockets on the lid ends, but one set is narrower than the other.  I'll blame this on the two bits used.  One or both are not exactly the diameter they claim to be. 

Half way opened (or closed?)

The plywood hinge plates were cut from a scrap of 6mm thick baltic birch plywood. Each has a centered hole for the hinge pin, a rounded edge to fit in the slot cut for them, and a very shallow face pocket to thin them to ft in the slots cut for them in the box.  The shallow pocket and the rounded edge were cut on both sides. 

One Lid Closed

The lids were cut roughly 1/32" wider than the box to account for any misalignment when installed.  After some finish is applied to all parts the steel pins will be inserted flush and the lid edges will be flush cut to the box sides. 

The parts were relatively easy to create toolpaths for and cut out.  This project was a good learning exercise.  My next hinged box will benefit from what I learned making this one. 

Comments welcomed and encouraged.

4D 

A Squiggle Box.

Round or square or triangular or any other regular polygon shapes are reasonable shapes for a box.  This little box is my protest against "reasonable".  Presenting my Squiggle Box.  

It was made from a cut off scrap of a butcherblock countertop board, clamped into my low profile CNC vise.  

In my Vise

I had to extend the 1/4" spiral end mill to handle the depth needed for this box.  In addition I had to mount the vise down on the rail for the tailstock of my radial axis.   Cuts started with the center area.

Once the CNC finished it's part of this creation the box block was take to my bandsaw. First to trim away the corners. Next to my trim router table where a flush cut bit cleaned up the bottom 1/2" that the CNC avoided to preserve the jaws of my vise that held it. 

Just the box.

A lid was still needed so another scrap was used to make the lid.

Lid.  A poor fit.

Initial test found that the lid fit depended on how it was oriented to the top of the box.

Correct Orientation

Second test revealed that both orientation and alignment were require to arrive at a snug fit.

A good fit!  Finally. 

The top and bottom were rounded over to remove the sharp edges.  My roundover bit left burn marks though so more sanding will be needed to clean it up before applying a finish.

This little box succeeds in standing out from the ordinary.  It will still hold what other boxes the same size will hold. It is easier to grip and pick up than a smooth round box.  Both features are enough to justify its creation.

4D