An Out Standing Chest

[Jeff L Headley]

Plane the top and bottom of the drawer front to the line then glue up and slide in the case.

 

[HSteier]

Hi Jeff.
Why not take the thickness of the "cog bead" directly with a marking guage and then scribe a line? Isn't it easier to plane to a scribed line?
Do you plane the rabbett for the bead or do you make the rabbett with a router?
And how about the sides? What technique do you use to achieve the cross grain rabbett?

Howard  Steier

 

[Jeff L Headley]

Hello Howard, Happy Spring
The reason I mark the beading with a pencil in the manner I do is that if I have a slight difference in the fit of the drawer front this method will let me fit the bead to the case and not the drawer front which is what a cutting gauge would do. I will remove the waste top and bottom with a planer and then hand fit with my hand plane to the line. This a not a critical fit that requires a knife line like say a dovetail. After the glue sets up I will remove the drawer and cut the side notch usually with a router. The top and bottom bead cover the drawer completely the side pieces will go back about 3/8" as to not cover up the dovetails.

 

[HSteier]

You glue on the top and bottom beads and then rabbett the side of the drawer with a router. How do you miter the beads to fit? When I do a beaded drawer I cut rabbetts all around so I can fit the beads strips with mitered ends.

Howard Steier

 

[Jeff L Headley]

I do the same thing. The glue up I mean is the drawer case not the bead. After the drawer sets up I will take the drawer out then cut the sides for the beading. Then apply all four pieces of beading mitering the joint where they intersect.

 

[walkerg]

Jeff,

Thanks for the great tip on marking the drawer fronts to cut the rabbets for beading. I've used a marker directly on the drawer fronts and found the fit varied based on how tight each drawer sat in it's opening. Thanks again.

George Walker

 

[Jeff L Headley]

George, Thank you, We have all kinds of ideas and occasionally some of them work.
Here is how we layout for the beading by marking the depth.

 

[Jeff L Headley]

Then we will rout away the waste setting the router to the lesser depth but then clean up the back edge with a chisel.

 

[Jeff L Headley]

After routing to the lesser depth sometimes we will need to plane the edge to be parallel with the case side.

 

[Jeff L Headley]

Next I will lay the "cog bead" on the drawer front after cutting it to length, a hair long and mark its width on both sides.

 

[Jeff L Headley]

Then mark the depth.

 

[Jeff L Headley]

Marked beading. Notice that the 45 doesn't go all the way to the back.

 

[Jeff L Headley]

Then cut to fit with a chisel. Cut from the line to the outside corners edge which will give you the 45. Watch your fingers. Glue, tack, and run away until tomorrow. 

 

[Jeff L Headley]

If there are no other questions( which I had hope there would be more of) on this project what might be a project of interest for next winter? Thanks for everyone's participation.

 

[HSteier]

Very nice demo and thanks.
I do have a comment and question
The times that I have made cockbeads, I would make rabbett on the side of the drawer fall short of the dovetails. I can see the advantage of cutting the rabbett into the tails; more bearing/glue surface for the bead.
Do you ever make the side bead pieces full thickness, i.e. completely cover the dovetail? This of course hides the joinery which can be a plus or minus depending on one's skills at cutting dovetails. However it makes mitering the beads slightly easier.

Howard Steier

 

[jacon4]

Yeah, i enjoyed following the posts/pics and construction details of a furniture form i was not familiar with. WELL DONE! For next winters project, i vote for...desk on frame.

Something along these lines

 

[jim vojcek]

Jeff, I also enjoy your construction information, most helpfull.  Would you consider the Townsend 3 shell blockfront?  Or the chest you show in FWW #211, the Quarter column article.

Jim Vojcek

 

[Jeff L Headley]

Howard, I would agree it would be easier just to cover the sides with the same width beading, but after putting all the work in cutting the dovetails it is a real shame to cover them up and then just tell everyone they are dovetailed. I have yet to see an old one with the side dovetails cover up. I am still waiting.
I like the idea of a desk on frame(very attractive desk). I am wondering how to cover carving over the internet with just photos. You need hands on for carvings. Thanks everone for following this exercises. Jeff Headley

 

[gvforster]

I hope we are not finished yet. I still waiting to see the top and how its applied and the back boards in place.

 

[Jeff L Headley]

Here is a picture of the overlapped back. I can show other pictures if this one isn't helpful enough.