Make a wooden, spring-assisted, sash cord lid stay.

comments (2) October 11th, 2011 in blogs

jtetreault John Tetreault, Associate Art Director
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Two holes in the lid keep the knot on the end of the sash cord on the interior of the case.
Heres the lid being held open by the sash cord. All that unfinished red cedar on the interior smells great!
With the lid starting to close, you can see the spring starting to pull the cord through the hole. Also you can see the knot that holds the lid open at the desired angle.
Here the lid is almost closed and you can see the cord relaxing exactly where it should be, against the interior of the case side.
Two holes in the lid keep the knot on the end of the sash cord on the interior of the case. - CLICK TO ENLARGE

Two holes in the lid keep the knot on the end of the sash cord on the interior of the case.

Photo: John Tetreault
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During a recent project I was going to install a standard brass lid stay, but it didn't have quite the right look I wanted. The same weekend I was working on the case, I was also fixing storm windows and got an idea after looking at the sash cords used on the windows.

I first drilled two holes in the cabinet lid, then tied a knot to one end of a piece of sash cord. I fished it through the hole from the interior and then back down from the top.

I drilled an angled hole through an interior rail that was tenoned into the case frame. I put the sash cord through that hole and then tied a knot where I wanted the lid to be held open.

Now here's the cool part. To keep the rope from binding up in the hole, or folding back on itself, I added a thin piece of cherry which is screwed to the inside of the case. It has a hole drilled about two inches from the bottom, which the sash cord is attached to with one more knot. The spring doesn't pull the lid closed, it simply assists the sash cord through the drilled hole and keeps it going in the right direction as you close the lid.

Check out this post to see the complete cabinet project:

http://www.finewoodworking.com/item/41747/recycled-cedar-clapboards-make-great-cabinet-panels


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posted in: blogs, cabinet, lid stay, sash cord, wooden spring
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Comments (2)

kghaile kghaile writes: I just now read the companion article. Looks like the design will definitely work as is for the intended purpose (and now I know what those slots on top are for). I still think enclosing the mechanisms would be worthwhile if not hanging the blankets inside.
Posted: 11:30 am on October 12th

kghaile kghaile writes: I really like this idea (simplicity and elegance), but I am concerned about it's function with the trunk full of stuff. Things will want to shift to fill out space. How will you make sure this doesn't get in the way of the spring or pinch the rope? Is a panel going to enclose the mechanisms?


Posted: 11:27 am on October 12th

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