I’ve started to cut wood for a wooden briefcase. My original plan was to miter/bevel all six sides to make a ‘solid block’ and then cut the top off. All sides would be smoothed with a 1/8” roundover bit for a seamless look on the edges. Splines would be cut into the miters both for strength as well as decorative elements.
Then I started thinking about wood movement. I’ve made yoga blocks for my wife with this method and there’s been no cracking/movement at all in more than five years, but then, the boxes are only 5 inches wide and they don’t really go out of the house into different environments.
Am I foolish to plan it this way? Should I make a frame/panel case with the top and bottom free floating in the sides much like a traditional box?
The wood is a dense piece of canary wood. The dimensions will be 18 long x 13 wide x 4 or 4 1/2” high. I’m looking at planing the thickness down to perhaps 5/16” thick…maybe 1/4” as it’s pretty dense and hard and I don’t want it to be too heavy.
Thanks.
Replies
Don't leave it in the sun in the hot car. : )
Hi Grantman,
Nice project !
You might want to read this article by Lon Schleining
https://www.finewoodworking.com/PlansAndProjects/PlansAndProjectsPDF.aspx?id=2667
Similar project in size and use.
He talks about the stability issues. He visited the Smithsonian to study the real MacCoy (twice I believe) traveling from California while building a few of these ! ! ! Now, THAT is dedication. I like the Jefferson "lap top" very much but have not built one yet.
Thanks
Roc and Ralph - sorry for getting back after such a long delay. I appreciate the info from both. Jefferson's desk looked to be a work of art; great link.
Cheers!
The life of a briefcase . . .
. . . is tougher than we think. Rapid changes in environment from inside to outdoors, exposure to sunlight, etc., etc.
As such, I think the solid-wood panels would be problematic.
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