making a wooden box for the Blakeslee

[smittyc7]

The wooden insert in my Blakeslee warped enough after just one season to render it useless.  Someone on the board mentioned making a new wooden box, and I remembered enough to attempt it myself.  Their method worked pretty good.  I took a piece of stock poplar I picked up at Lowes, ripped it to the correct dimensions, and then cut it into smaller blocks that I could use on a drill press.  I drilled the holes in each block, using the first block as a guide to the other blocks, and then gluing all the blocks back together as a unit.  I do have a few things to clean up inside, but I drilled the holes to 13/16, so there is plenty of room.  I believe he used a round file, so that is what I will do tomorrow.  Doing it took an hour or so, thinking about it took days. I shortened it just a bit so the tubes stuck out, so I could get a good grip on them just in case I was running across the field.

Good point, here are the tools I used:

• Speedway 16 speed standing drill press.
  
• Craftsman 10 inch table saw
• Delta 22 inch hand belt sander
• Gorilla Super Glue
• clamp
• 13/16 forstner drill bit with hex shank.
• poplar block from Lowes, it is three pieces layered together to make a block that is almost the correct size, only needing to be ripped on one side length-wise, then cross cut into blocks of the correct size that your drill bit will travel through, which probably varies from press and bit combination to the next.
• ruler to measure the block and to set up the initial drill points

I used a Speedway standing drill press that I picked up at a yard sale, but any size press should work.  This was my first project on it, so there may be other ways to make one, but this seemed pretty painless.  The type bit used is the important, due to the small tolerance between the walls of the holes.  I used a 13/16 forstner bit, it cuts clean sides, flat bottomed holes and doesn't seem to 'drift' sideways when drilling.  I found that putting a small piece of waste board under the block being drilled helps cut cleanly when the bit exits the bottom of the block.  I used a table saw to rip the original poplar block, using the original wooden insert to set up the fence to the correct size. After all the small blocks were drilled, I glued them together and used a clamp to keep them together until the glue set.  Super glue was chosen to quicken the process, I wanted to see if I could make it, it was intended as a 'draft', but seems to work quite well.  I think I will use a wooden dowel the next one I make, to line the holes up a bit better when I glue the blocks together.  I sanded it with a belt sander, gluing it together left it a bit rough.  I haven't thought about dressing it, but I probably will lightly varnish or stain it, to make it water resistant.  We all know that it NEVER rains at a reenactment.

[Two Flints]

Nice job smittyc7   ,

How about the tools used?  Drill press? drilling bits?  Just picked up a Grizzly bench drill press and she's ready to make holes . . . but for another project.

Does your insert get a finish (stain) or  is it just left plain?

Two Flints