Band saw box
Encyclopedia
Band saw boxes are boxes made out of wood
using only a bandsaw for cutting them out. The wood may be a solid block, a laminated block or a log from the woodpile. Whereas most boxes have straight sides and square corners, band saw boxes have virtually no restrictions as to shape. They can be oval, heart-shaped, lizard-shaped, or any shape the maker can think of. Other tools such as belt sander
s and drum sanders can be used to shape and sand the box smooth. Relief cuts are always needed if you are going to make a bandsaw box if you dont the box always seems to fall apart. If the bandsaw has a little hitch in it the box usually snaps in two.
There are a multiple techniques for constructing band saw boxes.
The primary construction technique is to cut the main shape of the box. Then cut a piece of wood off what is to become the back. Usually this piece is 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick. Then cut the drawer shape within the main shape. Once the drawer shape is cut the usual technique is to remove 1/8" to 1/4" of material from both the front and rear of the drawer shape to be used as a face. The remaining stock is then reduced or hollowed out to produce a drawer or cavity. All pieces being cut the front and rear drawer faces are glued back to the remaining hollowed drawer stock, thus producing the box with functional drawers which also appears to be a solid block of wood.
Wood
Wood is a hard, fibrous tissue found in many trees. It has been used for hundreds of thousands of years for both fuel and as a construction material. It is an organic material, a natural composite of cellulose fibers embedded in a matrix of lignin which resists compression...
using only a bandsaw for cutting them out. The wood may be a solid block, a laminated block or a log from the woodpile. Whereas most boxes have straight sides and square corners, band saw boxes have virtually no restrictions as to shape. They can be oval, heart-shaped, lizard-shaped, or any shape the maker can think of. Other tools such as belt sander
Belt sander
A belt sander is a machine used to sand down wood and other materials for finishing purposes. It consists of an electrical motor that turns a pair of drums on which a seamless loop of sandpaper is mounted. Belt sanders can be either hand-held, where the sander is moved over the material, or...
s and drum sanders can be used to shape and sand the box smooth. Relief cuts are always needed if you are going to make a bandsaw box if you dont the box always seems to fall apart. If the bandsaw has a little hitch in it the box usually snaps in two.
There are a multiple techniques for constructing band saw boxes.
The primary construction technique is to cut the main shape of the box. Then cut a piece of wood off what is to become the back. Usually this piece is 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick. Then cut the drawer shape within the main shape. Once the drawer shape is cut the usual technique is to remove 1/8" to 1/4" of material from both the front and rear of the drawer shape to be used as a face. The remaining stock is then reduced or hollowed out to produce a drawer or cavity. All pieces being cut the front and rear drawer faces are glued back to the remaining hollowed drawer stock, thus producing the box with functional drawers which also appears to be a solid block of wood.
Further reading
- Tom Crabb's 1986 original band saw box book.
- Lois Keener Ventura's 2000 book on drawered boxes.
- Donna Menke's new book, 2006, The Ultimate Band Saw Box Book. For more information go to Donna's web site: http://www.woodworks-by-donna.com
- Another good book for this wood working is Band Saw Box-The Wonders It Can Do
- Tony Ward's Bandsawn Box Plans and Pocket Guide to Bandsaw Box Making. For more information go to Tony's web site: http://www.tonyward.org
- Gerard Kelley has an article with pictures on how he makes band saw boxes. For more information go to Gerard's web site: http://www.alteredwood.com