making boxes

[takeaction]

I was looking through websites last night of patterns, different crafts, and I noticed that every carved, crafted, made wood box is put together with several pieces of wood... I noticed that a lot of them, once carved on the top and sides, sell for $150+ for the nice ones...

My question is... what would a box be worth that is made from a single piece of wood? I want to make boxes that are one piece of wood... cut out the box with top, then band saw the top off, and create the entire thing from that one piece, including feet... Why doesn't anyone do this? Is it that it takes too long to dig all that wood out, or is it just not possible, and I'm wanting to do something that can't be done?

Out of all the boxes I saw on all the websites, not a single one was a solid piece of wood. Question

[Claude]

There was a nice one published in the Wood Carving Illustrated Issue 35 - Summer 2006 by Deborah Call. It had a fairy asleep on the top.

Claude

[sorthum]

takeaction, Just did a google search with the words BAND SAW BOXES. I saw books,videos, online videos etc. I think this might be what you described. Sqaure, round, sculptered or about any shape you can imagine made from solid piece or a laminated piece. Hope this helps.
Jim

[Claude]

Fox Chapel has several books on the subject, also.

Custom Wooden Boxes for the Scroll Saw: <span class="subtitle">Innovative Techniques and Complete Plans for 31 Projects</span>
Wood Magazine: Making Great Boxes
Complete Illustrated Guide to Box Making Basics

In fact, if you go to Woodworking Books & Magazines for the Inspired Woodworker
and type "boxes" in the search area on the left, several dozen will show up...

Claude

[takeaction]

I was looking in the wrong places. Just went to google, typed in different types of patterns, and kept seeing all these boxes that are put together. never once saw a solid one. And some of the places were really high priced places with lots of carvings.

[brian-bailey]

I make a lot of boxes. I don't do band saw boxes though.

Here is a box that I made out of a solid 1" wormy butternut board to hold a CD. Nothing fancy, no carving except for the finger recess, just let the beauty of the wood & worm holes speak for themselves.

The top is fitted with a sliding dovetail.

[takeaction]

This is what I'm talking about. no saw cuts inside the box. no gluing, no nailing, no nothing but handwork with chisels or knife or gouges, etc. Then putting carvings on the outside of the box, or even burnings.

I wasn't specific when I said band saw earlier. I meant only using the band saw to cut out the shape and to cut off the top, then everything else being done by hand. I'm really bad at putting things into words without pictures. grrrr... I still may not be saying exactly what I mean. Basically a bowl with a top? only in the shape of a box.

[brian-bailey]

One of the drawbacks in using a solid block of wood for a box is the seasonal wood movement. The top will bind up in the summer and probably be to loose in the winter.

If you look at the band saw boxes which are mainly cut from a block of wood. There is a lot of slop around the drawers to allow for wood movement.

Lidded boxes turned on a lathe work fine at first, then after a while go out of round. Depending on the orientation of the grain, the lid might not fit the way you intended it to.

But that is what makes working with wood fun! You can't take anything for granted with wood.

[Ron T]

Brian,

Very nice box, especially the one block construction.

Is the cd "Ghost" Riders in the Sky? That's one of my all time favorites. I have around 7 versions.

[brian-bailey]

Originally Posted by Ron T

Brian,

Very nice box, especially the one block construction.

Is the cd "Ghost" Riders in the Sky? That's one of my all time favorites. I have around 7 versions.

Ron,

The CD is "Riders In The Sky - Silver Jubilee" featuring Joey The Cowpolka King, Ranger Doug, Woody Paul, and Too Slim.

2 CD's of great music!