Blanket Box in English Oak - *** FINISHED ***

[Roger-M]

With the moisture content of my pile of English Oak now low enough to work with (14 - 15%), and just as I was contemplating a bookcase, my daughter asked if I would make her a blanket box. As this is likely to be a smaller project than the bookcase, I decided that I'd do this first, and never having used english oak I thought it would help the learning curve. I'm not a SketchUp user and my 1/2 scale pencil drawing is too faint to photo, but we're talking of a traditional frame with inset raised panels. Dimensions are 90 cms x 50 cms x 50 cms.

So here's the starting point. One large plank of 1" oak, plus a short length of 2" for the corners.



Having carefully selected pieces wide enough for the panels, they were just too wide to fit through the p/t - aaaggghhhh! So ripped them down the middle, planed them to thickness (18mm), and rejoined them. For the first time I used my Incra wonderfence to joint the edges and it was simplicity itself.



I used an offset of about 0.5mm and the result was perfect. The chalk mark on the panel is to make sure I join the right sides together. I jointed one panel face up and the other face down to cancel out any setting up errors.



Whilst I suspect that a straight glue join would be strong enough, bearing in mind the joint will not be load bearing, I decided that I would use 3 x oak tongues, a bit like a loose m&t, using the simple jig made for the purpose out of an offcut of engineered flooring and 6" x 2". The slot in the flooring is made precisely to fit the collar on my router, and was made by simply lowering the board onto the 6mm cutter on the router table, and then widening it for a precise fit using the adjuster on the Incra. Simples!

To use it, just clamp the work piece and jig together



and slide router from end to end against the collar. It's important to have the face side of each piece of the panel against the same face of the jig so that they register together precisely.



I then used the p/t to thickness some oak offcuts down to 6mm for the loose tenons and glued up.

The panels were fielded out using a large cutter from Wealden which cuts both the front field and back rebate simultaneously, leaving a 6mm tongue to fit into the groove around the panel frames. My daughter wants the box personalised, so steep learning curve here having never done anything like this before. First I reread some of the excellent threads at another place on the subject, on cutting the letters which gave me the confidence to go for it. This Video on the Fine Woodworking site was also very useful, and I treated myself to the excellent book, Letter carving in Wood by Chris Pye.

I started off by doing a test piece in an offcut,



and being reasonably happy with the result I set out the actual work piece on the kitchen table. The letters were printed off on the pc using Times New Roman 160 pt in outline, and the corner features were hand drawn on a piece of paper and then scanned for posterity. Then I traced them onto the panels using carbon paper. Incidently, have you ever tried explaining the concept of carbon paper to a teenage shop assistant? Was I talking in Greek? But that's a different story. Here's the layout ready to carve.



Letters ready to be carved.



.... and the corner features.




I started off with carving letters with straight edges only. One reason for waiting until the new year was that I'd rather carve 10 than 09




Then moved on to the curves. Tools used were a varierty of straight bevel edge chisels for the straights, then a small selection of gouges (with a #5,#6,#7 and #9 sweep) for the curves and plus a skew chisel for the serifs. This photo is face on in strong sunlight. There are a few imperfections, but since the finished article will be near floor level in the subdued lighting of a bedroom, I'm reasonably happy with it.



Then on to the corner motifs. I'm not so sure about these, but it's what her ladyship wants!



Spent yesterday in the garage cutting 28 m&t joints for the frame. No photos of WIP, but not rocket science. These are loose tenons set in slots cut with the router using the same simple jig shown earlier. Here it is dry fitted together. With the benefit of hindsight I may have used a sliding dovetail to join the top rails to the legs, but past the point of no return now - loose m&t will have to do!



Question. Any suggestions for finishes? I do not want to use any stain, but just develope a deep shine, like wax, but maybe a bit more bulletproof.

[mrgrimsdale]

Looks very nice. I like the lettering I keep meaning to have a go.
Finish;
Danish Oil; easy, quick, durable, looks nice.
Raw linseed oil; looks good eventually (darkens very slowly) but slow drying (several days at room temp). Very durable and classy.

[promhandicam]

Very nice - I'm sure your daughter will treasure it. With regards to finish I think I would just use a paste wax like briwax or a hardwax oil like osmo.

[mtr1]

I think the carving looks really good bud.

[jonnyd]

Looks very good and nice carving must have a go my self some day or get a cnc router.

How are the panels being attached to the frame?

cheers

Jon

[sgiandubh]

Question. Any suggestions for finishes? I do not want to use any stain, but just develope a deep shine, like wax, but maybe a bit more bulletproof.

I would eliminate all choices that include oil in the formulation for any of the interior parts. That takes out the choice of linseed oil, Danish oil, tung oil and oil based varnishes. The reason for my recommendation that they make the interior smell bad. This bad smell will transfer to any clothing or blankets stored in the chest. The worst offender is either linseed oil and pure tung oil which never really seem to lose the malodorous feet smell, even many years after application. Danish oil type formulations are the next worst and the bad smell generated from these does eventually fade, and oil based varnishes tend to smell bad for a couple of years. For the interior your safest choice is no finish at all, shellac, or a water based finish.

You can use all the oil based finishes you care to use on the exterior. Boiled linseed oil isn't a very durable or water resistant finish unless you get about 20 or more coats on-- much the same applies to pure tung oil, and both need regular re-application to maintain a sheen. Danish oil formulations are basically thinned out long oil varnishes and need five to ten applications before they build up a barrier of any note-- these too generally need regular reapplication about every year or two. Oil based varnishes will coat satisfactorily with two or three coats applied, and are the most protective of all the finishes I've mentioned-- refinishing of the piece, assuming it's both an internal item and looked after reasonably well may not need doing for anywhere between ten and fifty years.

Wax alone provides very little protection to wood and any water that gets on the chest will almost always show up as a white mark. Wax finishes are constant maintenance finishes if you want the item to maintain an attractive sheen year after year-- by constant I mean repeated waxing and buffing vigorously every two or three weeks throughout the first fifteen or thirty years of the life of the piece.

Having said all that, each of the finishes I've run through very briefly have their place. Which one is right depends on a range of factors such as: the protection desired against damage from water, water vapour, alcohol, and various chemicals found in household cleaner; the willingness or unwillingness of your 'client' to do regular maintenance; your wood finishing skills and application facilities; and your preferences. Slainte.

[Roger-M]

Question. Any suggestions for finishes? I do not want to use any stain, but just develope a deep shine, like wax, but maybe a bit more bulletproof.

I would eliminate all choices that include oil in the formulation for any of the interior parts. That takes out the choice of linseed oil, Danish oil, tung oil and oil based varnishes. The reason for my recommendation that they make the interior smell bad. This bad smell will transfer to any clothing or blankets stored in the chest. The worst offender is either linseed oil and pure tung oil which never really seem to lose the malodorous feet smell, even many years after application. Danish oil type formulations are the next worst and the bad smell generated from these does eventually fade, and oil based varnishes tend to smell bad for a couple of years. For the interior your safest choice is no finish at all, shellac, or a water based finish.

You can use all the oil based finishes you care to use on the exterior. Boiled linseed oil isn't a very durable or water resistant finish unless you get about 20 or more coats on-- much the same applies to pure tung oil, and both need regular re-application to maintain a sheen. Danish oil formulations are basically thinned out long oil varnishes and need five to ten applications before they build up a barrier of any note-- these too generally need regular reapplication about every year or two. Oil based varnishes will coat satisfactorily with two or three coats applied, and are the most protective of all the finishes I've mentioned-- refinishing of the piece, assuming it's both an internal item and looked after reasonably well may not need doing for anywhere between ten and fifty years.

Wax alone provides very little protection to wood and any water that gets on the chest will almost always show up as a white mark. Wax finishes are constant maintenance finishes if you want the item to maintain an attractive sheen year after year-- by constant I mean repeated waxing and buffing vigorously every two or three weeks throughout the first fifteen or thirty years of the life of the piece.

Having said all that, each of the finishes I've run through very briefly have their place. Which one is right depends on a range of factors such as: the protection desired against damage from water, water vapour, alcohol, and various chemicals found in household cleaner; the willingness or unwillingness of your 'client' to do regular maintenance; your wood finishing skills and application facilities; and your preferences. Slainte.

Thanks - very helpful! Would you include Osmo PolyX in your list of finishes that might be OK for the interior as well as the exterior. I must admit I hadn't thought of that one until Steve mentioned it.

Looks very good and nice carving must have a go my self some day or get a cnc router.

How are the panels being attached to the frame?
Jon

CNC? That's no fun. Just get stuck in with whatever straight chisels you already have, and get a small selection of gouges (3 or 4) for the curves! Just sharpen them until they as sharp as a very sharp thing. The panels will float in the frames with a short oak peg put in from the inside and which doesn't go through to the exterior to keep it central. Unless anyone has any better ideas - I'm on a steep learning curve here.

[mtr1]

I'm not sure I understand the oak peg thing, could you not just grove them in. Or am I missing something?

[mrgrimsdale]

....The panels will float in the frames with a short oak peg put in from the inside and which doesn't go through to the exterior to keep it central. Unless anyone has any better ideas - I'm on a steep learning curve here.

Would you need a peg? Could become the stress point perhaps?
Expect major shrinkage of the panels across the grain unless your wood has been thicknessed and kept for a long time in an environment similar to the ultimate destination; one good reason for a simple oil finish in that you can easily cover the newly revealed wood.
18mm is a thick panel so you might get a powerful bit of warping too.

Having carefully selected pieces wide enough for the panels, they were just too wide to fit through the p/t - aaaggghhhh! So ripped them down the middle, planed them to thickness (18mm), and rejoined them.

aaaggghhhh what a pity, what's wrong with a handplane?

[sgiandubh]

Would you include Osmo PolyX in your list of finishes that might be OK for the interior as well as the exterior. I must admit I hadn't thought of that one until Steve mentioned it.

I can't say as I've never used it. However I see that it's made with vegetable oils and contains wax. I'd guess that those oils could smell as rancid as linseed oil or tung oil if they are trapped inside a small space.

Below is a list of the ingredients in the product lifted from this link: http://www.osmouk.com/sheets/polyx_oil.pdf Slainte.

Ingredients
50-60 % solids (High Solid)
Base: natural vegetables oils and waxes (sunflower oil, soy-bean oil, thistle oil, carnauba and candellila wax), paraffines.
Additives: siccatives (drying agents) and water-repellent additives.
Solvents: disaromatized white spirit (benzenefree - in compliance with purity demands of the
European Pharmacopoeia).
Full declaration of ingredients upon request.
This product fulfils EU-regulation (2004/42/EC) according to the VOC limit value of max. 500 g/l (Kat. A/e (2010))

[Roger-M]

I'm not sure I understand the oak peg thing, could you not just grove them in. Or am I missing something?

Jon - the panels are 6 mm thick around the edges and will sit in a groove routed in to the frame

....The panels will float in the frames with a short oak peg put in from the inside and which doesn't go through to the exterior to keep it central. Unless anyone has any better ideas - I'm on a steep learning curve here.

Would you need a peg? Could become the stress point perhaps?
Expect major shrinkage of the panels across the grain unless your wood has been thicknessed and kept for a long time in an environment similar to the ultimate destination; one good reason for a simple oil finish in that you can easily cover the newly revealed wood.
18mm is a thick panel so you might get a powerful bit of warping too.

Yep - I think maybe I'll wait and see how much slack there is in practice. According to FWW, across a 10" panel expect 1/32" of shrinkage across the grain for each 1% reduction in moisture content. So as the largest panels are about 10" wide and I'm allowing for anything up to 5% moisture loss, that equates to 5/64th per side - or just over 1/16"th. The oak boards have been air drying in an open (front and back) garage for about 18 months, and the thicknessed panels have been sticked in the spare bedroom for about 6 weeks. Time will tell whether it's enough.

I shall put at least one coat of finish on the panels before glue up of the frame to help overcome the newly revealed wood problem during shrinkage. Your point on using Oil is well made though.

I'm already wondering whether 18mm is too thick. It's turning out a heavy b******.

Having carefully selected pieces wide enough for the panels, they were just too wide to fit through the p/t - aaaggghhhh! So ripped them down the middle, planed them to thickness (18mm), and rejoined them.

aaaggghhhh what a pity, what's wrong with a handplane?

Yes - sacrilege I know - but 10 panels of 10" wide oak? Life's too short, and anyway it has to be finished by 22nd Jan.

Would you include Osmo PolyX in your list of finishes that might be OK for the interior as well as the exterior. I must admit I hadn't thought of that one until Steve mentioned it.

I can't say as I've never used it. However I see that it's made with vegetable oils and contains wax. I'd guess that those oils could smell as rancid as linseed oil or tung oil if they are trapped inside a small space.

Hmmm! I quite like the idea of PolyX on the outside as I know it has a reputation for being very hard wearing. Maybe a simple wax finish for the interior? Or if a waterbased finish as you suggest above, what? I've never used one.

Thanks for all your ideas guys. Much appreciated.

[woodsmith]

I've used lemon oil inside cupboards when I've not wanted to leave them untreated, not the most durable finish but that shouldn't be a problem for you.

[mrgrimsdale]

...I'd guess that those oils could smell as rancid as linseed oil or tung oil if they are trapped inside a small space....

Linseed doesn't go rancid in my experience but if it doesn't dry it does smell (of linseed oil).
I wouldn't put any finish on the inside at all - problematic and serves no purpose.

[nickw]

Re the peg thing, I use cocktail sticks. Once the panel is assembled in its frame centre it. Drill a suitable sized hole from the back in the inside edge of the top and bottom rails, centred in the width and centred on the depth of the rebate. Make it deep enough to go just through the frame's rebate. Chop the tip off of a cocktail stick and tap it into the hole until it bottoms out, no need for glue if the drill bit was the right size (1.5mm IIRC). Trim the stick flush with a sharp chisel. This ensures that the panel will always be centred in the frame, whatever the seasonal movement, and also stops it rattling around should the panel lip be slightly too small for the rebate - not that that ever happens to me, oh no. It also saves titting around with little rubber balls or strips of foam which I believe some people do.

The insruction assume that the panel's grain runs vertically. Rotate 90° if not.

[mrgrimsdale]

Sounds like a good idea but I've never seen this done in old work so I assume it is not necessary. Neither have I really encountered a moved panel where it would have helped. It could act like a glazing sprig and actually cause a split rather than helping in any way IMHO.

[sgiandubh]

Linseed doesn't go rancid in my experience but if it doesn't dry it does smell (of linseed oil).
I wouldn't put any finish on the inside at all - problematic and serves no purpose.

I didn't say it goes rancid Mr Grim. I described the bad smell as rancid or earlier, in another post, as malodorous. Whatever word you prefer to use, linseed oil used inside small spaces such as cabinets makes the interior smell bad.

If I wanted to put a finish on the inside of the blanket box under discussion I would go for no finish, or perhaps a shellac, assuming spray facilities aren't available. A water based finish might also do. For my own work I usually do interiors with either shellac or a pre-catalysed lacquer as I do have spraying facilities. Slainte.

[Roger-M]

Just in case no one has noticed, it's b****y cold outside, but with a deadline to meet, it's been business as usual and spent much of the weekend in the workshop.

Next job was to rout a 6mm groove all around the frame to take the panels. Then a light chamfer was taken off the edges of the frame to soften the look and feel. I did this with a chamfer bit on the router table, simply sliding the workpiece between 2 stops.



Next comes one of the favourite parts of any project - a dry fit.



The eagle-eyed amongst you will have noticed that the back rail is raised above the top by about 3mm. This because in a fit of enthusiasm, I got carried away and cut the groove for the panels in the wrong side of the rail. aaaaggghhh!



My initial thought was to fill the groove with a piece of offcut, but then decided an easier fix was to turn the whole panel upside down, as shown, and then adjust the fit by adjusting the loose m&t. All it took was to lengthen the mortise by 3mm and cut a new loose tenon and case solved. No one will see the errant groove on the underside of the bottom rail, which will be partially covered by a plinth anyway. IMHO this is one of the best reasons for using loose tenons. If there is a total fvxk-up/design change , it is an easy job to adjust the loose m&t, whereas a traditional m&t would be a real PITA.

Next, knock the whole thing apart and finish the panels. This is the state of a new filter in my Trend Air Ace after about an hours sanding, with both the main garage door and rear doors open for ventilation. And to think that once I never used to wear any dust protection at all!



I've treated the panels to 2 coats of Liberon Finishing Oil before assembly. This will be followed with one more coat on the finished item, followed by clear bison wax. The look in the photo under artificial light makes them look more yellow than they actually are.



Thanks for all your finishing suggestions. I settled on the finishing oil because the local shop had some, and polyX would have meant a longer drive and it's over £20 a tin and the budget is already running away on this one! Now for the glue up of the end panels.



While these are drying and I await the freeing up of the clamps, I get on with the lid. First having thickness the stock some weeks back and stacked it in the back bedroom to acclimatise, I set to joining the 3 pieces together. Lids take a fair bit of stick, so I've used 5 loose stub tenons over the 90cm length for added strength and also to register the edges, using my trusted mortice jig and router.




Ready to glue up.



I find that when clamping up a piece like this, the easiest method is to take it up initially on the pipeclamps that run the full length of my bench, and then to add the sash clamps afterwards.



Obviously it then needs to come indoors before it freezes!



Ready for marking out for the breadboard ends now - at which point I stop to think, and perhaps you guys can offer some constructive suggestions.



There are to be breadboard ends 8cms wide, with (I think) 4 tenons and a full width stub tenon, a bit like this.



The stub tenon will stop about 2 cms from the end for aesthetic purposes, and room left for movement as shown. But how to cut this accurately?

The bread boards themselves should be easy. Just cut a groove on the router table using a 6mm bit.

But whilst the lid is pretty flat, I'm not confident of cutting the tenons and stub tenon on the router table. It will only take a very minor flex in the top to make the tenons vary in thickness and therefore a poor fit in the bread board.

Maybe clamp the lid flat onto a couple of pieces of stout straight stock and rout the tenons to thickness with a hand held router held against a straight edge?

Or maybe fit a loose stub tenon in grooves cut on the router table and fit loose tenons in deeper mortises cut using the mortise jig? These would be firmly glued into the lid, and then pegged and glued into the boards for the 2 tenons either side of the centre, and just pegged for the outer 2 through slots in the tenon as shown above.

Any ideas guys? My own thoughts are to clamp a piece of straight timber across both sides and try to cut them on the router table first. I can then cut a groove in the bread board to match the tenon I end up with. If that doesn't work, I can simply cut off the tenons, maybe with a pass of the router along a straight edge and go down the stub tenon and loose tenons route. But I'm open to suggestions.

[mrgrimsdale]

But whilst the lid is pretty flat, I'm not confident of cutting the tenons and stub tenon on the router table. It will only take a very minor flex in the top to make the tenons vary in thickness and therefore a poor fit in the bread board.

Maybe clamp the lid flat onto a couple of pieces of stout straight stock and rout the tenons to thickness with a hand held router held against a straight edge?

Or maybe fit a loose stub tenon in grooves cut on the router table and fit loose tenons in deeper mortises cut using the mortise jig? These would be firmly glued into the lid, and then pegged and glued into the boards for the 2 tenons either side of the centre, and just pegged for the outer 2 through slots in the tenon as shown above.

Any ideas guys? My own thoughts are to clamp a piece of straight timber across both sides and try to cut them on the router table first. I can then cut a groove in the bread board to match the tenon I end up with. If that doesn't work, I can simply cut off the tenons, maybe with a pass of the router along a straight edge and go down the stub tenon and loose tenons route. But I'm open to suggestions.

What I did last time was to clamp as you suggest, between 2no 2"x4" to get the end straight. Then mark up tenons and stubs between tenons and cut them out before doing the cheeks. Then mark the tenon and stub ends with a mortice gauge and take off the waste with a Stanley 78 against a clamped on piece of mfc as a fence, set against a well cut line. The line underneath I made slightly over cut so it stayed tight on top.
You could be extra careful by siting the fence a bit over so that there is a last paring left to take off the shoulders, with a long shoulder plane if you've got one, or a 78 on edge if you haven't.
This is one of those jobs where hand tools suddenly come in to their own as the best way

[mtr1]

Its looking good bud. With regard to the breadboard ends, we used to cut the ends square on the top, leaving enough for the tenons. Then use a router with the tenon size set at say 1 1/4" and just run off the fence from the edge of the top. Turn over and repeat, and once your tenon shoulders are routed the rest can either be hogged off with a router or electric planer, then rebate plane to fit.

[Roger-M]

Time to grasp the "bread board ends" nettle! Thanks to Jacob and Mark for your inputs. In the end, when I came to mark up, the amount I had to play with if considering tradional M&T ends was marginal, so loose tenons it is! First job was to cut a square face on one of the ends, using 3 passes of the router against a straight edge, and with the router supported by the breadboard end which has already been thicknessed at the same time as the top.



Out comes the mortise jig again to cut 6mm x 50mm mortises in the ends. I got to 25mm deep with the router, and deepened them to 30mm with a chisel.



The matching mortises in the ends were done in exactly the same way. With the loose tenons glued in place, I then used the router against the straight edge to rout down to the face of the loose tenons. First pass was just slightly short of the tenons.



To take up the final bit, I locked the router on the plunge stop, then raised the adjustable bar enough to slip a thick piece of paper underneath, then lowered it to trap the paper between the adjusting bar and the screw stop. Lock the plunge mechanism in place, lift the adjusting stop bar and slip the piece of paper out. Then lower the adjustor to take up the gap left. This enabled me to shave the thickness of the paper off on each pass until the full length stub tenon was down to the same level as the loose tenons. Hopefully the pics explain what I'm drivelling on about!



Without moving the straight edge, plunge through the workpiece at the ends into a supporting piece below. This was completely flush with the face already cut and provides a reference to register the cutter against when it comes to cutting the other side. In the picture it doesn't look flush, but that's because of a few "whiskers" on the exit - I guess I should have used a piece of scrap to prevent this very slight breakout, but the face is completely flat.



Square up with a chisel and then turn over and repeat for the other side. A matching long mortise was cut in the end piece on the router table, and then widened a fraction of a mm at a time using the Incra until I had a snug fit. Then glued up the middle 2 M&Ts, including the stub tenon, but leaving the outer tenons unglued to allow movement.

Whist that was drying, I fitted a plinth all the way round.



The breadboard ends cleaned up nicely.



Then 3 coats of Liberon finishing oil and a couple of coats of clear wax later, it's all finished.









Overall, I'm happy with the result. It'll need a few more coats of wax to bring out the full potential, but it has to be delivered to my daughter in 2 days, so it'll give her something to do!

[jonnyd]

A very nice piece of furniture Roger I think your daughter will be very pleased with it.

cheers

jon

[mtr1]

Very smart mate.

[modernist]

Very nice. The carving and lettering is very impressive. Did you say it was your first attempt

[engineerone]

really nice, and great carving, i am really jealous of that since my old man was a stone mason, and i have great difficulty cutting letters that precisely.

what i want to know though is how is it going to be moved once full of anything??

paul

[Roger-M]

Thanks for the comments guys.

Very nice. The carving and lettering is very impressive. Did you say it was your first attempt

Yep - 'fraid so! Not so very difficult so long as you go about it methodically. Just follow the guidelines set out in my first post and give it a go. I hesitate to offer any advice, given that this is my first attempt at carving, but if I did, it would be to mark out the design in meticulous detail - make sure you know how the ends of each letter are to be finished, mark in the centre lines etc. Make sure your chisels are as sharp as you can get them - and don't go out and buy a set of carving chisels. Use what you already have and only buy gouges etc as you need them. And start with straight edged letters - I was lucky to be confronted with LVM. The 2010 was a bit more of a challenge - but easier than 2009 !

really nice, and great carving, i am really jealous of that since my old man was a stone mason, and i have great difficulty cutting letters that precisely.

what i want to know though is how is it going to be moved once full of anything??

paul

Same way as you'd shift a full chest of drawers or freestanding wardrobe - empty it first!

[mrgrimsdale]

.... mark out the design in meticulous detail - make sure you know how the ends of each letter are to be finished, mark in the centre lines etc. ....

I've had a hasty go at letter carving without actually finishing anything - but will try again.
Re the centre line - is it always actually central or does it get off-set for different letter designs? I also wonder abt depth - how do you do the knob on the toe of a J in Engravers MT font or similar? It looks like you have to descend into a conical pit in the middle.

[Roger-M]

.... mark out the design in meticulous detail - make sure you know how the ends of each letter are to be finished, mark in the centre lines etc. ....

I've had a hasty go at letter carving without actually finishing anything - but will try again.
Re the centre line - is it always actually central or does it get off-set for different letter designs? I also wonder abt depth - how do you do the knob on the toe of a J in Engravers MT font or similar? It looks like you have to descend into a conical pit in the middle.

With all the wisdom gathered after cutting an L,V and M I suspect that the bulbous end to J in Engravers MT is possibly not the best choice of font. Maybe better to use Castellar or Trajan Pro for example, where the end can either be squared off, or tapered into a serif?

[faktura]

Hi Roger,
It is a really nicely wrought item.
I know, the carving in oak is not the easiest way to start. Otherwise shaping letters can be a difficult work anyway.
I guess your chisels and gouges had to be as sharp as they can be.
Grat!

Peter

[houtslager]

yep must agreewith all of the above - sharp carving neat joinery and a reasonable finish, all equalling a damn good product, keep it up and you'll go far

hs

[colincott]

yep must agreewith all of the above - sharp carving neat joinery and a reasonable finish, all equalling a damn good product, keep it up and you'll go far

hs

Could not have put it better myself.

Very job at the carving and in oak too.