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Walnut • 1/4" Brass Rod • Glue • 1/4" Plywood • Wipe-On Poly
First, I filled in any knot holes with epoxy.
With all the knot holes filled, I could rip the boards to width.
Next, I cut all the pieces to length.
With all 4 pieces cut out, I began laying out the half lap joints and the curved top.
Then I took the pieces to the bandsaw to cut everything out.
I fine tuned all the joints with a chisel and then I did a dry test fit.
I also sanded the inside faces of each piece as it was much easier to do this now rather than later when the box is assembled.
Next, I applied some masking tape to the inside corners in order to catch any squeeze out from the glue. This step saves a lot of time later on. Then I applied glue to all the surfaces in contact and clamped it all together.
I made sure to check for square.
Next, I took my router and routed a groove along the entire inside bottom edge.
I then cut a piece of thin plywood to size that would sit flush in the groove I just routed in.
Next, I marked out the locations for the brass rods.
Then, I could drill holes for the brass rods over at the drill press.
Then I applied some epoxy to each brass rod and hammered them into the holes.
While the epoxy on the brass rods cured, I glued and brad nailed the bottom panel in place.
Then I sanded everything smooth.
For a finish, I used wipe on poly. I really like this finish because it's incredibly simple to apply.
And just like that, it was finished!