A Little Extra Work
It was raining when I woke up this morning, but it was warm and humid. It looks like the autumn rains may affect my work again. However, the weather seems likely to stay dry from this afternoon through the weekend, so I decided to use this time to attach the sliding key panels and finish the 3-sun 18-steps puzzle boxes. Once it rains, the humidity does not drop within just a few hours. So this afternoon, I started by attaching the panels on the side with the larger gluing area. Unlike the 12-steps model, though, this 18-steps model has a fairly large gluing area on both sides, so there is less to worry about.
The checkered Yosegi I have been working hard to prepare over the past few days is already in its final stage. Today, I sliced it into thin sheets and glued them onto boards. Slicing takes a lot of time, so I only cut what I needed today and will do the rest another day. I plan to make 30 wide puzzle boxes this time, so I need 60 sheets. Each sheet provides two side panels, and each box needs four, which means two sheets per box. The photo shows the panels with the Yosegi sheets attached, along with the inner long side panels that I will glue onto them next. Each length provides enough material for two panels. Ideally, I would glue four panels at once, but a piece that long would not fit in my woodworking vise. Larger vises are available, but I do not have one in my workshop, so I cut the pieces in half before gluing them together. When I first cut the wood from a larger board, I leave it long enough for four panels. I only cut it in half at this gluing stage. The total area that needs glue is the same whether I work with 30 long pieces or 60 shorter ones. Still, handling twice as many pieces takes quite a bit more work, even if they are smaller.
I have never been the kind of craftsman who makes very large batches of boxes, but I still value a certain level of efficiency. Cutting the pieces shorter and gluing them separately like this is not very efficient. Other workshops would probably look for ways to improve this, and many have larger vises for that reason. It would have bothered me quite a bit in the past, but these days, I do not worry about it so much. Over the past ten years or so, I have gradually shifted toward making smaller batches. Still, making puzzle boxes involves many steps. If I do not work efficiently, they take much longer to make, and the price has to go up. So I keep some of the time-saving methods I have learned through experience, while focusing on designing and making unique boxes, even in small numbers.
The checkered Yosegi I have been working hard to prepare over the past few days is already in its final stage. Today, I sliced it into thin sheets and glued them onto boards. Slicing takes a lot of time, so I only cut what I needed today and will do the rest another day. I plan to make 30 wide puzzle boxes this time, so I need 60 sheets. Each sheet provides two side panels, and each box needs four, which means two sheets per box. The photo shows the panels with the Yosegi sheets attached, along with the inner long side panels that I will glue onto them next. Each length provides enough material for two panels. Ideally, I would glue four panels at once, but a piece that long would not fit in my woodworking vise. Larger vises are available, but I do not have one in my workshop, so I cut the pieces in half before gluing them together. When I first cut the wood from a larger board, I leave it long enough for four panels. I only cut it in half at this gluing stage. The total area that needs glue is the same whether I work with 30 long pieces or 60 shorter ones. Still, handling twice as many pieces takes quite a bit more work, even if they are smaller.
I have never been the kind of craftsman who makes very large batches of boxes, but I still value a certain level of efficiency. Cutting the pieces shorter and gluing them separately like this is not very efficient. Other workshops would probably look for ways to improve this, and many have larger vises for that reason. It would have bothered me quite a bit in the past, but these days, I do not worry about it so much. Over the past ten years or so, I have gradually shifted toward making smaller batches. Still, making puzzle boxes involves many steps. If I do not work efficiently, they take much longer to make, and the price has to go up. So I keep some of the time-saving methods I have learned through experience, while focusing on designing and making unique boxes, even in small numbers.