Travel Tool Chest & Workbench Build Process

Return to main project page

The problem with oiling wood is that it shows up all the problems.

I'd looked over the chest (what I thought was) very carefully, but hadn't seen this crack until the oil went on. I guess my dovetails were a bit tighter than I thought.

It's not visible from the (also oiled) inside surface, so at least the crack doesn't go all the way through. I'm sure it won't affect the strength of the chest much but it's a bit disappointing. I'm not sure whether there's anything good that can be done; the only thought I've had so far is sand the oil off and then use some sawdust/superglue to fill it in. I'm not sure whether that will make it look worse though.

Anyway, that's going to have to be something to think about post-holiday.

In the meantime, I've now given the inside awkward bits one coat of MMM, the relatively accessible with stretched fingers surfaces two coats and all the easy to get to bits three coats. That's all I've got time for I think.

This evening I started chucking things in the drawers to fill it up:

I'm very, very happy to say that I can lift it without too much difficulty! I wouldn't want to hike up a mountain carrying it, but to and from the car should be okay.

I need to work on something to stop things rattling around in the car during the drive and ferry crossing, but for this trip that might be very temporary and consist of bubble wrap and masking tape. I'd welcome other suggestions though.

Partly for my record (so I know what to put where for the return journey) and partly in case anyone else is interested, this is what ended up in the chest thus far.

Right-hand side drawer: router plane and block plane and a lot of space really.

Left hand side, first drawer: saws.

Second drawer: sharpening stuff, pencils, rules, glue brushes and some other miscellany.

Third drawer: more marking stuff, router cutters (in a 3D printed tray to protect the edges), the other blades for the two LA planes (again in a 3D printed tray), silicone glue tray and the all-important tea‑light.

Fourth drawer: lots of chisels. Still need a 3D printed end cap for the 3.2 mm chisel and something or other to protect the tips of the carving chisels assuming I do take them (still undecided). This drawer is the one that is most in need of something to stop things moving around.

I might not take all of these, but one can never have too many. I'll definitely take the 16 mm for paring type jobs and I'll definitely take a couple of the smaller sizes for pins. I'll also take at least one of the skewed chisels, but everything else is still TBD.

Fifth drawer: doe's foot, hammer, masking tape, spring clamps, scrapers and screwdriver bit holder handle.

Finally, there's a (separate) bag with some miscellaneous "hardy" stuff like clamps, glue bottles and Allen keys.

I am a hobbyist metalworker and woodworker. I work as an electronic design engineer and spend most of my working days in front of a computer so I enjoy having the opportunity to use my hands and make things in my spare time. I particularly enjoy making tools as I can then use them on other projects. This website showcases some of the things I've made.

This website is free and ad-free, but costs me money to run. If you'd like to support this site, please consider making a small donation or sending me a message to let me know what you liked or found useful.

Please do get in touch if you notice any issues on the site or can think of anything that would be a helpful addition or improvement.