Author Topic: Black Walnut Island (Read 12429 times)

thebicyclecafe · « **on:** December 19, 2012, 11:32 AM »

Hi Guys,
As promised and as a follow up from my contest entry (thanks for all your votes!), here's a pic of the completed island with African Mahogany top.
Door panels and side panels are made from resawn black walnut bookmatched, drawer fronts are also matched, walnut veneered with a resawn walnut. The back of the cabinet is a set of shelves. Will try to get a better picture of that later- less space back there to get a good pic.

reprised from contest:

Frank Pellow · « **Reply #1 on:** December 19, 2012, 12:05 PM »

That looks really good. I like the combination of woods.

galwaydude18 · « **Reply #2 on:** December 19, 2012, 12:09 PM »

God I'm in love with that walnut! I live the design as well!

Sparktrician · « **Reply #3 on:** December 19, 2012, 12:10 PM »

Really sweet!!!

pghmyn · « **Reply #4 on:** December 21, 2012, 11:44 AM »

My favorite part is the grain on the top drawer fronts. Simply amazing

Nick2cd · « **Reply #5 on:** December 22, 2012, 09:53 PM »

i have huge grain envy! that's some of the most pristine walnut i've ever seen.

Brandon · « **Reply #6 on:** December 23, 2012, 11:07 AM »

Walnut might be favorite wood, great looking stuff you got there

Mauri Motti · « **Reply #7 on:** December 23, 2012, 01:32 PM »

Absolutely awesome. I wish woods like that would be more accessible here. Honestly, in Finland I know only one such place and therefore they have monopoly of course.
Great job on the re-sawed fronts. Also really like the top with the breadboards (thats how you call them right?) held with drawbored joints in black wood! (ebony?) Very nice indeed. Thanks for sharing.

Merry days

Mauri

thebicyclecafe · « **Reply #8 on:** December 24, 2012, 12:23 PM »

Quote from: Nick2cd on December 22, 2012, 09:53 PM

i have huge grain envy! that's some of the most pristine walnut i've ever seen.

Thanks for the comments

My lumber dealer called the batch the "the world's best walnut," I thought it was a joke until I saw some of the boards. I absolutely needed to have the drawer front board, and decided to book match the two fronts, so ended up resawing it in to veneer (best part, now I still have 6 pieces to play with).
The doors were actually made from just a regular piece of walnut that happened to have some figure, but when I bookmatched it it had a very nice pattern. Making 8 1/16" pieces of veneer out of a piece of 4/4 was kind of dicey though, since nothing could go wrong during the resaw. I was able to end up with a 9th piece, which was too thin anyway.
Mauri, yes, the breadboard ends were drawbored with black walnut pegs. When walnut end grain receives finish, it actually becomes quite dark.

fdengel · « **Reply #9 on:** December 28, 2012, 12:33 PM »

Looks great!

honeydokreg · « **Reply #10 on:** December 28, 2012, 07:04 PM »

that looks amazing! just awesome with the book match fronts...thanks for sharing this project

thebicyclecafe · « **Reply #11 on:** July 05, 2013, 11:26 AM »

Shelving in the back

Side Panel

Solid Walnut Top Drawers

Quartersawn Maple Rollouts, Cornerpost Dovetails

Closeup of bookmatched doors

front

Paul G · « **Reply #12 on:** July 05, 2013, 11:41 AM »

I just drooled a little, black walnut is my favs.

NERemodeling · « **Reply #13 on:** July 05, 2013, 12:06 PM »

That thing is sooo nice! what amazing wood, and perfect use of it.. i love the look of the grain in the drawer fronts and what about the dovetail detail on those pull out trays!!! that it something else!

thanks for posting

my next guess is that you made both the end grain cutting board in the drawer and the one on the countertop in the third pic

you have an incredible talent!!

John

rnt80 · « **Reply #14 on:** July 05, 2013, 03:28 PM »

You did a wonderful job. The walnut looks amazing and I really like the pull outs. Did you use a jig for the dovetails or are they hand cut?

jmbfestool · « **Reply #15 on:** July 05, 2013, 03:30 PM »

Very nice

MrToolJunkie · « **Reply #16 on:** July 05, 2013, 03:50 PM »

This is stunning! You did a fabulous job. Very nice and awesome fit and finish!

Scot

John Bates · « **Reply #17 on:** July 05, 2013, 04:39 PM »

Beautiful job, lovely wood, just can't stand the smell of machining it!

tjbnwi · « **Reply #18 on:** July 05, 2013, 05:10 PM »

Most excellant sir.

Tom

Sparktrician · « **Reply #19 on:** July 05, 2013, 05:33 PM »

I really like those dovetails. Just stunning!!!

galwaydude18 · « **Reply #20 on:** July 05, 2013, 07:35 PM »

Brev · « **Reply #21 on:** July 06, 2013, 05:47 PM »

Very nice work. Can you explain the process on the dovetail caps on the drawers?

Thanks.

thebicyclecafe · « **Reply #22 on:** July 06, 2013, 09:02 PM »

Thanks all for the wonderful feedback!

John,
You have quite an eye for the surrounding objects in the pics, don't you!

Yes, there's an end grain cutting board and a zebrawood cheese board on top.

Russell,
The dovetails are cut with the Incra system (TS-LS fence with attached wonderfence), I find the system very easy to use and I get excellent, repeatable results.

Brev,
The corner post dovetails are a little complicated to explain... it's basically a two step half-blind dovetail. For regular dovetailed drawers, you'll have two tail boards and two pin boards for a drawer. For cornerpost dovetails, you'll have four tail boards and four corners (that have pins cut in them).
You would cut all your tail boards first, and then cut a pin board of contrasting species (this will become the cornerpost). Instead of cutting a stopped dovetail, you would rout the dovetail groove all the way through. Then you take the piece, and cross cut 4 pieces to the width of the thickness of your tail boards. Then the cornerposts glue onto two of your tail boards. Then, after glue sets, you rout those two pieces as if they were pin boards, which mate to your remaining tail boards. I hope that makes sense!
This guy had a good write up here if you're so inclined, http://www.routerforums.com/show-n-tell/8972-corner-post-dovetail-pen-box-build-thread-lots-pics.html

Quote from: NERemodeling on July 05, 2013, 12:06 PM

That thing is sooo nice! what amazing wood, and perfect use of it.. i love the look of the grain in the drawer fronts and what about the dovetail detail on those pull out trays!!! that it something else!

thanks for posting

my next guess is that you made both the end grain cutting board in the drawer and the one on the countertop in the third pic

you have an incredible talent!!

John

Nick Jarrell · « **Reply #23 on:** July 13, 2013, 10:22 PM »

Beautiful work all around. A lot of love and effort in this piece.

You are in my neck of the woods, I could learn a lot from you.

Wooden Lungs · « **Reply #24 on:** July 14, 2013, 12:06 PM »

What a piece of work that is. I love the back too. Well thought out in every way.

The lower drawer dovetails are fantastic never seen them done in that way before. Have included them in my "joint" sketchbook

Thanks for posting.