Project to build walnut doors with stained glass -COMPLETED

[Frank Pellow]

2011, January 30:

There was a lot going on this week and, as well, I had intermittent electrical problems with my Festool Rotex 150 sander, so I didn’t make much progress on the hall door project.  I did get the walnut attached to the back” side of the door and made a good start on applying the walnut to the doorway leading to the office.

One of the pieces of walnut that I attached to the door contained a soft crumbly spot and, in fact a small hole all the way through.  But the rest of the piece was quite good, so I decided to position it so that the spot was right at the bottom and to attempt to patch the spot.  I prepared a “putty” consisting of equal parts cyanocrylate glue and walnut sawdust, applied it to the spot, then, after a suitable wait, sanded the patch:

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The results of the experiment were somewhat mixed. The spot is now as strong and smooth as the rest of the wood but still very obvious and not at all natural looking.  Here is photo of the bottom of the door after three coats of tung oil:

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I am glad that the spot is right at the bottom and assume that most folks will not notice it.

With that little aside out the way, I will carry on documenting the steps to construct and install one of these doors that I started last week:

(7) The back of the door was clad with 8.5mm thick walnut in a similar manner as described above for the front of the door.  The only difference from the front is that the walnut on the back is placed flush to the window openings.
 
The walnut on both the front and back is slightly cut so that it is slightly proud of the door’s top bottom and side edges.  On the sides, I then sanded it flush:

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On the bottom and top, I cut it flush with my track saw:

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[8] I decided to make very simple molding to hold in the windows and to attach that molding with brass canoe tacks:

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Of course, one can see the tack heads, but that’s in keeping with a lot of arts and crafts style furnishings.

A good thing about this trim is that it is easy to remove with no damage using a dull chisel:

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[tDot]

Hey Frank,

I dont remember the name of the Canadian Mfg who makes it, but there is a domestic manufacturer for a 49"x97" Baltic Birch equivalent. I found it when I was asking around for Apple Ply.  I cant remember its' product name, but I believe it came from back east.  I've used a bunch of it, and it is every bit as good as Baltic Birch.

As for the glass sander, I know you already bought one, but to anyone else who may be interested.  I've used my RAS115 on slow speed, with 180grit Rubin, quite successfully for rounding edges and cleaning up cut lines on glass.  I was in a bit of a pinch when I tried it and was very shocked how well it worked... just don't allow the sander to stay in one spot for too long. I've used it on stained glass and 1/4" plate glass.  The best part is... dust collection!! 

 

[Frank Pellow]

Hey Frank,

I dont remember the name of the Canadian Mfg who makes it, but there is a domestic manufacturer for a 49"x97" Baltic Birch equivalent. I found it when I was asking around for Apple Ply.  I cant remember its' product name, but I believe it came from back east.  I've used a bunch of it, and it is every bit as good as Baltic Birch.

I would definately be interested in learning more about this plywood.  Where did you purchase it?

 

[tiralie]

I would definately be interested in learning more about this plywood.  Where did you purchase it?

Frank:
For future reference, A&M Wood in Cambridge has 18mm (3/4"), 48x96" baltic birch listed on their web site.
http://www.amwoodinc.com/productDetail.aspx?x=g%2bAgitfP%2fSAA2bIg2bNYkg%3d%3d
Not sure if it's always in stock but they are good folks over there and probably could get some for you if you needed it.
BTW, I really like your stained glass, thanks for sharing.
Tim

 

[Frank Pellow]

2011, February 6:

This was the second week in a row where I did not spend much time on the hall door project.

I did get the only door that I have made so far hung and I am very happy with the job.  [big grin]  I must of hung at least 100 doors in my life and I always chiseled out the hinges mortises by hand.  I am pretty good at that job, even if I do say so myself.  

But, these doors are fine furniture and I am going to be cutting at least 24 mortises, so I decided it was time to invest in a jig that I had read about in the Lee Valley catalogue.  See: http://www.leevalley.com/en/wood/page.aspx?p=40219&cat=1,43000,40219

The jig and bit together cost about $90 including tax and I sprung for them.  The jig is somewhat finicky but, after a quite a bit of trial and error, I managed to get it set properly and the results were excellent.  The manual that comes with the is OK, but could certainly be better.  Maybe I should offer to re-write it for Lee Valley.

The core of the unit is a set of 3 templates that can be adjusted to the mortises for a few hinges whose dimensions are standard in North America.  Here is a photo of one of the templates:

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The two red arrows in the photo point to spacer bars which are be set into different slots depending on the type of hinges to be used.

As shown in the photo to below, the three templates are joined together with a set of aluminum rods that can be adjusted to fit the door and its opening.  

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The most important part of the setup is to position both the top and bottom templates exactly the same distances from the their respective ends and to position the middle template exactly in the middle.  Once properly positioned, the jig is temporarily attached to the door by hammering small nails through the holes pointed to by green arrows in the photo above.  After cutting the mortises in the door with a router bit used with a guide brushing, the jig is removed from the door, turned end for end, nailed to the door frame, then the matching mortises are routed into the door frame.  The fact that the jig has to be turned end for end is the reason the templates have to be positioned exactly.  There is no room at all for error.

I decided to test the jig on a mock-up before entrusting a walnut door to it.  The ”door” that I built for the test was only about 15 centimetres wide but it was the correct thickness and height.  

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It didn’t quite line up, but this showed me how much to adjust the jig before cutting into the real door and frame.

I find the portion of the spacer bars that slides into the slots in the template to we quite weak and easily broken.  The red arrow in the photo points to a place where I snapped of a portion of one:

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I told Lee Valley about this problem and suggested that they should modify the design to make these a little more robust.  The person who got my email, thanked me, forwarded the note to Veritas Design Department, and told me that he was sending me two free pairs of spacers in the mail.  The spacers are not available in the catalogue but the can be purchased for about $3.00 a pair from the Lee Valley Special Orders department.

It’s just as well that I am getting additional spacers, because later on, I nailed the template to a door upside down and did not notice my mistake until I destroyed two spacers with my router in 2 seconds.  [embarassed]   [embarassed]

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Carrying on from last week with the numbered steps for the construction and installation of these doors:
   
(9) Now it was time to install a real door.  The picture below shows the Carey jig in place just after the mortises have been routed in the door frame.

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(10) My dull chisel again comes to the rescue as it is the perfect tool fro prying the templates loose with minimal damage to the door frame.

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Unfortunately, small nail holes are left, but I guess that I can live with that.

The temporarily installed door fits perfectly:  [big grin]

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(11) I tested the two doors for fit and they are too snug:

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This is because I didn’t know that there would be a 3 mm gap between the plates of an installed hinge.  So I will need to cut 3 mm of both side of the plywood core of the second door before attaching the walnut veneer to it.  That means one door will be 6 milimetres narrower than the other, but I don't think that will be noticed.

(12) For door knob fixtures, I decided to use the porcelain part of the old fixtures but to replace the cheap plated brass with walnut disks.  

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The disks were cut with a hole saw:  

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Parallel holes were drilled through the door and the overlapping fixtures were tested for fit:

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[tiralie]

Frank:
Nice review. I always wanted to know how these jigs worked compared to say the Trend or Templaco jigs.
Thanks
Tim

 

[Frank Pellow]

2011, February 13:

Towards the end of last week’s notes, I had decided that it would be necessary to make the second door leading into the dining room somewhat narrower.  Upon seeing that statement, Wally from Calgary on the Canadian Woodworking Forum, suggested that I try a slight bevel on the insides of the two doors, keeping them the same size.  I tried the suggestion and I am fairly confident that it will work.  Carrying on with the numbered steps:

(13) A 1 degree bevel was cut on the inside edge of the door.  I opted to use my table saw for this rather than my Festool track saw because I had never trimmed off such a small bevelled amount so near to the edge using my track saw and I was nervous about, perhaps, screwing up the task.  I was also nervous about doing this on the table saw, but slightly more confident.

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I took my time, and everything worked well!  [big grin]

(14)  I cut all the molding to be used to hold in the glass slightly proud of the door’s front surface, then tacked the molding in place and sanded it flush with the surface:

Then, I removed the molding, being sure to mark the location of each of the 12 pieces on the back, sanded them, and finished them with polymerized tung oil.

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(15)   The door was then finished with tung oil and re-hung.  Now it was time to insert the stained glass windows.

A pin vice was used to make starter holes in the frame so that the brass canoe tacks could be nailed in as straight as possible:

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(16)  All that remained to do was to finish and install the doorknobs.  It was difficult to sand the walnut disks properly and I ended up making use of 3 different electric sanders as well as doing some hand sanding:
 
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(17)   Two parallel holes to attach bolts to the knobs had previously been drilled through the door.  The holes were at the same height and only about 5 mm apart.  The walnut disks cover the holes.  In order that the bolts would not turn when the handles were screwed onto them, I secured them with contact cement.

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And here, is the finished and installed door:

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I really like the pattern on the wood.  Unfortunately, none of the other walnut that I have in stock has quite as good a pattern.  It’s all good, but not this good.

That almost finishes my numbered steps to build and install a set of doors.  All that remains is the second door.  Then of course I have more doors but I won’t be posting pictures because that will be more of the same.  I will continue to record progress toward my objective.  Speaking of that I have made a start on the second door and the windows for same.

 

[Frank Pellow]

2011, February 20:

I made reasonable progress on the hallway door project this week.  The second door (including the stained glass for same) to the dining room is almost finished, the door frame leading to the office is almost finished, and the plywood cores for the remaining two doors are finished.  

By the way, I found that it was not necessary to drive the nails all the way into the Carey hinge template in order to hold it in place for routing.  Thus it is possible to pull the nails out with a claw hammer:

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Rather than having to use my dull chisel as I showed in step (10) above.

I am happy to be able to say that the second door fits perfectly.  Here is aphoto of it being tested for fit:

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[Deke]

This is really cool. We have two small windows on either side of our fireplace and I have this fantasy of building new windows of stained glass. If I ever get up the nerve, you can bet I will dig up this thread. Great work and it's pretty darn neat you branched out into this.

There was an old This Old House 2-3 years ago in Boston where they visited a shop of a guy who repairs and makes stained glass windows. Here it is on YouTube: Jim Anderson Stained Glass, This Old House Profile

 

[Frank Pellow]

This is really cool. We have two small windows on either side of our fireplace and I have this fantasy of building new windows of stained glass. If I ever get up the nerve, you can bet I will dig up this thread. Great work and it's pretty darn neat you branched out into this.

There was an old This Old House 2-3 years ago in Boston where they visited a shop of a guy who repairs and makes stained glass windows. Here it is on YouTube: Jim Anderson Stained Glass, This Old House Profile

Thanks for both the compliment and the video Deke. 

I branched out into stained glass in order to add something with more interest to the recipients of my woodworking projects.  I tried wood carving, wood burning, scroll saw work, and drawing for portions of some of the items that I built and all of those things worked out OK.  But, they didn't really grab me and enhance the work the way that I wanted them to.  Stained glass does grab me.

 

[Frank Pellow]

2011, February 27:

I did very little on the hallway door project this week.  But, I did manage to complete the second door between the hall and the dining room.  This completes the numbered construction steps that I have been carrying for week to week:

(18)  The second door was installed and brass magnetic catches were installed near the top inside corner of both doors.  

I can’t seem to get the lighting right  [embarassed]  for a good picture that captures both the doors and the stained glass in them.  So, I am enclosing three photos, each one best capturing some aspect of the doors:

The glass:  

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The wood grain:  

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The wood colour and finish:  (spoiled by flash reflection)  

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I would estimate that the overall project is about 2/3 complete.  

 

[nclemmons]

Frank -

Those really turned out well.  The Walnut really pops nicely.  Appreciated the step-by-step you always find time to provide.

The only thing I might change would be the knobs - perhaps a hammered pewter type metal or even a faceted glass knob might have been a nice compliment to the glass?

Thanks for sharing!

neil

 

[Frank Pellow]

Thanks Neil.

Your suggestion about different handles is a good one.  Utilizing part of the old handles the way I have done was free and the handles do match those on the rest of the doors in the house.  But, I agree with you that they look a little strange.  I will keep my eye out for nice glass handles with solid brass bases and, if I find some at a price that I can manage, I will replace the handles that are currently on the doors

 

[nclemmons]

Here's a pair for under $40 USD.  They get a bit pricey unless you can find a salvage yard.  I guess you could use up to 8 total for two sets of doors, right Frank?

http://www.lookintheattic.com/door-knobs.html?gclid=CID1gJHeq6cCFVln5QodaVjCBw

neil

 

[Frank Pellow]

2011, March 6:

I worked quite a bit on the hall doors project this week but have little to show for it.  I got to change some door knobs, but not in the way that Neil now has me contemplating.  Rather, when my friend Sandra dropped in for a visit, the first thing that she noticed about the doors that are already installed was that the handles were at different heights.  I had not noticed the before, but once Sandra mentioned it, the difference, which turned out to be 5 millimetres, really bothered me.  So I removed the handles from one door, filled the holes with autobody filler, drilled new holes, then re-installed the handles so that they are now level with those of the other door:

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I re-sawed sufficient walnut to finish the job.  In doing so, I encountered about half a dozen very loose knots in strategic positions.  I only had one such problem with the walnut that I used on the two completed doors.  I didn’t think that the sawdust and cyanocrylate glue and walnut sawdust “putty” that I wrote about in my notes of January 30th would be strong enough to ensure that the knots would stay in place.  So, this time, I experimented with a combination of epoxy and walnut sawdust:

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I am happier with this “putty” and I am certain that the knots will never come out.

I cut almost enough glass to finish the job.  Here is a photo of my woodworking bench doing duty as a glass-cutting and grinding bench:

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The reason that I say ‘almost’, is that I have, so far, been unable to find a place in Toronto that sells glass of one of the types used in the windows.  

I did have enough cut glass to be able  make three more windows.  So now I am all ready to build one more door.

 

[Frank Pellow]

2011, March 13:

My objective was to complete this project by the middle of March.  Whether or not I make that objective, now looks like it will depend upon how one defines “middle of March”.  Does it mean the middle day of March or the middle week of March?  ??? I expect to be finished the work next week  [smile] but not to be finished the work by next Thursday.  [embarassed] Right now, all the stained glass windows have been made, one door has been constructed but not finished with Tung oil nor hung, and the other has been partly constructed:

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I reported last week that I had run out of one of the types of glass that is used in the windows.  That glass is the type that is used in the long narrow strips around the edges.  I never did find a place carrying the exact match but I did find some that is close, so purchased that:

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The glass marked in red, is the new glass.

I decided to make the second set of doors slightly thicker than the first set.  The first set is 32 mm thick and the second set is 35 mm.  The 3 millimetre difference because I cut the walnut to 1 centimetre rather than 8.5 millimetres.  This doesn’t sound like much but it makes it better then boring the screw/dowel holes.

The walnut that I re-sawed for the first set of doors had been squared and planed before if used it.  The walnut that I used for these doors was rough sawn.  This was good in that it allowed me to produce thicker walnut pieces but bad in that I had to joint and plane it first.  But, I didn’t use my jointer in order to square the edges.  Rather, after the pieces had been cut and planed to the desired thickness, I jointed one edges with my Festool track saw on a long (assembled) rail:

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This worked very well.

 

[Frank Pellow]

2011, March 20:

This week, I started doing serious research and editing work on the Histoire History Hearst book that we plan to publish in the spring or summer 2012 (in conjunction with the 100th anniversary of Hearst Ontario).  This meant that I fell behind on my plans to finish the doors from the hall into the office during the middle week of March.  [embarassed]

The doors are all built and have even been temporarily hung but now off again and have had their first of four coats of polymerized Tung oil applied.  For sure, they will be completed next week.

I just want to include one photo this week and that photo shows just how handy the Festool LS 130 linear sander (coupled to a Festool vac, of course) is proving to be. 

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I don’t use this sander nearly as much as my Festool rotex 150, but it is perfect for jobs such as this.

 

[Ken Nagrod]

Frank, that's the walnut door jamb you're using the LS130 on?

 

[Frank Pellow]

Frank, that's the walnut door jamb you're using the LS130 on?

So what is your point Ken?  ???  New door frames and jambs are part of the project.

 

[Ken Nagrod]

Frank, that's the walnut door jamb you're using the LS130 on?

So what is your point Ken?  ???  New door frames and jambs are part of the project.

There was no point.  I was asking a question just to clarify what it was I was looking at because I wasn't 100% sure looking at it on my screen.