NBSS Toolbox

This is the traditional toolbox at North Bennet.Made from mahogany it contains well over 120 hand-cut dovetails.

In the North Bennet furniture program this is the first major project for each student. Everyone take their time because the toolbox will stay with them for the duration. It took me 4 entire days of work to get the outide of the case assembled. I have never cut dovetails as perfect as those since.

The box also has a locking lid which slides into a slot above the top drawer.

Hand-cut Dovetails

For most drawers I prefer to do the dovetails by hand. At this point. I've done so many they don't take me much time and the results are usually very good. I have the same dovetail machine that Norm uses on TV and I occasionally use it for large jobs. If you fuss with it a little (the Leigh Jig) and you have two routers it's actually quite good. But not much of a time saver for doing only a couple of drawers. There's much more satisfaction doing them the traditional way.'