A Trimmed Border and a Fresh Perspective
Cason t -
Hello everyone, I hope you all had a great spring break!
During the break, I was planning out the future steps of the board—everything from changing the type of wood used in the border to adjusting its dimensions. Cutting out the blocks for the checkered pattern was what really helped me figure out the direction I wanted to take. When I first designed the board, I intended for the checkered part to recess from the outer border. However, when I placed a few blocks into the prototype border, I saw that the recess was massive. The 2″x2″ blocks were about 1 ½” tall, while the border stood at 3 ½”. Because of this, I decided to cut the border’s height in half.
Another issue with the original prototype was its weight. If I had kept the full board at its original dimensions, it might have been difficult to carry. Reducing the border size will make it much lighter and give me more material to work with, which is an added bonus.
While shrinking the border has several advantages, there are also a few downsides. The smaller border means smaller dovetails, which will not only be trickier to make but also more fragile. The pins and tails will have smaller connecting points, so they’re more likely to break if the board is dropped.
On a more personal note, I was thrilled to receive a new coping saw from my grandfather. He mentioned that I’d be the 4th or 5th generation in our family to use it. The saw is perfect for cutting smaller pieces of wood like I’m using now, and I’m less likely to damage it since it’s better suited for this type of work.
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