Screen doors & panel planes

 

It all started with this - the ‘error’ that is. The above photo is a test piece of the frame for the storm window. Looks harmless I know - but it represents a very early mistake I made which continued to bite me in the posterior over and over again as this project wore on. 

I had purchased some really nice 8/4 quarter sawn white oak about a year ago. They were all 12' long and were all from the same tree - perfect for a project like this. I needed 1-9/16"thick material as dictated by the existing door frame... seemed like an awful waste to remove so much material. I also wanted to add thermal glass panels to the side storms and the 3 above the door - we lose a fair amount of heat through the original single panes so a thermal unit seemed like the right idea. The company that was making them reccommeded a 5/8" thick unit at a minimum - 1/8" tempered glass on each side and Argon between. In what felt like a stroke of genius at the time, I figured I could reduce the amount of waste in the stock if I integrated the molding which would allow me to increase the overall height giving me a bit more room for the thermal pane. I made the test piece and was feeling pretty proud of myself - saved a bit of wood from the cyclone and eliminated the step of having to apply (and make) a separate molding. 

In the words of Lucas - epic blunder.

This early decision created so much additional work - it is embarrassing. I underestimated the additional time fitting each mitred corner compounded by the fact that the tenons were not the same thickness as the rebates and dados for the thermal panes.

There are 2 frames that fit into the screen door - one that holds screen and the other that will hold the thermal glass. These 2 frames are removable - which is nice... but it meant a pile more additional work cutting all the mitres - and white oak is not known for its ‘squish factor’. 

 

I also decided to use Ebony drawbore pegs for the screen door. The tenons are live tenons and are about 3" long so there was lots of room for pegs. There are 2 different sizes of pegs for the screen door - 3/8" and 1/4" square - and of course I had to arrange them in a way that each one was in a unique position. I  used a single 1/4" square peg for the side and upper storms.

 

 

(the Ebony peg layout)

Here is a shot of the edge of one of the side storms. You can see the twin tenons for the center rail and the gaps to allow for expansion and contraction.  

The pegs were all left 1/16" proud of the surface. I taped everything off and used a chisel and then a padded piece of sandpaper to dome them over. 

(testing the layout for the raised panels) 

The raised panel for the side storms is a little unconventional - the shoulder is not perpendicular to the field - it is angled to match the molding. I ended up cutting a square shoulder and used a shoulder plane to make the angle.

 

 

(the fully assembled side storm ready for finish)

 

Here are a few shots of the storms and screen door in place. I am still waiting for the glass units to be completed and I will make the screen frames at the same time.

In hindsight - everything worked out very well and we are pleased with how things turned out. It is amazing to me how this one stupid choice to reduce waste added so much extra effort and work - yet another learning experience of what not to do! These blunders are painful at the time, but I really do believe they are an important part of the learning process. 

I have also been busy working on several planes - two traditional panel planes. This first one is 18-1/2" long, infilled with Desert Ironwood and has a bed angle of 55 degrees. There was some re-design required to allow for the higher bed angle, but overall, I am very pleased with how it turned out. Here are a few photos. 

 

 

The top of the handle has the most amazing bit of color in it. In the sunlight - it looks like it is on fire. 

The second plane is a 14-3/4" long, A1 panel plane infilled with Rosewood. It was a lot of fun to work on this plane - it has been some time since building a more traditional panel plane.

 

It was also great to work with such fine timber.

A little bit of curl in the top of the handle - a rare find in Rosewood.

 

This project is coming along too... slowly - but coming along. Dare I say I hope to have them done for my birthday at the end of October? Did I just jinx it by saying it? I guess I will find out.