Curved front vanity ??s


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Hi all looking for some help. While I wait for the taper and painter (my wife) to do their things in the basement I plan on starting on the built ins with the first project being the 1/2 bath vanity. I always try to learn new things with each project so on this one I will, in keeping with the curved theme of the basement, make the vanity with a curved front. I also plan on dying the oak black. Since  I have done neither of these in the past here are some questions I could use help with:

1. Any tips for making the curved doors? I plan on doing bent lamination's for the rails and using curved but flat panel insets. I found a build on Guys Woodshop that I will probably follow but any other tips or sources would be much appreciated.

2. Guy made his doors in two pieces I'm thinking I'll make one half moon form and then cut the rails in half for each door, thoughts? I can also use the same form to make the top and bottom of the cabinet face correct?

3. I will be making this look like a piece of furniture so I plan on tiling and putting baseboard down prior to installation, does that sound reasonable?

4. Regarding dying the oak I assume you do this prior to glue up correct? Just use trans tint dye to desired color? Tips for getting even color on all pieces? I will have hardwood as well as plywood panels (sides) on this cabinet.

Any other helpful hints will be appreciated 

Thanks!

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Wish I could help but everything on you bucket list for this project is still on my "someday" list.  Good luck.  Pics please.  How much of a curve are you comtemplating?

I just took time to watch Guy's video.   Wow, he has some nice toys $$.  That project is a little above my pay grade.  Good luck.  If you find a spot in the project where 2 hands are not enough - just call me.

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33 minutes ago, Ronn W said:

Wish I could help but everything on you bucket list for this project is still on my "someday" list.  Good luck.  Pics please.  How much of a curve are you comtemplating?

I just took time to watch Guy's video.   Wow, he has some nice toys $$.  That project is a little above my pay grade.  Good luck.  If you find a spot in the project where 2 hands are not enough - just call me.

I've seen your work he has nothing on you :) 

Re the curve thinking like 2-3" from the center to the left and right edges so not a ton. the cabinet will be 30" wide.

8 minutes ago, JohnG said:

Look what came in the mail today- latest FWW issue has an article on curved doors.

LOL sitting in my in box...I'll chk it out thanks

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As far as coloring the oak goes, I guess it depends on the joinery you're going to use and whether or not the coloring agent would interfere with your connective product (glue).  I would lean toward coloring afterward unless you're concerned about show in the joints.

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Leather dye (like Kiwi shoe dye) makes the deepest, flattest black I have seen on wood. India ink is a huge mess and leaves an oil-film rainbow effect. I haven't used trans-tint, but all the non-black stuff I've seen leaves the wood showing through. Leather dye penetrates pretty well, you can get away with some sanding after application.

And since it is (red?) oak, go crazy and do a contrasting pore fill on top of the black. Maybe white, for anti-zebrawood!:lol:

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I would highly recommend testing multiple methods (including topcoat) - the one in the current FW works well on oak because of the high tannin content. I would test aniline dyes also. If you're planning to topcoat with an oil based finish, use water based dye. If you plan to use water based topcoat, use oil based. That way you don't have to worry about bleeding or smearing due to solvents. Shoe polish works really well but the wax makes any topcoat almost impossible, other than wax.

 

 

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5 hours ago, Ronn W said:

I am not familiar with bending plywood.  What is it?

It's just what it sounds like - plywood that bends to a form. It comes in various thicknesses and you can get it with the bend direction running the 8' length or across the width.

It speeds up the build time considerably. In Garrett Hack's FW curved door article he uses stave construction to build up the core. With bending ply, that whole series of steps is eliminated. In the build I linked to above , I needed the doors to be 1/2" overall thickness and in order to do so I had to thickness sand the bending ply down to the final thickness minus the thickness of the 4 veneer layers. Worked like a charm.

There are several manufacturers, but here's what I used.

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7 hours ago, wtnhighlander said:

Very exotic, @Mick S!

Who says red oak can't be cool?

What tool did you use to burn it? My attempts with a hand-held torch have very uneven results.

These samples were done by our dept head, Doug Jones. He has the technique down to an art. He uses a propane torch with MAPP gas. It takes practice. He goes over it with liming wax then hits that with several very light coats of either Deft or Danish oil.

Not sure if this will post correctly but I'll try -

 

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I almost forgot - I have a red oak box I built that I finished with shellac.  The shellac got contaminated with something, I think steel wool, and it added a definite black hue to the finish compared to a similar box I had finished just days previous.  I don't have the box that came out the correct color but kept the "blacker" one.  I'll have to take a pic when I get home to show.  Probably not the color you're looking for but first time something like that had happened to me and an unexpected outcome.

 

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The drawback to chemical coloration, such as @Byrdie mentioned, is depenance on reactivity with tannins is the wood, which are highly variable from stick to stick. A certain solution of iron acetate may turn one piece of oak jet black, while the next board just goes dingy gray.

In my limited experience, this method does penetrate deeper than most dyes or stains, though.

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31 minutes ago, Tom King said:

I'm not sure which is more impressive- your work, or your ambition.  I admit to liking curves too though.

Thanks Tom! I admire the quality of your work but pretty sure I will never do enough of it to get anywhere near your skill level.

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Mick mentioned there was an article in this months FWW talking about ebonizing oak I read through it and think I will give it a try as well. In the article he uses white vinegar and steel wool to produce the solution, my question is will the solution once made have a shelf life or would you need to use it right away? I don't want to make a whole quart of the stuff if it has no shelf life becuase it may be a month or two before I get to the actual piece.

 

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