Day 14 – Sacristy cabinet
I got to work early today. The stain and Urethane had dried for about 8 hours. Since the spindles were dry enough, I moved the rails in a bit which left the dowel ends free to get their first coat. I got the top out of the way next since it is heavy and takes up a lot of space. I started on the bottom of the top piece then flipped it over onto my painter’s pyramids. It is ok if they leave little dents because that side won’t be very visible when assembled. I used the same tactic on the dividers because only about 3″ of one end will be visible when assembled. I have about thirty painters pyramids, but that was not enough to do everything at the same time. I only had one pyramid left for the last divider. I grabbed a few strips of fir from the scrap bin and put a dry-wall screw through each end of both pieces. When flipped over, they perform the same function as my pyramids. The dividers are light enough that they won’t sink down onto the screws. Urethaning both sides at the same time will cut a couple of days off of the project. Next I did the drawer faces. I left the drawers assembled to the faces. Since I was completely out of table tops and pyramids. I sat them face down on the bar stool, I keep in my shop, and urethaned the back of the face, then flipped them over onto the floor to coat the face and edges. I took a break from the fumes for a while then came back to work on the cabinet carcass. I took my time with small amounts applied at a time. Working on a vertical surface leaves you more prone to drips. I worked my way around the outside first using a very bright flash light to cast light at different angles, looking for imperfections like drips or loose bristles. Lastly I did the inside. This area was not very critical since it will rarely be visible. I paid careful attention to the front edges and the cross pieces since these will be the most visible parts of the carcass. Tomorrow, I need to sand everything down and apply the final coat.
Finished urethaning the dowel ends
First coat applied to the top
Ran out of painters pyramids…
Panel’s first coat done
Drawer faces done as well
First coat on cabinet carcass
Midnight Woodworking 