18th-Century Pipe Box

Provides Elegant Storage

Simple construction makes
this an easy project
B Y L O N N I E B I R D

S
moking was a popular social custom
in the Colonies. As a result, Colonial
craftsmen fashioned small, detailed
boxes for holding long-stemmed clay
pipes and tobacco. Today, these boxes are
a great way to store items such as candles
and matches.
Curly maple is authentic for this repro-
duction piece, but you can use any wood.
Here’s an opportunity to practice resaw-
ing, dimensioning and routing small parts,
scrollsawing, and drawer making.

Cut the parts and assemble the case

The drawer front is 3⁄4 in. thick, and the base
is 3⁄8 in. thick, but the rest of the stock need-
ed to build this project is only 1⁄4 in. thick.
After milling and sizing each part to its
rough dimensions, rip 1⁄4 in. from the for-
ward edge of each side of the box, stopping
at the drawer location. Then crosscut the
ends of the stopped cuts to square them up.
The front of the box will fit in these notches.
The next step is to lay out the scalloped
shapes in the front, back, and sides. Cut
the shapes on a scrollsaw, making relief
cuts to each inside corner to avoid trap-
ping the blade. To cut a smooth, fair curve,
leave enough wood to support the blade
on both sides. To cut the hole at the top of
the back, use a 1⁄2-in. Forstner bit.
Now cut a 1⁄4-in. half-round profile along
the side and front edges of the base. Leave
the back edge square so that it can be
mounted flush to the back of the case and
hung flat against a wall.

Be gentle during assembly—Assemble

the box by gluing the back and front to the

46 FINE WOODWORKING
 PIPE-BOX CONSTRUCTION
1
Hole, ⁄2 in. dia. The primary wood for this
pipe box is curly maple, and
the secondary wood is
Back, 1⁄4 in. thick poplar. Use templates to lay BACK
by 5 in. wide by
22 in. long out the scalloped shapes on
the front, back, and sides
of the box. The patterns here
Sides, 1⁄4 in. thick are drawn on a 1⁄4-in. grid.
by 3 5⁄8 in. wide by
18 in. long

2 1⁄2 in. Center-

line

FRONT
Front, 1⁄4 in.
thick by
5 in. wide by
13 in. long

Bottom of 2 1⁄2 in.

pipe com-
partment,
1
⁄4 in. thick
by 3 3⁄8 in.
wide by
4 1⁄2 in. long Drawer back,
1
⁄4 in. thick by SIDE
2 9⁄16 in. wide
Notch, by 4 1⁄8 in.
1
⁄4 in. deep long

Drawer side,
1
⁄4 in. thick by
3 in. wide by
3 5⁄8 in. long
3 3⁄8 in.

3 in.

Thumbnail profile,
3
Dado, ⁄16-in. radius with
1
1
⁄4 in. wide ⁄16-in. step
Base, 3⁄8 in. thick by 1⁄16 in.
by 4 1⁄8 in. wide by deep
5 1⁄2 in. long

Drawer front, 3⁄4 in.

thick by 3 1⁄8 in. wide
by 4 3⁄4 in. long

Headless-brad Drawer bottom,

1 cut nails 1
⁄4 in. thick, beveled
⁄4-in. half-round 3
Groove, ⁄16 in. wide
profile on front and to fit groove
by 1⁄16 in. deep, 1⁄4 in.
side edges of base from bottom edge

Photos, except where noted: Karen Wales; facing page: Michael Pekovich; drawings: John Hartman NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2004 47
C U T T H E S C R O L LW O R K A N D A S S E M B L E T H E C A S E sides, and clamp with light pressure. The
face-grain joints where the sides meet the
front and back are strong enough with glue
alone. Trim the sides flush to the front and
back using a card scraper. Then glue the
base to the bottom of the case and drill
pilot holes on the underside of the base for
7
⁄8-in. headless brad cut nails.
Next, install the bottom of the pipe com-
partment. Dab a little glue above the draw-
er opening and then slide the bottom into
With a scrollsaw and place. To keep the compartment bottom
files, prepare the square and perpendicular to the case sides
curves. Make relief cuts while the glue sets, place 1⁄4-in.-thick ply-
to the inside corners of the
wood spacers along the inside walls of the
pattern, then cut each
sweeping curve to the re- drawer opening that are as high and deep
lief cut (left). Clean up the as the opening. Once the compartment
sawmarks with half-round bottom is flat and in the right spot, drill two
bastard and smooth files pilot holes in the front and back and then
(above). drive in the cut nails.

Build the drawer

The drawer is assembled with simple but
long-lasting glue-and-nail construction.
The front has a 1⁄8-in. lip on the top and
sides (but not on the bottom) that covers
the reveal around the opening.
Carefully measure the opening and add
1
⁄4 in. to the length of the drawer front and
1
⁄8 in. to its width, and cut the piece to size.
Use a router to cut the rabbets along the
sides and top of the drawer front. Allow for
clearance by cutting the top rabbet a little
wider than the lip thickness, and the side
rabbets a little wider than the overall thick-
ness of the drawer side and lip: 1⁄32-in. clear-
ance above and 1⁄64-in. clearance on each
side of the drawer will leave enough

Gentle glue-up. Light clamping pressure is all

that’s needed for the front and back side joints
(left). When installing the compartment bottom,
use spacers to hold it square while the glue dries,
then reinforce with nails set below the surface.

48 FINE WOODWORKING
 B U I L D T H E D R AW E R W I T H R A B B E T S A N D C U T N A I L S
The lip on the drawer front covers the top
and side edges of the opening. The side
rabbets are deep enough to accommodate
the thickness of the drawer sides, and the
thumbnail profile on the drawer front
complements the one on the base.
Top rabbet, 1⁄8 in.
wide by 1⁄2 in. deep

Drawer front,
3
⁄4 in. thick

Rout the rabbets and pro-

file. Use a straight bit to rab-
bet the sides and top of the
drawer front (left). Next, use a
3
⁄16-in.-radius roundover bit to
rout the thumbnail profile on
Side rabbet, the drawer face (above). Start
3
⁄8 in. wide by with the left edge and work in
1
⁄2 in. deep
a clockwise direction to re-
move any crosscut tearout. A
zero-clearance fence helps
reduce tearout.
No rabbet
at bottom

space for a drawer this small. Next, with a top of the side and the top of the drawer-
3
⁄16-in.-radius roundover bit, cut the pro- bottom groove. Finally, cut 1⁄4-in.-wide by
file, with a 1⁄16-in. step, on all four sides of 1
⁄16-in.-deep dadoes into the sides for the
the drawer face. back of the drawer.
Once the drawer front has been fitted to After the drawer has been assembled,
the opening, cut parts for the sides and the bevel the front and side edges of the drawer
back. The width of the side and back parts bottom, slide it into position, and drive a
matches the long edge of the side rabbet, cut nail from the bottom into the drawer
and the length of the back matches the back. Glue the front edge and the first 1⁄2 in.
length of the top rabbet plus twice the of the sides of the bottom to force the
depth of each dado. To prevent the drawer wood movement to the back of the drawer.
from striking the back of the pipe box, cut Finally, cover visible nail heads with wood
the back end of the drawer sides 1⁄16 in. putty that will accept stain. Finish the box
shorter than the depth of the opening. with an aniline dye, followed by several
Cut 3⁄16-in.-wide by 1⁄16-in.-deep grooves in coats of amber shellac, and install a brass
the sides and the front for the drawer bot- drawer pull to complete the project.

tom. Then raise the blade slightly and rip
the drawer back. The width of the drawer For more information on Lonnie Bird’s
back matches the distance between the woodworking classes, visit www.lonniebird.com.

A traditional option
If you want a challenge, you can build
the drawer for the pipe box using
dovetails and add a Massachusetts
shell carving. For more on making a
Pilot holes prevent splitting. Drill pilot
dovetailed drawer, see FWW #157, holes after gluing and before nailing the
pp. 78-83; for more on making a shell sides to the front. Glue the back to the sides,
carving, see FWW #119, pp. 52-58. drill pilot holes (top), and nail (bottom).

NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2004 49