Building a beautiful and functional container for hand powered woodworking tools has long been considered as an important rite of passage for an aspiring woodworker.

In this 5 day woodworking course, participants will learn hand tool techniques to build a traditional small tool chest. The completed chest will be approximately 24" long, 11" high, and 16" deep with a sliding storage tray inside and mobile enough to bring tools to a jobsite. The main joinery will be many dovetails and some traditional mortise and tenoned, frame and panel joinery. The classwork will be almost entirely using tools which don’t have a cord, the tools that will ultimately live in your chest.

The steps involved and skills addressed during the week are:
1- Dimensioning stock
2- Dovetailing a carcass
3- Building a traditional frame and panel lid
4- Mortising and setting butt hinges
5- Using milk paint

The intention and pace of the class are to learn the hand tool skills involved in building a simple case piece in a relaxed manner, while ending up with a practical, heirloom quality tool chest.

Instructor Mike Erkkinen is a designer and builder of homes, barns, boats, masonry heaters, and furniture for the past 30 years. He is the owner of Webnash Design-Build in Monterey, MA specializing in traditionally appointed, high performance buildings.

To see more pictures of the Toolchest and notes about the project you'll build, see Mike's web site here.

Tool list (some will be provided; a complete list of required tools will be sent upon receipt of your registration)
1- Bench planes: block, smoothing, rabbit, router
2- Chisels: bevel edge 1/4"-1", and 1/4" mortise
3- Saws: dovetail, coping, carcass and tenon
4- Layout tools: combo square, dovetail gauge, dividers, steel ruler, marking gauge
5- Drills: eggbeater and brace, with bits
6- Hammer: cross peen or claw
7- Screwdrivers
8- Sharpening stones
Recommended reading: The Anarchist’s Toolchest, by Christopher Schwartz
The tuition is the same as our other one-week courses ($675 per person, $1250 per couple); there will be an additional materials fee of $80. Enrollment is limited to six people.