Before diving into the process, here are some shots of the final result!
I finally got a table saw! Well, a job-site saw, so I can at least cut down on how much space it consumes in the apartment. While I've got a few projects floating around my head, I wanted to have a go at something relatively simple to try out the saw. I settled on a simple deck box, using essentially the same design as the maple deck box I posted previously. The rabbet joints got dropped in favor of mitered corners, though the bottom is still one big inch-deep rabbet joint, and the lid is a simple set-in affair rather than the sliding lid I attempted previously.
The whole concept was to get the box cut, fit, and engraved in a single day, though it did end up bleeding into the week while I experimented with finishes. In that spirit of expediency I went with the straightest 1/4" red oak board I could find at Lowes for the sides and lid, and a 1" chunk of scrap cherry for the base.
The saw worked beautifully! A quick cross cut to the sum-width of the sides, a rip to the final height, and a few more cross cuts and the oak was done. You might notice that the stop-block in the photo is cherry, and yes, that was the bit that became the bottom of the box.
Things were going swimmingly until I attempted to route out the lift-hold for the lid on the front panel of the box. Apparently people aren't kidding when they say oak is a "hard wood", the panel actually broke apart where the radius came parallel with the grain! I had a photo, but it got lost along the way.
I pulled the saw back out and cut another panel, and this time spent a good deal of time cutting the hole across maybe a dozen shallow cuts. Right at the end, it managed to catch and splinter off anyway. I suppose the lesson here is, when you're routing blind, use a stop block! I managed to find the excised chunk, and decided to just glue it back on. It took fairly well, and after a little sanding, it's essentially invisible! The hole is a bit larger than intended, but still functional.
All that was left to do was laser engrave, cut some oak veneer for an inlay, and glue and finish the thing! I'll admit, I didn't have a particular motif in mind for this box, I was just hoping to prove to myself that I could get from concept to product quickly and competently (well.. the I got the first half at least!) I went with the iconic "M", and really like how it came out! I did spent about an hour dialing in the laser settings so there'd be minimal sanding to get the inlay level with the face, but that was quick compared to testing finishes.
Oak looks alright with pretty much everything, but doesn't have the same dazzling figure as maple, or even the richness of the walnut, so I spent a while testing out various finishes on scrap material. I was hoping to try out a new finish on this piece, so I opted to use Danish oil (my previous go-to) just for the inside faces. Shellac took ages to apply, even to scrap, and didn't quite look as good as the oil, but spray varnish managed to be easy to apply, as well as pretty nice looking. I went with that, applying 4 coats with 7 minutes of drying between coats, an hour wait, a sanding at 320 grit, and a final coat on top. The sanding ended up being a bit heavier than it should have been, as my spraying produced some noticeable drips, but sanding through them didn't take long.
I'm pretty happy with the final product! I'm clearly still learning how to use the tools correctly, but I'm enjoying myself along the way.
