Book Shelf End Cap

  I was at a friend's place a couple of weeks ago and we got the brain wave that I should make an end cap shelf for his book ends.  There was a twelve inch space to fill between the end of some books shelves and a door so we designed an extension to fit that space.

84 inches by 9 by 12 made from 3/4 oak.

  Last entry you saw how the oak pew was cut using a circular saw, jigs and help.  I needed my wife's extra hands to hold the long section of pew while I ripped it to size. 

  This little job had a couple of challenges.  The oak is very very dry.  It has been in church for nearly 50 years and so it is very splintery.  Planing and sanding with the grain easily raises splinters so extra care is required.

  Another problem was getting 50 years of varnish, wax and cleaning solution off the wood.  Initially I tried a belt sander.  That was hopeless, the belt clogged up in seconds. The old finish melted into the belt's grit. The next method worked well but was slow and labour intensive, card scrapers.  I needed to re-sharpen the scrapers regularly but was able to remove the finish almost completely.  In the end it took a couple of hours of hunched over work. (tough on my back)  When it came to the shelves I tried another method, I used  paint stripper.  The chemical stripper worked well but still needed to be cleaned up with a scraper, so, it was easier but much more messy.  Next time I think I will try to soften the finish with a heat gun and then use scrapers. I have some pew wood left so I am sure that I will have a chance to try again. 

  As you can see I put a slight chamfer  on the under side of the shelves. I feel that the chamfer makes the 3/4 oak appear less bulky.  Having a router table and a good selection of bits makes adding details like that chamfer easy. 

  From the large to the small. My next project is a small fancy keepsake box.  I have most of the pieces cut out all I need do is fit the fiddly bit together and finish it.  I like contrasting projects.