A plain cedar chest is much improved by the addition of copper or brass
trimmings. They add strength, too, to the box.
[Illustration]
The design shows a cedar chest with hinges, corner plates, handles, and
lock plate. The screws can be bought with pyramid-shaped heads, which
resemble hand-made rivets. They add very much to the general effect of
the whole. One must be guided by the size of the box in selecting the
appropriate screw decorations. This box is 12 × 20 × 36 ins. The lid is
2 ins. deep.
_Hinges:_ The hinges should be made of No. 10 copper or brass, 3 ins.
wide, and should extend two-thirds of the way across the top and half
way down the back. This tends to keep the lid straight and support the
back of the box.
_Lock plate:_ The plate is made of a piece of 8 × 3 in. metal, the
same thickness as the material used in the hinges. The design should
correspond to the design of the hinges. The key way is in the lock
plate, toward the top.
_Handles and handle plate:_ The handles are made of 1/2-in. round
copper or brass, large in the middle, tapering toward the ends. These
ends are turned up, fitted into eye bolts and riveted into the handles.
The handles should be 10 × 4 ins., with the design of the hinges and
the lock plate carried out.
_Corner plates:_ These plates go on the four corners of the chest.
They are made of No. 14 metal. Perhaps the simplest way to make them
is to take a piece of No. 14 metal and cut a 6-in. square. Draw the
diagonals. Cut out one of the four triangles from this square. Now bend
the piece along the diagonal lines and you make a corner to fit on the
box. Solder this open corner to the box. In making corners for the lid,
make the same pattern and trim it down to suit the depth of the lid.
The trimmings on the box can be left smooth or they can be treated
with the peen of the hammer and a facet surface put on, which is done
quickly and is very decorative in effect.
The hinge part of the hinge is made as explained in the article on
hinge making. The metal used here would be quite strong enough just
to turn over in the pin without soldering it first to the body of the
hinge piece.
Put the lock on the chest before the lock plate is placed. This fixes
the place for the key-hole; otherwise one might get the key way too
close to the opening and find no lock that would fit it. The handles
are put in by means of screws, but a much stronger one is made by using
bolts and screws. The bolts that hold the handle on the plate are
carried through the box, and a nut and washer fasten them tight on the
inside.