Hi all. I have been making boxes from Gary McKay's book lately. I've been making the knitting box mostly except for using metal hinges and clasps on the front. If you haven't seen the book, the pattern uses 1/4" wood and box joints at the corners with a separate lid.
I cut my scroll sawing teeth on Steve's videos (only got my first saw in December) so for finishing, my first step is a dunk in lemon oil. For the boxes, I have allowed the lemon oil to "dry" for a couple of days or so and then followed up with Minwax wipe on poly. When that is done I let them sit for another couple of days before adding the hardware just to get fully dry so the lid doesn't get any ideas about sticking to the box. Can you tell I have no idea what I am doing? LOL
That worked fine until I made a box from bubinga. After the wipe on poly part and before hardware installation, the piece that made the bottom of the box warped enough that it wouldn't sit flat on a table. A friend of mine (a woodworker) told me that cutting wood releases inner tensions and sometimes that results in warping. I did some research on my own and learned that coarse-grained woods have a tendency to warp during finishing.
Sanding on top and bottom made the box flat again but now the top and bottom need to be refinished. Is there anything I can do to prevent the warping the second time around? I am wondering if a sealer or something would do the trick. It seems like I have to be able to end up at the wipe on poly again to make it match up with the rest of the box.
It might be that this particular box is a loss and a learning experience. I would sure be grateful for your collective advice.
