Tournament Transport Box Part 2: Getting the Cuts Right

I re-jigged the jig to try and make it work a bit better and as you can see the 18 inch square box came out very nicely.

 The first test (pictured) had some some tear out issues and the fingers were not fitting together perfectly.  Stuff likes this drives me a bit crazy.  I suspect there's a not to complementary psychological term for that but lets not get off track....

At first I thought it was the router bit (yep I went first to blaming the tool rather than the tool user).  It wasn't the bit.  I finally figured out that I wasn't clamping my pieces sufficiently and the turning of the router bit was pulling the wood to the right  causing a drift in the cuts and the unsightly tear out.

I made another part for the jig which holds the pieces vertically so theres no wiggle.  It can be used for either type of cut (one were there's a tooth first or the other were theres a gap).

I just clamp this guy into place and everything stays nice and square.

The next step will be to cut a rabbet for the bottom (1/4 inch plywood) and do the frame for the top.  Still trying to figure out how to attach the top...

Torunament Transport Box Part 1: The Jig

 Not the dancing kind of of Jig but the workshop kind.  Yes I know a lot of you are very disappointed not to see video of me tripping the light fantastic but such images have been known to crash the internet.

As I mentioned in the last post I want to use finger joints on the tournament box edges.  It can be tedious chisel out individual notches so a quick way is to build a simple jig for 1/2 wide finger joints.  I started with some scrap plywood  and 1/2 square wood.

 The first step is to make the right side rail guid which will hold the jig along the right side of the router table.

A little glue, some clamps and it's attached.

 The other parts - all cut and ready to go.  The two narrow strips of plywood are 3/8 square and will be glued together to be used as the left side channel guide.  With the two guides in place the jig can only move forwards and backward - no side to side movement.

 The wood is cut for the two boxes I am making.  I decided to make one box 24 x18 inches and the other 18 x 18 inches just to see which size works best.

 The front and back plates are attached.  The wood in-between is just used for spacing.

The initial grove is cut using a 1/2 inch straight bit in the router.  I'm using some scrap wood and a metal spacer to help me place to positioning guide tooth.  It's a simple design - place the stock you want to cut next to the tooth and slide the jig into the router.  The next step is to lift out the piece and set the newly cut notch on the tooth and then cut the next one and so on.

 The top corners of the tooth are chamfered to make positioning easier.

 The first notch is cut!

My first test box.  It took 10 minutes to cut all the notches and they fit well.

I'll probably end us using the box as a nice shelf for mini's once I clean up the tear outs and finish the wood.

 I need a new bit as you can see some tear out

 A little bit of labeling so I know the size notch that the jig will help cut

It took me about 2 hours to make the jig (there were some mistakes that I've omitted).  It will be a very handy item to have in the workshop.

Who's this?  Some friends in Annapolis just got a new puppy, Otis.  I'm not sure what type of dog he is but he's not a poodle (which is good).

I'm trying to convince the wife to get a dog and may borrow this little guy for the marketing efforts.

Tournament Transport Box

I really like playing in tournaments - it's a great way to really learn a game system and have a lot of fun doing so.  One thing I don't like is my current mode of troop transport which consist of lots of 14 5/8" x 10 1/4" x 3 3/8" plastic boxes from "Really Useful Boxes".  These are great from a storage and use around the house viewpoint but not all that handy in moving about to a tournament.  I also don't have a display tray which some people use to move the troops from table to table during a tournament.

So since I have this new cabinet making workbench and some shiny new power tools (the old ones just didn't fit with the new workbench - at least that's what I told the Mrs), I think this is a good project for this weekend.  I have devised a radical new way of thinking for a project like this - rather than start cutting wood, I should come up with a detailed plan and some capabilities for the box.  By the way, this is were you come in via the comment box.  I'm not all that bright and will rely on "crowd-sourcing" for concept ideas.  Oh yeah, it feels good to be trendy!

Size:
I'm thinking a box that has the following dimensions 18 inches x 18 inches x 5.5 inches high will provide more than enough room to hold troops and rule books.  An 18" square may be a bit awkward to carry around so we'll need a good set of handles.  If I use standard 1x6 stock lumber for the frame, which is 5.5 inches high and .75 inches wide, the case will have an interior open space dimension of 16.5 inches square which is enough to fit up to 6 battle foam and/or Dave's Baggage train trays.

Removable Top:
I'd like the top to be removable to be used as a transport tray from table to table.  I'm also planning on making multiple tops so that they can be scenic in different ways.  It would just be gauche to show up to a desert themed tournament with a Northern European themed scenic top.  If we're going to do this, lets do it right.

I still need to figure out a way to securely fix the top to the box for transport but I don't want the latch to be visible.  I'm thinking velcro may be may best friend here

Joinery:
I'd like the box to really look nice and so want to do some fancy joinery work.  I'm leaning towards finger Joints (pictured below) as they look nice and are relatively easy to do on a router table.  Finger joints really "pop" if your using two types of wood

Another option is a keyed miter joint which despite having less "cutting" is harder to do and requires me to build a fairly complicated jig

Since this is a proof of concept, lets stick with the basics and go with a finger joint.  If I like how it works, we can always try something fancier.

Wood:
For the first attempt it's always best to go with stock pine.  I'll use furniture grade 1x6's for the sides and top grade 1/4 inch plywood for the top and bottoms.  I've got some 1/2 inch stock to use as a frame for the top but may bump that up to one inch to prevent warping.  If I don't botch this up, I can always use better quality wood like walnut or oak for future "Show-Off Boxes"

Features:
OK here's were I need your help - what else shelf the box do

- I'd like if to have an ability to hold open a rule book (like a cook book stand)
- have a compartment for small items (dice, markers etc)
- be stackable (I may store these in a slotted tray so that might not be a goal)
- what would you add?

Fall-In 2015 Con Report Part 3: The Loot

 The last of my Fall-In 2015 reports - what the heck did I buy?  Actually it's a pretty limited haul and shows my current leaning towards making terrain over painting mini's.

Only two miniatures were purchased - a unit of 15mm Swedish Reiters (cavalry) for my By Fire and Sword collection and a Armored War Elephant in 28mm from Sgt Major Miniatures.  The rest if the items are terrain related including more crops and scenery details.

I also picked up an armored weathering kit just to try and refresh my vehicle painting style.

I just didn't have a need for a lot of new miniatures.  I've got 3 boxes and a good number of metal Perry's already in "inventory" for my next AWI project.  The only thing I really "need" (OK, I'm being generous to the definition of Need) is a few more British infantry and cavalry units for my Napoleonic collection.  also maybe some Spanish and Portuguese also.....

Hmmm, maybe this meme is still accurate.

Fall In 2015 Con Report, Part 2: X-Wing, A Whole Lot of X-Wing

 Steve and the WWPD crew ran a lot of X-Wing games at Fall-In based on the user created campaign "Heroes of the Aturi Cluster". "HAC" which is a co-operative style game where the players are all on the rebel side and the Empire is controlled by a set of very clever rules that have some randomness (a D6 roll) which makes them hard to predict.

To be honest, I wasn't a big fan of X-Wing but this campaign was a pure joy to play and I think I played in 7-8 games over the course of 2 days.  A player's pilot progresses in skill level over the course of the campaign by earning experience points for various actions.  My pilot, who was given the call sign "Dozer" for my less than graceful flying style got to level 5 by the end of the weekend. It reminded me of my first game with character development and how much fun it was to plot the skill progression.

The first picture shows the hand of Dano pointing out where we should go in his typical understated way.  Dan is a blast to play with but I've yet to face him as an opponent in any game - maybe one day in the future if Bolt Action ever gets fixed.

 To be honest, I can't remember all the games but this one required us to search the ion filed to find some data.  We barely won.

 One of my favorite games was a trap scenario where the rebels were luring the Empire is with a decoy shuttle (the one to the right).  In this game I stayed in formation with Steve's friend Sean (we're in the upper left of the photo) and we cleaned up.  I managed to bring down the Empire's shuttle.

 The afore mentioned Sean reading out the mission briefing before the start of the game.  You can see Steve in rapt attention while looking at his phone

 Oops - an urgent communication for HQ

 Another game with Paul's son Reilly, who was quickly given the call sign "Magnet" due to his unerring ability to draw fire from our Empire foes.

 Steve and Sean should be getting commission s from Fantasy flight games as more than a few X-Wing are likely to be purchased as a result of the fun.  Here we see Paul and his son adding up the tally for they "need" to get.

 Uh-oh - I'm getting a dirty look from Paul after the final figures have been tallied - looks like the Australian navy may need to sell off a ship or two.......

 More fun

The final game I played in (which ended at 2:20am Saturday night) was a rebel assault on a star base and it was epic.

I did learn never ever to believe Steven when he says "don't worry, this will be a quick game"

I had a great time playing the game and really appreciate Steve, Sean and the rest of the WWPD crew for the efforts they put in to run both this game and all the other ones at the convention.  Well done guys.

Fall In 2015 Con Report, Part 1: Overall Thoughts and the FOW Doubles Tournament

 Fall In 2015 is done and I've just returned home.  To be be concise, it was a blast and a hearty "Bravo Zulu" to the HMGS staff for doing a superb job managing the event.  This con was one of the best HMGS cons I've attended in years.

Without a doubt the highlight for me was the chance to meet Paul O'Grady (of the Man Cave blog) and his son Reilly in person and gets some X-wing gaming time in with them.  Paul is a fantastic fellow and his son is a most impressive young man (and, by the way, a newly minted Eagle Scout!).  I was very pleased to see that parents from the southern hemisphere of our planet take the same great pride in their children that those of us from the Northern one do.  More importantly, these Southern Hem parents both excel in and take great delight from embarrassing their teenage offspring in public with goofy behavior.  There really are traits we all share on a universal basis.  I've now got a great excuse to find my way to Australia!

The con mainly consisted of meeting and getting to know Paul and his son, playing in the Flames of War doubles tournament with Luke of Friday and then playing X-Wing, lots and lots of X-Wing but more on the in a following Fall-In'15 post.

One thing I do feel compelled to comment on is the con's venue, the Host Resort in Lancaster.  I have been extremely critical of the Host in the past.  While I didn't stay there this con, I did think the facilities management and food service was much improved.  They place was kept clean and the staff seemed to be a lot more motivated.  All-in-all they did a good job and should be recognized for the significantly improved efforts.

FOW Doubles Tournament:

 I really like playing in a Flames of War doubles tournament and Luke's a fantastic partner.  The tournament's theme was Italy (my favorite on the FOW book sets) and we brought a US Inf and Mech Infantry list.  Out list structure meant we'd be on the defensive for all our games and that suited our playing style.  The first game was against a German tank and infantry company which had some Brumbars who you can see by turn two had advanced very far forward...

 Maybe a bit too far forward, as they got shellacked by one of our M-10 platoon and some 57mm AT.  I think this turn of events may have broken their player morale.  We ended up winning that game 6-1

 Our next game was against another German tank / infantry pairing with Brumbars and Elephants.

 This game we tried to show our sportsmanship since we technically "won" the game but the other side was in possession of one of the objectives so we elected to give them the win.  Winning on a technicality isn't a good way to advance in the rankings.  We marked the game down as a 2-5 loss

Our last game was against another German tank / infantry list (but with FJ's).  This was a great game and the two house with the roof's removed became a bit of a fortress and withstood 5 rounds of being hit by 150MM artillery and 120mm mortars.  It was a really fun / tight game and I learned that the threat of "popping" an ambush is often more impactful that the ambush itself.  This  game was a 6-1 win which placed Luke and I in third place for the tournament - not a bad showing for a very rusty FOW player.

Secret Santa Wish List

It's been suggested that participants in this years secret santa gift exchange list a few things on their blogs as suggestions.

I'm always a bit uncomfortable with the whole "asking" thing but will try to comply.

My new project for this year is the American War of Independence and so I'd like to suggest to whoever was assigned me that anything AWI related in 28mm will be greatly appreciated.

Plastic, resin, metal - any material will do.  If I was to specific a manufacturer, I'd lean to either the Perry Brothers or Fife and Drum, but will gratefully accept any other manufacturers product.

I will promise that whatever I receive will be painted as part of this years Analogue Hobbies painting competition!

Fall-In is just a few days away!

The Fall-In gaming convention is just a few days away and I'll be attending all three days and I'm very much looking forward to it.  The theme of this year's con is the 100 days campaign.

To be honest, I was originally planning on skipping this one but then heard that most of my gaming friends were going and also Paul of "the Man Cave" fame would be in attendance.  So I'm off to join the herd for several days of gaming geekery.

The one thing I couldn't do is stay at the decrepit Host again so I've got nicer accommodations and will figure out how to make that work.

My schedule is fairly packed - I'm playing in the FOW doubles tournament on Friday with Luke and then plan on playing a bunch of X-Wing with the WWPD crew and their re-ignited passion for the game.  I've also got a few games scheduled in with Paul.  All-in-all it will be a fun three days.

Workbench Part IV - Just about done!

 Daylight savings time worked to my advantage as a lot of work was done on the bench and it's ready to start churning out terrain.  As you can see from the first picture I added a removable base for both my router table (pictured) and table saw that is flush with the rest of the workbench.

 The extension is removable by taking out the 2 carriage bolts that hold in in place.  It's not the most wieldy thing to move about but I can hang it on the wall when not in use and store the tools under the bench

 It's really important that this tool support shelf be both level and strong.  I can stand on it (and did!) and look it's perfectly level.  Just like I planned it.....

 OK, you caught me, I had to shim the right leg 1/4 inch to get the platform level.  You thought I knew what I was doing for a little bit!  Ha, I'm just winging this project!

 The router table is flush with the workbench which will be very useful for working with longer stock.  I'm going to be making a gaming table for a friend and want to to some inlay work and will be working with 6 foot long boards.

 A temporary home for some of my clamps.  They can't stay there as the one outstanding to do on the project is to build some drawers to go in the space under the bench top.

Clamps are like miniatures, one can never have enough.

 My wife has been after me to fix this lamp for years (literally) and it's just been quietly waiting in the shop for some attention.  I decided it would be the first project on the bench in order to curry the favor of executive management.  The lightbulb fixture needed to be replaced so a little bit of wiring work and

 Let the light shine in!  The Boss Lady was actually appreciative of my humble gesture and has labeled the workbench not a complete waste of time.  Ahh sweet victory!!!

I may have forgotten to mention to her that the main purpose of the bench is hobby related - it's probably best not to bother her with such mundane topics..

As for the holes in the work surface - those as 3/4 inch in diameter and there are 40 of them at regular intervals.  Why? the holes are for "bench dogs" (the blue dots in the upper left) which are removable anchor points that help with fixing something in position for sanding or planing.

With the lamp fixed, the new router was just crying to go out for a spin.  I loaded a 1/2 inch straight bit and did some test passes on some scrap.  Hmmm I wonder what I'll build with this tool?

The safety goggles in the picture have reminded me that I don't spend enough time talking about shop safety in these posts.  I wear eye protection whenever I'm in the shop and also wear ear protection when running a loud tool like a router or table saw.  If you're thinking about doing a similar project, please read all the tool safety instruction and if you're unsure ask for help.

I hear chicks dig guys in safety goggles too....

If you are in the states and like woodworking there are a few companies I recommend:

Rockler

Kreg Tools

McMaster Carr (more hardware but lots of cool stuff and the best customer service I ever experienced)

Last Sail for 2016

 On Sunday, October 25th, I sailed the Bucentuare across the Chesapeake to Annapolis to put her up for the winter.  It was a grey rainy day with light winds and 50 degree weather.  But a day on the water always beats a day on the land.

 I did get templet with the navtronics on my newly installed B&G system.  The chart can plot the most efficient direction to go based on wind speed / direction and final destination.  I need to enter the specific factors for my boat (hull size/shape and sail configuration but it's a pretty cool tool!

There were lots of freights to dodge!

 Anf here she is, tied up on the floating dock at the boatyard where she'll winter.  The boatyard crew will lift the Bucentuare out of the water with a giant fork lift and place her of stilts to ride out the winter.  After a bit a re-fit she goes back in the water in late March of 2016!

I did spend a little time on the work bench planing the top.  Lots more to do!