Dovetailed Shaker Step Stool (circa. 2006)

I made this step stool all the way back in 2006; in between completing a Carpentry & Joinery course and beginning another in Cabinet Making. This was my first ever attempt at hand-cutting dovetails and, although the results are far from exquisite, I have always been happy with them.
If you're interested in making this for yourself, please follow the link below to the plans I used. This is not my own design:
tinyurl.com/y9llndu2
I'll write a blog post on this soon...
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Links:
Olly Writes: ollypj.com
Instagram: / ollypj
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Twitter: / ollypj
My second channel - Olly Outdoors:
/UCJ4Y51z04p5tAgRUfRU5LQQ
Music:
1. 'Bringin' It Back' - Dan Lebowitz
2. Breakdown - Take the Lead by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution licence (creativecommons.org/licenses/...)
Source: incompetech.com/music/royalty-...
Artist: incompetech.com/
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#Woodwork #Dovetails #FurnitureMaking
Thanks for watching!
Olly Parry-Jones - February 2018

[@WoodomainJeremyBroun]

Well done Olly. I taught for a very brief period at your college but a long time ago! interestingly 'Carpentry' is a British public school term!

[@OllyParryJones]

Thank you, Jez. :-) Ah, I knew you'd done some teaching but had no idea you taught at the very college! I don't know what has become of the building (Allen House) that you probably taught in... It's Grade II listed and quickly surrounded by flats in my year in between courses (2006-2007). It appeared to remain 'derelict' and unused until I left again in 2010... It will probably end up as flats.

[@IEnjoyCreatingVideos]

Nice video Olly! Thanks for sharing it with us.😎👍JP

[@OllyParryJones]

Thanks very much, JP. You're welcome. :-)

[@IEnjoyCreatingVideos]

😎

[@FloweringElbow]

Nice doves for the first go - and thanks for showing, makes me almost want to give them a try ;) Good luck finding a new workshop space (and home)!

[@OllyParryJones]

FloweringElbow Thank you, Steve. :-) I've seen you create some pretty ambitious things; I'm surprised you haven't already tried dovetailing.

[@FloweringElbow]

I know, I know, makes me feel quite inadequate. I just haven't done any projects where I have thought, the perfect joint for the job would be a traditional dovetail. One day the time will come - till then I'll continue with the mild dovetail complex.

[@willford8475]

Hi Olly, It's a nice design with an intrinsic flaw, in that the side arches are going to want to split down the grain when weight is put on second step. In the 18th century the Shakers would have had access to very old tight grained boards that could withstand normal use. I suppose some sort of supporting wood could be attached, cross-grain, over the arches on the inside, maybe a Dutchman sort of arrangement. Alternatively you could buy a six quid step-stool from BnQ and regard your piece as a work of art! Lol. I enjoyed the video btw.

[@OllyParryJones]

Will Ford Thanks, Will. You know, even until now, I hadn't considered the 'inferiority' of using pine. I think the original article uses a hardwood. I can also imagine the Shakers having access to 18in wide boards. But their adhesives might have been inferior to our modern PVAs.

[@jeffreykeyser9435]

Olly: Thanks for sharing your experience/journey. Given your materials and limited toolset, you did a remarkable job. I, too, started with a Gent’s Saw (Crown from Sheffield). Although I’m in the US, I have quite a few Crown hand tools and they have served me well. You mentioned Irwin and Marples with an air of disgust; I have been rather pleased with the quality of the few tools I purchased from these manufacturers. Who is regarded as higher quality UK toolmakers? Yes; original was most likely Cherry or Maple. I’ve now been cutting dovetails for nearly 20 years. Starting out, I was enamored with the range of router jigs and all the fancy alignment gauges one “needed” to cut fine dovetails. A few years into my journey I found my way to Frank Kraus’s technique and, to this day, that’s all I use and it serves me well. The only required tools are, a marking gauge and knife, dDovetail (or Dozuki) Saw, and sharp chisels.

[@baldanddangerous1572]

for someone olly,that had limited knowledge back then,you did a grand job of these dovetails,also they have stood the test of time,me and my wife used to be private landlord and it was a nightmare,took us years to get out that loop,now we are in a housing association property and what a diff,nice an toasty ,no damp,no quibbling about repairs etc,maybe try looking into that in your area ,apart from that ,nice to see you looking well.............all the best.............................dougie

[@OllyParryJones]

Thanks very much, Dougie. :-) Always a pleasure to hear from you and I'm pleased to hear that your situation improved over time. All the best and until next time. Olly

[@WyeExplorer]

Dovetailing and Biscuit Jointing! I admire the terminology Olly and the skill. Good going. Mark

[@OllyParryJones]

Thanks very much, Mark. :-) Have you ever done any woodworking yourself?

[@WyeExplorer]

A pleasure Olly. I like this channel of yours. I have done back at school. I've got one of Paul's pieces here at home. It's 35 years old!

[@niceguypants]

Handy stool Olly, make another for skill contrast, and again in twelve years time.... How far are you from Sylva? re: workshop/bench space....

[@OllyParryJones]

niceguypants Thank you, I'd certainly like to tackle the same project again but with refinement. I had to Google Sylva as I'm unfamiliar... I'm in North Somerset, ten miles south of Bristol.

[@niceguypants]

Then I for one would watch a build-a-long, though I'm sure you can now up-the-ante; Victorian folding library steps in Oak ? I'm glad that the ol'Google was a quick search, but I feel I was presumptuous; I though that you would have seen this: kzbin.info/www/bejne/p2LQmmOVj7eKpMU

[@OllyParryJones]

niceguypants One of the first projects I ever made at home (2005) was a folding library chair! Southern yellow pine and it now lives somewhere in my mum's shed. Might did it out for a video one day. I've also still yet to showcase the arm chair I made in 2010... Thanks for the link. I do subscribe to Paul but I swear I've not seen that video in my feed... KZbin's algorithms, I guess. Will watch it properly later. I'm a good two-hour drive from Oxfordshire, sadly.