Endgrain chessboard

[pat28]

I did not remember the joys of endgrain sanding all that well--I made eight endgrain cutting boards years ago--but heck, sanding this thing down to an acceptable sheen was 11 hours of labour. I have another ome waiting, but the third, if there is ever a third, will be flatgrain. :-)

[TomFromStLouis]

I offer a full but measured dose of congratulations on what you have so far. It is pretty amazing how much skill and effort it takes to get what you have there, but as you probably know the acid test of any chess set is the knight. Nail that and nobody will ever ask why the drawers are on the sides.

[pat28]

Good point Tom. I intend to work my way up gradually. All pawns for good measure and practice first. Then rooks. Then perhaps the bishops prior to the knights. I have already done compound cuts on the bandsaw and scrollsaw for small Xmas ornaments, so I feel somewhat confident, at least as far as technique goes. Now I need to nail it. It may take four of each color to come up with two decent ones. :-)

[MstrCarpenter]

Might I suggest that you grind an old file to the profile required? I did this for door/window rosettes and produced identical face turnings in a matter of seconds. (It actually took longer to swap the blanks that were only held in place with two wedges.) My profile had about a 2" radius, so I ground it at an angle to get the extra width.

[pat28]

MstrCarpenter, do you mean one file per piece shape? I have never tried this, but it sounds interesting. Mind you, I could not go just with "old" files here as I would need six different shapes, hence the need to buy a few extras. :-)

[Cian]

Gorgeous

[MstrCarpenter]

Might I suggest that you grind an old file to the profile required? I did this for door/window rosettes and produced identical face turnings in a matter of seconds. (It actually took longer to swap the blanks that were only held in place with two wedges.) My profile had about a 2" radius, so I ground it at an angle to get the extra width.

MstrCarpenter, do you mean one file per piece shape? I have never tried this, but it sounds interesting. Mind you, I could not go just with "old" files here as I would need six different shapes, hence the need to buy a few extras. :-)

Yes, one file per specific profile, possibly two or three for each piece.  For example the Rooks, Bishops, and Knights may have the same bases, but the tops are different. The Ponds may have the same base, or one that is slightly smaller in diameter; the Kings and Queens base's may be slightly larger. By taking the time to grind this profile, all of the bases can be turned with the same cutter. You have to grind and polish the top before you grind a profile. I use a magic marker as Dykem and draw the layout with a carbide scribe. I used a metal cutting blade on the grinder (beside the slightly smaller grinding wheel) for the detail work.

I suggested old files because I know the steel will hold a sharp edge. I also have files with profiles on both ends (i.e. on my rosette cutter; one end cuts four ribs and the other shapes the half sphere in the center.)  I don't see a problem using "new" files, so long as they're not cheap steel. Sometimes I use the middle of the file as a "file" to touch up profiles as they're spinning.

[pat28]

As the wood turns... Eight pawns and two rooks completed.

[pat28]

Rooks alone.

[pat28]

Bishops and knights.