I have been working on a great project for a really cool client. Derek Vanlandingham was part of the team that originally decorated the home when it was built. It was fun to be back there doing this with him and Steve.

The challenge was to make a showcase to display a growing guitar collection on the walls of the pub.
We used the original base profile as a base to give it a built in look. A real simple molding at the top so we didn't take  away from the rooms carved chair rail. The hardest part was the 11/2 " stiles on the doors so that they lined up with the 3" stile of the walls paneling. The way the room was laid out we had 4 cases that held 3 guitars and one long case that held 7 guitars. For you guitar nuts, they where a mix of Fender and Gibson with a few Gretsch thrown in too !

                                                                            The Pub

The existing panels that became the backs of the showcases

                                The quatrefoil will have a small plaque describing each guitar.

We did a freestanding case to show off a pair of acoustics that needed a case of their own.

This is a case in the adjacent hall that houses some more modern guitars.

Thanks Guys that was fun!

Next on the list was another TV Lift cabinet. This is a pretty big one, an 80" Sharp with 6.5" of speakers on each side.

 I believe the overall length was 10' 6". About 50, wide barely making it through a pair of French doors to get it in the room. A little over  48" tall. The wood of choice was Walnut bleached to match the room.

No, those are not candles on the cabinet but sconces in the sitting area behind.

TV up.!

The round ends and open shelves help with the size. And its always fun to make radiuses moldings.

Yes, the room is big enough for it. Can you spot it now?

Have a couple of interesting projects in the works. One for a very unique piece of history.

So here is part 2. Let's see if it works  this time.

Here is the compass rose showing the boxes for data ports to be installed on site.

Finished drawers and pedestals.

Part of the last post that was giving me trouble was this video of the hidden drawers working. My thanks go out to Josh Pavliska for his work on the drawers. Some of the electronics and switching that enabled it all to work is voodoo to me.

 The drawers are held shut with an electromagnet system from Hafale. A spring on the drawer back pops it out when the power is killed to the magnets.

With that done we moved on to the task of inlaying the bronze signature ribbon. Hart, the sculptor who did the work for Brad Oldham helped me lay it out. then it was four days of intense routing, grinding, and carving.

I started by clamping the piece then scribing around it with an exacto knife. This left me a fine line that I could see flake away when I got real close.

Laminate trimmer with a 3/16 bit to start.

 My set up. Laminate trimmer, Dremel, Die grinder to ease the edges of the bronze, exacto knifes and a dovetail chisel where the tools of choice.

A few pics of the corner detail. The first one is before the patina was applied.

                                    Thanks Emily, I don't know how we are going to top this.

Almost a year ago Emily of Emily Owens Design Group came to me about a conference table for a private client. Her words where," we need to design a table that Presidents and Heads of State will sit at."

Something that would make a statement. While I was contemplating that, she also added the sideboard that is in the background of the picture below. The design and construction of it is in a previous post.

As the room took shape it was decided that the room would be themed around the Constitution.

Brad Oldham's team joined in to do the exquisite bronze work. Their part would be the corners of the apron and the ribbon containing each signer of the Constitution. Fun things to figure out like hidden data ports and hidden drawers where thrown in to complicate things.

    

First thing was to get going on the full scale drawings.

                              This is the start of the torsion box for the drawers and strength.

The MDF dividers where .750 The router bit was .750. Had to use a little 120 on a shaved down block to get a little clearance.

Torsion box together. fitting the apron and cutting out the drawer openings. The sub top made a great 48"X 162" workbench!

Here is a pic of the apron and drawer mock up.

The guys at Wood Gallery came through with these stunning Mahogany panels.

This is the top with the panels cut to form a quartered and bookmatched top of Crotch Mahogany.

I was standing on my work bench and still couldn't fit it all in.

This is really going to polish up nicely.

East Indian Rosewood crossbanding. 

Cleaning up the banding with my Sauer & Steiner K7. Don't know how I got along all these years without that plane.

There will be an 1/8" bronze line between the band and field.

The next thing to tackle was the compass roses that would hide the data and power ports.

After a lot of shaving they where done. The hard part was getting the points to end at the inside and outside of the bronze ring.

                                                                       The finished pair.

                             Parts for the Corinthian style column and base that will serve as pedestals.

Back from the turner. Mike Chavez has been doing my turning for more years than we want to remember. I think we found the limits of his lathe with these.

Fluted and ready for stain and finish.

This is the concept sculpture for the bronze corners each depicting a scene of the writing and signing of the Constitution.

Here's a shot of the 4 scenes in clay.

A picture of the signature ribbons in clay.

That's it for part one. Let's see if this will upload before we go farther. Had issues last night!