# Wooden hinges for boxes



## Herb Stoops (Aug 28, 2012)

This is the Rob Corson dowel hinge.



With a bullnose or ball router bit on a router table the size of the dowel, route a 1/4 round slot in the back of lid and back of box. Set the fence at the center of the bit diameter and run the top and the box through. The fence can be set in or out to suit the particular box and how wide the lid opens.

Take a dowel the same size as the router bit and cut lengths to suit the length of the box, they can be the same length or different lengths. Drill a hole in the center of the dowel the size of the pin. The pin can be metal rod, or wooden dowels.

Assemble the dowels on the rod, and adjust to the length of the box,marking the positions of the dowel segments on the box and the top.

Put a little glue on every other segment on the box. MAKE SURE THE GLUE HAS ROOM TO SQUEEZE OUT AND NOT SQUEEZE INTO THE NEXT DOWEL SPACE. Carefully lay the assembled dowel hinge onto the glue. Carefully set the top on and lightly clamp down

When the glue is dry lift off the top and spin the every other dowel. Then apply a small amount of glue onto the free spinning segments of dowels allowing for squeeze out of the glue. carefully set the top on and clamp lightly. Allow the glue to dry.

After the glue has set, gently open the box. The Joy you feel when the box opens is beyond description, the sinking feeling if it doesn't is beyond printing. Only had one that didn't open, and I have done a lot of them.

You can also wax the pin,if you so desire. 

Herb


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## Stick486 (Jan 4, 2013)

excellent tutorial Herb..

thanks..


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## Herb Stoops (Aug 28, 2012)

The hardest part is drilling the hole centered in the dowel segment. the drill wants to follow the grain. I used my Incra hinge jig on this one.

Before the best way I found is this.
Use 1" long metal pins, (from 8d nails, brazing rod,etc. any 1/8"dia. rod) and drill the dowel segments 1/2"deep from each end. The pins don't have to touch. This is easy way to center the pins in the dowels. once they are glued up, they can not come apart.

Herb


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## sreilly (May 22, 2018)

Herb this is an excellent description of the process. I've been working so much at setting up the shop I haven't taken time to really do any projects other than shop storage and organization. This looks like a good project to switch up on and do something different. I looked at Incra's hinge jig back some time and the price wasn't so bad and I already have the I-Box jig but the cost of the bit set was darn near triple the jig cost. It's a wish list item but this certainly shows another approach. Thanks for bringing this back to mind again. Who knew retirement could be so difficult sometimes?

-Steve


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## harrysin (Jan 15, 2007)

An excellent photoshoot and the method is so different to the one that our late member Bob Jergens, the forums master jig maker used.


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## Herb Stoops (Aug 28, 2012)

harrysin said:


> An excellent photoshoot and the method is so different to the one that our late member Bob Jergens, the forums master jig maker used.


Thanks Harry, I wish I could take credit for it, but I bought a DVD that the Canadian Rob Corson made of making concealed hinges back in 2005. Since then I have made dozens of boxes with this type of hinge, it is quite easy to do, and fun. 
I have even made dowels of the same wood as the box, on these I used an off the shelf dowel.

Herb


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## Herb Stoops (Aug 28, 2012)

sreilly said:


> Herb this is an excellent description of the process. I've been working so much at setting up the shop I haven't taken time to really do any projects other than shop storage and organization. This looks like a good project to switch up on and do something different. I looked at Incra's hinge jig back some time and the price wasn't so bad and I already have the I-Box jig but the cost of the bit set was darn near triple the jig cost. It's a wish list item but this certainly shows another approach. Thanks for bringing this back to mind again. Who knew retirement could be so difficult sometimes?
> 
> -Steve


Steve, you don't have to have the set, I use the TS for the box joints, and the router table for the round over.

Herb


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## chessnut2 (Sep 15, 2011)

Beautiful box, and a great tutorial, Herb. For the lazy (me), do you know anywhere to buy hollow wooden dowels? I'm not currently set up to very accurately center drill solid dowels.


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## Herb Stoops (Aug 28, 2012)

chessnut2 said:


> Beautiful box, and a great tutorial, Herb. For the lazy (me), do you know anywhere to buy hollow wooden dowels? I'm not currently set up to very accurately center drill solid dowels.


Lee Valley sold them in the past as a way to plug extracted screw hole and ream the holes with a tapered reamer and sharpen the 5/16" dia. hollow dowel with the pencil sharpener,(matches the taper on the reamer), then glue in the reamed out hole. These were wooden pencil blanks w/o the lead. Don't know if they still handle these, I bought a hand full a while back.

The Plugger® by Veritas® - Lee Valley Tools

Herb


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## chessnut2 (Sep 15, 2011)

Herb Stoops said:


> Lee Valley sold them in the past as a way to plug extracted screw hole and ream the holes with a tapered reamer and sharpen the 5/16" dia. hollow dowel with the pencil sharpener,(matches the taper on the reamer), then glue in the reamed out hole. These were wooden pencil blanks w/o the lead. Don't know if they still handle these, I bought a hand full a while back.
> 
> The Plugger® by Veritas® - Lee Valley Tools
> 
> Herb


Well worth the price. Thanks, Herb.


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## Herb Stoops (Aug 28, 2012)

chessnut2 said:


> Well worth the price. Thanks, Herb.


Sorry to say they are no longer available. I am searching for another source.

Herb


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## Herb Stoops (Aug 28, 2012)

chessnut2 said:


> Beautiful box, and a great tutorial, Herb. For the lazy (me), do you know anywhere to buy hollow wooden dowels? I'm not currently set up to very accurately center drill solid dowels.


after a hard search for "wooden hollow,tube,beads I found some that may work for hinges.

https://www.alibaba.com/product-det...a2700.7724857.normalList.1.3f111ee61kUbul&s=p

https://www.etsy.com/market/wood_tube_beads"

https://www.pandahall.com/ProductSearch?keyword=wooden+tube+beads&areaType=NormalArea

Herb


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## sreilly (May 22, 2018)

Herb Stoops said:


> Lee Valley sold them in the past as a way to plug extracted screw hole and ream the holes with a tapered reamer and sharpen the 5/16" dia. hollow dowel with the pencil sharpener,(matches the taper on the reamer), then glue in the reamed out hole. These were wooden pencil blanks w/o the lead. Don't know if they still handle these, I bought a hand full a while back.
> 
> The Plugger® by Veritas® - Lee Valley Tools
> 
> Herb


Here's the link I found that should have the dowells.

-Steve


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## chessnut2 (Sep 15, 2011)

Herb Stoops said:


> after a hard search for "wooden hollow,tube,beads I found some that may work for hinges.
> 
> https://www.alibaba.com/product-det...a2700.7724857.normalList.1.3f111ee61kUbul&s=p
> 
> ...


What a bunch of research! I didn't think to search for wooden tubes. Thanks, Herb.


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## Jimmy Dee (Oct 31, 2012)

Herb,

When you run the box and top across the router table using the bull nose or ball bit, do you only make one "pass" with the box and top held together, or do you run the box across the router table and then the top?

Hope this makes sense.

Jimmy


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## Herb Stoops (Aug 28, 2012)

Jimmy Dee said:


> Herb,
> 
> When you run the box and top across the router table using the bull nose or ball bit, do you only make one "pass" with the box and top held together, or do you run the box across the router table and then the top?
> 
> ...


Hi Jimmy.
I set the bullnose or ball router bit half the height of the circumference, i.e. 1/4" hi if it is a 1/2" round bit. Then set the fence so that it centers on the bit, this will give you a 1/4 round cut.

After the top is cut off the box, Put the back of the box tight to the fence and run it through. Then do the same with the back side of the top. This should give you a half round cut out when you put the top on the box. The pin will be centered on the back edge of the box, so the lid should open at 180 degrees. the more the cut is moved towards the front the less it will open.


If you go deeper(raise the bit too high), the lid will bind before it closes, better to go a fuzz light on the height of the bit to allow a little clearance when it is closed.

This can also be used with a flat single board top.

Hope this helps, if you have any questions just ask.
Herb


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