Make a Box from Floor Boards – Scrap Bin Challenge

A few Youtube Woodworkers have banded together today – we all wanted to make something creative from out scraps, i.e. from out scrap bin, hence the “Scrap Bin Challenge”. It is a challenge, because we also challenge you to make something from your scraps! I am making a box from floorboards that I recently took out of my brother-in-law’s room. Enjoy, and remember to be Inspired!

Tool Variations

As always there is some potential to substitute tools, even though I would say that the router is pretty much essential or at least hardest to replace. What the flush trim bit does with ease gets pretty tricky with other tools.

You could get away with a tilted bandsaw or scrollsaw table for the mitres, or even use a jigsaw, but that would be tricky for bottom and lid and dangerous for the walls – unless you do it before you glue them up, and then you would need superior accuracy to avoid problems later.

You might be able to get away with cutting the chamfer at the table saw at the beginning, and that is most likely the best alternative for using the router. The original task of the table saw can be substituted by bandsaw, scrollsaw or jigsaw, but you would need to use a guide track to make sure that the final shape comes together nicely.

What are scraps?

Depending on the definition my workshop is full of scraps. Assuming that everything is scrap that has been cut off for any given project, then apart from a few 2x4s and a sheet of OSB I only have scraps. Of course there can be other definitions – for example pieces that are shorter than 6″ on their longest side, or those that fit into the palm of a hand, or… The list goes on.

I believe that scraps are not a matter of size or looks, bot of the mentality. Just like there are hopeless scraps, like the pretty moulding from an old cupboard that never really quite fits any other project, we turn pieces to scrap in our minds even though they might still be perfect for various projects.

And that was exactly the idea behind this project, and still is! It is about making things from scrap, and thus reducing the scrapload we have in our shops, and to which we add every day. And maybe is is the scrapped parts that set your feet on new ways of making and designing that you otherwise would never have ventured on.

So what did you put into your box exactly?

For the noisy ones – before I got into woodworking proper I bought a collection of small blanks of various exotic species from an online vendor for crafting and medieval supplies. And since then I wanted to make something from it.

But since then my perspective has changes, and I think it would be better to buy a larger chunk of a single species, like I did with walnut, and I never looked back. But I fully intend to use them for something, either for turning or as decorative elements on projects that deserve them. And until then they have found a special box to call home.

Thanks for reading and watching, and remember to be Inspired!