At about two or three inches from the top, fasten a ledge on the inside of the front and back. This can be about ¼" thick by ½" deep and is for the sliding-tray, shown in the cut, to rest upon. This tray can be of soft wood, from ¼" to 3/8" in thickness, and can be divided as you wish. It will often be advantageous to arrange the lid and the top tray so that tools can be fastened on the inside of the lid. Saws and various flat tools are often thus disposed of, being held in place by straps, blocks, and buttons. You can also arrange a rack around the inside of your chest for such tools as chisels, gouges, etc. When kept in trays, such tools should be separated by divisions. The various details of making such a chest do not differ from those of the articles just described in the preceding chapter on Furniture.
In nailing together rough boxes for packing or some temporary purpose, you do not need to devote much thought to the arrangement of the pieces with reference to the direction of the grain, so long as you put them together in a way that your common-sense tells you will be strong. Examination of a few packing-cases will show you all you need to know for such work. But when you make a better grade of box, to be glued, regard must be paid to the direction of the grain and the matter of expansion and contraction. In the majority of boxes and chests the grain of the sides and ends should run in the same way—horizontally or around the box, as shown in the illustrations.
This gives a strong edge all around at the top of the box and permits the use of glue (with some joints) where the sides and ends meet, as the parts glued will thus naturally tend to expand and contract alike. When the grain goes in opposite directions (i.e., at right angles), such joints, unless short, should not be glued. Where the top board is fastened to the sides and ends of the box, as in Fig. 347, it should not be glued, except in the case of a small box, and the grain should run lengthways, so that there will be as little change as possible due to the expansion and contraction (see Chapter IV. on Laying Out the Work, and [Appendix]).
When several boards are required to cover the top or bottom of a box, if you wish to have as few cracks as possible and to avoid the swelling and shrinking across the grain as much as you can, lay the boards lengthways of the box, but if you merely wish for strength, lay them crossways.
Care must be taken about testing the angles with the square, and guarding against winding (see Winding-sticks), in making nice boxes, as with all framed work. If the bottom and top are got out accurately they will, of course, assist in the matter of getting the box square, and for common work carefully fitting the bottom (or bottom and top) in place will be all the "squaring" required. In nice work where the joints are glued, waste pieces should be placed over the joints (across the grain of the sides) before applying the clamps, not merely to prevent the work being marred by the clamps, but also to distribute the pressure and ensure as close a joint as possible (see Clamps).
The final smoothing of the outside of a box should be done after it is permanently put together, allowing plenty of time, if glue is used in the joints, for it to dry before dressing off the surfaces. The inside must, of course, be smoothed before putting together.
The variety of forms in which boxes are made is too great for all to be specified, but the same general principles apply to nearly all forms of box-work. In the case of chests or large boxes, you will often see them with the sides and ends panelled, but this is rather an elaborate form for the beginner to attempt and had best be avoided by the inexperienced worker. A form which is not too hard for the amateur is shown, however, in Fig. 350, the sides and ends being fitted to grooves or rabbets cut in posts at each corner.