Tool Chest Build 08 - Finish and Hardware

Ok so I know it's been a while since the last post but there is a reason, well 2 reasons actually... 1) I bought a lathe and have been having a blast turning stuff... and 2) I had to let the finish dry before I could add the hardware and take the final pics.

Ok where did I leave off... oh yeah I had finished building everything and pre finished the lid. After all that I sanded and sanded and sanded... making sure everything was fitting perfectly and looked the way I wanted it to.

After a good sanding I cleaned up the wood dust with mineral spirits and let that dry then I started the finish... what finish should I use? First I thought a shinny lacquer, but then I started thinking about what this case is for... a tool chest... well then it should have a much simpler finish so I decided to go with an Boiled Linseed Oil base and then a Shellac coat over that and that is the reason it took so long. I put a coat of BLO (Boiled Linseed Oil) and let that dry for 3 days, then I put a second coat of BLO and I was planning on letting that dry for at least a week... well 1 week turned into 2 weeks and 2 weeks into a little more, but after I got back to it, the BLO was nice and dry and I added a couple of coats of Shellac which dries really quickly so that was awesome.

BLO finish looks amazing, if you like a natural non gloss wood finish, which I do.

This project took up my assembly table for 2 weeks and I really wanted to be able to use the table so top priority became finishing this project... I had a great time making this tool chest but  I am glad it is finally done.

I hope you all enjoyed this process as much as I did, Oh wow I almost forgot to talk about the hardware... Its really simple actually, I used 2 Non-Mortise hinges and 2 drawer pulls on each drawer, all in a antique bronze color.

Here is the finished piece in all its glory...

Can't wait to start a new project... Not sure what is coming next but I have a feeling its going to be a set of tools, tools you say? Well I did just buy a lathe and I think I want to make a set of Carbide tools... well actually I will buy the little carbide cutters but I will make the tools.