Writing Slope Dilema

[my63]

The lower tray of this pair is for larger pens and it is to be lined in blue suede this suede is thicker and not a pliable as the bugundy but has a beautiful feel to it.

Anyway here is the finished pair together.

This project has had some difficulties and TinJapan has been very patient.

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5517/12039169923_9e37df85b6_o.jpg

IMG_6374_1 by my0771, on Flickr

Thanks for looking

Michael

[Tinjapan]

Wow! Looks great! My mother always told me that good things come to those who wait.

 

I'm glad I went with the dark wax, that really looks nice. The suede too looks great, yet you say that the camera does mot do it justice. Really looking forward to sliding them into my slope and moving my pens in to their new home.

[my63]

I wanted to share with you my latest restoration project

 

 

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5513/12176645473_a7102eef41_o.jpg

$_12 by my0771, on Flickr

http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2887/12176829094_fa77be6538_o.jpg

$_123 by my0771, on Flickr

 

I was drawn to this because it was 99p when I first saw it the other day I watched it then I bid 99p yesterday and today I won postage was more than 3 times the cost of the item but it was still less that £5.

The date on the lock is 1907 a leather writing case for 99p even if I have to unpick all of the stitching and replace the front panel it will be a cool case.

 

Thanks for looking

 

Michael

[kiavonne]

Wow! You got a bargain, and a great future heirloom!

[scrivelry]

Michael, we are all dying to see what you do with this!!!

 

T

[my63]

I have not received it yet I but I plan to do as little as possible in order to make it useable again.

[fuchsiaprincess]

Love your new acquisition and can't wait to see you work your magic on it, Michael!

[my63]

Some of you may remember this slope that I bought a few weeks ago.

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3829/11889745916_bb0f3b634e_o.jpg

IMG_6207 by my0771, on Flickr

All of the brass had been removed and replaced by green and gold paint which needs to be removed.

Most of the brass ware was inside the box however some is missing and what is there is in poor condition.

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3745/12361464303_3f38a06979_o.jpg

IMG_6567_1 by my0771, on Flickr

I have labelled everything and sorted it into bags.

I found a company who had brass in 0.7 mm 500 mm in length which was ideal for this box unfortunatley it was too wide and I dont have the facilities to cut that length so I sent a message to the company and they agreed to cut the brass into 25 mm strips for me

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7435/12361469513_b4f41dbc77_o.jpg

IMG_6569 by my0771, on Flickr

So todays dilemma is do I replace all the brass with new which will involve a lot of work or repair what i can and only replace only what is missing which will mean even more work.

Thanks

Michael

[scrivelry]

Are you planning to cut it by hand with a saw? I know how to do that, and it can come out splendidly, but the saw has to be held just so. (Can you tell I did not always hold it just so???) I haven't done it since High School but the tools seem to be the same. (Oddly enough Micheal's, a local craft store chain, sells the little bit of wood and clamp you need in order to be able to saw, but not the saw or blades, one of life's little mysteries...)

 

Or were you planning to use a rotary tool? I am afraid of mine but I remember you used one to make a piece to repair a lock so you seem to have gotten yours to play nice.

 

It would be nice to have the original brass. I would judge each piece - if it is a matter of flattening things out, that shouldn't be too bad. If some of the pieces have really chewed up parts, that might entail cutting bits out. What you might want to do is assess the whole situation - if you have enough almost fine pieces for the more visible spots, and could flatten out the others well enough for less visible spots, and only had to make a few pieces, would that be the least amount of finicky work?

 

(By flatten out, I do not mean to take the bend out - I mean to make all the part that should lie in the same plane do so - not sure I am explaining this well...)

 

It looks like a challenge but I am sure it will be gorgeous when you're done. You've worked wonders on other things!

 

T

[my63]

No power tools on this project it will all be cut by hand using a pair of tin snips I acquired yesterday and a jeweller's saw that arrived last week, I expect this project to take many months to complete as I have lots of projects on the go at the moment although as everything is here you never know.

The first thing to do is remove all of the green and gold paint that has been added.

 

Thanks

 

Michael

[scrivelry]

It looks to me like the finicky "I'll work on you till I tire/you show signs of being persnickety, box, and then you're having a rest until tomorrow" sort of project. Or at least it would have to be that way for me.

 

There will be pics along the way, I hope!

 

T

[Skoff]

Hi Michael,

 

That slope with all the brass work is very, very similar to the one that you helped me with a long while back, I think you have a big job ahead, but it will be lots of fun. I decided not to replace the brass work on my slope as it was just too big a job for my first writing slope restoration, but I have no doubt you will make a first class job of it. Keep the updates coming, I can't wait to see how you progress.

 

I have actually found time to finish my own project over the last few days. It's been too cold and wet to go into the garage (my workshop) for a long time, but the wife being away for a few days allowed me to move indoors and finish off.

 

Just to save you heading back through the thread, this is how it started (bought for £7 from a car boot sale):

 

http://i1056.photobucket.com/albums/t363/skoff13/smllDSC_1427_zpsbb86c3a9.jpg

 

And this is how it looks now:

 

http://i1056.photobucket.com/albums/t363/skoff13/smllDSC_1883_zpsa62818f9.jpg

 

http://i1056.photobucket.com/albums/t363/skoff13/smllDSC_1887_zps34cac6c8.jpg

 

http://i1056.photobucket.com/albums/t363/skoff13/smllDSC_1890_zps60ef318e.jpg

 

http://i1056.photobucket.com/albums/t363/skoff13/smllDSC_1895_zps68674d40.jpg

 

The red isn't as vivid in real life, the photos taken under artificial light seem to make it look very bright.

 

For those interested this is a list of the things I did:

Stripped old veneer off the box

Removed and restored the lock, including cutting a key to fit

Removed the old leather

Replaced the hinges

Veneered the box in walnut

Put brass corners on the box

Added some brass wire inlay

French polished the whole thing (took AGES)

Replaced the leather and repaired the broken inner flaps

Made a new lid for the tray at the top

Made a new spring for the secret compartment

Replaced the felt on the bottom of the box

Drank many, many cups of tea whilst scratching my head

 

There are a few small mistakes, but that's only to be expected on a first attempt - I'd never done anything like this before so was learning as I went along. It's a really enjoyable thing to do and I recommend anybody have a go as the sense of satisfaction of completing something like this is wonderful.

 

Thanks again Michael, you really helped me get through some of the trickiest parts of the job.

 

Now I need to think of my next summer project...

[my63]

Hi Skoff

 

I have often wondered how you were getting on with your box,

It looks fantastic you should be proud of what you have achieved I was happy to help you in a small way.

It may be some time before I can cut the brass for my box,

I was going to ask that very question what is next.

 

Michael

[kiavonne]

Very nice work, Skoff! Your finished box is quite nice.

 

These threads showing the wonderful restoration work being done with things I am passionate about, and all the innovative ideas, keep me very interested and engrossed in the processes.

[fuchsiaprincess]

Hi Michael,

 

That slope with all the brass work is very, very similar to the one that you helped me with a long while back, I think you have a big job ahead, but it will be lots of fun. I decided not to replace the brass work on my slope as it was just too big a job for my first writing slope restoration, but I have no doubt you will make a first class job of it. Keep the updates coming, I can't wait to see how you progress.

 

I have actually found time to finish my own project over the last few days. It's been too cold and wet to go into the garage (my workshop) for a long time, but the wife being away for a few days allowed me to move indoors and finish off.

 

Just to save you heading back through the thread, this is how it started (bought for £7 from a car boot sale):

 

http://i1056.photobucket.com/albums/t363/skoff13/smllDSC_1427_zpsbb86c3a9.jpg

 

And this is how it looks now:

 

http://i1056.photobucket.com/albums/t363/skoff13/smllDSC_1883_zpsa62818f9.jpg

 

http://i1056.photobucket.com/albums/t363/skoff13/smllDSC_1887_zps34cac6c8.jpg

 

http://i1056.photobucket.com/albums/t363/skoff13/smllDSC_1890_zps60ef318e.jpg

 

http://i1056.photobucket.com/albums/t363/skoff13/smllDSC_1895_zps68674d40.jpg

 

The red isn't as vivid in real life, the photos taken under artificial light seem to make it look very bright.

 

For those interested this is a list of the things I did:

Stripped old veneer off the box

Removed and restored the lock, including cutting a key to fit

Removed the old leather

Replaced the hinges

Veneered the box in walnut

Put brass corners on the box

Added some brass wire inlay

French polished the whole thing (took AGES)

Replaced the leather and repaired the broken inner flaps

Made a new lid for the tray at the top

Made a new spring for the secret compartment

Replaced the felt on the bottom of the box

Drank many, many cups of tea whilst scratching my head

 

There are a few small mistakes, but that's only to be expected on a first attempt - I'd never done anything like this before so was learning as I went along. It's a really enjoyable thing to do and I recommend anybody have a go as the sense of satisfaction of completing something like this is wonderful.

 

Thanks again Michael, you really helped me get through some of the trickiest parts of the job.

 

Now I need to think of my next summer project...

 

Skoff, that is amazing effort, especially if it's your first time! You should be really proud of yourself.

[mhguda]

Wow, wonderful job! Not sure how I missed the report earlier, but now I didn't. That's serious eyecandy...

[Ink Stained Wretch]

Can anyone tell me what the angle is on a writing wedge?

 

I have toyed with the idea of making a very simple one, Just some piece of board supported at the proper angle by other pieces of wood in some arrangement. But I don't know what the best angle should be for writing.

 

[my63]

An average of the writing slopes currently residing on my desk is 15 degrees.

If you want to find your most comfortable writing position start with a flat piece of wood and place a block of wood or a book under the end furthest away from you and then move it forward increasing the angle until you find the angle you prefer.

Hope that helps

 

Michael

[Shangas]

I wanted to share with you my latest restoration project

 

 

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5513/12176645473_a7102eef41_o.jpg

$_12 by my0771, on Flickr

http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2887/12176829094_fa77be6538_o.jpg

$_123 by my0771, on Flickr

 

I was drawn to this because it was 99p when I first saw it the other day I watched it then I bid 99p yesterday and today I won postage was more than 3 times the cost of the item but it was still less that £5.

The date on the lock is 1907 a leather writing case for 99p even if I have to unpick all of the stitching and replace the front panel it will be a cool case.

 

Thanks for looking

 

Michael

 

Michael, please keep us (or at least...me) informed about this one. It looks absolutely beautiful before you touched it. I'd love to see what it's like when you're done!!

[my63]

Hi Shangas

I have not forgotten about the little case I did a temporary fix with flexible leather cement But it really needs the straps replacing and a new finish on the leather I am not happy with the repair on the catch either.

I will keep you informed don't worry.

Regards

Michael