Small Turned Boxes for the Perpetually Perplexed: Part 2

Ok,
Here we go again: I decided after the artillery shell from the other evening to try making another box but to use a different approach. This time I would make the top and bottom and hollow them both out to the same diameter and instead of creating a wooden sleeve for the top to slide over in order to hold it onto the box, this time I would use a metal sleeve inserted and glued into the bottom portion. This metal sleeve would then slide into the top whenever I wanted to place the top onto the bottom.

Genius.

I had visions of being written up in Fine Woodworking.

Ok, I'm not going to be written up in Fine Woodworking but actually, it's a good idea and it's nearly fool proof, unless you happen to be an fool yourself.

Here we go:

I decided for this go around to used some scrap maple leftover from my rolling pin efforts earlier this year:

This excellent wood and absolutely perfect for a small turned box. And since it was already round, it eliminated a step.

Next, I placed it on the lathe and turned a tenon on both ends and I cut the two pieces apart:

Then I mounted the top and the bottom on the lathe and drilled out the interiors:

This step went well. The two pieces had identical diameter hollowed out sections and the outside diameters were equal. The start of a really nice box.

Then I took the bottom half and glued in a copper sleeve:

This step also went well and the top and the bottom matched up well and the copper sleeve worked exactly as planned.

I re-joined the top and the bottom and placed them back on the lathe to finish shaping and turning the out side and this went well too. I thought I'd just make something fun and fanciful so I started to cut out the box in the shape of a pear:

I apologize for the dark photo. It really was a pear shape.

Well, I kept on cutting away, refining the shape, enduring a freezing cold workshop, and congratulating myself on finally producing a nice, small, turned, box, when all of a sudden there was a loud kerplunk!
Those of you who follow the blog know that when that sound happens it's usually not a good sign and true to form it wasn't. I turned off the lathe and released the two pieces:

I had cut through at the wrong place and completely cut through the bottom of the box.

Well, back to the drawing board. I'm going to go and have some coffee and make dinner.

More later,
VW