Footlocker Design

[Tom Watson]

My son is going to Boy Scout Camp in mid June. They ask that each boy have a footlocker. They said to just pick one up at WallyWorld or Kmart.

I went to look at what they had to offer and wasn't particularly impressed.

So, I figured I'd just cobble up a footlocker.

I have some half inch cherry ply left over from a job and some nice brass hardware left over from a different job. I figure I can make this thing with no outlay.

My thought was that I would use finger joints in the corners, house the bottom in a plough, lay the top in a rabbet, and that would make a decent enclosure.

Then I figured I'd put a pinrail on the inside and sit a divided tray on it.

Has anyone made one of these before? I'd hate to build something stupid because I didn't ask enough questions about it.

Regards,

Tom

Thos.J.Watson - Cabinetmaker tjwatson1ATcomcastDOTnet

[charlie]

think about weight of the empty carcass.

a lot.

also, think about corner damage. they tend to get dropped and jumped on.

some sort of locking mechanism.

don't forget the secret compartment.

[Leon]

Hey Tom,

Like Charlie mentioned you may want to think about weight. Wood would be very cool unless it was heavy and had to be moved around by a young'en. We always used a plastic container that resembled a large ice chest except with out the insulation. A big plus is that they are water resistant, rain is not a problem. Usually you can find these in the larger sporting goods stores. Just a thought.

[Swingman]

"Tom Watson" wrote

I've used my old, original Vietnam era wooden Army footlocker for portable microphone storage for over thirty years, and the two 1x1 "runners" (spanning front to back on the bottom panel, and spaced a couple inches in from each side), are a nice touch to keep the footlocker bottom off the ground and high and dry.

I would consider this "feature" mandatory for a scout camp footlocker and something you might want to consider in your design.

FWIW ...

[Dave in Houston]

What do you think the tare weight will end up being?

Dave in Houston

[Tom Watson]

The three Tejas boys chimed in within five minutes of each other. Are y'all playing cards together tonight?

Thanks for the tips. They're some gooduns.

Regards,

Tom

Thos.J.Watson - Cabinetmaker tjwatson1ATcomcastDOTnet

[Tom Watson]

I like that secret compartment idea.

Thanks.

Regards,

Tom

Thos.J.Watson - Cabinetmaker tjwatson1ATcomcastDOTnet

[Andrew Erickson]

I'll second the "big plastic box" idea. Wally world and similar often have something of that sort in the general region of automotive cruft that they claim is a toolbox or some such. My mother, who retired from being a missionary around a year ago, recommended one of them when I visited her as they are sturdy, hold a lot, and don't weigh that much--all concerns for international air travel. The fact that they're pretty inexpensive is also a plus.

There's a reasonably detailed couple of articles on "Making one's own steamer and wardrobe trunks" in the fourth of the (original) Popular Mechanics Boy Mechanic series, such as Lee Valley has available as a reprint (pages 328-329 and 331-333). It appears from google books that it's also in the modern edition reorganized from the originals (pages

51-57). Their basic design uses 1/2" plywood or boards, butt jointed to form a box, glued and nailed, and then sawn asunder to form a chest and a top. The outside is covered in heavy fabric glued on (theatrical "scenic linen"--probably canvas?), the opening reinforced with essentially angle iron pieces, and 2" x 1/4" slats attached at the edges and across the faces for reinforcement.

[sawzdust]

I still got mine left over from vietnam.............. I'll take pictures of it for you if you want!

Let me know~

[John Grossbohlin]

Tom,

I made a couple half-trunks for my sons to take to Scout camp... After a week in a tent I needed to refinish both. As an after-thought entered them in a couple shows... after winning ribbons for them twice I'm not sure I want them going back to camp but they are my sons' now! See ABPW.

John

[DonkeyHody]

Tom, My boy is a few years ahead of yours on the scouting trail. He'll be working on his Eagle project this summer. I wouldn't waste good cherry ply on anything for scouts to use. Regardless of your boy's highly tuned appreciation for fine things and the work you and he will put into his foot locker, the boys loading the truck will see it as just another piece of cargo. It will come back looking like it's been dragged down a gravel road behind a pickup. If you must build a footlocker, use something cheap. Use 1/2 ply. It's strong enough to sit on, but light enough to carry. I built some patrol boxes that have held up pretty well except for the gouges in every surface. Overall dimensions should be somewhere around 18 X 18 X 32 so it will stack well with the other boxes in the truck.

Rubbermaid makes an "Action Packer" in several sizes. The 35 gallon one sells for about $70. It is water-proof, impact-resistant and almost scout-proof. It's pretty much standard fare for scout camp. Resist the urge to get the bigger 48 gallon one. Scoutmasters hate them cause they take up so much room in the truck, and the 35 gallon one is big enough.

Hope your boy enjoys summer camp and gets as much out of Boy Scouts as mine did.

DonkeyHody "The best things in life . . . aren't things."

[Bob AZ]

Tom

Been there. Done that. Don't waste your time and money. Whatever you send will be trashed at the least and probably almost destroyed. Boy Scouts is great but awfully hard on all concerned. By all I mean the equipment and folks. All in all this makes it more fun and meaningful. Lots of lessons to be learned.

Bob AZ

[Lew Hodgett]

RE: Subject

Wood is Heavy, Weak, but can be finished to look beautiful.

IMHO, 1 out of 3 doesn't cut it.

Lew

[J. Clarke]

Just a comment, but for that "heavy fabric, glued on", my temptation would be fiberglass and epoxy.

But I'd also go for the "big plastic box". If you don't like the cheap ones at Wally World, a Pelican 1630 should do the job. Not pretty, but waterproof and tough--drop a motorcycle on one at 50 mph and all that happens is that it gets scuffed up a bit.

[Dave in Houston]

I've got one of these (or something similar):

in Houston

[Andy Dingley]

Birch ply, as it's lighter.

Avoid finger joints in ply. They aren't especially strong and they're a pain to cut. I'd use thin splines (biscuits are too deep, unless you can do minis), and I'd use vertical triangular strips inside as reinforcement. You're much better off making it from thinner ply that needs a corner block than from thicker ply that weighs more for the side panel. Construction is speeded if you make it as a solid cuboid, then saw the lid off. The lid doesn't need much height, but a bit of a rim to it makes it _much_ stronger. You can also fasten a stretchy cloth mesh strip inside the lid to make pockets to stop small stuff getting lost inside.

One big question is how the lid hinges. Does it hinge up and back just enough, then be supported there by a couple of tape straps? Or is it like an ammo box, where it's as thin as possible and then double hinges allow it to flop right over the back and out of the way?

Handles are spliced rope beckets (loops) on each end, held under a routed channel in a ply escutcheon. Use good quality soft-surfaced rope, to save your fingers when carrying it. Put enough twist into it when you make the splice (a "hard splice") so that the ring is fairly self-supporting, again to save your fingers. The escutcheons also thicken up the sides to support locks or catches. If the loops are long enough, you can also carry it between two of you on a palanquin pole.

A pair of shallow runners underneath makes it more rot-resistant and easier to slide in and out of estate cars.

A couple of boxes of tacks can be used to make a "nailed" design on the surface. Cooler than paint, if they're into older history more than modern.

Japanese toolboxes (in the Taunton book) have a nice sliding lid design. I made one of these where the slide is blocked by a rotating wooden plate (carved into a pirate skull) to lock it, and simple push- lock cylinders in each eye locked the skull in place. It took the recipient a whole afternoon to open it for the first time, even with the key. They had to pry the squishy rubber eyeball out of the socket to see the keyhole first... 8-)

[Tom Watson]

Thanks to everyone for their ideas.

Charlie - thanks for the secret compartment idea. That's a keeper. Kids love secret stuff.

Leon - thanks for the heads up on weight. I'm using the half inch cherry ply because it's a leftover from previous jobs and it's kind of hammered. It looks like the better quality trunks are made of 3/8" ply that's covered in sheet metal. I'm hoping to net out at close to what these do.

Andrew - thanks for the steamer trunk stuff. That's interesting. I hear you about the plastic box being the logical way to go but I just wanted to make this box. Not logical - but fun.

Dave - thanks. I'll be interested to see what the final weight is, also.

Sawzdust - thanks for the offer of the picture. I already cut this thing out and glued up the box jointed carcass today, so the die is cast.

John - thanks for the pix of your beautiful boxes. They are even more over the top than this thing is. Beautiful!

DonkeyHody - thanks for your thoughts. The leftover piece of cherry ply really isn't good for better work, so I figured this was about what it was good for.

Bob - thanks for the thoughts. I know it's going to get hammered and I hope that every mark indicates a good memory.

Lew - thanks. You're right about the wood - but I'm a wood guy.

Andy - thanks for the very detailed message. Unfortunately, it reached me after I'd already glued up the box. I'm interested in your thought that box joints in ply are difficult to cut and not particulary strong. That has not been my experience.

Swing - thanks for the runner idea. I'm going to use that and put some of my leftover UHMW stripping on the bottom of them.

Thanks again to everyone.

I'll post some pix when it's finished.

Regards,

Tom

Thos.J.Watson - Cabinetmaker tjwatson1ATcomcastDOTnet

[B A R R Y]

Excellent suggestion.

Most "flight cases", by outfits like Anvil and Calzone, and seen on stages everywhere, are simply birch ply covered with laminate.

The cases are lighter than they look when empty.

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[Robatoy]

Great. All wonderful ideas. Now, bottom line: build it for your son. Enjoy building it. Load it up with karma, and he and his troupe will respect it. Not too many swirlies on the scrollwork, if you catch my drift.

If it is built right, it can be light-weight and still survive the patina which will carry your son and his stuff into the future. He will look back and love that damned thing. He will.

I raised 3 daughters. They all have their shelves and boxes and stuff... I don't want to be in the shoes of those who treat those things with disrespect... and that includes a house we're building..LOL...

A few rugged dove-tails. A few tin-hammered corners. Some cast-brass inlaid hinges. You are a lucky man to even want to DO this.

r

[Robatoy]

Yup, an old acquaintance of mine makes a living building road cases in Rochester NY. Baltic Birch and.....not just any laminate. A specially designed formulation. Holy shit... I just Googled him... guess he sold out a couple of years back. Anyway:

'll try to dig up the sources for all those nifty locks and corners.