“The faster a thing is created, the more fleeting its permanence.”
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- Dictum classes: Roorkhee Chair & Bowsaw June 17, 2013 – June 23, 2013
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Current
Writing:
"Campaign Furniture" – Chapter on Campaign SecretariesReading:
"Sharpe's Tiger" by Bernard Cornwell
"L'Outil" by Paul Feller and Ferdand TourretBuilding:
Teak campaign chest (installing brasses)Listening:
The National "Trouble Will Find Me"
Wilco "The Whole Love"Drinking:
Weiss beerMeta
@RudeMechanic on Twitter
- In Munich editing Roubo – about 2 km from an old German translation of Roubo at the local library. 2 days ago
- Give Yourselves a Pat on the Back wp.me/p19928-1PK 2 days ago
- Just got a call from Germany: Where are you? We are at the airport to pick you up. I am in my shorts drinking coffee in Kentucky. 4 days ago

Ohh, I like that quote! It’s not entirely accurate (conception come to mind), but I agree with the sentiment.
Nine months is a long time.
HA! You got me there.
Judging by my productivity, the things I make should last forever.
A question comes to mind: What did the original makers of campaign furniture do about wood expansion in tropical climes? I have a teak blanket chest that’s lined with camphor wood, made in Taiwan or Hong Kong about 50 years ago, and its joinery has suffered from moisture changes.
Please don’t be offended if I ask “What kinda thing is it?” I pride myself in being able to identify the use of most “things” by looking at them but every”thing” has become so specialized it is becoming harder.
I recently ‘created’ a saw bench (subsequent to all the hoopfala that led to my purchase of old and new panel saws both rip and crosscut until I am now saw poor) and everyone who has seen it asks “What the hell is it?” This question allows me to “create” an answer to fit the asker which is good because ‘askers’ are specialized too.
Nowthen …. what is it?
It’s the lower case of a Campaign Chest I’m building for Popular Woodworking.
Thank you. I have salvaged my pride. A Campaign Chest is certainly a specialized piece. Now I will ask … what kind of campagne? Is that a drawer opening where the plane is sitting? What will the ‘upper’ case look like and what will the whole thing be meant to encase? Lenin, ceramics, tools???
It’s based on a traditional form. Here’s the carcase:
http://lostartpress.wordpress.com/2012/01/03/let-the-campaign-begin/
Here’s the original.
http://lostartpress.wordpress.com/2011/11/25/survival-of-the-simplest/
Can permanence be more or less fleeting? Something lasts indefinitely or it doesn’t. The more fleeting its existence, perhaps.
The Domino’s cup sat on the end of the bench is a nice contrast with the Campaign Chest – really illustrates the quote, I think.
Yup — 30 minutes or less. I found that cup on the street. It’s for my glue brushes.
What are the peg looking things on top – reference for the top? What do you think of the mahogany so far?
Those dowels position the top case on this bottom one and resist lateral pressure. Gravity does the rest. The mahogany isn’t run. But it is beautiful.
Wouldn’t two dowels accomplish the same goal? The two extra dowels give you two more chances to misdrill.
The original had four. So before I went trying to improve the past, I decided to try four.
Chris, what is the final thickness of the case? 7/8″ maybe? Looks like it has some beef to it. Nice.
The carcase parts are a whisker shy of 7/8″.
Nice pulls! Know where else you can see those (yes, still).
Coincidentally, My wife and I were rearranging furniture today to make way for a beautiful roll top desk (I know, I would have rather been in the shop) and one of the furniture pieces we moved was a 5 piece stack-able lawyer’s book case. Looks an awful lot like campaign furniture to me, or at least a close cousin. There was, at one time, a ton of them out there. I assume the very oldest of these book cases were originally brought across the pond by lawyers from England etc.
Then most of my projects should last a millenia !
That dictum has been deprecated. Software is incredibly hard to make and takes a lot of effort. It is often out of date before it is even shipped to customers!
Not sure where lathe work fits here. I have created bowls and spoons along with other lovely things that I’m certain will still be enjoyed well beyond my lifetime. I jokingly call the lathe my rapid prototyping machine to my more digitally inclined friends.
It’s a nice touch you picked a Hunderwasser quote for this project. The man despised straight lines. He just wouldn’t use them. And he was an architect… go figure.
Phillip,
I’m not a fan of Hunderwasser’s buildings. But he did have some interesting ideas.
Same here. I am, however a fan of nicely proportioned straight lines. I think it’s a much greater challenge to make “simple” designs look good than load them up with distractions.
A wise old journeyman once told me “Never call a thing a thing” especially in front of a customer, if they hear you call it a thing, it lessens it’s importance & thus the importance of the person called to work on it.
If the customer thinks it’s just a “thing” then anybody can work on a “thing”