When I last left off this jewelry box project, I said that the standard brass hinges from the local hardware just seemed too cheap to use on such an exquisite box.    JR Beall (Beall Tools) has a number of really high quality brasses, plus he has developed some very clever jigs to make the mortising for these hinges exact and "fool proof."   The Brusso Quadrant Hinge is used here.        As is typical with his products, the instructions are clear and are meant to be read. I wasn't about to make any cuts on this box until I was sure that I knew what I was doing.       The first thing I did was to construct a corner of wood of the very same thickness as the finished jewelry box.    Call me chicken, but I thought a test run might make a lot of sense.    The hinge mortise cutting jig requires use of a portable router and a guide bushing. Beall sells an adapter plate with a built in, right size bushing, but I thought that the bushing I had for my router was close enough. I was wrong. "Close enough" is not close enough.    My guide bushing is probably 1/32" wider that what is required. I used it anyway and adjusted the jig to allow for this "discrepancy." I will show how I did this...and then show how I should have done it—with JR's plate made just for this.         The Beall Hinge Wizard is comprised of the black plastic base and clear plastic inserts. The inserts match exactly the hinges that can be used. In this case, I am using the Brusso quadrant hinge so I install the clear plastic insert that is made for that hinge.     A tiny nylon hand nut keeps the insert firmly in place.    Following his instructions, I   first set the router depth. I start by clamping the test stock in the vise, and then using the Wizard's little clamp, I clamp the Wizard in place on the test board. Since I am just setting the depth, I set the Wizard anywhere on the stock—saving the corner for when I get the router set up properly.    To set the proper mortise depth. I start by "zeroing" the plunge depth to the surface of the wood. With the power off, I release the plunge lock and move the router down until the bit touches the board. By the way, I am using a 1/4" down-cutting spiral bit. The instructions suggests this bit to get the cleanest cuts.    With the router still locked to the "zero point", I adjust the depth stop to the hinge's thickness. I just touch the hinge and lock the stop at that point. With that done, I can plunge to this stop and be mortising the exact depth required for the hinge.    I test this depth setting and make micrometer adjustments until the hinge is sitting flush with the wood.    Your router plunge setting method may be slightly different, so follow your instructions. While I am using a plunge router, a fixed router would work just as well. The mortising comes from an open edge so no plunging is required. Main Menu            Next  Page