Earring Box Dividers with "Cash Drawer Ramps"
I made boxes for my granddaughters to hold earrings. This project is just about the dividers in the boxes. I wanted a "ramp" for them to slide the earring up out of its little box, much like a cashier slides coins up out of the cash drawer. I used simple cove molding and lattice strips from a home center to do it. The base is 1/2" thick. One edge of the cove is trimmed away so when let into the base, the edges of the dado and molding match up. I hope it's clear from the pictures.
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Materials
Length of cove molding (or make your own)
Length of lattice molding (or make your own)
1/2" material for base, cut to fit box
material to cut work holding jig into
Tools
Origin
Chop Saw or crosscut sled (cut pieces to length)
Table Saw (cut base to size, trim molding width)
Various cutter diameters to suit design
Instructions
I don't think there is much you can use directly from this post. It's more about the method. You will need to match the methods to your project size and the stock you use. This is also about using off-the-shelf materials rather than creating everything from scratch. You will need to create a grid that matches the base and the divider arrangement you choose. Use this to cut the dados in the base that will hold the molding ("ramps") and the dividers. You COULD create the dividers full length and cut the molding into short pieces to fit in between. No need for an Origin in that case, though. It should be fairly clear from the pictures what you need to do but here are some tips: 1)You won't know how deep to make the dados in the base until you trim one edge of the molding. Trim off one rounded edge and measure the height of the resulting flat. 2)Cut the dados for the molding as per your grid and to the depth measured above. Cut the dados for the dividers to the same depth. 3) You will probably need to modify or make new patterns for the dividers as these are unlikely to match your stock. Use these as examples. The height of the dividers is the same as the height of the molding. 4) The lattice I had allowed me to cut 2 dividers across the width as shown. Cut a rectangle in a scrap sheet that will snugly fit the lattice cutoffs with enough material in the curved front area to let the cutter pass through. If you have more than one length divider you may need a pocketed rectangle for each. Use the same pattern for cutting the work holding pocket and the dividers for a snug fit. Plunge a hole at each corner as shown. Plunge where the curved edge of the divider meets what will be the bottom of the divider. Route to the far edge. I didn't have trouble with the part coming up out of the pocket but you can leave a small tab at each end of this cut if this is a problem for you. Make a few extras while you have the setup. 5) I rounded over the tops of the dividers to match the top of the molding after cutting into dividers. In hindsight, I could have done this on the router table before cutting the lattice pieces to fit the work holding pocket.