Intermediate Finger Jointed Box

Software:

makercase.com, CamBam CNC, bCNC

Machine Time:

4 hours

Bit or Laser Size:

3.175mm

Materials:

1/8in birch plywood

Since I finally got the LEAD CNC machine up and running AND I had a box of 1/8 plywood in the garage, I decided to give a try of a jointed box and here's the result. I created the box file at:

MakerCase - Easy Laser Cut Case Design

I've tried a dozen online parametric box maker programs but this one is my absolute favorite. Give it a try and make your own box. After I created the DXF file at makercase.com, I imported the DXF files into CamBam and made the cutouts for the handle. Pretty simple, nothing fancy.

After cutting the 5 parts on the LEAD CNC, I put each of the 4 sides on my laser and burnt my DJ logo into each panel. Yes I like putting my DJ logo on everything.

I finished the box by heading over to Home Depot and grabbing some wood glue. I already had some blue painters tape at home so I used the wood glue and painters tape to put the box together and let it dry overnight. I must say, I wasn't expecting much actual utility from this box since 1/8in plywood is really not very strong.

I was surprised that the box is much stronger than expected. However, I'll say that if you want to make jointed boxes on your CNC, you probably should be using thicker wood. My next box will be made with 1/2in wood. I'm expecting it to be VERY strong.



What you see in the picture is exactly what the box looked like after taking the painters tape off of the joints. There was absolutely no sanding or cleanup.