Sea Chests

[Edward O'Keeffe]

Alright, my sea chest is almost done. So it's time to post pictures. I used the Marlinespike plans, and adapted them to my taste. The box is rabbit jointed and nailed with forged square nails. All that is left from here is to put on the beckets, and install the till box.

It is 3/4 pine, with poplar trim for stiffening, Milk paint and linseed oil finish. I used 7 1/2" hammered strap hinges, and a full mortise lock.

Still deciding on whether or not the till box will get a separate lock.

Comments welcome.

E O'K

[William Brand]

Comment # 1

Nice.

Comment # 2

wow.

[callenish gunner]

Very nice Mr. O'Keeffe!!!! ....as if we would expect anything less

[michaelsbagley]

Wow,

Mr. O'Keefe's stuff always makes me drool! he is truly a gifted artisan when it comes to woodworking, or rope/knotwork, or... or... or... Damn, you're just too good at too much man!

[Silkie McDonough]

Beautiful work Edward!

[Capt. Sterling]

Oh I have seen better....

like the one he made for me to use....

[Silkie McDonough]

Nah, I like this one ...of course green is my favorite color.

[oderlesseye]

That is one sweet box!

I went ahead and ordered the plans for my box also from marlinespike.com

I hope to have it ready for PIP.

I looked at this one here:

Original early sea chest

However they wanted 2 grand for it too much.. come on..it's a wooden box!

Edited May 1, 2009 by oderlesseye

[Edward O'Keeffe]

Thank you all for you comments, I am glad you all approved of my attempt.

Michael, I may be able to slap planks together and loop rope rope around itself, but man if I could sew like you, that would be helpful.

Capt Sterling, Of course yours is nicer....you are the Captain.

Oderlesseye....having worked the Marlinespike plans, if you have any questions, please drop me a line, I will be glad to help out if I can.

E O'K

[Tartan Jack]

Now that this thread has been revived . . .

Can ya'll show your built chests?

(You know what I mean)

I am now thinking of making one myself.

Are the corners beveled, like the green one above or just cut and nailed end-to-side?

Any "tips" on colors?

[Captain_MacNamara]

I'm working on mine... Well, the beckets at least. The wood itself is going to cost me upwards of $75, because I want mine in oak. I haven't decided yet if I am going to "cheat" and make copper nails out of copper nail rivets, or if I want to fire up the forge and try to make some square headed nails. Either way, I plan to glue it together as well, and even though it's not "correct", I prefer the slanted sides.

[Lily Alexander]

Here's a picture you might find interesting. It's from Jamestown, VA. Note the slanted sides and small size.

Another Jamestown chest inside a house

Edited May 2, 2009 by Haunting Lily

[Cascabel]

As a matter of curiosity, is there a purpose or a reason for the slanted sides ? Seems like a lot of trouble to go through on a simple utilitarian item when a straight sided box would do nicely for an ordinary working man.....

>>>> Cascabel

[Edward O'Keeffe]

As a matter of curiosity, is there a purpose or a reason for the slanted sides ? Seems like a lot of trouble to go through on a simple utilitarian item when a straight sided box would do nicely for an ordinary working man.....

>>>> Cascabel

My understanding of this is to allow access to individual chests when they were stacked next to each other, also to give extra stability by lowering the center of gravity. From experience, they are hard to tip over. Another suggestion is that the sloped front served to protect sailors shins as the ship heeled.

E O'K

[Dorian Lasseter]

Oh, I see were gonna have some more interesting conversations!

I see a conflict in this thread, are the slant sided chests too early, too late, or in period at one end or another?

Regardless, a straight sided chest is probably THE most common style, as it was said in a manner "Functionality over style is the rule of the sailor."

If the slant sided chest was superior, why do we not see them today?

Pros to the slant side; If you set two chests side by side, the beckets are given space so the bottom of the chests could touch, no waste of deck space. Plus, to pull one out you can get to the sides to pull easily. Lower CG so harder to tip over.

Cons; Harder to construct, very slight waste of wood, harder to repair if damaged, slightly less space inside than a straight sided chest.

At present in my very sparse spare time, I'm refurbishing a grand old chest into a sea chest... it was in my parents basement and is actually a patternmakers chest... I'll post images of the progress later...

[Dutchman]

i'll save the excitement. Per Roy Underhill-slanted sided boxes (sea chests, blanket boxes, what have you) were around prior, durring, and post era. They were not specifically sailor utilitarian though- E,ok. is correct in his reasons for slanted sides on sea chests. Slanted angled joints are tough on a good day- craftsmen did complicated joints like this as a sort of calling card/ shameless marketing for their skill. Larger chests from the period normally did not survive for various reasons, but look to tea boxes (not shipping crates) for different patterns and construction techniques.

[Dorian Lasseter]

Aww, come on... get just a little excited...

Any other bits of knowledge?

Here's another question; Locking the chest.

I see most chests with mortised or half-mortised locks... those were expensive to a point and in some ways, easy to pry open.

I see only a handful of hasp/padlock combos on chests, which I would think would be more common?

I can't find the image of a setup I really like; two hasps spaced on the front of the chest with a bar/rod passing through them, the end has a ring that a padlock goes through and the one hasp. A nice rugged way to lock the chest, but using only one lock.

Beckets; I also see several chests that have no beckets, some with no handles at all, and others with more 'traditional' handles... Thoughts on this?

[Dutchman]

hey guys, just went back through the posts. wow- good looking box there keith!

Dorian, you're spot on the nails- remember though, where aplicable, they go all the way through then cinch over. if the nail does not go all the way through- then set them in different directions (one up, one down to lock them in place.) speaking of locks. what ever suits yer fancy i would think. neither the mortice or hasp are very secure- but your double hasp would be the most secure. I've used that technique to hold down deck hatches. that rod and a couple wedges is darned near invincible to waves. IMHO- I think the morticed lock would be a bit more expensive to make and instal therefor be on a higher end box.

Beckets- dude, ya ever try to lift a heavy chest just by the beckets? if not made properly, they will pinch your hand then rub your nuckles raw on the chest lid if too short. sometimes its just easier to use both hands and pick it up from the bottom. I suspect your answer would lie with the utilitarian purpose of the owner.

I really should get some pictures of my stuff up. I'm really quite fond of graces box- despite the color.

[theM.A.dDogge]

i have seen the "beckets" used as more of a way to lash to each other or for stowin away...not so much for lifting...while on board....how many times do you have to lift once its stowed??

[Dutchman]

ah good point dogge

[callenish gunner]

If you were on a ship with multi-level gun decks your chests and your hammocks could have to be moved whenever you cleared for action (more chests than could be stowed directly between the guns) The stability of a low center of gravity with wider bottom than top would make sure that in rough seas your chest would stay in place for the most part (moving chests in tight quarters could do a lot of damage to a sailors pegs)...one other reason I was told for the slanted sides was the curve of the of hull of the ship for stability and access to the chest when placed along the outer hull walls

Edited May 3, 2009 by callenish gunner

[Silkie McDonough]

I am basically a lubber and know little of sailing for years on end, but how much of a lock would be needed on a sea chest while at sea? Yes, you wouldn't want to leave it without a lock of some sort however, if the ship is at sea and a person on board has no place to go, no place to hide and little time alone below deck to riffle through another's belongings, how much theft would go on and how many cases of thievery would go unsolved? It would be my guess that anything of real value might be left in the care of the captain or quartermaster at least while at sea. Finally, how much personal wealth might the average sailor have in his possession at any one time? I am sure thievery did happen, why else would a ships articles mention punishment for theft? I just wonder how much security would be needed on each chest.

Edited May 3, 2009 by Silkie McDonough

[Dorian Lasseter]

Interesting take on why have a lock on your sea chest...

I guess you could argue the same on every chest on this page;

http://www.mycountrytreasures.com/blanketc...umentboxes.html

Why have a lock on a chest inside your home? it's already locked inside your dwelling, right?

Lock = privacy...

Just my humble opinion...

Dutch, get some pictures of your stuff up!

[Silkie McDonough]

I'm not saying don't lock it I am simply commenting/musing on how much security would be needed. Heck, all of the chests and desks in my house have locks ...none of them (antiques) has a key that I can find. LOL Of course the desks and chests are more valuable than anything inside of them.

Edited May 3, 2009 by Silkie McDonough

[Edward O'Keeffe]

I'm not saying don't lock it I am simply commenting/musing on how much security would be needed. Heck, all of the chests and desks in my house have locks ...none of them (antiques) has a key that I can find. LOL Of course the desks and chests are more valuable than anything inside of them.

A lock will keep honest people honest. I was at sea with a thief. He only stole from from CPO's, but he was thief none the less. I am glad I kept my locker locked on that cruise.