After making the puzzle and using this to learn how the laser cuts and what sort of finish to expect I set about designing and making a jewellery box for men, ie one which would take watches and cuff links.

I had discovered that the laser friendly ply is very bland and of a course finish, since the objects I was making were to be handled I wanted a smooth finish, to get away from the blandness of the ply and the occasional smoke mark I decided to stain the wood after sanding and before finishing with a soft furniture wax.

To produce something of this style and scale I also decided to change the method of drawing and created a 3D image using creo where each part was drawn and assembled thus allowing development of fit and connections as well as careful positioning of the tabs etc. From the parametric drawing I generated a nmber of dfx files which were taken into my CAG software where I could remove dimension, and surplus views leaving me with only the flat views to be used for cutting.

This was cut on the laser cutter, during this operation I discovered the necessity to ensure that cut parts fall through cleanly - I had one or two which tilted leaving part of the shape protruding up wards which fouled on  the laser head moving the ply and upsetting the rest of the cut. In these cases I had to reset and rerun the laser.

For me this has now been a successful project giving me something that has a good appearance, functions well and is adaptable. It not only shows the laser cut fit, but my trays are adaptable. The U shape of each plate s designed to go through a slot in the back which is sized to allow the plate to swing up before removing.