OK. How did they make this simple thing?

DTBoss

New User
Dan
So, I bit the bullet and bought one online to get a closer look. I'll report back what I learn. Thanks for your thoughts, everyone.
 

Jeff

New User
Jeff
So, I bit the bullet and bought one online to get a closer look. I'll report back what I learn. Thanks for your thoughts, everyone.

Good. Where did you buy it and which one did you get (E1, E2, E3)?

I stumbled on this link this morning. The Pottery Barn of all places.

 

DTBoss

New User
Dan
Good. Where did you buy it and which one did you get (E1, E2, E3)?

I stumbled on this link this morning. The Pottery Barn of all places.

Got this one below on Etsy. It's not made by "Hungarian Artisans" like the pottery barn one touts!
Screen Shot 2019-07-25 at 11.51.08 AM.png
 

TENdriver

New User
TENdriver
Dan, Are these vintage items that someone actually used or are the decorative “wall hangers” that are really just meant for display?
 

DTBoss

New User
Dan
Dan, Are these vintage items that someone actually used or are the decorative “wall hangers” that are really just meant for display?
These are vintage items that were actually used to by bakers to prepare, slice and/or serve their bread. Some people might just hang them on the wall, I suppose. It might also be used as a 'peel', which is the thing bakers use to scoot under the bread to get it out of the oven (but I'm not sure on that)
 

Jeff

New User
Jeff
These are vintage items that were actually used to by bakers to prepare, slice and/or serve their bread. Some people might just hang them on the wall, I suppose. It might also be used as a 'peel', which is the thing bakers use to scoot under the bread to get it out of the oven (but I'm not sure on that)

Did you get your board from Etsy yet? Was it shipping from ChaseVintage?
 

Jeff

New User
Jeff
I received mine from Chase Vintage today. It looks old, well used, and it's slightly oily (from bread dough?) in a French bakery shop (Boulangerie). I bought the C3 which is pictured in your original post. It looks like flat sawn pine (3/4" t) and it's sure not a hardwood.

There are no battens, but 2 tapered sliding dovetails (1.25" w tapering to 1") which don't hold the boards together too well over the years. Pic 4 is the tip of the sliding tapered dovetail that I carefully tapped slightly out of the socket.

P1010022.png
P1010024.png
P1010025.png



P1010022.png
 

Attachments

  • P1010023.png
    P1010023.png
    1,003.6 KB · Views: 146

DTBoss

New User
Dan
I received mine from Chase Vintage today. It looks old, well used, and it's slightly oily (from bread dough?) in a French bakery shop (Boulangerie). I bought the C3 which is pictured in your original post. It looks like flat sawn pine (3/4" t) and it's sure not a hardwood.

There are no battens, but 2 tapered sliding dovetails (1.25" w tapering to 1") which don't hold the boards together too well over the years. Pic 4 is the tip of the sliding tapered dovetail that I carefully tapped slightly out of the socket.

View attachment 187844View attachment 187846View attachment 187847


View attachment 187844
Hey Jeff,
That's great info. Thank you! So you're seeing that the dovetailed battens to all the work to keep the pieces together? (i.e. no glue, etc). If so, I wonder how they held the wood together when initially cutting the sliding dovetail. Maybe clamped it all while square. Anyway, thanks for posting this. I hope mine arrives soon!
 

TENdriver

New User
TENdriver
Jeff and Dan,

Thanks for sharing the information on these!

It’s a relatively simple but extremely interesting item that I’m completely unfamiliar with.
 

Jeff

New User
Jeff
Jeff and Dan,

Thanks for sharing the information on these!

It’s a relatively simple but extremely interesting item that I’m completely unfamiliar with.

Unfamiliar with a sliding dovetail or the board and its uses?
 
Last edited:

TENdriver

New User
TENdriver
Unfamiliar with a sliding dovetail or the board and its uses?


Jeff, Unfamiliar with this type of item. I once spent most of a winter in Provence and frequented plenty of pizzerias, fromageries and bakeries. I wonder if I ever ran across a version of this item.

As to sliding dovetails, very familiar with them. Sliding dovetails are a common element in 18th century German cabinetry.

Also, as Mike mentioned, sliding dovetails are far easier to make than some would assume. Very useful too.
 

Jeff

New User
Jeff
The back of the board and the sliding dovetails. One dovetail moved slightly out of the slot with a few gentle taps with a wood block and hammer, but it won't budge any further with some additional coaxing. The bottom one won't budge at all. Interesting and puzzling. I can't tell if there are pin nails or glue in the slot but the boards can be moved up and down slightly. It's certainly not rock solid today.

P1010024.png
 

DTBoss

New User
Dan
The back of the board and the sliding dovetails. One dovetail moved slightly out of the slot with a few gentle taps with a wood block and hammer, but it won't budge any further with some additional coaxing. The bottom one won't budge at all. Interesting and puzzling. I can't tell if there are pin nails or glue in the slot but the boards can be moved up and down slightly. It's certainly not rock solid today.

View attachment 187884
Yeah, that's interesting. I suppose they could've glued a portion along the slot near the center (to allow for a little movement of the boards), or perhaps the wedging action of the dovetail maybe holds it all together w/o glue. Mine hasn't gotten here yet, but I'll let you know when it does.
 

Premier Sponsor

Our Sponsors

LATEST FOR SALE LISTINGS

Top