Technical drawing

I'm rediscovering the joy of simple technical drawing for woodwork projects. I don't know if anyone gets taught to do this anymore, and I certainly don't remember all the techniques and details of what I should do, but a simple orthographic drawing ( as we used to call them) of an idea yields some  useful data. for example, you can write out a cutting list for all the parts and work out what wood you are going to need.

It's also a helpful way to visualise any problems you might encounter. 

I saw an internet article about how to make an carpenter's toolbox and remembered the one my father made many years ago. By the time he passed away it had begun to fall apart and I decided at the time that it wasn't worth saving. I should have thought more carefully and at least photographed it for future reference. Anyway, the article caught my eye, and I thought it would be a good next project to tackle to improve my skills. 

I thought about a few adaptations to make, and wondered about the value/difficulty of making the waterfall front. Cutting an even curve is quite a skilled task, especially with a coping saw which can be a bit tricky to control. Wandering off line into waste wood is one thing, but when you're cutting the shape into the lid and the box in one go, it's more of a challenge.

So I considered cutting a simple 45 degree angle instead and drew the box accordingly. It was then that the drawing showed a potential problem. A 45 degree cut means that when you add the rails for the hinges you have an angled cut across the end, not very aesthetically pleasing. So I'll have to come up with other alternatives. A 90 degree cut would work, but maybe there's a cranked alternative. Back to the drawing board then to draw out the alternatives and see if they are possible.

I may have to go for the tricky coping saw curve after all!