Workshop Overview.  Rob Cosman's Advanced Workshop: Drawer Making is a 6-day intensive workshop that focuses on drawer and cabinet making (see below for workshop details).  The workshop is held at Rob's Workshop located in Grand Bay, New Brunswick, Canada.  If after reading through the information below, you have any questions about our Advanced Workshop: Drawer Making, please email your questions to: support@robcosman.com.

Cost:  This Advanced Workshop: Drawer Making costs $3000 (USD), payable in two installments: 1) a $1500 (USD) initial deposit and 2) a final $1500 (USD) payment due no later than 45 days prior to the start of the workshop.  Tuition covers all instruction, project lumber, six lunch meals, and daily fruit and snacks.  Upon payment of the initial deposit, students receive a 15% discount code valid for any full priced tool purchases on RobCosman.com held for pick up at workshop and during the workshop.

Seats Available / Minimum Students.  We have 12 workbenches available for this workshop.  We must have a minimum of 8 students signed up within 60 days of the scheduled workshop start date to hold this workshop.  If 8 students are not signed up within 60 days of the start date we will cancel the class and refund 100% of your paid fees. 

Cancellation & Refund Policy:  $250 of your tuition is NON-REFUNDABLE (unless we cancel the workshop)  Any remaining balance paid is refundable if you cancel no later than 60 days before your scheduled workshop begins.  Cancellations made within 59 days of the workshop start date ARE NOT refundable.  To cancel a previously reserved workshop please email us at robswebmaster@robcosman.com or by using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of any page of our website RobCosman.com. 

Registration.  At checkout, there is a registration form to fill out.  This form is automatically sent to the class registrar.   Within 72 hours of checkout you will receive an email welcoming you to the workshop and giving you additional detailed information.  If you do not receive this email in 72 hours, please email robswebmaster@robcosman.com

Workshop Details.  This advanced workshop is a project-based learning experience (see pictures in the gallery).  Rob teaches his traditional approaches to drawer making and case construction.  Learning the art of drawer building and fitting is the primary focus of this workshop with precision case construction a very close second. The learning goal is that by the end of the week you can construct a complex and accurate case using dovetails, dadoes, through wedged tenons, and achieve a piston fit drawer!  

Project Details.  The project is a simple but technically advanced single drawer case of Rob's design.  The overall case dimensions are 11-5/16 inches (289mm) wide x 12-11/16 inches (317mm) long x 7-7/8 inches (200mm) tall.  The perfect size for construction at your workbench and to get on an airplane to take home.

We provide all the lumber for the case and drawer.  Students have a choice of walnut, cherry, or maple hardwood for the case and the drawer front.  Poplar is the secondary wood provided.  The lumber comes already machine milled straight, planed to thickness, and has one edge jointed.  Using all hand tools, students cut their lumber to size, six square the boards, and surface finish their wood. 

The case's top is attached to the sides with through dovetails with a miter edge front. The case's bottom is let into a shallow dados and secured to the sides with through wedged tenons.  The cabinet back is a solid panel that floats in grooves cut into the sides and top of the case. 

A traditional drawer is constructed with the front joined to the sides with half-blind dovetails and the back joined to the sides with through dovetails.  Drawer slips are added to the sides and a solid pine bottom panel is tongue and grooved into into the drawer front, half lapped on the back and butt jointed on the sides. The bottom sits in a groove in the slips.  The drawer is precisely fit to the case opening so as to achieve a "piston-fit." 

Woodworking Skills Covered:  This workshop builds upon the hand tool skills taught in the Training the Hand Workshop and introduces new skills.  The new skills introduced are: 

• Drawer-making and fitting.
• Case construction. 
• Through wedged tenons. 
• Hand cut dados. 
• Miter edge dovetails.
• Drawer slips.

Workshop Schedule.  This workshop runs daily (except Saturday) from 07:30 am to 10:00pm.  Please have breakfast before you arrive at the workshop. We serve a hearty lunch meal around noon.  Bring your own meal for supper or dine after the end of the day.  On Saturday, instruction ends at 7:00 pm, then we clean up and re-organize the workshop, pack-up tools, and depart.

This is a full week of intense woodworking that will take your drawer and cabinet making skills to the next level.  We guarantee it will be money well spent and you will go home a better hand tool woodworker. 

Workshop Location. The Advanced Workshop: Drawer Making is held in Rob's personal workshop which is located at 275 River Valley Drive, Grand Bay, New Brunswick, E5K 1A7, Canada.  The nearest large city is Saint John, New Brunswick Canada, approximately 15 minutes east of Rob's workshop.  The nearest large U.S. city is Bangor, Maine, located approximately three hours south of Rob's workshop.

Initial Meet-and-Greet.  We have an initial meet-and-greet and BBQ at Rob's Workshop for all students who can make it on the Sunday before the workshop begins at 7:00-9:00 p.m. (Atlantic Time).   This is so you can see the facility; claim your workbench; drop-off any tools you brought; eat some "Frick'n good BBQ", and meet everybody.  If you cannot make the Sunday meet-and-greet please let us know and we will see you on Monday morning.  As the workshop date gets closer we will email you with more details on this "meet-and-greet." 

Travel and Transportation.  We recommend you do not purchase airline tickets until after the cancellation announcement date (60 days prior to the workshop) has passed.

Please plan to arrive at Rob's workshop on Sunday evening at 7:00 p.m. (Atlantic time) for the initial meet and greet.  If you cannot make the meet and greet please be in the workshop on Monday at 07:30 am.  The workshop concludes on the following Saturday around 7:00 pm after clean-up.  We recommend scheduling departure on Sunday verses Saturday. Click the red button below for more detailed information on nearby airports and local transportation.   

Lodging.  Rob Cosman has several short-term rentals located on the workshop premises that are available to workshop students through Airbnb.  Please visit our Airbnb site to reserve, look at pictures, or find out more information about these accommodations.  Click the red button below to learn about other lodging accommodations near Rob's Workshop.

Required Tools. Each student is expected to bring their own tools to the workshop, unless they are renting a tool kit from us.  Click on the red button below to see the list of required and optional tools, learn about renting tools, and other tool information. 

 Medical Coverage.  Students are responsible for arranging and paying for any medical services required while attending the workshop.  While the risk of injury or illness at our  workshop is very low, injuries and illness have and do occur.  While we can handle minor cuts and scrapes, we highly recommend non-Canadians purchase short-term visitor / tourist insurance for their visit to Canada.  There are numerous companies that offer this coverage.  We do not provide any recommendations.  We recommend doing an internet search for, "Tourist medical coverage in Canada."  That will return numerous results.  

Basic Requirements to Enter Canada. Entry into Canada is solely determined by Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) officials in accordance with Canadian law.   We have had students that have had difficulties entering and one or two have even been denied entry into Canada.  We recommend you click on the red button below and carefully read the the requirements for entry into Canada.