Lubin Locking Box

I saw this on Tic Toc a couple nights ago and thought it would be interesting to make one. This one is made from Maple and Bottle Brush wood. It is 3 1/2" square and 1 1/2" thick. In the original , they have one magnet mounted in the hole in the top to keep it locked. When unlocked the ball can fall out after it is opened. I put a magnet in both holes so it stays in there all the time. I made a 45 degree set up in the mill and used a dovetail router bit and  flipped the part for the cuts on each side so it was centered all the time. On the next one I'll make a jig for the router table to do the same thing. The nice thing about the mill is that I can do all the cuts by climb cutting and eliminating breakout as the cutter is exiting the piece. The high speed of the router table may not have that problem.
The trick of the lock is that when the steel ball is stuck to the top hole, it is exactly half way out so there is a minimum of movement. You just put the bottom down and rap it on a hard surface and  the bearing falls to the magnet in the bottom of the hole in the bottom piece.

It is finished with clear satin lacquer  on the outside. the inside is finish with Walrus oil bowl wax!