Thanks, 8Charles! It's clearly lovely woodwork, but I also appreciate your engineering design. I thought the shelf looked cut pretty far in, but the wedge and handle thickness seem an effective way to compensate. Also extending the wedge well past the thin ends of the handle lams should protect them from cracking - gluing them on a flat belly rather than leaving a pedestal both looks great and must have been easier to make. Lots to ponder - now back to the stave on the steamer!