Woodworking, DIY, and home repair thread

[Dewey 3284]

I always think of common board as some type of cheap pine or God forbid, engineered wood.

For the top of the desk, go to a place near you and look at the stock you think looks best, hard wood. Oak is always good. Think about the finish it will have, the grain the wood has, the natural color. I would pick what stands out to you.

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[mattbu 12]

What you posted is made out of 2x4 construction grade pine and 1x ___ pine that you would find at HD or Lowes. It isn't ideal for building furniture out of, but with the rustic farmhouse style that the desk is and for a beginner that is just wanting to build something it's fine. You'll want to dig through the lumber piles and find the straightest and driest boards that you can find. If you have access to a table saw or bigger bandsaw, you can have better luck buying 2x10s or 12s and ripping them down to width. 

Personally, I would make the top out of a thicker wood. I'm also not a fan of using pocket holes for table tops. I would just use glue and clamps to hold the boards together. There's a couple of different ways you can go about edge jointing boards depending one what tools you have to work with.

[NotActuallyALonghorn 4968]

4 hours ago, Spur08 said:

Beginner trying to get into some woodworking here.  I've decided to make my first "big" project a desk for the wife.  I have a design and plan in mind and am shopping out the supplies.  First question, what is "common board" that you see in the specialty woods section of big box stores?  Also, what wood would you consider in making a (this) desk?

[Imgur](https://i.imgur.com/eLgzPTd.jpg)

https://imgur.com/eLgzPTd

 

Edit -- I have no idea how to do imgur on this thing.

Imgur has blocked this site, so you can't hotline images from them.

[Spur08 381]

4 hours ago, mattbu said:

What you posted is made out of 2x4 construction grade pine and 1x ___ pine that you would find at HD or Lowes. It isn't ideal for building furniture out of, but with the rustic farmhouse style that the desk is and for a beginner that is just wanting to build something it's fine. You'll want to dig through the lumber piles and find the straightest and driest boards that you can find. If you have access to a table saw or bigger bandsaw, you can have better luck buying 2x10s or 12s and ripping them down to width. 

Personally, I would make the top out of a thicker wood. I'm also not a fan of using pocket holes for table tops. I would just use glue and clamps to hold the boards together. There's a couple of different ways you can go about edge jointing boards depending one what tools you have to work with.

Thanks, Mattbu.  I don't really have a problem using standard 2x4s for the "bones" of the desk but, rather, with the softness of it.  I'm afraid that it won't stand up to the standard bumping and scraping from daily use.  Is there a particular 2x4 that I can use which is harder?  Similar to the picture, I'm planning on painting everything but the top of the desk, so I don't have to worry about the stain-ability of the studs.  Also, any reason why you would consider a thicker top?  The only consideration I had for the top of the desk was that it would be a harder, stainable wood that can withstand writing with a ballpoint pen.  Finally, is there a problem with doing pocket holes for the top of the wood (other than raw material cost)?  

 

Major tools I have on hand: circular hand saw (battery), compound miter, plunge router (brand new, never used one -- no bits),  jigsaw, circular sander, 3 - 12" quick grip clamps, 3 - 6" quick grip clamps, 3 pack chisels

Considering buying for this project -- Harbor Freight Larger clamps (size recs?), pocket hole jig, and kreg rip guide.  

Future purchases -- Corded circular saw, more clamps, a few router bits, router table

Future project -- sitting bench w/ shoe storage for master closet

Edited April 23, 2018 by Spur08

[Jkwellborn 6670]

Ive got some bessey clamps that I like.

[Mojo Hand 4580]

Lacquer? 

[utee94 15752]

1 hour ago, Spur08 said:

Thanks, Mattbu.  I don't really have a problem using standard 2x4s for the "bones" of the desk but, rather, with the softness of it.  I'm afraid that it won't stand up to the standard bumping and scraping from daily use.  Is there a particular 2x4 that I can use which is harder?  Similar to the picture, I'm planning on painting everything but the top of the desk, so I don't have to worry about the stain-ability of the studs.  Also, any reason why you would consider a thicker top?  The only consideration I had for the top of the desk was that it would be a harder, stainable wood that can withstand writing with a ballpoint pen.  Finally, is there a problem with doing pocket holes for the top of the wood (other than raw material cost)?  

 

Major tools I have on hand: circular hand saw (battery), compound miter, plunge router (brand new, never used one -- no bits),  jigsaw, circular sander, 3 - 12" quick grip clamps, 3 - 6" quick grip clamps, 3 pack chisels

Considering buying for this project -- Harbor Freight Larger clamps (size recs?), pocket hole jig, and kreg rip guide.  

Future purchases -- Corded circular saw, more clamps, a few router bits, router table

Future project -- sitting bench w/ shoe storage for master closet

 

A few responses, solely my opinion here but:

1) Wouldn't worry about the softness of standard construction lumber 2x4, structurally it's fine (houses are built from this material) and aesthetically, you're already looking at a rustic/farmhouse design so if it dents a little, that's not going to hurt anything.  Be sure the stock is as straight and dry as possible, then use a good primer and paint it as you like.

2) Looking at those pictures, I agree a thicker top would be more aesthetically pleasing.  But you can achieve a thicker look by framing the outside of the top with a lip of thicker stock.  If you're using 3/4" stock as the top surface, then framing it with 1x2 hardwood on edge will give a nice, thick appearance without the weight and issues from using solid, thicker stock all the way through.  Your miter saw will fit the corners up appropriately.

3) For DIY beginner projects, I don't have a big issue with using pocket holes/Kreg joinery for joining up desktop/countertop.  A true professional finished product in all likelihood would be simply glued up and held with clamps, then planed  up true and smooth as a finished piece afterward.  But pocket hole joinery for a home project works fine.  Still, the various boards won't necessarily line up as flat and even as you'd like, and a belt sander would take down the worst of any variances.

4) I'd certainly recommend purchasing at least a small-radius roundover bit for your router to round off the edges of the top.   You could also put a more sophisticated profile on it like some type of ogee, but a simple roundover would probably match the rustic style best.

 

Those are just my opinions, good luck and be sure to post pics if you get a chance!

 

[NotActuallyALonghorn 4968]

I'd stay away from pine for the top if it were me. If you can find some salvaged oak boards from something like old horse stalls in a barn or something like that you would get a nice look and a more durable surface. Lightly plane them so some of the old roughness shows through and cut the edges off so they are straighter and will line up better. But that is just me.

[mattbu 12]

As far as construction grade lumber goes, pine is about all there is. If you want to use something that's a hardwood you can, but it will be much more expensive. For me, I don't think it would be worth it as a first project unless you're willing to invest in more tools and be willing to deal with the possibilities of learning mistakes. Pine is a softer wood, but it would be fine for a desktop IMO. For a rustic/farmhouse piece a few dents and dings just give it more character. If you were wanting to use something like western red cedar, I'd steer you away from that. It's very soft and will easily get roughed up. If you're doing a lot of writing on the desk, maybe use a pad or something underneath the paper. Since the desktop shouldn't be glued to the base, you can always go back and make the top out of hardwood later on if you aren't liking the durability of pine.

One other thing about the design that I would definitely change is how you attach the desktop to the base. The plan calls for you to attach it with pocket holes. Doing this is asking for trouble down the road. You want to attach it in a way that allows for the natural wood movement of the wood. I like using ones like these. You cut a shallow slot 9/16" from the top of the base. The clip end of the fastener goes in the slot and you screw the top to the table. You can use your router and a straight bit for this. Here's a link that talks a bit more about wood movement. http://www.canadianwoodworking.com/get-more/table-tops-and-wood-movement

For tools:

It's hard to go wrong with using a Kreg Jig as you're starting out. It's a quick, decently secure method or joinery. Just pay attention that you're drilling the holes on the inward or downward facing sides of the board so they're not easily visible. Personally, I don't care much for the Kreg Rip-guide. I think it's a piece of junk. The ruler on mine is off by about an 1/8" and it takes too much time to get set up if I take it off of the saw. Kreg's Accu-Cut track system is supposed to be good, but you can make a pretty simple cutting guide pretty easily and it will pretty much do the same thing.

A belt sander wouldn't be a bad purchase, it can quickly sand away a lot of material. They do make quite the mess, so definitely wear a respirator and do it in your driveway if you can. Another option would be to refurb an older hand plane. You can usually find them at either antique stores, flea markets, or ebay. It's a pretty simple process to do that takes a couple of hours. You can sharpen the blades using various grits of sandpaper and a flat surface like glass or a granite countertop offcut. There's a lot of guides out there that go through the entire process.

If making stuff out of wood is something that you know you'll enjoy and you have the room, I'd look at getting a table saw before getting another circular saw and router table. They're very versatile and it would be something you'd use in almost every project. I'd recommend getting a cheaper contractor's saw to start out with, I'd skip over the smaller jobsite saws. Rigid makes a pretty decent one that HD sells for about $500 new. Lowes carries a similar featured Delta for about the same price. You can use 10% coupons and other tricks to lower the price a bit more. Craigslist is also another option.

You can never have enough clamps. However, I've heard to stay away from the larger Harbor Freight clamps, but their smaller size clamps work fine. I'm a fan or Bessey clamps, but there's a lot of options to pick from. If you're needing really long clamps (40"+) 3/4" pipe clamps would probably be your cheapest option. Clamps are one of the things that I always keep an eye out for sales.

For router bits, I recommend buying a small set similar to these from Amazon. Shop around a bit to check for reviews on durability, etc. Something like this should have most of the the bits that you'll commonly use, and will be a lot cheaper than buying them individually from HD or Lowes. Pay attention that you buy the correct shank size (1/4" or 1/2") that fits your router.

If you haven't already, check out The Wood Whisperer, Steve Ramsey, Jay Bates, and I Like to Make Stuff on YouTube. You'll be able to learn quite a bit from all of their channels at various skill levels. /r/woodworking on Reddit is also a pretty helpful. Good luck on the project.

 

 

 

[Irwin F Fletcher 3550]

Wrapping up another design. Taking on Liverpool next!

[joe dirt 285]

our master bath has a double door and ball catch that i hate. decided i’ma try my hand at building me two doors and hanging them sliding barn door style.  the door is 8’  tall with a 36” opening.  i plan on making two doors, 100” tall and 24” wide to account for the 4” trim i don’t want to see.  

the only thing i’ve ever built like this is lockers and storage closet in the washroom. and i used mdf to match the shit the builder put in. 

i spent the morning looking at home depot and thought about using this 1”x6”x12” tongue and groove whiteboard.  is this crap?  should i look elsewhere for materials?

https://www.homedepot.com/p/1-in-x-6-in-x-12-ft-Premium-Tongue-and-Groove-Pattern-Whitewood-Board-418817/100062545?MERCH=REC-_-rv_nav_plp_rr-_-NA-_-100062545-_-N

 

[RowdyVic 106]

Repairing all of the dumb ass shit the builders did when they built my house. Currently replacing fascia. Next will be redoing the back deck.

[Spaulding Smails 1551]

Cross posted with the gardening thread, but here's the finished chicken coop.  Took the majority of three weekends earlier this spring.  Had a helper for the initial framing, but everything else was done solo.  Fun project.

 

[Onboard 2.0 9083]

On 4/2/2018 at 3:56 PM, Spur08 said:

I've been wanting to build out our closet but am not sure I can recoup the cost of doing so.  Might just do a little here and there

Master closet build outs sell homes. You. might not get a penny back (you will though), but you'll damn sure sell it faster if it's done efficiently.

[Spaulding Smails 1551]

2 hours ago, Onboard 2.0 said:

Master closet build outs sell homes. You. might not get a penny back (you will though), but you'll damn sure sell it faster if it's done efficiently.

Agree 100%.  If you have some decent trim carpentry skills, you can build out custom shelves and upgrade rods pretty easily.  I spent a weekend building out the closet in my old house about a year before we sold it.  Had my painter come spray it the following weekend.  I had about $400 in materials plus my time and I paid my painters $500 plus another $200 in paint materials.  So, $1100 plus my time.  The buyers that purchased the house commented on the master closet before anything else on the interior.  Worth every penny.

[Spur08 381]

1 hour ago, Spaulding Smails said:

Agree 100%.  If you have some decent trim carpentry skills, you can build out custom shelves and upgrade rods pretty easily.  I spent a weekend building out the closet in my old house about a year before we sold it.  Had my painter come spray it the following weekend.  I had about $400 in materials plus my time and I paid my painters $500 plus another $200 in paint materials.  So, $1100 plus my time.  The buyers that purchased the house commented on the master closet before anything else on the interior.  Worth every penny.

Mind sharing what kind of upgrade(s) you did?  More shelving? Tie/cap racks, laundry hamper, etc?

[Jkwellborn 6670]

Mind sharing what kind of upgrade(s) you did?  More shelving? Tie/cap racks, laundry hamper, etc?

Think more like a sex dungeon.

[Spaulding Smails 1551]

2 hours ago, Spur08 said:

Mind sharing what kind of upgrade(s) you did?  More shelving? Tie/cap racks, laundry hamper, etc?

I ripped out the cheap pine shelves with exposed metal shelf supports and wood rods.  We just had a single shelf / single rod around the perimeter of the walk-in closet.  I built a very simple shelf system (think cabinet box without the doors, fixed shelves evenly spaced) along one side for my wife's shoes.  Re-did the top shelf at 84", added a second shelf at 42" on three sides, and installed oil-rubbed bronze rods beneath both the top and bottom shelf to match the door hardware.  All the shelves were built using concealed cleats with double 3/4" MDF shelves and 1x2 poplar nosings.  Looked pretty damn good for an amateurish carpenter.  Painters sprayed all the shelves and touched up drywall then repainted the walls.  I saved quite a bit because I didn't have to spend a fortune on hardware and I'm not good enough to build doors / drawers.  The only thing other than the MDF / poplar that I had to buy was the rods.

I went back in our listing for that house and couldn't find any decent pics of the closet.  

[NateHitch 1282]

Glad I stumbled upon this thread, I'm enjoying it. I'd never built a piece of furniture in my life but decided that I hated our kitchen island and wanted to build a new one. Did a rough sketch and then went from there, took me a few months just working in my spare time. Made a lot of mistakes and realized just how much that trim, wood filler and paint can cover them up. And yeah, my garage is a wreck, that's my next project. Doing this from tapa for the first time so hope this works


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[Jkwellborn 6670]

That looks pretty dang good.

[gsoda3 3238]

You guys are an inspiration. I've been thinking about building out our master closet but have no clue what I want to do.

[NateHitch 1282]

On 4/18/2018 at 9:03 PM, Irwin F Fletcher said:

Two recent logos I've completed for two maritime pilots out on the west coast.

Excellent work on these, I'm impressed.  Have you done any Longhorn ones?  If so I'd like to see.  Something like that would be a perfect gift for my brother in law

[Dewey 3284]

Bird house for cardinal birds, still tweaking on the boat. Starting to look for my next project and need to once again add more tools to the arsenal.

[Spur08 381]

On 6/2/2018 at 1:50 PM, NateHitch said:

Glad I stumbled upon this thread, I'm enjoying it. I'd never built a piece of furniture in my life but decided that I hated our kitchen island and wanted to build a new one. Did a rough sketch and then went from there, took me a few months just working in my spare time. Made a lot of mistakes and realized just how much that trim, wood filler and paint can cover them up. And yeah, my garage is a wreck, that's my next project. Doing this from tapa for the first time so hope this works

 

That looks awesome.  Did you buy the butcher block top or make it?  If you bought it, where from?

[NateHitch 1282]

Got it from Home Depot and cut it down to size.  Cool thing is there was enough left over to make several cutting boards to give away as xmas presents or whatever.  They're a little thick for a cutting board but they look awesome.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Hardwood-Reflections-74-in-x-39-in-x-1-5-in-Wood-Butcher-Block-Island-Top-in-Unfinished-Ash-153974HDBA-74/303493570

[heso 2763]

So for my first foray into home renovation I decided to completely gut a bathroom in our 75 year old house. This could go in several directions.

[NateHitch 1282]

Damn that's a hell of a first project but that's awesome!  Looking forward to updates

[NotActuallyALonghorn 4968]

I mean if all he's doing is gutting it...

[heso 2763]

Update: I’m never taping and mudding drywall again. 

[heso 2763]

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[NateHitch 1282]

Spent the weekend building a drawer/shelf thing for the bathroom and adding decorative trim to the mirror. I want to replace the ugly ass original light and split it in two, have a light assembly over each sink. Outside of hanging a few ceiling fans and replacing some electric outlets I have no experience with wiring. Torn between calling in someone or telling the wife to hold my beer and watch this.

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[Jkwellborn 6670]

Get a big sword and chop it in half. Bonus points if you go with William Wallace’s speech.

It really shouldn’t be that hard, but getting power between them is gonna be a pain in the ass. Might be easier to drop it down the wall. Unless you want practice drilling shit sideways

[Spaulding Smails 1551]

Agree with @Jkwellborn.  If you have attic access above and the circuit for that light is dropped from above, it can be pretty easy.  If it's coming in from the side or if you don't have attic access above, you're going to have to cut open more sheetrock and drill shit sideways.  

For me, the electrical part always seems to be pretty easy.  It's the damn drywall patch, taping, floating and matching texture that gives me fits.

[Dewey 3284]

Put a junction box in the attic, drop wire down for each light, patch the old hole, be done with it. If you want the new fixtures to have their own independent switch, then do so, or have both on the same switch. Two separate lights arent going to draw anymore power that that big ass old ugly one.

[Jkwellborn 6670]

That light is already hooked to a junction box. Or should be. Just tie the new wires to it and it works on the same switch.

[NateHitch 1282]

Sounds simple enough.  I'll crawl up in the attic some morning and take a look

[mdmost 42954]

On 5/23/2018 at 6:23 AM, Irwin F Fletcher said:

Wrapping up another design. Taking on Liverpool next!

I’m back from my vacation tomorrow. Let me know what you have in mind design wise. My study is ready!

[Onboard 2.0 9083]

He spelled BAR wrong....

[Irwin F Fletcher 3550]

I’m back from my vacation tomorrow. Let me know what you have in mind design wise. My study is ready!

I like the idea of creating a red brick background/base similar to the wood floor in the attached picture. If you like that idea we need to finalize if you want the color version of their logo or the neutral/white version.

[Irwin F Fletcher 3550]

He spelled BAR wrong....

Fuuuuuuuuccccckkkk! I can't believe spell check missed that. Thankfully the buyer didn't catch the mistake and the check cleared.

[Jkwellborn 6670]

Sounds simple enough.  I'll crawl up in the attic some morning and take a look

*Surly is not liable for any damages or injuries caused to property or individuals. This is up to and including death.

[Onboard 2.0 9083]

2 minutes ago, Jkwellborn said:

*Surly is not liable for any damages or injuries caused to property or individuals. This is up to and including death.

please posts pics though.............

[mdmost 42954]

2 hours ago, Irwin F Fletcher said:

I like the idea of creating a red brick background/base similar to the wood floor in the attached picture. If you like that idea we need to finalize if you want the color version of their logo or the neutral/white version.

Can you send me a mockup of both? I'm better with visuals than my imagination.

[Gil Bang 25905]

bought a Kreg Jig today.  Not cheap, but I enjoyed working with it.  

I'm taking a shitty metal rolling beer cooler that the GF bought at TJ Maxx and adding insulation and boxing it out with Cedar. 

• Started with this:  

Cheap quality, rusts, doesn't hold ice for shit

[Gil Bang 25905]

Doing this:

[Gil Bang 25905]

I'm using this guy's (DIY Pete) design from his youtube.  Tweaking it a bit, but not too much. Pics when I'm done. 

[Jkwellborn 6670]

Which kreg did you buy? I went with the k5 but a 3 would be great too.

[Spur08 381]

I got a 4. Like it well enough

[NateHitch 1282]

Mentioned to the wife that I wanted to build a coffee table and she responded with something about wanting a vanity. So I guess I'm building a vanity. My only strategy now is to figure out a design that allows me to need as many new tools as necessary

[Onboard 2.0 9083]

4 hours ago, NateHitch said:

Mentioned to the wife that I wanted to build a coffee table and she responded with something about wanting a vanity. So I guess I'm building a vanity. My only strategy now is to figure out a design that allows me to need as many new tools as necessary

Looks like the perfect time to add a 3d printer to the shop.....