Miles Fuqua: Process Blog

Day 1

 I went in the first day with the intention of being a able to get all of my pieces cut and was hoping to even begin fastening some of my pieces together. However, the amount of double checking to make sure my cuts and measurements were perfect forced me to not be able to get as much done as i would have liked. All i was able to get done on this day was that i ripped and cross cut my base pieces using the table saw, then i ripped and cross cut my vertical shelf walls using the table saw and power miter saw. I still had the back panel vertical walls to cut and edge banding before i could even start fastening my pieces together. After the first day i realized that my project was going to take much longer than i initially believed. 

Vertical Walls

Horizontal Base

Cut Pieces stacked to Roughly Resemble Final Shelf

Day 2

On day two i went in with the plan to finish cutting, edge band, and begin fastening pieces together. However, just like on the first day i underestimated the amount of time it would take to make sure my bookshelf would look aesthetically pleasing. I used the table saw and power miter saw to rip and cross cut my vertical back panels and now had everything cut. Before i could begin fastening i needed to edge band. However, at the same time that i needed to begin edge banding Bret was also doing this step for his project, and there was only one iron. So a process that should only take about an hour took up the rest of my time that day and i was only able to get edge banding on my vertical pieces. I was going to have to come in tomorrow to finish edge banding and start fastening. 

Vertical Back Panels

Edge Banding on Vertical Pieces

Day 3

 I came into today with the plan to finish edge banding and begin fastening my pieces together. I wanted to put myself in the position to finish the project the next time i come in, and for the first time i actually accomplished my goals i had at the beginning of the day. I finished all of my edge banding by putting it on my horizontal base pieces and was now ready to begin fastening pieces together. My initial thought was to staple the  vertical walls together, but after looking at it i had no way to hide the staples. So after talking with Tim we decided that pocket screws would be the best option. I began using pocket screws and was able to fasten all of my vertical pieces together, leaving only attaching the horizontal base pieces left for the next day. 

Edge Banding on Horizontal Bases

Vertical Pieces Fastened with Pocket Screws

Day 4

With only the horizontal pieces left to attach to each other and the vertical shelves i was sure that i could easily finish on this day. My plan was to have my  base consist of two pieces of 3/4" plywood making one 1 1/2" base. This strategy allowed for me to hide the staples that connected the base and vertical pieces in between the two parts of the base. By using carpenter's glue and staples i attached the base and vertical shelves. To attach the two base pieces to each other i again used glue and staples to attach them but because the base was 1 1/2" thick and my staples were exactly 1 1/2" i needed to angle the staples show they wouldn't come through the other side. By stapling in from the bottom of the base pieces this allowed for me to hide the staples as well as possible. I had two spots where the staples were barely off causing it to show through on the other side but with glue and a hammer i was able to flatten the spot as well as possible. Now with my book shelf completely built all that was left was for me to put the finishing touches on my project to make it as aesthetically pleasing as possible. 

Staples Connecting Vertical Walls to Base

Glue along base piece that will connect to other base piece

Bottom Shelf Fully Constructed

Day 5

With all of the building complete all i had to do was put the finishing touches on my project. The issues that i knew i needed to fix coming in was the staples that had not gone in all the way were sticking out slightly from the bottom of my horizontal pieces. By simply banging them in with a hammer i got them flush with the wood. After looking at my shelf i realized that there were two spots where there are gaps in my shelf. One of them was from one of my vertical pieces being cut slightly longer than the other so there was nothing i could do, but the other just needed a fastener to be inserted at that spot. After talking with Tim i needed to use a pocket screw but could not use the large pocket screw drill that i used before, i had to do it by hand. This caused problems as i struggled to hold the drill in place and tore up the back of my shelf. However, with the help of Tim we were finally able to get a pocket screw in position and close the gap. The back of the shelf will be against a wall so the damage that i did will not be noticeable when it is in place at my house. I faced some minor issues throughout the building of my project but all in all i was able to successfully build the bookshelf that i had created in sketchup. 

My Final Bookshelf