Process Blog
Day 1:
I started this project with some drafting and a dream. |
| Hand-drafted plans on vellum |
Today I cut all of my lumber to size, except the table legs, which I will do later in the process. First, I ripped down my 2"x6" into 1 1/2" strips and then cut those strips to length. (see below)
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| Cutting the supports for the shelves' corners |
I spent the majority of the time working on cutting my plywood to the correct dimensions. It got a little rocky when it came to sharing, but it ultimately worked out, thanks to Bret (my hero). Today, I learned how to crosscut on the table saw using a jig, which was both challenging and fun. I was also able to reconnect with my favorite tool, the speed square.
This process took a little longer than expected, so I intend to come into the studio tomorrow and get some more work done. Tomorrow I plan to begin construction of the side shelves. This will entail using a jig saw to notch my shelves corners and learning to use pocket screws.
Day 2:
Today I notched the corners of my shelves. I initially tried to do so with a jig saw, but quickly moved
to the band saw, which is ultimately was a better choice.
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| The shelves' corners, neatly notched |
After I notched the shelves, I was able to start construction of my shelves. I began by drilling holes for the pocket screws in the back part of the shelf. I clamped the top and bottom to the back of the shelf and pocket screwed it in.
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| The top and bottom are secured the back! |
Unfortunately, I forgot to edge band my pieces before attaching them, so I got a little creative with a mat knife and the edge banding. In the future, I will edge band prior to screwing together.
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| Edge banding post fastening-- not a good plan. |
Day 3:
Today I got a lot done on the chair. I built all four shelves. I followed the same process as on Sunday to attach the tops and bottoms of the shelves. After doing that, I positioned and fastened the tall corner posts into the shelves. This ensured that the shelf would stay square while I continued to add shelves. The posts were attached by drilling pocket screw holes and then using 2" dry wall screws. This was a creative solution to pocket screws that were too long.
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| Corner supports in place |
After the posts were attached, I secured the shelves into place using pocket screws. This step was a little tricky as the shelves sometimes did not want to stay level.
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Shelf number one in place
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| Two shelves down, two to go |
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| The chair, ready for bolting |
Day 4:
Today I worked on bolting the entire project together. The first issue I encountered was that the wood of the corner posts was a little too soft for the t-nuts. When I tightened the bolt, the nut bit into the wood and scarred the pillar. |
Scarring created by t-nut
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Luckily, Tim was on the scene. He cut off the bolt head and drove the remaining bolt and nut through the hole. This allowed me to re-bolt the cases together without gaps. I can cleverly disguise the scarring with a washer.
After I bolted the rest of the bookcases together, bolting the corner pillar of one to the plywood back of the other, I added supports for the seat. This consisted of plywood strips glued and screwed to the backs of the front and rear bookcases.
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| Waiting for the glue to dry |
After I attached the seat supports, I began to sand the chair. I worked to make any rough spots or mismatched joints as smooth as possible. I also used the router to clean up an overhanging edge on one of the bookcases.
Whilst sanding, I noticed a gap between the corner post and the shelf in one of the bookcases.
After trying a couple of different plugs, I asked Tim for suggestions on how to make a thin enough piece of wood to fit in that slot. He introduced me to a very exciting new tool-- the planar. I ran a section of my scrap 1x6 through the planar until it was thin enough to fit. I unscrewed the pocket screw holding the shelf to the post, pre-drilled a hole in the plug, and then reattached the shelf with the plug in place. It might not look perfect, but it looks much better than the gap!
I sanded and sanded and sanded, both with an orbital sander and a sanding block. After some sanding, I filled some knots and cracks in the corner posts with wood putty. I waited for the putty to dry and then sanded some more.
At long last, I decided that the chair was ready. Tomorrow I will pick it up from the scene studio!
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| The newly cleaned up edge |
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A gap!!!
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I sanded and sanded and sanded, both with an orbital sander and a sanding block. After some sanding, I filled some knots and cracks in the corner posts with wood putty. I waited for the putty to dry and then sanded some more.
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| Post-sanding |
Day 5:
Today I unbolted the chair and transported it to Herndon. Shout out to Casey for letting me use her trunk space! |
| The back of the chair (pre-unbolting) |
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The chair front (pre-unbolting)
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Evaluation
Overall, my bookcase chair came together really nicely. I put a lot of time into making all of my cuts and joints as precise and neat as possible. That being said, if I could do it all again, I'd work to make the joints even tighter and cleaner. There are a few places where the seams don't line up as perfectly as I would like.
If I were to do this project again, I would adjust the seat size. It would be nicer to have made the seat higher and a little bigger. At present, the seat is very low and a little cocoon-like. When I get home, I'm going to try to adjust the seat height a little, possibly adding another shelf level to the front of the bookcase. Initially I planned on solving this with legs for the chairs, but ended up cutting the legs from the project. I didn't like the way that they looked on the chair after it was built.
I really enjoyed working the scene studio. I loved designing and building my own project, and I hope to volunteer in the scene studio in the future!
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