I did, C7 and I was 7, my sis thought she killed me. :blush:

There used to be a bamboo lumber outfit at the south end of town. They're closed now, but I doubt it would be difficult to procure these materials again. When I bought the poles, bamboo wasn't nearly as popular as it is now. I've seen finished hardwood (ha. grass, people) modular flooring made from bamboo (like Pergo). And paper, I have even seen a pair of garden gloves.

I am growing some bamboo of my own now, thanks to a gift from my girlfriend. I posted some pictures around here somewhere....

the only species name I remember is Tam Vong. There were others with different structural strengths (no pun intended). The posts are not the same species as the poles. the poles are not the same species as the poles I split for the platforms.

I bought some poles from this guy, Bamboo Garderner, he's just a couple blocks from my house. this fellow is also just around the corner, but I have not visited him.

eta:

hahahah... this is the place I bought most of my poles from : Bamboo Hardwoods.

One person's gift can be another person's curse.

My boys sleep in bunk beds. I'm amazed they're both still alive.

My younger brother fell out of the top bunk of the bunks he shared with my older brother. My older brother about had a heart attack. He wasn't hurt, thank FSM. I think there were no rails because he was an older kid at the time.

Anyway, I can't resist posting, yet again, one of my favorite dance numbers:

Hello there RRRRRRRaven Welcome to the Cellar! :jig:

A long time ago in camp, not banned camp, we used to sleep in sleeping bags in a large tent type buildings with bunk beds. The gag that many kids would play was to tie the strings at the foot of the sleeping bags to the rails of the bunk beds and then "scare" the kids while sleeping... Still can't believe we didn't have any permanent or more serious injuries.

I will be sleeping in a rickety old bunk bed on Monday and Tuesday nights. Probably the top bunk.

I never shared a room until college. We totally went against the rules for using the bunk bed makers (had to request them) by having one bed on top against the wall and the other bed coming out from underneath at a 45 degree angle. Becky never did break my head open.

No bunk beds. No shared room. Only child. Thank :fsm:.

Well, there was this one time, in prison...

Thanks for the welcome Nirvana!

Welcome to the cellar, Rrrraven!

Lucky bastard, ours were pine... and that's when knots meant cheaper, not more expensive.:p:

V, nice job, design and execution.
The next one you make should have the poles graduated so they can be assembled in order, without sweat and naughty words.
You're right about bamboo being more common. Being grass, it's a greenies delight, sustainable as all hell.
My keyboad and mouse are bamboo, but don't mistake me for a greenie, I just liked the look. :lol:

I apologize for bumping...just several questions...


I'm starting a project for my kids, wanted to make some bunk beds.
I've already harvested more than enough and I'm in the process of drying the bamboo. Still though, I figure in the meantime I could get some engineering work done on them.

I've found some online that in general are very similar to what I'm aiming for.

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_3S-3qIT7hro/Sb...nk%2520Bed.JPG

I have a lot of woodworking/general shop experience, but very limited bamboo experience aside from a few small tables/lamps/bunk beads like all these types [link removed], etc. Nothing that I had to trust to be load/play bearing!

Couple questions though.
As for the joints, I'm assuming bore them out with a hole saw and then use a barrel sander or something to get them dead on?

Are these joints just glued together? I'm not apposed to doing it that way, but it would be nice when it's all said and done if I could disassemble it for storage/moving in the future.

If I wanted to make it in a few pieces, and glue those together, what is my best bet to make joints that I can easily take apart? I was thinking about running a bolt or dowel through the entire joint, bolts would be ugly, and dowels would be too enticing for kids to mess with. Anyone have any suggestions for strong, aesthetically pleasing and detachable joints?

Also, would appreciate any tips/advice/pointers anyone wants to throw my way, aside from knowing I should probably let it dry thoroughly before I get cracking so my joints stay the dimensions I bore them out at I'm pretty lost.

I know I'll figure it out, but not too proud to ask for help beforehand. Would rather learn from pros than my own mistakes when I can.