A friend of a friend, recently acquired a tractor-trailer load of exotic woods. Planks 1 to 4 inches thick, and 1 to 3 feet wide, very cheap, but probably exported/imported illegally.

I puzzled over that for quite a while, over several iterations. I finalized (I think) the design just yesterday, on the way to the lumberyard.

The frame is extremely simple; four boards with a ledge on the inside, held together with bolts and cross-dowels, like this.

The middle rail is held in place with dowels in the ends going into the ledges.

The corners are the tricky part. They support all of the weight, but I wanted the feet to be recessed, to give it a bit of a "hovering" look, so they couldn't directly support the sides. Instead, the two halves of each foot will be held in the bottom of an L-shaped base via sliding dovetails. The mentioned base will be two ash boards lapped together.

Exactly how it works should become more obvious in time.

Heh, thanks, but I probably can't handle it, then. Not to mention transportation from PA.

So is the one lighter-colored board for the cross beam underneath, or will it be visible somewhere? (Or is it for another project entirely?)

It's the ash for the bottoms of the corners. Ash is cheaper and stronger than walnut, and the bottoms of the corners need to be extremely strong. I'll need to do some cosmetic stuff to make sure the ash isn't visible.

The cross beam won't be walnut either, but we'll use some wood from our spare wood pile for that, and it isn't in the pictured purchase pile.

shush...
I believe you have my address just in case this "friend" needs help disposing.

Here is that design:

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2352/...fbe21f167d.jpg

And the rail design:

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2318/...1822614c07.jpg

And here are some of the early designs for the corners.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2233/...052b6a71fa.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2165/...63b0e8369c.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2146/...01d6d3a7d0.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2054/...6397726d97.jpg

This last one also has the shopping list we took to the lumberyard.

Beautiful job - you're quite crafty:)

I'm thinking I need to consult with HM before I start my wood working projects! Have a look in thread fail. Good job mate. bb

I had a bit of a FAIL myself, today.

I was too clever by half when I wrote the dimensions on my shopping list on that last photo above.

See that "60+2T ~62"? Guess which number I used, when making the cut?

Dammit. I can fix it, and that part won't be visible, but still.

Dammit.

Yeah. That's why I alway stuck to metal. A lot easier to weld over the screw ups.

OK, I'm gonna start getting caught up to what I've put on Flickr.

My dad got this excellent router table for Christmas. We used it to put a nice edge on all of our boards. There's a shim behind the left half of the fence (the board moves to the left), that matches the depth of the cut, so the board hugs the fence on both sides of the bit.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2323/...fbc66c15c4.jpg


This is not an action shot. When we actually cut off the ends, we were more careful to make it square. Of course, as mentioned above, square is one thing, the right length is another.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2404/...ac47373dc8.jpg


We tried and failed to use the router table to cut the boards to width. I think we were pushing the board in the wrong direction, but in the meantime we finished the job on the tablesaw, which is the right tool for he job anyway.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2050/...967a60ee63.jpg


Starting to cut the corner sides. They will be mitered, and the saw tilts to 45 degrees. I marked 12 inches on one side, used a spare bit of 45 degree wood to mark the edge, and marked where to make the cut.

When making the cut, I used a square to make sure that the saw guide was square, while my dad made the cut.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2075/...30681ac4ab.jpg


Flip the board, and cut another 45 degrees on the same line.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2364/...6091a54687.jpg


A 90 degree notch was cut out.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2403/...24c51c3a09.jpg


The grain remains unbroken across the joint.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2299/...495cf18053.jpg


Looks good.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2399/...5f3a92f903.jpg

Back to the router table to cut a groove for the bottom.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2317/...fd25aef4c4.jpg


Move the fence and adjust the height a bit, and cut the tongue to go into that groove.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2284/...81770605fc.jpg


Eight of each.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2023/...dfc6d52fb0.jpg


Glue up the miter. The clamps on the bottom ends are only there to lift the ends to the right height.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2073/...8c4b1f8d5d.jpg


Splines strengthen the joint. The tablesaw cuts some grooves.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2334/...8c88abdd9e.jpg


The grooves.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2106/...5952c7b6b4.jpg


Shave down a strip of wood to tightly fit the groove.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2233/...5bd8e98685.jpg


Glue the splines in.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2098/...322a2934b0.jpg


The excess wood is cut off with a saw, and the joint is complete.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2388/...4b61386e70.jpg

The bottom of the corner is made up of two pieces of ash forming a huge lap joint. We used the router to cut away the bottom of half of the eight ash pieces. About a third of the board was removed.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2180/...08ee592b92.jpg


Here it is, upside down. The lap matches the tongue. So to speak.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2390/...c70ab1855f.jpg


The other half of the joint has the top removed.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2246/...f9d40f2c38.jpg


Like so. This one is rightside up.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2033/...43acfc812f.jpg


Just placed together, it's OK, but it needed my dad to finish it up with a bit of planing and chiseling. And just a tad of tablesawing, to adjust the edge.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2208/...61628573fb.jpg


All the bottom pieces. Bottom halves on the left, upside down; top halves on the right, rightside up.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2270/...87661a1c8a.jpg


The lap joint is glued. The bar clamps hold it square, and the C-clamps hold the glued faces together.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2046/...65d66bfa82.jpg


The result.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2096/...ae5e7dca45.jpg


All together now. The tongue on the outside of the ash bottom fits into the groove on the inside of the walnut sides.

There will be walnut caps on the end of the ash, to fill in the remaining space.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2251/...4f41f90a19.jpg

All four - inside and outside.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2168/...01536cb8dd.jpg
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2125/...7e7e01d915.jpg


That's all for now!

This is really interesting. At first, I couldn't figure out your design from all the parts you are cutting, but then looking at this image on Flickr, I get what you are going for.

I'm curious though, why do you have the long cross support board in the center of the bed frame, but you are using just the corners for support at the head and the foot? Why didn't you use a long wide board to support the mattress and frame at the head and foot as well? (See my sloppy alteration of your plan below.) Is it simply to save materials and to give you the opportunity to play around with half lap joints, or am I missing something?

This isn't a criticism at all, the design is a cool one. I like the look of the bed. This is a good thread and I'm glad to see it revived.

It's hard to see in the picture, due to the color I used, but there will be a ledge all the way around the rails, so the bed will be supported all the way around, in addition to the cross support in the middle.

That ledge will be on top of the ash, so the mattress doesn't rest directly on the part you've seen so far.

Cool. Can't wait to see more.

Bleh. Had an annoying weekend. Enamored with our new toy (the router table), we got cute with the joint attaching those bottom right Rs. As a result, we ended up messing the rails up further (in addition to cutting two of them too short, as mentioned above). The required repairs for that damage mean that we actually moved backwards over the weekend.

I was bummed for a few hours after that.

sorry to hear that, but comforted that I'm not the only one who does stuff like that.

The learning curve is actually a sine wave. The highs and lows will even out, and you'll end up with a beautiful bed.

How right you are. Last weekend went very well. But before I get to that, I'll try to catch up. I've been lazy uploading for a while now.


We made the tops of the corners. Starting with a bit of narrow walnut, we made it a bit narrower with the tablesaw.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2189/...9d4ae8744d.jpg


My dad got this miter saw for picture frames, and it works great for this, too.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2083/...1ca7622dbe.jpg


I got him these clamps for picture frames years ago, and they've come in very handy.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2330/...b50d847cc6.jpg


The joint looks good.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2392/...b5d643b2cb.jpg


Clamp and glue the top on. Lots of glue joints in this piece; no way around it, given the look I'm going for.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2155/...93936655a7.jpg


The corner with the top, outside and inside.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2015/...fe5bc6b7f8.jpg
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2374/...9983c330aa.jpg

Now for the sliding dovetails. The feet will be made of two boards attached at a right angle in sliding dovetails on the bottom of the corners. The point of that right angle has to cross the line of the diagonal between the two points at which the rails exit the corner.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2184/...8045ab2fbb.jpg


The router table makes sliding dovetails possible (OK, feasible). We prepare for the dovetail bit with a straight bit. One with a screw shape may have been better, as the groove left by the bit was hard-packed with sawdust that was difficult to get out, even with a screwdriver.

The clamp on the router table fence is an easy way to stop it at the right point.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2108/...4e3e267235.jpg


We moved the clamp to the other side, and cut in the other direction.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2184/...de9515f93d.jpg


We then ran the dovetail bit through the same path.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2189/...4ea2e0cd3b.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2014/...205e566be6.jpg

We ran the dovetail bit along each side of one end of each foot board as well, and voila!

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2383/...30dc0dc5f8.jpg

OK, I'll try to get more caught up.

The two halves of each foot connect with a lock miter, another product of the router table.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2309/...4a3d81a4bd.jpg


I raised the template block on a shim so the bit was centered on the thickness of wood I was using. I'm not 100% certain that that was the best way to do it, but it worked. If I try it again on a more visible joint, I may have to do more experimentation.

Additionally, the bit was too wide for the table insert we had. Maneuvering without an insert was tricky. We have since gotten more inserts.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2263/...b1717fe467.jpg


One piece must be cut horizontal:

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2297/...7c3df296ce.jpg


And the other vertical. This one was trickier. We clamped a strip of wood to the board, and ran that strip along the top of the fence, to keep from falling into the hole left by the lack of an insert.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2410/...4e6011cdb9.jpg

All the boards laid flat:

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2123/...0cc3a71dbb.jpg


And put together. They haven't been cut to final length yet.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2165/...4c934dfb13.jpg

Due to the way we did the lap joint, the bottom pieces were not all of a uniform length in each direction. A quick cut against the fence on the tablesaw fixed that.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2381/...ecba61b836.jpg



Check out the fit of the feet, and how much extra wood we have on the long board, and how short the short one is.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2165/...7de0f2c7ae.jpg


At long last, it's time to glue he bottom into the sides.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2394/...690da3d122.jpg


We need a walnut facade on the outer edge of the bottom, as that part will be slightly visible. We cut a notch into the end of a narrow board, and then cut off three and a half inches.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2117/...114cc9caf8.jpg


The facade is clamped in place, and a hole is drilled for a dowel. Endgrain isn't good for gluing, so a dowel is needed. A single dowel should be sufficient, as this should not bear any load.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2368/...ce5b7f5c6c.jpg


Glue on the facade and hammer in the dowel.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2258/...67121b01ee.jpg

Cut off the excess dowel, and plane the joint smooth. We used the tablesaw for this one, but that was too much of a hassle, so my dad planed the rest of them.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2289/...6c698d3356.jpg
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2164/...64c69f5813.jpg

I made a jig to cut all of the feet to a uniform height. The dovetailed end of the board goes up against the block. With boards this short, this is much safer and easier than a fence.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2126/...7794250dc8.jpg
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2128/...6fcf66e429.jpg


All the same height now. One is too short. I'll fix that later.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2144/...c26a926d02.jpg

To give the illusion that each corner is a single block of wood, and to avoid nighttime skinned shin injuries, the edges are rounded over, using a half-inch roundover bit.

The roundover bit has a guide on it, so you don't need the fence. However, to reduce chatter when first contacting the bit, there is a post screwed into the router table surface. Holding the piece up against that post when contacting the bit makes it easier to maintain control while waiting to contact the guide.

I did the outside edges first, so the bit would run along the curved surface when doing the top and bottom.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2370/...c4ccb452ae.jpg



I then did the bottom, and finally the top.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2305/...6152714f64.jpg
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2289/...c054bfa88e.jpg

I was originally going to round over that corner, but my parents convinced me not to, to add a point of contrast.

Time to finish up the corners, by attaching the feet!

After a bit of sanding, to make the sliding dovetails easier to adjust during gluing, I slid them in place, and added glue to the lock miter joint, taking care to get it in all the nooks and crannies.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2204/...8c97357afb.jpg


I (earlier, not pictured) cut off the excess wood from the long feet, and kept one of those pieces to fix the short one, shown here. The extra piece even came pre-dovetailed!

Better safe than sorry- I also added a glue block to the inside of the joint.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2368/...e77c0cc1dc.jpg


And, speaking of better safe than sorry, I added a bit of hardware to the rails.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2344/...a86cc4642a.jpg

And speaking of the rails, it is time to attach them together. To allow them to be taken apart, they are attached with bolts and cross-dowels.

To help make the bolt holes straight, the initial hole is drilled with the drill press (Sorry for the psychedelics, my camera was set to nighttime mode).

In this picture, you can also see the solutions for the two major mistakes made on the project. The board is capped to make up for cutting it too short, and you can see the wood strip filling the groove we messed up on.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2090/...c6bcca33d4.jpg


We held the rails in position with a square on the bottom, and a framing clamp on top.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2149/...736e5b9181.jpg


With the boards held in position, and the first part of the hole predrilled, going the rest of the way wasn't too difficult. Out of eight holes, only one got appreciably off course.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2154/...a51118fc73.jpg


We then took it apart, and drilled the last bit.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2323/...78605f9a10.jpg

I used a square to mark where I hoped the bolt had gone, and drilled down on that line with a bigger bit. For the one that got off course, I had to do this a second time to enlarge that hole.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2262/...f9004a08d8.jpg


After the holes are drilled, and the correction made, it goes together.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2378/...4fed2aa001.jpg


The bolt heads stick out a bit. The rails have to fit snug in the corners, so the bolts need to be countersunk.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3203/...a0d0eecf3a.jpg


Initial holes are cut with a forstner bit.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2254/...47b9a8c498.jpg


The bit wasn't quite big enough, so it was finished with a chisel.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3264/...7e759b36d9.jpg

Time for staining! My dad made a picture frame with an interesting color that I liked- walnut with an ebony stain.

Initially, it is very black.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3260/...a9bf63f177.jpg


After letting it soak, we rubbed off the excess with a rag.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2290/...f235d420b5.jpg


The walnut is more visible through the stain as it dries.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2398/...67ca7072a4.jpg
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3059/...3b0b612cb0.jpg


The corners get the same treatment.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2106/...108dd1a417.jpg
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3063/...ea64461bc8.jpg

Elegant solution. Simple and effective. I'm not sure I would have thought of it, but it's obvious in hindsight. I'd probably end up freehanding it and messing it up.

This whole project is coming together nicely!

Thanks! I'm not quite caught up to the present yet, but I am caught up to what I've uploaded to Flickr. More to come.

We put it all together in preparation for drilling the holes for the final bolts.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2060/...6b01df77d4.jpg


With clamps holding the corner tight against the rails, a jig holding the drill straight, and a stop collar regulating the depth, we drilled holes for the bolts that hold the rails to the corners. The holes are wider than the bolts, to allow for adjustment when tightening the bolts.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3268/...03e8017804.jpg


The holes go through the rails, and mark the target spots on the corners.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3149/...31635e42e7.jpg


To maintain straightness, we used the drill press to finish the holes.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2229/...581c156aed.jpg


Brass inserts will hold the bolts without stripping the wood. A ratcheting screwdriver is perfect, as cordless screwdrivers just don't have the power, and non-ratcheting screwdrivers require constant readjustment of your grip.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3093/...99fa37c8b1.jpg

Everything was oiled...

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2107/...11fc133385.jpg


and (after curing for a few days) waxed.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3230/...8bf8e4755c.jpg

And everything was complete!

Here are the completed corners. You can see the edges of some smooth furniture gliders on two of them. I put the gliders on the other two after the picture was taken.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3090/...e851220e1f.jpg


And the sides.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2183/...a64ea172ca.jpg


And with the help of a handy cordless screwdriver, it comes together!

If you look back to the original plans, you may notice I omitted the middle slat. After checking how my current bed was set up, I decided that the extra slat wouldn't have helped appreciably, and skipped it.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3050/...f55371399a.jpg
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3159/...ae629c2e55.jpg


And with the mattresses:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3034/...2b18235a4e.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3287/...f71ebfbe3e.jpg


Aaaahhh....

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2304/...ec4e43932e.jpg

Sweet... and sweet dreams.

It'll be beautiful and useful for decades and decades!

Cool! Now all you need is a matching nightstand....

Wow...that is awesome - looks fantastic!...and you're a lefty too!

Thanks!

That is so cool. So cool! Awesome job!!

I really like how it turned out. Great job!

Thanks, it really ended up matching my initial plan quite well, which is cool. The outer corners aren't rounded over, the feet are shaped a bit differently, and there's no middle slat (which isn't visible anyway). Other than that, it looks just like I envisioned.

I currently have an endtable my grandfather made on one side (occasionally slightly visible in those last photos), and a storage box nee shipping crate on the other (moved out of the way for the photos). Neither of which match particularly well, but i like them.

For now...

This, for those with proper eyewear, may display the hovering better.

Here's a bigger version, if you like.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3009/...01588a55d0.jpg

bmUp

Yeah, this is great! Some glatt stuffs in there too.

You guys could do a woodworking show.

Holy crap! That was 7 years ago. I still haven't finished that cabinet. It's fully functional, but doesn't have any doors. The cabinet and shelves are all open.

I need to finish that.

I'm in the contemplation phase of my next project. I have a crappy table that came with my place, and want to replace it with some sort of chest/table with cabinet doors and full-extension sliding shelves, so I can organize all of the stuff that I currently pile on top of the table.

My last project was getting rid of wall-to-wall carpeting in my condo, and redoing the shoe molding, but I was too tired to document it.

working on floors and shoe molding BLOWS. all that bending over, and crawling about. blech.

Thanks for resurrecting this thread. I missed it the first time around. Great stuff.

Wood working intimidates me, so I tend to just slap stuff together. If I showed you guys the workbenches I knocked together you would laugh (they aren't stable enough by half).

My dad and I threw something together real quickly over the last few weekends.

My washer/dryer (stackable) are in a closet, with very difficult access. I'm going to need to replace them soon, so I finally did something that I've wanted to do for a while - made a roller that fits in my closet.

Here are the materials (though I did end up going back for more hardware).

The handles are spare big-screen TV handles that I rescued from the garbage. The wheels are actually intended to be solo furniture rollers, but I didn't like that they were loose.

The boards are leftovers from an inlaw's floor remodeling.


https://c6.staticflickr.com/9/8312/2...9a558578_z.jpg
furniture roller materials


I cut the boards to a bit under 2 feet.

https://c2.staticflickr.com/9/8835/2...357df574_z.jpg
Cutting to Length

https://c3.staticflickr.com/9/8774/2...e0b6f40b_z.jpg
Cutting to Length

Here they are, just held together by friction. One is longer, because we intended to cur that side even once it was all joined.

https://c5.staticflickr.com/9/8781/2...4d7461ce_z.jpg
All the pieces

Gluing it up. The glue won't really hold (it's the tongue and groove flooring; bad glue surface), but it will at least hold it well enough to finish the piece. Bar clamps pull it together, and the other clamps and boards keep it flat. The discolored one at the bottom is just there to protect the edge, and is not glued.

https://c4.staticflickr.com/9/8871/2...aedb94d7_z.jpg
Glued up

Once that glue was dry, I drilled pilot holes in the end board using a drill press, then drilled through that into the main body using a hand drill. I glued that one on with the screws in to keep glue out of the pilot holes.

https://c7.staticflickr.com/9/8784/2...4232b144_z.jpg
Gluing on the handle board.

As I said, glue won't hold all that well (plus the wheels need to attach to something), so here we screwed on some boards to be the cross supports.


https://c7.staticflickr.com/9/8513/2...8eb972af_z.jpg
Screwing on the Cross Supports

With that support in place, we cut it with a circular saw against a straightedge to even it off (but I forgot to take the picture).

https://c3.staticflickr.com/9/8385/2...280e202f_z.jpg
Ready to be cut even


I then screwed on the handles (hard to see, since they're matte black).

https://c7.staticflickr.com/9/8888/2...2704d552_z.jpg
With the Handles - top


https://c3.staticflickr.com/9/8693/2...40edf005_z.jpg
With the Handles - bottom

I used carriage bolts and wingnuts to attach the wheels, to complete it.


https://c2.staticflickr.com/9/8503/2...78cc4cce_z.jpg


https://c6.staticflickr.com/9/8112/2...4f0d2aa3_z.jpg
With the Wheels - bottom detail


https://c2.staticflickr.com/9/8379/2...fb662006_z.jpg
Finished - top


https://c2.staticflickr.com/8/7707/2...e0cffe58_z.jpg
Finished - top detail


Now for the hard part... buying the new washer/dryer...

Cool.

Nicely done

So the new machines will stack on that roller so you can pull them out?

It's a very nice looking roller system. Well done.

Thanks, yeah. Washer/dryer go on top.

Still haven't got the new washer/dryer, but I got the old ones on the roller.

https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8798/2...563bc961_z.jpg
In place

The link is set to private, so I can't see it.

I bet that was a pain in the ass, wrestling that thing up on top of the stand. Did you wrench your back?