the kids building workshop

8/3/2019 The Kids Building Workshop

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Edited by Nancy W.RingerCover design byWendy Palitz &Vicky VaughnText design byWendy PalitzText production byKarin StackCover and interiorphotographs byEdward JudiceIllustrations byAlison KolesarIndexed by SusanOlason, Indexes &

Knowledge Maps

Copyright 2004 by J. Craig and Barbara Robertson

All righls n:served. No part of this book may be reproduced without writtenpermission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages or rep rodu ce illustrations in a review with appropriate credits; nor mayany part of this book be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmittedin any form or by any means - electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or other - without written permission from the publisher.The information in this book is true and complete to the best of our knowledge.All recommendations are made without guarantee on the part of the authors orStorey Publishing The aULhors and publisher disclaim any liability in connection with thc nse of thi s information. For additional information please contactStorey Publishing, 210 MA SS MoC Way, North Adams, MA 01247.Storey books are available for special premium and promotional uses and forcustomized editions. For further information, please call 1-800-793-9396.Printed in the United States by Edward Brothers10 9 8 7 5 5 4 3 2 1

Lib rary of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Da ta

Robertson, J. Craig.Kids' building workshop: 15 woodworking projects for kids and parents tobuild together /]. Craig and Barbara Robertson.

p. cm.Includes bibliographical reJerences and index.ISBN 1-58017-488-4 (pb : alk. paper) - ISBN 1-58017-572-4 (hc: alk. paper)1. Woodwork. 2. Woodworking tools. 1. Robertson, Barbara. II. Title.

TTl85.R6562004684.08-dcn

2004001521


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The authors - Craig, Barbara, CamiLLe, and ALLegra - wouLd li ke to thankeveryone who heLped out with this book. SpeciaL hanks go to ourphoto-shoot carpenters: Sarah, Katherine, and Melissa Brink; Lucas andTrudy Ames; Orelia and Geneva Jonathan; Gregory and Jacob Goldstone ;KeLsey Shanley; HaiLey Newbound ; Zachary, Amalia, and Sophia Leamon;Kimberly Houston; and Benjamin and DanieL JosLyn. What a gang!Words of gratitude are du e to the members of our first buiLding crews:DyLan and Evan Dethier (a .k.a . our first , and best. lemonade saLesmen);Nancy Nylen; and Isaiah, Naomi , and Otha Day. Thanks aLso to JohnKLeiner and his two sons Matthew and Aaron fo r sharing the ir birdhousedes ign with us.One Last thank-you goes to Nancy Ringer, our editor, for he r patience ,flexibility, and calm ways.


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tio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. ......1rPART 1

your t oL lH ERI G ..................6

IN . . . . . . . . . . . * ,. i 10 Furniture Factory . . . . . . . . . . .16

RILLING .....................20 You Name It . . . . . . . . . . .24

BL CK PL E . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26 The Perfect Curl . . . . . . . . . . . .28

A URING . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Checkerboard . . . . . . . . . . .34

VI


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PART 2

String Art .............. ......... 40 Twin Birdhouse . . 46 Single Birdhouse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .52 Sturdy Stool . . . 56 Cricket Cage . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 Perfect Toolbox . . . . . . . . . . . . .68 Horse Sawhorses 74 Flip It . ............. . . ............82 AlleCJra's Table . 92 Bookhouse ................. .......102 Lemonade Stand .......... . . . . . .114 Puppet Theater 126

i d . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... . . . . . . . . ... . ..136 VII


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ho isn't at least a little deligh ted by a shiny newhammer? And who doesn't feel just a little empowered by su ccessfully drilling a clean hole through an

01 herwise solid board? When kids first encoun ter hammers, theyalmost instantly know what -he y are for. If they're lucky, nails andwood are nearb y, as we lL as willing paren ts who will allow them todrive nail after nail, experinlenting vvith va rious ways of pu lling outthe crooked ones and trying a var- ety of methods to keep a wigglyboard slilL Some parents , not ing tha t to ols can be heavy, sharp, andeven a biL dangero us, don't allow their chi ld ren access to carpentryLools_ This well-intentioned effon to avoid blackened fingernails andBand-Aids may also mean that the children don't get to master the useof simple tools at a young age.

With this book we hope to share enough tips , give enough goodadvice, and creaLe en ough enthusiasm to allow paren ts and children tode Telop basic carpentry skills We've mapped out a variety of projects- rrom simp le to more complex - Lhat allow families to work togeth erto create some fun , well-designed items . Ou r h ope? That these proj ec ts will be only the beginning! If you make the projects in this book,if you become the pr ud producer of everythi ng [ro m decorative stringart and perfecLly curled wood shavings to a drawing table and alemonade stand, you should be ready to take on carp entry projects ofyour own design and maybe ev en in your own ho me _


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We wrote this book a a family, each of us bringing our own skillsand perspective to the projec t. Craig is a build r wh o has remodeledmany homes , including two of our own when our daughters wereyou ng . He has m re than twenty years of experience in carpentry.Barbara is the director of education at an art museum and has spent anequal number of years teaching art to children and writing curricul umand lesson plans . When we began the process of writing this book ,Camille wa eleven and Allegra was nine. (The "to kids" boxes scat tered throughout the book are written by Camille. ) They'd both beenswinging hammers f r many years and had plenty of opinions the ywere eager to share about the subject of carpentry. Having livedthrough m ny building projects together, we thought it might be funto WI ite a book abo ut carpentry together, too. And it has been. Wehope you'll have as much fun learning carpently with your family.

A word about safety: There will always be some danger in work ing with carpentry tools and beginners need to be made aware ofpotential hazards. Even if you are tack ling the simplest projec ts in thisbook , make sure you are comfortable wi th the task you have set foryourself and your family. Re ad and reread th e sec tions on tool use,take your time, and pay close a ttention when working with a sharp orpowerful too l. Remember, the competent use of a tool will always bethe safest u e. We have done our best throughout the book to poin tout where risks lie and strategies fo r coping wi th them . But we can 'tput in wri ting every solution to every potential dange r; us e commonsense and seek more help if you need it.

The organization: Th is book is organized into two basic sections .The firs t gives you information and tips for using the tools that willbecome your trusted friends and companions in carpentr y. Read th i.ss clion firs t! For each tool, we have provided safety tips and handlin gadvice , as well as a project that will help you get started using thatLOo l co rrectly.

The second section con tains woodworking projects, arranged inorder from the Simplest to the most complex. Read through an entire

Introduction


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p roject before you begin , e en before you pu rchase your materials !Thoroughly preparing before you begin your project will save youtime and money and encourage blessed family happiness. Ma ke sureyou know everything you can abou t the tool , materials , skills, andestimate 1 time it will take to make a project before yo u begin.

We have written the directions for projec ts as though a ch ild wouldbe doing each step. Bu t that doesn't mean that yo u should enforce achild-only regim e. Tl ere will be times when an adu lt will want to takeover, especially for some of the more challenging me suring and culting and the more repetitive ta ks. Work together and choose the mostappropriate person on your team to do each job. Over time, you mayfind that the children 's skills outpace the parents' ! Approach each project with an eye [o r maximizing family fun . Save Lhe best jobs for thekids, and let them experiment and make some mistakes , too.

FOR KIDSHa dsaBloc pi nDr IIHam ncesMeas nnq taClamp

cr drivers Phillip nd lot dCompasspe d qu rCombination s uareRulerAwlNail eNail apronSafety glasse

FOR ADULTSC' sawJjgsawCordle drillUtility km eStaple gunE r prot c Jon tn adpnon 0plugs for us With pow r a

Saf tv glass 5

Introduction 3


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t iY r ooLI5


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THE B SICSriving a naiL through two pieces ofwood to fasten them together is prob- IabLy the most basic task in carpentry.And the hammer itself is probabLy the Imost basic carpenter's tool. Not onLy

does your hammer help you drive naiL after nail,but it aLso doubles as a pry bar, a digging tooL, ahatchet, or a handy extension of your own arm.

HAMMER

NAIL SET

6

The firs t key to hammering ismomentum. The gathering forceyou can create by the swing ofyour arm, elbow, wrist, and handis what powers the blow of yourhammer. Imagine that you areswinging a weight at the end of astring. While you could grab theweight in your hand and hit anobject directly with it, the blowwill be much stronger if you canline up all the forces required toswing it in an arc.

The farther your grip is fromthe hammer head, the more forceyou will be able to get from eachblow. You should grip the hammer as far from its head as youcan manage while s till controlling the swing.

The second key to hammering success is to hit hard I

Much of the forc e of a ham mer strike goes into convincing

the nail to overcome its owninertia and the substantial resistance of the wood fibers. If ittakes 50 pounds of force to drivea nail into a piece of pine, thenall the 45-pound blows in theworld will no t make that nailbudge. I t is not hard to imaginethat a lO-pound blow will be farmore effect ive than a half dozen52-pound blows'

This pr incip le also applieswhen you're starting a nail.Many people swing cautiously,worried perhaps abou t hittingtheir fingers instead of the nail.The result is a multitude of inef[eclive taps and a greater number of chances to hit thosefingers. Whe n it comes to hammering, hold the nail firmly, aimcarefully, and swing like youmean it. Th e nail will kn ow thatyou mean bu siness'


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Raise your hammer high ,

swing like you mean it , and

drive the nail home.

Hammering


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choking up: no arcand no momentum! all the power comesfrom your arm and

not from your swing!

e r y ~smallarc \

correct angle:hammer head isaligned wth nail

will bend nail away from board--...A'incorrect angle: hammer head

mmeringrongThere are, of course, a few thingsthat typically go wrong. Bendinga nail is the result of a hammerswing that does no t align proper ly with the shank of the nail. Toavoid bending a nail, take a goodlook at where the nail is pointingand try to make your swingcome down as if it in tended topass through the head of the nailand down the shank all the wayto the point. If you do bend anail , you can straigh ten it usingthe claw of the hammer and thendrive it again, bu t it is likely tobend again. Usually it's best topull out the bent nail and start afresh nail in the same hole.

Another frequent hammeringmishap is the crooked or misdi rected nail. If your nail does notgo wh ere you want it to , pull itout and start again. But do n 't pu tyour nail back in the same holeTh is will simply tell your nailLhat you want it to take the samemisguided path . Instead, startthe nail in a new spot.

And finally, pulling out a nailis a tri ck all of its own. You canuse your hammer claw for this .Slip the claw under the head ofthe nail so that the nail shankrests in the V of the claw. Inserta block of wood under the ham mer head ; the block will give youbetter leverage for pulling thenail and protect your workpiecefrom damage. Hold the boarddown firmly, grip near the end ofthe hammer handle, and pull thehandle back toward you.

Hammering


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Don't feel bad if you have topull ou t a mil from time to time.Look carefully at the tool in yourhand and you'll see that it wasmade just as much to removenails as to drive them in 1

n usCertain projects demand a finished surface - one that is notinterrupted by a pattern of nailheads. The best way to achievethis is with a nail set, a simplelittle tool that helps you set anail head flu sh with, or below,the surface of a board. Setting anail also ensures th at the head ofthe nail is pulled tight againstthe wood , which maximiz es itsholding power.

To use a nail set , grasp itsbody with your free hand. Set thetip on the head of the nail youwish to sink and align the bodywith the shaft of the nail (thiscan be a little tricky and inv olves

guesswork at times). Hold thenail set tightly, aim carefully, andhi t the top of the tool firmly withyour hammer. Check the result ,reposition the nail set, and hi t itagain. Continue until the nailhead is sunk just below the surface of the board .

Camdle a y ~ 'Ha'llmer,ng Ione of myfavorite parts ofc a l ~ p e n t r y \tJhen'via yo neer. I'via d VI t my dad's on-s rJ tlO I and h&n mer nad n J rap woodfor hour H8rnrn rl!"l Ssometh n9 almos evproject has You sho Idtry to set good at hal 1menng right at the ben ntng that 'Way, 'When yoget 0 t e h mtnernspart you II eruoy thernl

Hammering

I

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the kids who built projects withus foun d wo rking with a pullsaw much easier and more satisfying than working with a traditional push saw.

If you turn a saw upsidedown and sight down the row ofteeth, you'll notice that the tipsof the teeth curl outward. Th is iscalled the set of the teeth, and itallows the saw to cu t a kerf(groove) in to the wood that iswider than the main body of thesaw blade. When you use thesaw to make a cu t, the set of theteeth determines the width of thekerf. If you compare two saws,you may also notice that one hasmo re tee th per inch (t.p.i.) thanthe other. A saw with fewer teethand a more pronounced set willmake a wider kerf, cut faster, andleave a rougher edge behind. Afinish sa,v will have more teethper inch and a narrower set. Itwill make a smaller kerf, cut moreslowly, and leave a smootheredge behind.

For kids, the best balance is asaw with small teeth and plentyof set. With sma ll tee th, each onewill take a smaller bite into thewood. Th e grea ter se t provides awider kerf, which will mean lessof a chance tha t the saw willbind (catch in the wood or rubagainst the sides of the cut)

Some new, shorter saws aremanufactured without any set tothe teeth at all. These saws bindvery easily and should be avoided .A good first saw is a crosscut saw15 to 20 inches long with nine totwelve teeth (or points, as they aresometimes ca lled) per inch.

Keep YGULeyeS on = your-saw cut! = f

U in H n saThe key to making any handsawwork is alignment. Properlylined up , a saw will glideth rough the kerf it has made in apiece of wood with only the cutting tee th resisting the carpenter's push. If the saw starts tobind against the sides of the cut,it will become harder to pushand may become impossible tomove altoge ther ! The extra exertion of Lt ing a saw that keepsbinding will tire you out , and theextra pressure you 'll have to usewill make the saw blade morelikely to pop ou t of the cut ,which can be dangerous. So keepfocus ed on your alignment!

To properly use your saw, startby positioning your body:Assuming yo u are right-handed,s tand \\lith your left foot in frontof yo ur right foo t, almost perpendicular to the board you're goingto cut. Your right arm should beable to move free ly back and


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forth across your body You 'll useyour left hand to steady the boardyou're cutting, keeping your fingers well away from the cU l. Ifyou're left-hand ed, stand theopposite way, with your right footin front of your left and yourright hand steadying the board .

As you push and pull the sawto make the cut, your shoulder,elbow, wrist, and saw should belined up A long, even stroke isbest. You might want to try a fewwarm-up strokes for practice,making the saw travel in a perfectly straight line in the airabove your board before addingthe com plical ion of dragging italong the board's surface.

A ca rpenter will start a cu t byselling the saw teeth on the wood,resting his thumbnail against theblade , and dragging the saw care

fu lly in the opposite direction ofthe saw's cutting motion (towardhimself for a push saw or awayfrom himself for a pull saw). Thethumb remains on the board asa guide for the fi rst couple ofstrokes, until a groove has form edin the wood.

Because this method leavesfingers in harm's way, we cameup with a safer method for familywoodworking. We often clamp apiece of scrap wood against theline that we want to cut. Then wedraw the blade against this guideuntil the blade has cut a deepgroove in the wood. In fact , theguide block can be left in placefor the entire cut. It keeps the sawblade properly aligned until thejob is done, helps prevent crookedcu ts , aud boosts young carpenters ' satisfaction in the ir work.

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machine foot. The blade runs upand down through the plate.vVhen you are ready to cut, restthe front of the soleplate on theboard with the blade no t yetmaking contact with the wood.Pull the trigger to start the saw,and when it is running smoothly,ease it into the cut.

The saw should cut throughthe wood readily; you shouldno t have to apply much pressurefor the saw to make steadyprogress. Keeping the soleplateflat against the wood, steerslowly and carefully, guidingthe saw blade along the lineyou've marked.

keep the soleplateflat on the board

Usmg a ~ i g The Jigsaw is lhe most practicaltype of saw to n Sf to cut along acurved line (like the ou tline ofan animal shape or a wave). Ourkids were leery of using the jigsaw at first, but they quickly gotthe hang of it. They were reallyproud of thems elves when theyfe ll they'd mas tered it. Alwaysdraw the cutti ng line first so thatyou are not trying to designwhile you cut; fu ll attention tocutting will be needed

The front of the plate at thebottom of a Jigsaw - called thesoleplate - resembles a sewing

If you have drawn a line thatcurves too sharply for the sawblade to follow, try backing it upjust a bit and cutting along theinside edge of the kerf. By widen ing the kerf in this way, you givethe blade more space to pivot.You may have to repeat theprocess several times to completethe cut. Do not try to force theblade through a sharp turn;twisting the blade will no t help itmake the turn and may snap theblade off.

Finally, remem ber to wearsafety glasses while operating thejigsaw, as you should when usingany power tool.

I

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straightcut

angledcut

bevelcut

compoundangLe cut

IIIIII: cross :I cutrip cut I

~ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ~ It

Ripp ngCros cuEvery carpenter should be familiar with the terms rip and crosscut. To crosscut means to make acut across the grain (the direction of the wood flbers) of apiece of wood. Since the grainalmost always runs the length ofa board , this cut is usually madeacross the width o[ the piece.The term crosscut is also used to

bardaCe)

describe cutling across the widthof a s heet of plywood or othermaterial LhaL may not have acons i.stenL grain direction.

To rip means to cut in thesame direCt ion as the grain of apiece of wood. Ripping a boardusually means cutting it alongits length This cutting opera tion is frequemly performed ona table saw, which will rip aboard to any width consistentlyand quickly.

king Angl d ndB v I CutsMost of the projects in this bookca ll for making square cuts, or cutting straight across the board at a90-degree angle to its top face andperpendicular to its sides. We usethe term angled cut to designate acut made at a 90-degree angle tothe top face of the board but atanother angle (say, 45 degrees) toits sides. A bevel cut is a cut madeat any angle other than 90 degrees ito the face of the board. Whenyou are laying out a bevel cu t, theangle will be drawn on the edgeof the board. A cu t that simultaneously angles across the face of aboard and bevels the board alongthe cu tting line is called a compound angle cut.

Making an angled cu t with ahandsaw or jigsaw is no t muchdifferent from making a squarecut. If you're using a handsaw,you can even clamp a scrap-wood

board edge

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guide at the correct angle to helpyou stay on course.

Using a handsaw to make abevel cut can be tricky/ The firststep is to layout the cut on allsides of the board. Use yourSpeed Square to draw a line atthe correct angle on both edgesof the board and to square a lineconnecting them across the topand bottom of the board. Startthe cut at the corner away fromyou, and keep the saw blade following the lines along the edge

and the face of the board as youcut. Try to get a feel for how toposition your body in order tocut along the marked angle , andhold that position steady as youcut. Check your progress alongthe underside of the board fromtime to time, making sure thatthe cu t is not veering off the layout line . If it is, back up yo ursaw and reroute it.

You can use a jigsaw to makea bevel cu t by setting the bladeto cu t at any angle (follow the

long point

(short point

manufacturer's instructions toadjust the base to the correctangle). Be sure to unplug thetool before making the bladeadjus tment Then position your'self so that the angle of the jigsaw blade matches the angleyou've marked across the edge ofthe board and cut straight acrossthe board, following the lineyo u've drawn across the face .

When yo u've finished making a bevel cut, the board willend at an angle, with a longpoint (the edge of the face thatextends farther out) and a shortpoint (the edge of the face that iscut shorter). W hen the projectinstructions call for you to makea measurement [rom the beveledend of a board, they will specifywhich of these points to use.

lany a workpiece has been miscu t because of a measuremen tmade from the wrong point ofthe bevel or because a bevel hasits angle headed in the wrongdirection. Checking twice beforecutting - always a good idea incarpentry - is especially important when working with bevels.

15Sawing


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r I


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he name says it aLl. Your goal: to become a human furniture factory! Andwhile you're at it, to get plenty of practice sawing and nailing. ALLegra andCamiLLe came up with the idea for this project one summer on Martha's

Vineyard. They spent hours with hammers and nails turning construction-sitescrap wood into pint-sized furn iture for themselves and their stuffed animaLs.

What You'll NeedT OLClampsPencilStraightedge (ruler,

combination square, orSpeed Square)A variety of handsawsHammer

A variety of boardsin lengths between20 inches and 40 inches

Scrap wood to use as asaw guideF T ENails (any type)

Saw, Saw, SawI Clamp a board to your worksurface. Using your pencil andstraightedge, square a line 6 to10 inches from one end.

Clamp a piece of scrapwood right up agains t the lineyo u just marked to make a guidefor your cu t.

Saw th rough the line you 'vemarked , keeping the saw bladestraight against the guide. Makethe longest s troke you can. Th elonger each stroke , the fewer itwill take to finish your cut.

When you are done with acut, grab anot her board (o r makea new line fa rther down on thesame board), reposition theclamps and guide, and makeanother cu t.

scrapwood

Continue marking , clamp ing, and sawing until you have agood supply of pieces. Theyshould be of all different SIzes .You can even use a Speed Squareto mark angled cuts , giving youtriangles and other odd shapes.

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Hammer, Hammer, HammerGather together your multi

c d , multi-shaped blocks of\ I) d. Look them over ; size themup . Then begin fitting themt ' g ' lher in various combinationsw make furniture. If you have af;l\-orite stuffed an imal, doll , ore,e n small pet , you might wantto build a bed or chair especiallyfor him or her.

When you 're happy with aparticular furni tu re design , grabyour hammer, nails, and clampsand go to work fast ening ittogether. This stage makes forgood practice in both hammeringand clamping. If you can't figureou t a good way to clamp a pieceof furniture together so that youcan drive nails into it , ask agrown-up for help.

Cam ille says "} used tochoke up on the hammerand sVllnS as hard as 1cou ld. and I thought hammer'ins was a hs pawl Mydad Vlould say. Let thhammer do the work 'Finally I cau9ht on to Justlettlns the hammer ---- . .drop. so that itdoes the driVIng \-.Hchout meusin9 physlGalstrength NQ\.v' Iave hamrnerinsl"Furniture Factory8


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bamyard .bench-r. .. ". ' _. o":.c_

1Furniture Factory


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= (=!~ ( . - - ~

POWER DRILL

)chuck

IT- NO-BRAe HAND DRILL

"tWist"

rs n runt rSlnk

asicaLLy. dr iLling is mak ing a hoLe bypressing something ha rd against a surface and spinning it around and aroundunt iL it bores right t hrough. While theconcept might be basic. there are a

few t hings you shouLd keep in mind before you got urning everyt hing in sight into Swiss cheese.

Bits and TidbitsThere are as many kind s of drillbits as there a re k inds of holesthat need to be drilled. Th e proj ects in this book , however,requi re onl y "twist" bits, Forst ner bits, and countersink bits.

"Twist" bits are what youprobably think of as ordinarydrill bits. Th ey are used for mostprojec ts in this book, and thesiz e required is always noted .

Forstner bits make holes wi thsmooth sides and botto ms. Youcan use paddle bits , wh ich costless , instead , but they tend to bindand jam and make a rougher hole.We vo te for using the Forstnersdespite the added expense.

The coun ters ink bit makes ahole w ith a tape red recess at thetop . The recess is necessarywhen you are predrilling for ascrew that you want to be flush

with (not protruding from) thesu rface of the wood .

You might encounter Fullerbits at your lumber supply store.Th ese bits have a tapered shaft.They make a hole that matches aparticu lar size of wood screw a ndalso coun te rsinks the screw inone operation. Since we use drywall screws for projects in thisbook, Fuller bits aren't necessary


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kin YourThe bes t way to mark the spotwhere you 're go ing to drill a holeis not with a pencil dot. If youmark drilling hol es ahead oftime, a pencil dot can be hard tofind later, and it doesn't mark thedrilling spo t with accuracy.Instead, draw cro sshairs - twosmall perpendicular lines whoseintersec tion marks the exact spotwhere you 'll d rill .Drillin M eh nleFor basic drilling - and that iswhat this book calls for - holding the drill as straight as possibleis crucial. If you're drilling straightdown in to a piece of wood, keepthe bi t aligned vertically. If you'redrilling from the side , keep the bitaligned horizontally

As you 're drilling, applysteady pressure to keep the bi tgoing forward into the wood. Ifyou're right-handed, use yourright hand to rotate the handgripon a brace drill or to pull thetrigger on a power drill, and use

your left h and to push. If you'releft-handed , do the opposite. Youcan use your body weight to helpyou push by leaning into thedrill. Just be sure no t to pu sh th edrill away from that vertical orhorizontal alignment I

Most important, keep youreyes focused (through safetyglasses , of course) on the work athand at all times.Ke ping It CI nWhen you're using a power drill ,sometimes the bit will get cloggedand will stop progressing throughthe wood. If this happens, withdraw it from the hole , with the

drill still running, to clear lhesawdus t from the hole and the bit.If the sawdust doesn't ra ll a.vay asyou pull the bit ou t of the hole ,wait until the dri ll stops turningand then clear the packed sawdustfrom the channel in the bit usingthe tip of a screw or nail. Be careful: Th e bi t may be very hot!

'vVhen yo u're using a Forstnerbit , run the drill at a s low speedso that it will cut lh rough thewood effiCiently. The properspeed will make nice helicalshavings pile u p around thedeepening hole. Drilling too fastwill just scrub the cutting edgearou nd the bottom of the holeand heat up and dull the bit.

21DriLling


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Camille says.'Before 1hadJsed a ddt181'w'ays kept mydistance 'w'henmy dad 'w'a ....

using one. So 'w'hen mydad told me I should usethe drill tor" one of thept"'oJects in this book. 1\,v'8sn't so sure it 'w'as agood idea "But my dadunplu8sed the drill andsho'w'ed me ho'w' to use itThen he p l u ~ g e d It ina ~ a l n showed me 'Whereto dnll thp. hole, and toldme to try it

"] pulled the trlsgerand started pushnS astra,sht as 1could. Thedrill was vlbr'atlng and Itfelt 'Weird 'But I did ItI

"When 1have to drillthrough harder pieces of'w'ood, ] have to get mymorn or' dad to elp mebecause 11 Y1 not strongenough to push the drillthroush by myself'

Dr iLling

Using d BitOne of the oldest types of hand powered drills is the brace. Youuse a brace with a self-feeding bi ttha l has a pointed screw at its tip.As yo u turn the brace handle, th escrevv turns, driving the cuttingedge of the bi t into the wood .

To use a brace , pu t yourweaker hand on the big roundtop handle and push down whilerotating the handgrip with yourother hand. You can exert moreforce with your upper hand byleaning against it with yourches t. (Some early braces wereactually designed wi th twohandgrips and a Oa t surface foryour chest to push against.)Ke ep steady pressure against thebrace , or the screw will strip out(pllll ou t of the wood, taking

w ith it the wood fibers needed tohold it in place).

A brace is a perfect tool fortwo kids to work together, oneholding and guiding and theother cranking the brace aroundwith both hands. Its slow turn ing speed makes it one of thesafer cutting tools, anel its pow erfulleverage makes it a goodchoic e for turning large Forstnerbits. Although it's no t intendedfor them, a brace chuck usuallywill hold ordinary drill bits , soyou can use th is tool for manydrilling tasks.

U ing Po r rillOnce you have the basic drillingmechanics down, us ing a powerdrill is relatively easy, as long asyou are caut ious. Hold the body

22


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of the drill with your weakerhand and pull the trigger withyour stronger. As is the case withall power tools , kids using apower drill should be supervised.

There are two basic risks inusing a power drill: One is acci dentally making a hole where ahole doesn't belong, such as in atabletop, the porch floor, orsomeone's finger. The other, moreserious risk is for a sleeve or alock of hair to get wound aroundthe bit or chuck. Remember,even at a relatively slow speed apower drill is turning at hun dreds of revolutions per minuteSo the first rule of using a powerdrill is No loose ends. If youhave long hair, wear it up; if youhave long sleeves, make surethey're not floppy at the ends.

A related risk is having thedrill bit bind up and stop turn ing. Suddenly the drill itself willbe doing all of the turning,which can twist your wristaround quite forcefully. Thus thesecond rule: Always keep afirm grip on the drill. In mostcircumstances you should haveone hand on the handgrip of thedrill and the other steadying thebody. Keep in mind that a larger diameter bit is more likely tobind up than a smaller one, anda paddle bi t is more likely togive your wrist a yank than aForstner bit.

A drill bi t that binds canmake the board you are drillingsuddenly swing into motion. Toprevent this, you should alwaysfollow rule three: Clamp yourwo rkpiece tightly.

Dr ill bits are specially hard ened so they can keep a sharpedge. As a result , they are morebrittle than other typ es of steel,and when they are bent they cansnap into sharp, flying pieces.The first time our kids workedwith a power drill, they flexedthe bits and nearly broke them.And this leads to rule four: Weareye protection whenever youare using a power drill.

And the final rule: Unplugall power tools wheneverthey are not in use. Thismeans that after you are clonemaking a hole, out comes theplug. It also means that when ever you are changing a bit, thedrill must be unplugged

Pr drilling (M k ayfor th Sc:r w!)In today's world a screw gun, or adrill with a driver bit, is oftenused for driving screws, whichmakes predrilling unnecessary.However, we strongly recom mend that all carpenters learn todrive screws by handl It is a basicskill that should be mastered, andit is an independent endeavorthat does not require adul t super vision. However, driving a screwthrough two pieces of woodusing a screwdriver is hard work.Doing so without first predrillinga hole for the screw to travelthrough will often lead to brokenor misdirected screws and a dis appointing finish to your job. Soin almost every instance in thisbook that calls for using screws,we have also called for predrilling.

flat-head Phillips-headscrewdriver screwdriver

rywall screw

23


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.-$ . -- . -AI . . . e - ." .. . e .e. ! . t/. ee ... -. . . . .Q. - e -- '.

Il _ - C ,4t


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LANEten ionIf arlsm

./iro - "(underneath)

frontknob

sole

hen ALLegra was four years oLd,we did a carpentry demonstrationat her preschool. After a bit oftaLking, all the kids got down toth e reaL business of pushing a

bronze bLock pLane aLong a clear pine board. Longwh ite curLs of wood soon covered the fLoor: theperfect creat ive mess. OnLy the arrivaL of Lunchtimepersuad ed the kids to stop working, and they aLLwanted a shavi ng t o ta ke home.

But it's not just four-year-olds Proper Planingwho love the block plane. We useda plane at some point for every Proper planing technique beginsone of the proj ects in this book - with securing th e workpiece byto smooth an edge, to shorten a clamping it down or by settingboard that was just a little too one end against a stop (a fi xedlong, or to remove an unSightly block that prevenLs the boardsurface . Craig and his building from sliding) . If you 're righ t crew keep their planes handy at handed , place you r left hand onall times , using them (and sharp the knob at the fron t of theening them) frequently Be sure to plane; this hand will gUide thekeep your block plane close by stroke of the plane. Wrap yourwhenever you 're building right hand around the body of

An exp erienced carpenter the plane ; this hand will provideusing a sharp block plane can fit the pu sh. If you 're left-handed,a joint so tightly that a piece of set up the opposite way: rightpaper cannot be slipped into it. hand on the knob, left hand onFor aspiring school-age carpenters, the bodya plane will be useful for smooth Bring your body close to youring a sawed edge or making a workpiece, bending your elbowschamfer (bevel) on the edge of a and tucking them in close toboard to give it a finished look. your sides. Position the front end

26


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of the plane sole on the near endof the board, where you want tobegin planing. Then push for ward, leaning a bit into thestroke and ex tending your armsin front of you as you plane .Most of your effort will go intomaking the iron slice throughthe wood . Ju st a little downwardpressure (and a sharp edge) isneeded to keep the tool fromskipping free from the edge ofthe board.

The more of your body youcan pu t into the stroke , the bet ter. Be sure to lean forward fromthe waist and extend both armsas you complete the stroke. Keepan eye on the shaving as i t makesits curly exit through the frog ofthe plane. The shaving shouldmaintain a consistent thicknessand width.

a i 9 d"ustm ntSometimes you will need toadjust the plane to make a cut ofa different dep th . In almost allcases, the setting that producesthe thinnest continuous shavingwill be the best. Different planes

may ha ve different mechanismsfor adjusting the depth of cut;many use some type of screw driven mechanism. The follow ing directions for makingadjustments will apply to mostblock planes:

To adjust the iron , loosen thetension mechanism on the handleof the plane. Turn the planeupside down and sight along thesole into the light. The iron willappear as a thin shadow justabove the surface of the sole.Push on the back of the iron to

move it until the shadow isequally thin at all points abovethe sole . Tighten the tensionmechanism. The tension of thescrew may push the iron fartherout , changing the adjustment.Test the plane and, if necessary,redo the adjustmen t, trying toanticipate the change that tighten ing the tension screw will make.

After making an adjustment,try the plane on a scrap of wood.You may find you have to adjustit again. When you like the wayit cuts , the adjustment is right!

27BLock PLane


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his "project" is actuaLLy just a chaLLenge: How Long and perfect a shavingcan you make with a bLock pLane? ALL you need is a pLane and a niceclear piece of wood. But since controLling the board whiLe pushing the

pLane aLong one edge can be a chaLLenge (particuLarly for a young carpenter),consider buiLding the quick support weJve described here. You might be sur prised by what you can make, and by how much fun you'll have learning tohandLe your bLock pLane.


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What You'll NeedTBlock planeHandsawHammerClamps

To Make the SupportI Using the handsaw, cu t yourboard into two equal lengths.

Lay one piece down anddrive three nails in a straight linelengthwise down its center untilthey poke out through the oppo site surface

Stand the other board on itsedge. Place the board with thenails on top of it to form a Tshape. The protruding nails willhelp keep the pieces aligned.I. Use the hammer to drive thenails in to the on-edge board.

Turn your T upside down(nail heads down) and clamp itsecurely to your work surface.

To Make the Perfect CurlLeaning over and exerting

steady pressure, ru n your planealong the exposed edge of theboard. Notice what happens.

LOne 2-foot length of

1x4 or 1x6 (as free ofknots as possible)Needle and white thread(optional)

ERThree nails

Concentrate on the relationshipbetween the pressure you exertand the look of the ribbonlikeshaving that comes rippling outof the plane's throat. Try pu hing alittle harder; try leu ing up on thepressure. Move quickly and thena bit more slowly. Experimentuntil you have made the mostperfect curl you can I

Vvith a needle and 'vvhitethread, you can easily turn yourcurls into delicate hangings foryour window, Christmas tree, orchandelier. If you hang a fewfrom a branch or twig, you canmake a beautiful mobile.

Hold down the frontof the plane firmly.

the nail tips should_ just poke t3Ugh

29


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ASU ING

HE BASICS

ULE

SPEEDSOUA

COMBINATIONSOU

.....

FRAMINC! ,., "I;' "

1 " ' " t ! ' , ,. 1:"T.","'T,,:"'"I:""1:"',"r.",' " 1 ; " " " ' ~ ilSjO . , , I .. Or t" I

TAPE

t can take a whiLe for young carpenters to getto the point where they trust their ownmeasuring and marking skilLs. Competencewith measuring tooLs is a must for happybuiLding. but onLy time and practice wiLL bring

about this contented state. This section describessome of the basic tooLs for measuring, as well ashow to handle and use them to best effect.The uring T p edge for drawing lines but as and Rul r tool to measure long lengths .

One thing to note about theThe ruler is the Simplest of meas measuring ta pe is that th euring tools and is also a handy hooked end that is riveted ont ostraightedge for drawing lines. the tap e alwa s seems loose. This

The retractable metal-bladed motion compensates for thetape measure is the preferred thi ckness of th tape end whenmeasuring tool of most carpen you are making inside and outsideters. It's used not as a straight- measurements .

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Use squares formeasuring, marking,and draw ing lines.

Hold the flanged side ofthe Speed Square tightagainst edge of board.

ThrThe Speed Square is a great tool.You can use it to measure shortlengths or to square a line (drawa line at a 90-degree angle to oneside of a board), but you can alsouse it to layout lines at an angle.The Speed Square makes it espeCially easy to draw a square linebecause it has a lip, or flangedside, that rests firmly against theedge of a board. Use a tape measure to mark out lengths on along board, bu t when it's time todraw an angled or a square lineat those points, the Speed Squareis the tool of choice.

The combination square issimilar to the Speed Square, andit can be used for many of thesame jobs. The basic difference isthat its rule has measurementsmarked on it, and that rule ismovable. By loosening a knob ,you can reposition it to conve

niently measure any distancefrom the edge of a board. Thecombination square also containsa level, which can come in reallyhandy at times'

In the hands of an experienced carpenter, a steel framingsquare is an essential tool forcomplicated tasks like layingout rafters and stairs. Kids ,however, are more likely toappreciate the framing square asa right-angled ruler. Because ithas scales marked on all four ofits long edges, the framingsquare is the perfect tool formeasuring "over and in." Youcan measure 12 inches overfrom the end of a board, squarea line to mark that length, andlocate a point 4 inches in fromthe edge along that line - all ina single step'

The long side of a framingsquare measures 24 inches and iscalled the body or the blade. The

shorter side of the tool is 16inches long and is called thetongl,le. The blade is 2 incheswide, while the tongue is P/2inches wide; these widths correspond to the dimensions ofrough-sawn and dressed lumber.

Measuring 31


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32

qu ring a LinSquaring a line simply meansdrawing a line perpendicular (ata 90-degree angle) to a straightedge. In most cases, you'll squarelines across a board.

To square a line, hold oneedge of your square (the flangedside of the Speed Square, thehandle of the combinationsquare, or the body of the framing square) against the edge ofyour board. Slide the square untilthe upper corner (where the twosides of the square meet at aright angle) reaches the placewhere you want the line to beginand draw a line :'\cross the board

there, keeping your pencil steadyagainst the straight edge of thesquare.

Out anLinGrasp the Speed Square by itsflanged side. Align the corner(where the two short sides meet)with the point where you wantyour angled line to begin. Locatethe reading for your desired angleon the scale stamped into thelongest edge of the tool. Pivot thesquare until the correct marklines up with the edge of theboard . Draw off the angle againstthe top edge of the tool.

ct Measur m ntOne of the best ways to handleany measurement task (without alot of tools) is to place the pieceyou need to cut in the spotwhere it needs to fit and markthe required length on it directly.There will be no numbers orfractions of inches involved an dno adding or subtracting to confuse you! When you are buildinga project from this book and oneof your pieces has to fit in a particular spot, try marking it offdirectly, instead of relying on thecalculated dimensions. You 'l l befollowing in the footsteps of professional carpenters like cabinetmakers an d stairbuilders , whooften create their own "ruler" ofa room by marking lines on alength of board to indicate theposition of windowsills, dooredges, and electrical outlets .

Along the same lines, if youneed multiple pieces of one pan ,it's possible that cu tting one andusing it as a pattern to cu l theothers will be simpler than measuring and marking each one.


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he Pap r RuleTh e trouble with the measuringsystem we inherited from theEnglish is how complex it is touse. Its basic premise is simple,however. A Single unit, the inch- derived from the length ofth ree grains of barley laid end toend - is divided in half, thensimply divided again and againun til we get to the 32nds of aninch marked on most rulers.

A good way for young carpenters to learn to understandthe be wildering profusion ofmarkings on a ruler is to maketheir own. In the process, they'llmake a handy fraction reference.

Get a piece of unlined paper(approximately 8Y2 by 11 inches).Fold the paper in half lengthwise.Open it up and make a line alonghalf the length of this crease andlabel it 112. Now either side ofthis fold (from the line to theedge o f the paper) represents halfof the overall leng th of the paper.Fold in one of the outer edges soit aligns with the 112 mark in thecenter of the paper and crease itdown. Open up the fold , markabout a quarter of the length of

:mark every 3 inches

mark every 2 inches

the crease, and label it 114. Repeatthis process on the opposite sideof the page Continue diVidingthe sheet by halves , worki ng fromthe outside edges toward the lastfraction you marked . Th e resultwill be a double-ended "ruler"that can be used to measurehousehold objec ts in fractions ofa sheet of paper. To measure anobject that is more than half apage long, you'll have to add thefractions together to arrive at thecorrect length It might be a bitconfUSing at first , but it's goodmeasuring practice.

oard intThis is a neat measuring trick.Let's say that we want to divide a1x8 board into three equalwidths. This board is actually714 i nches wide, so it's no t a simple calculat ion ! But there is asimple layo ut method for dividing any width into equal parts.

To divide a width into thirds(or three parts), we can use anymultiple of three that is largerthan the dimension to be div id ed.In our example , nine (3 x 3) isthe first multiple of three largerthan 71k Lay a square or a ruleron a diagonal across the width ofthe board so that the end of theruler touches one edge and the9-inch mark aligns with theother edge. Now make a mark ateac h 3-inch incremenL (3 inchesand 6 inches). The distance fromthe edge of the board to the markneares t that edge is one Lhird thewidth of the bo ard

If you wanted instead todivide the board into five equalparts, you could use any multipleof five larger than 7%. Fifteenwould work, bu t ten (5 x 2) isthe logical choice. La y the ru leracross the board wi th one end onone side and the lO-inch markon the o th er and mark at every2-inch incremen t. The illust ration above shows these examples.

33easuri ng


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ractice your measuring and make a good rainy-day game at the sametime! Traditional game boards are full of measured straight lines, and asyou work on laying them out just right. your measuring and calculating

skiLLs will get sharper and sharper.

What yourll Need

lx12 clear pine board (atleast 1 foot long)

Paint in two colors ofyour choice

TO LHandsawBlock plane (optional)Ruler (optional)Framing squareSandpaperPaintbrush

How Big Are the Squares?A checkerboard has eight

squares along each of its sides.The board also needs a borderaro und the "playing field." Wewill make it half the width ofone squ are. This means the pineboa rd need s to be divided in tonine equal sec tions (eightsquares plus two half-squaresequ als nine squares).

Our l x12 pine board is 1inches wide. To divide 11 inchesinto nine equal sec tions, we'lluse the measuring trick you justread abou t (page 33). The firstmu ltiple of nine that is largerthan 11 is 18 (9 x 2 = 18). Lay

a ru ler or a frami ng squa re diagonally across the boa rd , withthe left end of the ruler or squareat one edge of th e board and the18-inch mark on the opposite Iedge of the board . From the18-inch mark, measure back2 inches and make a mark onyour board there. Pick up theru ler or sq uare and use it tomeasure fro m the edge of theboard to the mark. The distanceshould be 11;::/ inches away. Nowyou know tha t one nin th of 1 11;:;inches is l l/j inches. You havejus t used a ruler instead of a calculator to solve your math problem Each square on thech eckerboa rd will be 1 incheswide and 1 inches long.

I

II' \

) IS" markIIIII::..: I_, I

16" mark

end of ruler

35hec ke rboard


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draw a cut linealong theInside edge

Laying Out the BoardSince the checkerboard is

going to be 11 % inches (thewidth of the pine board) square ,we need to mark a cu t line thisdistance from the end of theboard. Hold the body of theframing square against the faredge of the board, with the endof the body pOinting toward theend of the board and the tongueextending across the face of theboard. Align the 11 \t,\ -inch markon the inside edge of the square'sbody with the end of the board.Holding the square finn l)' inposition , draw a line along Lheinside edge of the tongue. Thissingle step should yield a nicesquare line at the proper dimension on the board.

Rotate the fra ming square sothat the inside of the body restsagainst the far edge of the boardand the inside of the tongue restsagainst the end of Lhe board.Hold the square flush with the

face of the board so you will beab le to make layou t marks there .

The border around thecheckerboard will be ha lf thewidth of a square, or %inch wide.Slarting from the inside corner ofthe square, make a mark on theboard beside the %-inch line onthe square's LOngue. This marksthe edge of the border aro undth e playing fiel el

Move 1 v.; inch es (ns inchestotal) along the tongue and makea mark there; this marks the edgeof the first square. Keep markingat 1%-inch inc rements until youend up 51s inch short of the nearedge of the board .

fter you have compleLedth e layou t along the tongue ofthe squ are , return to the insidecorner an d repeat the measuringandlllar l< ing process along thebody. When you reach the cutline (the first line you drew), th elayout is complete.

Checkerboard6


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Shde the framing squarealong the face of the board untilthe inside of the tongue lies alongthe cu t hne. Repeat the measuring and marking process alongthe inside of the tongue , againbeginning with a mark at % inchand then marking at l%-inchincrements. Be su re not to makeyour marks along the outsideedge of the tongue , because itsscale is offset from the one on theinside of the tongue

Use any side of the squareas a straightedge to connect themeasured points on the end ofthe board with the corresponding points on the cu t hne .

Align the inside of thesquare 's body with the far edge ofthe board and the inside of thetongue with the cut line. Slidethe framing square toward theend of the board , stopping ateach mark you made along thefar edge to square a line acrossthe board.

Using a handsaw, cut alongthe cu t line to free your gameboard from the pine board.

FinishingI If your board has anyrough spots, sand them smooth.If you want , chamfer the edges ofyour board with a block plane.

Paint the squares in alternating colors. Who says that acheckerboard has to be black andred? You made the board, so youget to choose the color scheme!

Allegra painted hercheckerboard yellowand blue!

37Checkerboard


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b u i L d i ~ G u o W ~ Dro; I

39


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I

40


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his project gives carpenters plenty of practice hammering, cutting , andmeasuring - and some quality stringing time, too! A beautiful work of artwiLL resuLt from ca refuL measuring and pLanning, but an in tr iguing piece

can aLso be made by f ree-for m cutting, unpLanned nailing. and wi Ld abandon.

What You'll NeedTOOLSHandsawYour favorite measuring

tools HammerPencilATER. L

Wood scrapsSt ring or yarnF STE ERSNails (4d galvanized box

nails or shingle nails)

Camille says:"I loved thisproject! There 's no end toall the patterns you canmake.One of my projectsused sixty nails! My sisterAllegra is tVv'o yearsyounger than -----..1am and Vv'eboth had fun.so this projectisn't just forlittle kids - it'sfor big kids too!"

Getting StartedI . Grab a piece of wood thatappeals to you. It can be any size,but the results will be better if it'sat least 12 inches long.

If you want the board to be adifferent size or shape, cut it witha handsaw. You could also nailone or more pieces of woodtogether for a three-dimensionalString Art sculpture.

To Measure orNot to Measure

If you want to pursue atotally improvisational (free-form)course, skip ahead to step 5.Otherwise, use a pencil and ameasuring t oo l - a ruler orsquare for straight lines or a compass for circles - to draw on theboard a line (or lines) to mark thefuture placement of the nails.

On the line(s) you just drew,measure and mark at even intervals the exact locations where thenails will go .Straigh linesTo space nails evenly on a straightline, use a ruler or measuringtape, marking every Y2 to 1 inch.CirclesTo space nails evenly around acircle, set a compass so that itstwo legs are )/2 to 1 inch apart.Place the compass point on yourcircle line. Swing the pencil-holding leg of the compass arounduntil the penc il crosses the circleline; make a mark there. Movethe compass point to the markyou just mad e and make the nextmark wh ere the pencil nowcrosses the circle line. Repeat allthe way around the circle. If thelast marks are not perfectlyspaced, adjust them by eye .

I I 4 1String Art


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Grab Your HammerDrive nails at all the spots

you 've marked or, if you're making a free-fo rm piece, whereveryou like. Drive the nails justuntil they are fi rmly se t in yo urboa rd ; don't hammer them allthe way into th e board. Ma kesure that, when yo u're done, thenail heads are a ll at about thesame height

Stringing6. This is th e finale! Tie yo urst ring firmly onto the first na il ,close to the head. If you're t1i.ng ing a circle, start with any nail. Ifyo u're stringing a line, s tart witha nail at the end of th e line .

If you're worki ng on afree-form piece, str ing away' Ifyou're working on a sy mmetrical

design, follow a stringing pattern,such as the Sunse t, Sun sh ine ,Arrow, or Double Bridge (see thediagrams on pages 44-45).W hichev er pattem you decideon, be sure to keep the stringpu lled taut as you work.

vVhe n yo u're done, tie yourstring secu re ly to the las t nailand trim the ends of the s tringwith scissors.

String Art2


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Wrap the strings any wayyou lIkel Here, Camille workson a three-dimensionalDouble Bridge pattern.

43


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8 6

14 2Ctart lIere

75

(nails in ircle):Tie the string to any nail. Pull thestring to a nail seven nails to theright of your starting nail. Wrapit once all the way around thisnail , then bring it back to the nailjust to the right of your startingnail. Wrap the string all the wayaround this nail and then pull itto the nail seven nails to its right.Again, wrap the string all theway around the nail and thenhead the string back to the nailjust to the right of the previousnail. Proceed this way around theentire circle - seven forward , sixback. (Seven is no t a magic num ber; you can create this patternskipping forward any number ofnails you choose. Just pick anumber and stick with it.)

1 3

3 6 9I II5 \

2

44

lu Ip(a semicircle of nailsfacing a single nail)'Tie the string to the single nail. Pull thestring to the left-most nail of the semicircle.Wrap it once all the way around this nail ,then bring it to a nail six nails to its right.Loop it around this nail, then bring thestring back to the single nail. Loop the stringaround the Single nail , then bring it to thesecond nail of the semicircle. Loop it oncearound this nail, then pull it to a nail sixnails to its right. Loop it around this nail,then bring it back to the Single nail.Continue in this fashion, working your wayfrom each nail in the semicircle to its neighbor six nails away and then back to the single nail, until every nail has been loopedonce. Tie your string at the last nail in thesemicircle or the single nail and you're done'


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tit.. arro(nail in a V sTurn the board so the V is upsidedown. Tie th s tring to the lastnail on the right-hand line. Thenpull the string to the nail at thepoint of the V shape . Vhap thestring once all the way aroundthis nail, then bring it back tothe nex t-t o-Iast nail on the righthan d line. Wrap the string all theway around this nail, then pull itto the first-from-the-point nailon th e left-hand line. Pull thestring all the way around thisnail and lead it back to the nailtwo places away from yourstarting nail. Continue this way,moving your string along onenail at a time down both lines.

13

~ 6 4\ start here, then string by number

1 1 9- - - - - - - - --'-

, 5 oub.. rldCJ7 (th ee-dimensional):9 Tie yo ur st ring to the to p naiI on ne of the verti

cal rOws of nails. Pull th e string to the las t na ilon one of the horizo ntal ro ws 0 11 the sam e siele ofthe board. Loop thc st ri ng arou ncl lh i - na il, thenpull i t to the nail second from lhe LOr 0 11 tht: v [tical line. From there , go to 'c ond nai l on thehorizontal , back to the third na il on the venica l,and so on, until YO ll ha ve wrapped the stringaround all the na ils on those ho r izontal and ver tical rows. \Vhen you reach th e end of the hori zontal row, pull th e s tring [ro m tbe na il at theend of that row to the top nail on the oUler vertical row ark your way back along the na ils onthe same ho rizont al row (each one already has aloop of st rin g aro und it) HIllU you reach the end .Now pull your string to the t o p m o ~ na il on thefir t vert ical row Repea t the process alon g lheother horizon tal ro\V until you aF done

45String Art

//


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his is a simpLe, quick, appealing project that yields hours of fun comespringtime. A friend of ours and his sons built the f i rst version of thisbirdhouse , turning Leftover pieces of clapboard siding into a spiffy new

house for the locaL bird popuLation. We've modified their project a bit for thisbook, giving you the option of making either a back-to-back two-fam ily birdhouse or a single-family residence. The instructions for the twin version starthere; the single birdhouse instructions begin on page 52.

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Measuring and MarkingI . Hook your tape measure onthe right-hand end of the lx 6pine board. Moving toward theleft, mark points at 5 inches, 11inches, 16 inches , 28 inches , and33 inches. Square a line acrossthe board at each of these points.

On the first two lines (5inches and 11 inches from theright-hand end of the board),mark center points , whichshould be 234 inches in fromeither edge of the board. Thesewill be the centers of theentrance holes you will drill late rin front #1 and front #2.3. From the point where the5-inch line ends at the top of theboard, use your Speed Square todraw a line down and toward theleft at a 45-degree angle. Fromthe bottom of the 5-inch line ,draw a line up and toward theleft at a 45-degree angle. Extendthe lines until they intersect atthe center of the board; this intersection point marks the top ofgabled front #1 of the birdhouse.J.. Move down to the line at11 inches. From both ends of thisline, draw a line at a 45-degree

33" 28"

centerpartition

What You'll Need

Jigsaw or handsaw Speed Square Drill X -inch drill bit lX-Inch Forstner bit #6 countersink bit Phillips-head screwdriver Hammer Tape measure Carpenter's glue Clamps Safety glasses

angle headed to the right, towardthe first set of angled lines. Theintersec tion of these two linesmarks the top of gabled front #2.

One 4-foot length of 1x6 #2 pine board

One 4-foot length of Yz-inch x 6-inch cedar clapboard X-inch dowel or short piece

of tree branch Scrap woodPaint (optional)F TE RSSix lX-inch drywall screwsOne package l-inch brads

6. Put the 1 f.1-inch bit in thedrill chuck. Clamp the boarddown on top of a length of scrapwood. Starting the spur of the bitat the center point you markedon the first line at the right-handend of the board , drill all the waythrough the piece and into th escrap to make the first entrancehole to the house. Then move toth e center point on th e secondline and drill anot her hole forthe second entrance.

11" 5"

gabledfront #1

Move down to the last line(33 inches from the end). Fromboth ends of this line, dravv aline at a 45-degree angle headedto the left , toward the end of theboard. The in tersection of thesetwo lines marks the top of thegable of the center partition.

16"

bottom gabledfront #2

Twin Birdhouse 47


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,


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11" from side

roofide roofide-- - --- -- 13"-- ----- - - ----- - 13"- -- - -- - -.... - ---- - -12"- - - - -- - - - -- - - -12"- - ----

mID i.." from side T 1" from sid + :----- -6" from end - - - - - - - ------1iI I

botltomI5Yz"3/8" from end

I

1" from side T T 1" from side" from side Ti . .1.

On the length of clapboard,measure and square lines to marktwo 12-inch-Iong pieces for thebirdhouse sides and two 13-inchlong pieces to make the roofpieces. Cut them to length andset them aside.

Cutting Out the Pieces7 Clamp the board dovm sotha t the righ t-hand end extendsat least 12 inches beyond thework surface. Use a jigsaw orhandsaw to make the two cutsalong the first se t of angled lines.This will free the birdhouse front#1 from the workpiece.o Cut along the next set ofangled lines on the right-hand endof the board. Then turn the boardaround, reclamp it, and cu t alongthe angled lines on the other end.Make the two crosscuts along theremaining layout lines. Thesecuts will free up the birdhousefront #2, the bottom, and thecenter partition. Note: Do not cutalong any layout lines that intersect angled cuts They are forlocating the entrance hcles only.

10. On the birdhouse bottom,mark a point in each corner,about 1 inch in from the closestside and about 3/s inch in fromthe closest end.I Square a line 6 inches infrom one end of the bottom.Mark tvvo points along this line,about 1 inch from either edge.I . Put the countersink bit inthe drill chuck and use it to drilla hole at each of the six spotsyou've marked on the birdhousebottom .

49Twin Birdhouse


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front #1

Putting It All Together13. Set front #1, front #2 , andthe center partition in a row onedge on the work surface, withtheir peaks pointing away fromyou. Place the birdhouse bottomon edge against the bottom edgesof the two fronts and the centerpartition, with the countersunkholes facing you.1 Align the center partitionwith the holes in the center ofthe bottom piece and drive two114-inch drywall screws throughthe holes into the bottom edgeof the partition. Align one frontpiece with the holes in the end ofthe bottom piece and drive screwsthrough the holes to fasten these

two pieces together. Repea t theprocess with the other frontpiece . (Using screws instead ofnails will allow you to removethe bottom for cleaning after thebirdhouse's first inhabitants havemoved on.)

With the assembly stilllying on its side, place one of the12-inch pieces of clapboardagainst the side of the birdhouse,with its thick edge at the bottom.Using two or three brads at eachloca tion, nail the clapboard ontothe two fronts and the center ofthe birdhouse. Don't get carriedaway and nail the clapboard tothe bottom. That would becomea sure source of consternation atclean-out time

50 Twin Birdhouse1


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6. Turn the birdhouse overand nail the seconJ piece of12-inch clapboard to the otherside in the same way.17 Set the house uprigh t andplace one of the 13-inch clapboard roof pieces on top of thewalls, with its thin edge at thepeak. The clapboard will hangover the en el of the walls byabout half an inch. Nail the roofpiece in place by dr iving twobrads through the roof into thecenter and two front pieces

1 Place the second 13-inchroof piece in p lace, with its thinedge flush to the surface of thefirst roof piece (this will make itharder for rain to enter) Drivetwo brads through the roof in tothe center and two front pieces.

The Perch

19. If you want to include aperch , put the 14 -inch bit in yourdrill chu ck. Bore into one of thefronts of the birdhouse about3,4 inch below the bottom edge ofthe entry hole. The hole shouldbe about 1;2 inch deep.

hammer gentlyto avoid splittingthe clapboard

----

Cu t a 3-inch length ofl/; -inch dowel , roll one end in abit of carpenter's glue, and pushor tap it into the hole you j ustdrilled. H you prefer to Llse ashort length of tre branch for aperch , simply cu t it to length andshape the end 'vvilh a kni fe untilit fits into the drilled hole.

I . If you want to have percheson both fronts of the birdhouse,repeat steps 19 and 20 on theother house front

FinishingPai m polka dOls, stri pes ,

or any palle rn you lh in k thenC igborho od birds migh t l ike lHowever, because th is is an out door birdh ou se , make sure youpaint wi th waterproo f, prde rably sem igloss or glos - pain t.If you have 11 ade you r birdhouse l l l i rely from cedar, consider no t pain l ing at all, lett ingthe weather do the fin ish wo rkfor you natu ral ly.

51Tw in Bird ho use


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hy make a singLe-famiLy birdhouse rather than a two-famiLy? Thisversion is no simpLer or more difficuLt to buiLd than the TwinBirdhouse (page 46), but perhaps the birds in your neighborhood

wouLd prefer a littLe more privacy!52


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Measuring and Marking Hook your tape measure on

the right-hand end of the lx 6board. Moving toward the left,mark points at 4 inches, 9 inches,18 inches, and 23 inches. Squarea line across the board at each ofthese points.1 Mark the center point ,which should be 2% inches infrom either edge of the board , ofthe first line (4 inches from theright-hand end of the board)This will be the center of theentrance hole you will drill later.

From the point where the4-inch line ends at the top of theboard, use your Speed Square todraw a line down and toward theright at a 45-degree angle. Fromthe bottom of the 4-inch line,draw a line up and toward theright at a 45-degree angle.Extend the lines until they intersect at the cen ter of the board;thi s intersection marks the topof th e gabled front piece o[ thebirdhouse .1, Move down to the last line(23 inches from the end). Repeatthe layout of step 3 to draw two

23"

What You'll NeedOLS

Jigsaw or handsawSpeed SquareDrillY..-inch drill bitl Y..-inch Forstner bit#6 countersink bitScrewdriverHammerTape measureCarpenter's glueClampsSafety glasses

lines heading to the left at a 45degree angle and intersecting atthe center of the board ; thisintersection marks the top of thegabled back of the birdhouse.

Pu t the 1J/4 -inch bit in thedrill chuck. Clamp the boarddown on top of a length of scrapwood . Start the spur of the bit atthe center poin t you marked onthe first line and drill all the waythrough the piece into the scrap.

18"

One 4-foot length of lx 6#2 pine board

One 4-foot length of Yz-inch x 6-lnch cedar clapboard

Y..-inch dowel or short pieceof tree branch

Scrap woodPaint (optional)

Four lY..-inch drywall screwsOne package l-Inch brads

9" 4"

back bottom f ront

53ingLe Birdhouse


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roof roof side side. . --------- 10 ..--------- . . . . . ---- - ---- 10"---- -----_ ..- -- - - - - 9" -------- . . . . . ------- - 9"--------

Cutting Out the Pieces Clamp the board down so

that the right-hand end extendsbeyond your work surface. Use ajigsaw or handsaw to cut alongthe two angled lines of thegabled from piece.

II

Tu rn the board around andmake the angled cu ts for thegabled back piece. Then maketh e two crosscuts along the linesin the center of the board (at 9and 18 inches). Note Do not cutalong the two layout lines ateither end of the board I The eare only for marking the ends ofthe gables.

On the length of clapboard,measure and square lines to maketwo 9-inch-long pieces for th ebirdhouse sides and two lO-inchlong pieces for the roof. Cut themto length and set them aside.

On the birdhouse bottom ,mark a point in each corner,about 1 inch in from the closestside and about % inch in fromthe closest end .

I . Put the counters ink bi tin the drill chuck and use it todrill a hole at each of th e fourspots you've mark ed on thebirdhouse bottom.

. 1" from side" from Side Ti ibottom

3/B" from end5 Y ~ "

T 1" from side" from side T ______ ____________________iSingle Birdhou se4


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Putting It All TogetherI . Set the front and the back

on edge on the work surface,with their peaks pointing awayfrom you. Place the birdhousebottom on edge against the bottom edges of the front and back,with the countersunk holes facing you.I . Align the end of the bottom with the face of the frontand drive two 1 lA-inch drywallscrews through the holes andinto the front piece. Repeat theprocess to align and fasten thebottom to the back.I With the assembly stilllying on its side, place one of the9-inch pieces of clapboardagainst the side of the birdhouse,with its thick edge at the bottom.Using two or three brads on eachend, nail the clapboard to thefront and back of the birdhouse.Do not nail the clapboard to thebottom piece!

Tum the birdhouse overand nail the other 9-inch lengthof clapboard on the opposite sidein the same way.

Set the house upright andplace one of the lO-inch clapboard roof pieces on top of thewalls, with its thin edge at thepeak. The clapboard will hangover the ends of the walls byabout half an inch. Nail the roofpiece in place by driving twobrads through the roof into thefront and back pieces.16 Place the second roofpiece with its thin edge flush tothe top surface of the first roofpiece. Drive two brads througheach end of the roof into thefront and back of the birdhouse.

Finishing TouchesI To finish the birdhousewith a perch and coat of paint,see steps 19 through 22 for theTw in Birdh ouse (page 51).

"- \ ..----.--

SingLe Birdhouse 55


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looL

We tried standing onthis sturdy l i ttle piece offurniture in every cornerand in very odd postureyou can Imagine and st il li t wouLdn't t ip over.

56


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hen Craig buiLt the prototype for this project, ALLegra Looked at it andannounced, "It makes our oLd one Look bad." She was right. This st ooLmakes aLL the rest Look shoddy, and it makes aLL others seem tippy. too.

Measuring and LayoutWhat You'll NeedPlace the board on your work

surface. Square a line 16 inchesfrom th right-hand end. In that16-inch-long space, measure 10inc hes in from one of the longsides of the board in a couple ofplaces. Using a s traightedge,dr aw a line th rough the t,vomarks, parallel to the edge of theboard, from the end of the boardto the line at 16 inches.1 Square a line across theboard at 18 inches , 28 inches ,38 inches, and 48 inches fromthe same end. Mark all th eselines with an A for "angle." (Youwill be making bevel, or angled,Cl l ts along these lines)

Measure to the middle ofthe board (5 % inches) at a couple of points and draw a centerline from the line at 18 inchesthrough the line at 38 inches.Iw Move to the left-hand end ofthe board. Draw a line parallel tothe near side of the board, about

48"

TOOLSJigsaw or handsawRuler, framing square, or

combination squareSpeed SquareDrillYo-inch drill bitYz-inch Forstner bitPhillips-head screwdriverBlock plane or sandpaperMeasuring tapeClampsSafety glasses

18 inches long and 31(2 inchesaway from the edge. U e a _'peedSquare to draw a li ne at a 15degree angle that starts at theedge of the board and intersectsthe paraHelline. From this poimof intersection, measure 10 inchealong the parallel line and rl.1arkthat point. Using the Speed

38" 8"

LSOne 6-foot length of % x 12 #2 pine board Yz-inch wooden plugsCarpenter's wood gluePrimer (optional)Semigloss or satin paint

(optional) F T E S2-inch drywall screws1O/S-inch drywall screws

-quare again, d raw a line tha t_tan s at the edge of the board anclintersec ts the paralic llin c at th espot you just mJ rke d, at a 15degree angle opposite the f i h tone. The line will-rcate a rhombu with its base along the edgeof [he boa rd


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16"~ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ~ 10"T - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ~I

rip here

~ - - - - ~ long pointof bevel

... ---%" 3o/t

Leg f3 ~ stretcher

third cut se condcut(.ngpoint of bevel is closest to your body

I I . Lay the subtop flat so tha t Starting [rom the n r l i n and make the three cuts to comth e long points of the beveled measure along the short point of plete the st retcher piece Thisends are on top . Measure 7% the bevel 3 % inches to the left will be easiest and safest if youinches in from one edge in two and to the right along the top leave the piece attached to theplaces , then use a s traigh tedge to edge of the board and mark these main length of boa rd fo r as longconn ect the two marks , drawing two poin ts. Co nnec t each of as possible while you cut it OUL.a line parallel to the edge and these poin ts w ith its res pective Rip along the top edge first, cut runn ing the length of the piece. lower corn er to make a rhombus. ting an inch or two past the cor Clamp the piece and rip along ner of the piece. Then make thethis line . Then measure 3% inches I Layout the other leg in angled cut near the end, againfrom one edge in two places and the same way. cutting past the corner. Finally,draw a centerline the length of make the opposite angle cut,the piece. Se t the subto p aside. 1 Clamp the leg pieces down running the saw past the corner

and cut along all four lines to until the piece drops free .I .. Place one of the leg pieces create the finished legs.with the centerline facing up and 16. Use your block plane orori ented so tha t the long po in t of Clamp the remainder of sandpaper to smoo th the roughthe bevel is closes t to your body. the board to your wo rk surface spots on your sawed edges.

crosscut here

I1.

rip here tsubtop

long points ofth /bevel are on top

first cutstop cut here ')

59Sturd y StoolT


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1._ __ _________

sub to p should a lign with thePutting It All Together shoulders of the stretcher. CheckI . Gather the stretcher, the that the overhang is the same onsubtop, and your drill and screw either side. At evenly spaced locadriver. Stand the stretcher upright tions opposite the penciled centerwith its longest side resting on line, drill three pilot holes using athe worktable. Lift the subtop lis-inch drill bit. Drill through theand balance it on top of the subtop down into the stre tcher asstretcher. The long points of the far as the bit will travel. Then

I ,, ,: :2", ,I.,i.III! 4 "It I .t.

leg

drive a 2-inch dryvvall screw intoeach hole and tighten it until thehead is slightly recessed belowthe surface of the board.10. Bring the two legs to yourwork surface. Lay them downwiLh the cemer line facing up andthe short ends facing away fromyou. On the centerline, mark twopoints, one 2 inches and the other4 inches from the top edge. Alongthe top edge of the leg, mark twomore poin ts, one 2 in hes to theleft and one 2 inches to the righ lof the centerline, about 14 inchdown from the shoulder.I Fit the ForsLner bit in thedrill chuck. Drill abo ut %inchdeep at the four points you justmarked. This is ca lled cou nterboring a hole. After a screw isdriven in, each recess will beconcealed by a wo oden plug1. Fit the l/i;-i nch bit in thedrill chu ck. Clamp the T-shapedpiece you assem bled in st p 17to your work surface, upsidedown and with one end close toth e edge of the work surface.Place one of the legs upside

Sturdy StooL0


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down against one end of theassembly. The angled short end,or top, of the leg should restsnugly against the work surface.Drill through one of the counterbored holes along the centerlineand into the end of the stretcher,starting the bi t in the depressionleft by the spur of the Forstnerbit. Drive a screw into this holeand tighten it to hold the alignment in place. Drill anotherpilot hole into the second coun terbored hole along the centerline and drive another screwinto the stretcher. Then drill twopilot holes in the counterboredholes along the top edge of theleg, into the subtop, and drivescrews into both holes.

I Unclamp the assembly, tumit around, and repeat the work ofstep 20 to attach the other leg.l l . Find the stool top andplace it with its best face againstthe work surface. Place the restof the stool assembly upsidedown on top of it. Center theassembly by measuring fromboth sides and ends to the edgesof the top. When you have it just

right, mark the location of theedges on the top piece in casethe pieces shift during drilling.

Drill pilot holes about11/2 inches deep (make sure youdon't drill too deep) througheach corner of the sub top intothe stool top. Drive a 1%-inchdrywall screw into each hole.1 . Bring the glue and woodplugs to your work area. Spreadsome glue on a piece of scrapwood. Roll the edges of a woodplug in the glue , then pu h the

Plug away!

plug into one of the counter bored holes. Ke ep plugging untilall the counterbored holes arefilled. After the glue is dry, use ablock and sandpaper to sand theplugs flush.

Finishing5. If you decide to paint your

stool, be sure to apply primerfirst, followed by multiple coats ofsemigloss or satin paint. Camilletraced her footprints on heavypaper and used them as a stencilfor our stool top.

Camille 's footprintsstenciled on top!

we opted to leavethe holes open61Sturdy StooL


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rricket cages have been 'made for thousands of years In eastern Asia,where crickets are believed to bring good Luck and intelligence; harminga cricket is thought to Lead to great misfortunelThis cage can be a temporary home to any littLe critter, but it is especiaLly

suitabLe fo r a visiting cricket. We find a Lot of curious bugs and animaLs, and weli ke to keep them around for a few days of study before we release them backinto their own habitat. If you do take in a cricket, you can feed him rolled oats,potato, chunks of carrot, or a piece of an orange. Crickets aLso like to hide, soput in a few curLy leaves or a piece of bark.

62


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Making the Cage Top andBottomI. From the Ix 6 board, cut twopieces that are each 7 inches longand 4 3/q inches wide.

Select one of these pieces tobe the top of your cage. On theless attractive side of this piece,draw a line 1/2 inch in from eachof the four edges. Starting at anypoint vv'here the lines meet, makea sma ll mark every 38 inch alongeach line. If you have measuredand cut accurately, you shou ld beable to make 15 marks along thelong sides and 8 marks on theshort sides. If your marks are notperfectl y even, you can adjustthem a little by eye.

The other piece will be thecage bottom. On the nicer side,draw a line Y2 inch in from theedge on the two long sides andon unly one of the short ends .(The unmarked end is where thedoor bottom will rest.) Make asmall mark every %inch alongthese lines , the same way you did[or the cage topI.. Take a good look at yourmeasured and marked top andbottom pieces. With the excep tion of one shor t end on yourbottom piece, they should bemarked identically.

With an awl, make startingholes for the drill at every smallmark and at the corners on thetop and the bottom pieces

What You'll NeedOOL TE I LS

Handsaw lx6 board(at least 2 feet long)Fine finish saw or hacksawFive 48-inch lengths ofRuler, Speed Square, or }Ie-inch dowelcombination square Carpenter's wood glueDrillMasking tape%4-inch drill bitOne or two toothpicksParting beadClamps (%" x %" or other

Allen wrench thin molding, at least9 inches long)Awl Scrap woodOne sheet of 120-grlt

sandpaper

mark every %" lalong the lines I-.- } - " . , I ' ;,

J.

t+rcage .:tcage I 7" topbottom 1

,I,II I _____ _________ . - .1, -'II ------ - ..,......,- - - - - - - - - - - - - ~,. - ------- 4%" 4%"

63ricket Cage____________________________________________ ____- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -__ ___ ~


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measure and markone piece first

C\%" from the endof the boardthe rema ininglines are % Iffrom each other transfer the lines tothe other piece usinga combination square

Cam ile says:"Onereason thatcrickets areheld in such highesteem IS fortheir 'sons,' or'chirping Only

male crickets actuallychirp.Try this out: Onceyou have a little cricket inyour case, count the number of times he chirps in aminute, divide by four, andadd thirty-seven. This willtellyou the temperatureof the air in degreesrahrenheitl"

Cricket Cage

Making the Door Top andBottom6. From the parting bead ormolding, cu t two lengths that areeach 4 3;8 inches long. These willbe the top and bottom pieces ofthe door.

On one door piece, makea mark '/2 inch in from eachedge , and then make a markevery %inch between the twomarks. You should be able tomake ten evenly spaced marks.La y the two door pieces next toeach other and, using your combination square, draw a lineacross both pieces at eac h mark.This job is most eaSily done bytw o people together: one person

holding the combination squareand the other drawing the lines.

With an awl, make startingholes for the drill in the center ofevery line you 've drawn on oneof the pieces. You can probablyjudge where the center of thisvery narrow piece of wood is byeye , bu t if you prefer, you canmeasure. Thispiece will be thedoor bottom.

On the other piece , skip thelines at each end and make holeswith the awl at the center of theother eight lines. This piece willbe the door top.

Cutting the DowelsIo. Using a finish savv or hacksaw, measure and cut your dowelsinto forty-two pieces that are each4 inches long and eight piecesthat are each 41(2 inches long.Keep the different lengths in twoseparate piles! Put a rubber bandaround each group of same-sizedowels and set them aside.

4


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Drilling Prepare the %4-inch bit by

wrapping a piece of maskingtape around it so that V2 inchof the bit extends beyond thetape. Th en put th e bit in thedrill chu ck.I Clamp the top and bottompieces of your cage to your worksurface. Carefully drill at eachawl mark just until the tapereaches the surface of the wood.The tape marks the depth youwant the drill bit to penetrate.Don't exert too much pressure oryou will drill too deep.

' ow get ou t your top andbottom door pieces and clampthem to your work surface.Reset th e tape so that aboutl;4 inch of the drill bit extends

beyond it, then drill a hole ateach awl mark.

.. Put the 1l!G4-inch drill bitin the drill chuck. Clamp thebottom door piece to your worksurface and drill all the wayth rough the two holes a t theends. The bars of the doo r willslide through these larger h oles .I .. ow find the cage toppiece and clamp it to your worksurface. Use the larger bit todrill all the 'vvay lh rough all theholes excep t the corner holesalong one of the short ends.( ) .. Sa nd all the pieces you

have drilled to remove any burrs(rough spo ts ) created by the drilland to get rid of pencil lines. Tapyour pieces vigorously to getsawdust ou t of the holes .

maskinq tape)Yz" inch of bit , .is exposed ( ll :~ b . ;

doorbottom .. e'

..

..

..

.. "

....

..cage top

..

..

..

cage

bottom

65Cricket Cage


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-

Assembling the Cage17 Get out the 4-inch dowels ,the bottom piece of the cage,some glue, and a piece of scrapwood. Make a little puddle of glueon the scrap wood. Dip the tip ofa dowel in the glue so that it covers the end and a little bit of thesides. Insert the gluey end of thedowel into a hole in the cage bottom,

the kids building workshop

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