chopnhack Posted April 22, 2014 Report Share Posted April 22, 2014 My 6 y.o. consumes books and they end up in piles all over his room. His own personal books, school books, library books - you name it. My wife said "build a bookcase or I'm going to <<eeep!!>> buy one!" I almost fell over I can't imagine buying one of those flimsy paper faced wood pulp project packs they call "furniture" let alone putting one together! In another thread I had started with some 2x lumber and got no where fast due to the wood moving and twisting. But, I made a little headway today with that nasty wood - managed to cut down and glue up a 3 board panel for the bookcase top. I decided to make this a recycle project - that is to say, recycle whatever I had around the shop! I had some scrap 3/4" pine plywood (AC cabinet grade), so those became the uprights, I had leftover cabinet shelves from some past kitchen jobs - those were ripped down and will be used for the shelves. Some of the more twisted 2x will be cut up into shorter lengths and used for the shelf edging. I hope that I can salvage some of the long pieces to make a face frame. We shall see... I was able to test General Finishes Gel stain in brown mahogany - nice stuff on pine! It did still blotch, but I did a wash coat of shellac and scuff sanded it with 220 and that seemed to take care of the blotching. I'll post some pics of the color tomorrow. Here is a sketchup of what I am ranting about: Dimensions are about 84.25" tall, 18" wide at top, 15" wide at case, about 11.5" deep. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhighlander Posted April 22, 2014 Report Share Posted April 22, 2014 That sounds like a nice project. Kind of tall though. Do you plan to anchor it to a wall? When my boy was 6, that thing would have looked exactly like a ladder to him..... and of course, the most desired book is the one on the top shelf! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chopnhack Posted April 22, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 22, 2014 That sounds like a nice project. Kind of tall though. Do you plan to anchor it to a wall? When my boy was 6, that thing would have looked exactly like a ladder to him..... and of course, the most desired book is the one on the top shelf! Exactly! He is tall, but you never know. I was thinking about putting a screw into the baseboard, but I am not sure if that will be enough. I am thinking that for now the case will hold most if not all of his books at his reach, but I will have to address that after its build for sure. Good thoughts, thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted April 22, 2014 Report Share Posted April 22, 2014 Looks like a fun project Chop! I do agree with the comment above tho and suggest attaching to the wall. Maybe a french cleat at the top just to keep it from tipping yet, if needed you could still move it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markpelly Posted April 22, 2014 Report Share Posted April 22, 2014 Pretty cool project. I could see someone using this in a smaller home/apartment for a small collection of books. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beechwood Chip Posted April 22, 2014 Report Share Posted April 22, 2014 My father built (knocked together) all the furniture in my room when I was a kid. Climb on the book cases, jump on the bed, stand on the desk... they were both functional furniture and a play-set! I can't see giving kids furniture and then telling them that they can't climb on it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pghmyn Posted April 22, 2014 Report Share Posted April 22, 2014 I like the tall/skinny design. Can't wait to see this build I can't see giving kids furniture and then telling them that they can't climb on it. Sounds just like my childhood. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chopnhack Posted April 22, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 22, 2014 Looks like a fun project Chop! I do agree with the comment above tho and suggest attaching to the wall. Maybe a french cleat at the top just to keep it from tipping yet, if needed you could still move it. I ran out of likes today! Yes, my wife reminded me of a cleat on top! Her conversion is almost complete.... LOL :-) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chopnhack Posted April 23, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 23, 2014 Some pics: the case was finished up today, I used pocket hole's instead of dado's and I am still not sure why I did that... I haven't used them in years and can honestly say that this time they really did snug up nicely! It takes way too long to drill and install 64 screws. I could have made a dado cutting jig and routed them out in 1/2 the time. Anyway, you can also see some of the urban oak that I cut up today - I got a 1" woodmaster C from spectrum supply the other day - nice blade, lots of dust! There is also a pic of some pine with the color that I am going to use. I have to create the molding for the bottom apron and top, flatten the top, cut it to final dimension, decide if I want to keep it square or do a roundover on it, stain it, attach it, trim it with molding and build a face frame. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted April 23, 2014 Report Share Posted April 23, 2014 Looking good Chop! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted April 23, 2014 Report Share Posted April 23, 2014 The oak should look much better than the pine . Even an 1/8 dado is incredibly strong, but if you don't have a bunch of clamps the pocket screws will do the job. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chopnhack Posted April 23, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 23, 2014 The oak should look much better than the pine . Even an 1/8 dado is incredibly strong, but if you don't have a bunch of clamps the pocket screws will do the job. The oak is a long way from being usable, its still green! Agreed, though, white oak is beautiful. I was originally going to do a 1/4" dado, but I thought I would save some time using the pocket screws... nope! What do you guys think of the test color? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhighlander Posted April 23, 2014 Report Share Posted April 23, 2014 The oak is a long way from being usable, its still green! Agreed, though, white oak is beautiful. I was originally going to do a 1/4" dado, but I thought I would save some time using the pocket screws... nope! What do you guys think of the test color? Looks pretty nice. Might need a seal coat for blotch control, and that will lighten it just a bit, but I think it will work well. You planning to distress the whole piece as much as that color sample appears to be? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chopnhack Posted April 24, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 24, 2014 Looks pretty nice. Might need a seal coat for blotch control, and that will lighten it just a bit, but I think it will work well. You planning to distress the whole piece as much as that color sample appears to be? I did a seal coat of amber shellac, about a 1lb cut. I might do two coats next time to test it some more. The color sample is just a raw 2x with some light sanding at 150. The pieces will hopefully be smoother, but being construction lumber, I'll have to take all the "character" and make it work ;-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhighlander Posted April 24, 2014 Report Share Posted April 24, 2014 The amber may explain some of the dark areas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markpelly Posted April 24, 2014 Report Share Posted April 24, 2014 Chopnhack - Are you testing stain on a different type of wood than the final project will have? Or is this wood you are testing going to be used on the top of the shelf? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chopnhack Posted April 25, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 25, 2014 The amber may explain some of the dark areas. I am not sure, the seal coat was amber shellac, the darker areas are either the shellac absorbing unevenly or just the areas where less of the gel stain was wiped off. Chopnhack - Are you testing stain on a different type of wood than the final project will have? Or is this wood you are testing going to be used on the top of the shelf? Sadly Mark, this piece is a recycle piece so I am using what's available on hand. The face frame will be of 2x material and the top can be seen in the pictures - (pic with carpenters triangle) which is also 2x12 that have been ripped, jointed, planed and glued up. So, no I am testing on scraps on what will be ultimately used. Hopefully I will get to do some more work tomorrow, thanks for commenting ;-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhighlander Posted April 25, 2014 Report Share Posted April 25, 2014 Don't worry Chop, it will be the perfect thing for your son's room. The somewhat softer pine may dent easier than oak, but in turn it is less likely to leave your boy with cuts from banging into the edges. One thing I've found to help more than anything with blotch control on pine is extra fine sanding. Take it up to at least 320 grit, then raise the grain with a little water, then lightly sand with 400. Apply your seal coat, then sand again lightly, if you want a super smooth finish. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chopnhack Posted April 25, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 25, 2014 Don't worry Chop, it will be the perfect thing for your son's room. The somewhat softer pine may dent easier than oak, but in turn it is less likely to leave your boy with cuts from banging into the edges. One thing I've found to help more than anything with blotch control on pine is extra fine sanding. Take it up to at least 320 grit, then raise the grain with a little water, then lightly sand with 400. Apply your seal coat, then sand again lightly, if you want a super smooth finish. Exactly :-) I have done that finish schedule before with 600 between coats lubricated with water and it does come out amazing. That being said, I will definitely experiment some more tomorrow as the can of gel stain says to not exceed 150 grit before using. LOL I did 150g on the wood, seal coated it and used 320 to scuff off the dust nibs :-) I will test some wood using progressively finer grits before seal coating and see what they do, thanks for the idea! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhighlander Posted April 25, 2014 Report Share Posted April 25, 2014 The one project I have ever used gel stain for was a rustic pallet wood thing, so sanding to 150 wasn't a worry! It was nice to be able to use the gel AFTER I had fully coated the piece with shellac, and the customer wanted it darker. Honestly, though, I did some carvings once and colored them with Kiwi brown shoe polish on the raw wood, and they looked just as good. Shoe polish does NOT blotch! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chopnhack Posted April 25, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 25, 2014 LOL, I love it, shoe polish does not blotch :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markpelly Posted April 25, 2014 Report Share Posted April 25, 2014 Sadly Mark, this piece is a recycle piece so I am using what's available on hand. The face frame will be of 2x material and the top can be seen in the pictures - (pic with carpenters triangle) which is also 2x12 that have been ripped, jointed, planed and glued up. So, no I am testing on scraps on what will be ultimately used. What ever works for you man, it is looking good so far! Honestly, though, I did some carvings once and colored them with Kiwi brown shoe polish on the raw wood, and they looked just as good. Shoe polish does NOT blotch! That is great, pretty creative haha. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pghmyn Posted April 25, 2014 Report Share Posted April 25, 2014 Would have never thought of the shoe polish. Seems like a pretty legit idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhighlander Posted April 25, 2014 Report Share Posted April 25, 2014 Works ok if you don't really need a protective top coat. Being wax based, I'm sure it would be hard to make anything stick. It does color evenly, but obscures the grain a lot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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