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9K views 12 replies 6 participants last post by  kenn 
#1 ·
Doll baby Bed

So I've been looking for a project that I could use as a gift for my Granddaughter (almost 2) and this month's Wood Magazine had it right there between their pages. A Doll Baby bed project seems exactly what I was looking for and would fit in with time that I have available.
It also doesn't hurt that I had almost all of the materials sitting in my cut off bin!




So, I am now about 50% complete with this project and due to a couple of the parts that need to be made, I decided that a Band Saw was defiantly needed. New Skil 9" band saw is now in my shop and the curved parts "magically" appeared. (I debated on getting the Skil or getting a better saw, but for $115, I can't really go wrong)

One new task in my project skill set that I am developing is the use of a dowel jig and dowels. I have not had that much experience with them to this point and this project is full of them. It'll be interesting to see how this works out.

If all goes well, I'll be posting completed photos in about a week.
 
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#2 ·
Dowels, Dowels, How I Hate Them

It has been a while since I decided to do a project that contained a lot of dowels and I now remember why. I hate working with dowels. No matter how careful I am, it seems like I cannot get them to line up correctly! This time around, I even purchased a dowel jig from Lowe's to help with the alignment and positioning.

In the project, the rails are made by putting the slats between two styles. Two dowels on the end of each slat, times 10 slats = 40 dowels. Each rails connects to the ends with 12 dowels per rails assembly = 24 more dowels. Total of 64 dowels.

Yesterday afternoon, I began to lay out all of the dowel positions according to the plans (nicely specified I might add) and set up the jig. Next came the 64 holes and then after some sanding, it was time to assemble. About a hour into the assembly, I remembered just how much I hate workign with dowels on a project like this! I finally did get the parts to all go together, but not without having to redrill some holes and make a couple of them slightly oversized.

Before I do another project that requires a large number of dowels, I will definatly have to find a better method of drilling exact matched holes that is repeatable every time. The dowel jig worked OK, but 64 holes with the jig and a hand drill was not the best method to get the results that I was hoping for.
 
#3 ·
Dan, I used to hate them too…till I found the magic of dowel centers. I use the doweling jig for the initial hole, then dowel centers to match the connecting piece. These little jewels give me perfect centers that match up every time. If you've not tried them, I can recommend it!

Hope this is helpful!

 
#6 ·
Some Assembly Required

Yesterday, I was able to finish dealing with the dowels in this project. Attaching the rails to the crib end parts was not a challenging as assembling the rails. The photo below is of the crib sitting on the side bench allowing the glue to set and dry. Next on the project list is to build the drawer. I have not had a lot of success in making drawers in the past, so I'm trying very hard to take it slow and get it right.

Wood Outdoor furniture Floor Wood stain Flooring
 

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#7 ·
Building a Drawer & Assembly

I have never been one to like building a drawer, but this time around, it seems to have worked out just like the plans say it was supposed to work. I did take my time and gave a lot of attention to setting up the table saw to cut the dados exactly how they should have been and that is the key to making the drawer. I did get the depth on one of the dados off a bit and that is where the front/back attach to the sides. It doesn't effect the rigidity of the drawer, but does show up when you view the drawer from the top.

This project used a locking dado type joint for the drawer. This was my first one of that type and I must say that I really like how it turned out.

The other task today was to get the assembly completed. Next will be to disassemble it (partially) and to finish up the sanding and then get it ready to paint. For now, the pictures show the progress thus far.

Wood Hardwood Gas Musical instrument Flooring


Wood Table Rectangle Wood stain Desk


Wood Floor Hardwood Gas Flooring
 

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#8 ·
Building a Drawer & Assembly

I have never been one to like building a drawer, but this time around, it seems to have worked out just like the plans say it was supposed to work. I did take my time and gave a lot of attention to setting up the table saw to cut the dados exactly how they should have been and that is the key to making the drawer. I did get the depth on one of the dados off a bit and that is where the front/back attach to the sides. It doesn't effect the rigidity of the drawer, but does show up when you view the drawer from the top.

This project used a locking dado type joint for the drawer. This was my first one of that type and I must say that I really like how it turned out.

The other task today was to get the assembly completed. Next will be to disassemble it (partially) and to finish up the sanding and then get it ready to paint. For now, the pictures show the progress thus far.

Wood Hardwood Gas Musical instrument Flooring


Wood Table Rectangle Wood stain Desk


Wood Floor Hardwood Gas Flooring
First off, really nice looking crib. As for those gaps in your locking dados, I had some similar gaps one time in a project. You might try making a rectangular dowel with a cross section that is slightly larger than the hole. Taper it a bit so you can insert it in the hole, spread a little glue on it, push it down tight, and then cut off the protruding excess with a flush cut saw. Sand it out a bit and it should look much less noticeable than those gaps.
 

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#10 ·
Cold Wet Weather + Paint = Bad Idea

I was reminded again this past week why it is better to have patience on these projects. The deadline is fast approaching for getting this project finished and in the mail to Texas. With that pressure, I decided that this past Friday would be a good day to try and get the first coat of paint on the crib. As most of the U.S is aware, we had a bad cold snap followed by wet and rainy weather here in the South. Not to be deterred, there was a brief respite in the weather Friday. Temps soared to 60 degrees and the rain stopped. So, out came the "paint table" and associated equipment and painting began. I was feeling pretty pleased with the outcome as I rolled the project back into the garage to dry and cleaned up the tools
Two hours later, on the way out of the garage, I see the effects of 95% humidity. Paint is "blotchy" and not covering evenly. It even almost looks as if there is "fish eye" on the project.
So, in the "do no more harm" thoughts, the project is now sitting in the garage waiting for a suitable day to paint.

It never works out when I try to rush these things.
 
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