| Project by Roz | posted 201 days ago | 309 views | 4 times favorited | 12 comments | ![]() |
I saw this dook rack many years ago and promised myself I would try my hand at making one some day.
It is made of five dowels set firmly in the two end blocks. (One is 8” tall and the other 2”)
The blocks are 8”x 51/4” and the holes drilled into the center block are one size larger than the dowel used to allow for movement of the center block along the dowels. The small end is 21/4 inches tall by 51/4 wide. I used 36” long dowels and cut them in half.
The real interesting part is the jig. I made this to solve the problem of making the dowel holes all line up and are evenly spaced.
THE JIG
As you can see the jig is in two parts, a base and a sled. The base is dadoes to accept a cleat down the center and another perpendicular also to accept a cleat, which acts as a stop for the sled. The sled has dadoes on the under side. These dados are equally spaced to allow for repeatable placement of holes. One dado for each hole drilled. The sled sidewalls must be tall enough to hold all three of the pieces to be drilled.
Align the base so the center cleat is under the drill bit and secure it to the drill press. Cut your stock and your off.
-- Terry Roswell, L.A. (Lower Alabama) "Life is what happens to you when you are making other plans."
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12 comments so far
Copperjock
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89 posts in 284 days
posted 201 days ago
Very cool design, and they look great. Thanks for sharing.
-- It's not that a craftsman never makes mistakes, he just makes it look like it.
GaryK
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8486 posts in 474 days
posted 201 days ago
Very nice. Great design.
-- Gary, East TX -- The longest journey begins with a single step.
grumpycarp
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175 posts in 232 days
posted 201 days ago
I don’t get it! What is the jig for? Wouldn’t you just drill through both pieces? Use a third piece 10” plus the saw kerf long and use it for a backer and set a depth stop on the drill press or a stop collar on a drill bit. One backer becomes the next end with the sockets already bored? Am I missing something?
ND2ELK
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2479 posts in 260 days
posted 200 days ago
Hi Roz
Great looking book end rack. I can see where the jig would really work slick. In my case, they would be a nice little thank you gift for a customer I had done a cabinet job for. Thanks for posting.
God Bless
tom
-- Mc Bridge Cabinets, Iowa
CharlieM1958
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4196 posts in 704 days
posted 200 days ago
Cool project!
-- Charlie M. "Woodworking - patience = firewood"
Roz
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260 posts in 272 days
posted 200 days ago
Thanks guys, Grumpy, I made the jig to make producing them fast and fool proof. I needed to make several for the craft fair I had promised to partisipate in and did not have a lot of time. If you were only going to make 1 or two you could surely do it without the jig. It is important to get the holes to line up and all be at the same distance from the end of the block and spaced evenly.
-- Terry Roswell, L.A. (Lower Alabama) "Life is what happens to you when you are making other plans."
Betsy
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1779 posts in 382 days
posted 200 days ago
I like this idea. I was looking for a table top bookcase—- this might fill the bill.
Thanks
-- Betsy - GO BUCKS!
rikkor
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7687 posts in 360 days
posted 200 days ago
Good job.
-- Maplewood, MN
sharad
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335 posts in 290 days
posted 199 days ago
A very good design for book end rack. What is the diameter of the dowel?
Sharad
-- patanjali
Roz
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260 posts in 272 days
posted 199 days ago
I used 5/8” oak, but you could go larger if you wanted. I would not think a smaller dowel would be good becasue they carry the weight of the books.
-- Terry Roswell, L.A. (Lower Alabama) "Life is what happens to you when you are making other plans."
brianinpa
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719 posts in 209 days
posted 197 days ago
Ah-oh, there goes another project onto my list. Very nice!
-- Brian, Lebanon PA, If you aren’t having fun doing it, find something else to do.
Tim
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2 posts in 181 days
posted 181 days ago
I am a book nut. I love the concept. Phenomenal.
-- Tim, Charleston, SC. 2 Blessed 2 B Stressed