Project Information
This is "my finished project that is made of wood" that I completed this past weekend so I thought I'd add it to my portfolio. By my records this is the 34th year in a row that I've built one of these. That's not counting more than a half dozen my father recruited me to assist in when I was a lad.
You'd think with all that experience I would have construction dialed in but each year's model seems a little more difficult than the previous one. I'm thinking of taking on an apprentice very soon.
My wife claims she really likes them but somehow, by the time spring rolls around, she's managed to destroy the previous build.
Construction is pretty straight forward. I just cross cut my rough stock into the desired length. I've seen some guys mark out the length but I've found I have pretty consistent repeatability just by eyeballing it. After I've got the length I want I 'rip' the larger diameter pieces along the grain. I use a wedge shaped tool with a wooden handle. It leaves a nice natural texture to the wood that doesn't require any further machining.
The wood I used this year is mostly doug fir and alder with hemlock and maple accents. I prefer a weathered look so I don't apply any finish.
Thanks for looking.
You'd think with all that experience I would have construction dialed in but each year's model seems a little more difficult than the previous one. I'm thinking of taking on an apprentice very soon.
My wife claims she really likes them but somehow, by the time spring rolls around, she's managed to destroy the previous build.
Construction is pretty straight forward. I just cross cut my rough stock into the desired length. I've seen some guys mark out the length but I've found I have pretty consistent repeatability just by eyeballing it. After I've got the length I want I 'rip' the larger diameter pieces along the grain. I use a wedge shaped tool with a wooden handle. It leaves a nice natural texture to the wood that doesn't require any further machining.
The wood I used this year is mostly doug fir and alder with hemlock and maple accents. I prefer a weathered look so I don't apply any finish.
Thanks for looking.