Pondarosa Pine Log Bed

This was my true first project. I did not count it when posting my bar/cabinet as my first project because I made this bed with only a chain saw to cut down the trees, a 10 inch hunting knife as a draw knife, some chisels from Walmart and a skill saw to cut the rails. At the time I did not consider this true woodworking, but now have come to appreciate all forms. In fact, I hope that it inspires someone with few or no tools to go out and do something great. Additionally, this project cost me less that $30 bucks: free trees, a bottle of glue, linseed oil and poly. Anyway, I always wanted a log bed and and my neighbors had some tall trees (86 years old) in his yard that died a year or two earlier. I asked if I could have the trees if I cut them down and he said it was a match made in heaven. The trees had been killed by a beetle infestation with gives the wood an awesome striped pattern, (which was a bonus as I did not know it would be there.) The rails of the bed are Lodge pole pine (hard to find logs that span 8 feet with out increasing diameter too much.) The head board is the real trophy because I wanted a nice curved log and that is very, very hard to find. I walked the the forest many weekends trying to find one that would have the desired curvature and diameter. I cut and carried three dead logs back on my back, only to find that they were not quite perfect. Finally I saw a dead tree in front of a home, stopped by and asked if i could have it, and walla, I had a head board. There are no metal fasteners of any kind, although I now wish I would have done some thing other than the wood on wood mortise and tenons joining the rails to the head and foot board. I originally drilled and pinned them together, but drilling out the pins proved harder than expected, so now it just sits in place with no pins, and seems to hold together well. The head board is over 300lbs, so moving is not that fun (it has moved to 4 houses in 4 years so it can be done.) I tried linseed oil as a finish but did not love it so went to wipe on oil based poly, which is tough as nails. If anyone wants plans for this bed, I would be happy to send them to you.

Hope you enjoy it, I do every night.

-- Things of the greatest worth are from the Earth. If you tell yourself that something is "close enough" it is not...do it again.