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Barn door plan help

2K views 13 replies 8 participants last post by  jerryminer 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
Greetings to all, I am new. After my 9th tour I was medically retired from the military and I'm turning to wood working for a therapeutic outlet. I want to make a barn door for our master bathroom, however, my wife doesn't want it framed. If I am doing a door 80×37x3/4 with the boards going up horizontally (I have material 10"w, 7"w or 5"w) my questions are:

- will it bow (I would alternate grains on each board)?

- how do I join boards?
-Biscut
-dowels

- is this possible to do?

So I'm not reinventing the wheel, does anyone have plans already? For materials I could use either red gum, sugar pine, sassafras, oak

I am extremely grateful for any advice.

Seth
 
#2 ·
If the material is dried properly it shouldn't bow on you. Alternating the grain is a good idea. Glue is plenty strong to hold the joint together but biscuits may help out with the alignment. Glue them up one at a time so youre not rushing yourself.
 
#3 ·
I grew up thinking that a glued joint would be very weak. After 20 years working in wood I can assure you that face grain to face grain glued with modern glue (like Woodworkers II or III) and an adequate quantity of glue will be as strong as the board itself.

I have never built a barn door and I would definitely do some Internet research before I did. This plan from This Old House came up with a Google search: https://www.thisoldhouse.com/how-to/how-to-build-sliding-barn-door

Most of the time the "This Old House" advice is solid.

There is a video so reading skills are not required.
 
#6 ·
A single panel 3/4×37 x 80 of glued-up boards is unlikely to stay flat, IME, without some help (frame or battens).

Quarter-sawn stock will do better than flat-sawn, whatever the species.

There is a reason you don't see doors built this way. Traditional methods have been proven reliable over time.
 
#8 ·
I agree with jerry.. A slab door that big would be prone to cupping and twisting. how about just a board on top and bottom like 1×8 or bigger and then your vertical boards being 1×6 tongue and groove.

- Snipes
The "This Old House" version uses two layers of boards; on vertical and on diagonal.

On show with Chip and Johanna Gaines, they added reclaimed planks to a sheet of 3/4 ply.

I think two layers is sort of mandatory.
 
#10 ·
I think if I were asked to create a door with the look of un-framed horizontal boards, I would start with a slab door, cut my horizontal pieces into thin, +/- 1/8" veneer and glue to the front and back faces of the door (possibly after edging the slab with matching wood).
 
#11 ·
it took awhile but I got off my duff and finished. Thanks for all the tips! I ended up gluing planks, using a set of cargo straps for clamps. I did a header and footer for framing and ran a slot down the bottom for a track; I know it doesn't look like much but for me it's a start.

Cheers!
Cabinetry Wood Floor Flooring Wood stain
 

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#14 · (Edited by Moderator)
Looks great! I hope it works for you.

Keep your eye on it-you may have created a Panel of Doom

At best, you are taking a risk with this construction method.

Your vertical panel will want to expand/shrink with humidity changes, but the horizontal top and bottom rails won't want to allow it (unless you used a "breadboard end" connection method). If your humidity is fairly constant, you should be fine. Time will tell, but don't be surprised if you find cracks that develop later.
 
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