# Plantation Shutters



## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

*$300 Rockler order sent in today*

My house windows are…standard issue tract home boring. I need a wood working project that will keep me busy and experience more, could help with friends or clients with their own plantation shutter, and will boost my house value. I decided to run with the Rockler integrated jig system as I have 9 large windows and 3 small windows to do which the jig setup will help with the productivity. 
Basswood is the preferred wood of choice for plantation shutters. My local hardwood dealer can do 4/4 and 8/4 at $3.50 BF. Rockler has an amazing special sale price of dimensioned 3 1/2" louvers/slats that I went with all ready to go, just have to cut to length. Originally, I was going to order all wood from my dealer, purchase either Yonico louver slat router bit at half the price of the same Rockler bit and make the slats. Since this is my first plantation window, I went the easy route for learning purposes. I still have to purchase at the dealer some basswood to custom make my rail & stiles.
My end result would look something like this on a smaller framed window:









This finally gives me experience to learn how to "finish" wood as most everything I have worked with upto this point has been plywood and simple stuff for the workshop itself. These will be in direct sunlight so protection will be need. I want the color in the picture so that means learning pro's/con's of dyeing. 
My current ugly boring window look:









This will also give experience in trimming and casing of a window. Which also may lead me down the path of molding around the ceiling walls. Foam crown molding is surprisingly affordable with cove lighting I found out. And this blog will document my success and failures along the way to share with other's who are considering going this route.


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## FoundSheep (Feb 24, 2017)

Holbs said:


> *$300 Rockler order sent in today*
> 
> My house windows are…standard issue tract home boring. I need a wood working project that will keep me busy and experience more, could help with friends or clients with their own plantation shutter, and will boost my house value. I decided to run with the Rockler integrated jig system as I have 9 large windows and 3 small windows to do which the jig setup will help with the productivity.
> Basswood is the preferred wood of choice for plantation shutters. My local hardwood dealer can do 4/4 and 8/4 at $3.50 BF. Rockler has an amazing special sale price of dimensioned 3 1/2" louvers/slats that I went with all ready to go, just have to cut to length. Originally, I was going to order all wood from my dealer, purchase either Yonico louver slat router bit at half the price of the same Rockler bit and make the slats. Since this is my first plantation window, I went the easy route for learning purposes. I still have to purchase at the dealer some basswood to custom make my rail & stiles.
> ...


This will be very interesting to follow, can't wait see the progress.

How many windows are you going to do?


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

Holbs said:


> *$300 Rockler order sent in today*
> 
> My house windows are…standard issue tract home boring. I need a wood working project that will keep me busy and experience more, could help with friends or clients with their own plantation shutter, and will boost my house value. I decided to run with the Rockler integrated jig system as I have 9 large windows and 3 small windows to do which the jig setup will help with the productivity.
> Basswood is the preferred wood of choice for plantation shutters. My local hardwood dealer can do 4/4 and 8/4 at $3.50 BF. Rockler has an amazing special sale price of dimensioned 3 1/2" louvers/slats that I went with all ready to go, just have to cut to length. Originally, I was going to order all wood from my dealer, purchase either Yonico louver slat router bit at half the price of the same Rockler bit and make the slats. Since this is my first plantation window, I went the easy route for learning purposes. I still have to purchase at the dealer some basswood to custom make my rail & stiles.
> ...


My first build is a the one in the picture: the window facing front of the house. The parts & material I bought from Rockler is enough for this one window. Doing a double bi-fold top & bottom with traditional center arm. I plan to do every window in my house eventually. I even have 2 dinky windows that are 12" wide x 24" tall. The wood I bought is only for this one window. The other windows, I'll have to buy and dimension the basswood slats with a slat router bit (depending on how long Rockler's sale of basswood is).

Of note: I found out my current window "treatment" is called drywall return, due to the side & top drywall with only a wood (or maybe it's cheap MDF) stool & apron. Some say it's the "modern" look. Other's say cheap and lazy way to finish off windows by the house builders. I say the latter.


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## AandCstyle (Mar 21, 2012)

Holbs said:


> *$300 Rockler order sent in today*
> 
> My house windows are…standard issue tract home boring. I need a wood working project that will keep me busy and experience more, could help with friends or clients with their own plantation shutter, and will boost my house value. I decided to run with the Rockler integrated jig system as I have 9 large windows and 3 small windows to do which the jig setup will help with the productivity.
> Basswood is the preferred wood of choice for plantation shutters. My local hardwood dealer can do 4/4 and 8/4 at $3.50 BF. Rockler has an amazing special sale price of dimensioned 3 1/2" louvers/slats that I went with all ready to go, just have to cut to length. Originally, I was going to order all wood from my dealer, purchase either Yonico louver slat router bit at half the price of the same Rockler bit and make the slats. Since this is my first plantation window, I went the easy route for learning purposes. I still have to purchase at the dealer some basswood to custom make my rail & stiles.
> ...


Holbs, this will be a big project to complete. The repetitive tasks get old in a hurry IMO.


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

*Removal of drywall returns*

I guess I'm really going to do this  No turning back now! As I've read, it is best to remove drywall totally and put wood boards back in their place, instead of simply putting boards over the drywall. I assume this is needed for plantation shutters due to their weight so that no sagging get involved. That is what I did tonight upon my first test window. I was hesitant at first (back in the day, I tried to install a large whole house fan for my 1200 sq ft house only to realize I needed 1200 sq ft of attic space for which I had a dinky roof so now I have a square hole in my 2nd story ceiling for time being using a temp high velocity floor fan). But I knew if I start, I am committed to seeing this through. And I was pleased that everything turned out (framing wise) as predicted. Removed the MDF stool and apron, inside drywall and metal corner squares. Next, to decided what boards to put in (probably pine since it will be painted white) and weatherproofing / sealing options.


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## Northwest29 (Aug 1, 2011)

Holbs said:


> *Removal of drywall returns*
> 
> I guess I'm really going to do this  No turning back now! As I've read, it is best to remove drywall totally and put wood boards back in their place, instead of simply putting boards over the drywall. I assume this is needed for plantation shutters due to their weight so that no sagging get involved. That is what I did tonight upon my first test window. I was hesitant at first (back in the day, I tried to install a large whole house fan for my 1200 sq ft house only to realize I needed 1200 sq ft of attic space for which I had a dinky roof so now I have a square hole in my 2nd story ceiling for time being using a temp high velocity floor fan). But I knew if I start, I am committed to seeing this through. And I was pleased that everything turned out (framing wise) as predicted. Removed the MDF stool and apron, inside drywall and metal corner squares. Next, to decided what boards to put in (probably pine since it will be painted white) and weatherproofing / sealing options.


Well, this is one serious project. I presume you will need to do this to the other windows as well. It will be worth it in long run.


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

*Style, species and color of casing & shutters decided*

I love "Craftsman" style casing. Just looks….1910'ish or palace like: strong Ford tough, embolden, structured. That is what I'm going for. Unsure of how far down the rabbit hole to go such as elegant crown molding upon the top.
For the species, I picked Knotty Alder. It's super affordable here on the west coast: 4/4=1.60 and 8/4=1.78. I love how rustic it can be turned into.
For the color, I will go a mix of American Walnut and Golden Fruitwood dye stains after seeing this youtube video:




View on YouTube
Here are some pictures from a Craftsman style casing around doors & windows:


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## FoundSheep (Feb 24, 2017)

Holbs said:


> *Style, species and color of casing & shutters decided*
> 
> I love "Craftsman" style casing. Just looks….1910'ish or palace like: strong Ford tough, embolden, structured. That is what I'm going for. Unsure of how far down the rabbit hole to go such as elegant crown molding upon the top.
> For the species, I picked Knotty Alder. It's super affordable here on the west coast: 4/4=1.60 and 8/4=1.78. I love how rustic it can be turned into.
> ...


I think the Craftsman style looks great, I haven't seen it before with Plantation shutters.

Looking forward to more progress! You may be inspiring me to do something with my windows.


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## AandCstyle (Mar 21, 2012)

Holbs said:


> *Style, species and color of casing & shutters decided*
> 
> I love "Craftsman" style casing. Just looks….1910'ish or palace like: strong Ford tough, embolden, structured. That is what I'm going for. Unsure of how far down the rabbit hole to go such as elegant crown molding upon the top.
> For the species, I picked Knotty Alder. It's super affordable here on the west coast: 4/4=1.60 and 8/4=1.78. I love how rustic it can be turned into.
> ...


Holbs, The window looks great. I have done 11 windows so far using Rockler's jigs, so if you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask. Here is the first one I did. Also, here is a jig I made to hold the louvers for sanding. I wasn't brave enough to go with stain so I applaud you. I am looking forward to your next installment.


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

Holbs said:


> *Style, species and color of casing & shutters decided*
> 
> I love "Craftsman" style casing. Just looks….1910'ish or palace like: strong Ford tough, embolden, structured. That is what I'm going for. Unsure of how far down the rabbit hole to go such as elegant crown molding upon the top.
> For the species, I picked Knotty Alder. It's super affordable here on the west coast: 4/4=1.60 and 8/4=1.78. I love how rustic it can be turned into.
> ...


Just to note..that is not my window but an image from the internet (I think the full window picture is from LumberJocks) but I was just showing the "craftsman" style window casing that I want to tackle.
Rockler had 50% off basswood shutters so I bought enough for this one single window, along with most of the hardware (even the hinges). I may take more economic routes for other windows in other rooms. I wanted this to be easy installation for this first window. SHUTTER SLAT 3/8 X 3-1/2 X 58" BASSWOOD x 11 @ $2.99 I think instead of the normal $5.99.
I like your jig of using parallel clamps to hold the slat, and wooden blocks to hold that clamp. Will see how it pans out. I have to go with stain because…actually…I need the experience (good or bad). Everything to date has been douglas fir studs or plywood. I feel the need to earn brownie points since I tell my friends I'm a wood worker. And I have to do casing because I really hate these drywall return bland windows. They should be banned from houses.
One of my many upcoming concerns is staining both the Knotty Alder and doing the same staining on the Basswood. Will they turn out to have the same color? We shall see…


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## AandCstyle (Mar 21, 2012)

Holbs said:


> *Style, species and color of casing & shutters decided*
> 
> I love "Craftsman" style casing. Just looks….1910'ish or palace like: strong Ford tough, embolden, structured. That is what I'm going for. Unsure of how far down the rabbit hole to go such as elegant crown molding upon the top.
> For the species, I picked Knotty Alder. It's super affordable here on the west coast: 4/4=1.60 and 8/4=1.78. I love how rustic it can be turned into.
> ...


Holbs, the best place I found to purchase hinges is Delta Blinds Supply.

The two different woods will take the stain differently so you will need to experiment to get the colors to match. If you use a water based stain, you can use a TransTint dye to modify the color.


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

*lumber picked up, most parts & material arrive*

It's almost like Christmas in my house this week. 90% of needed items arrived this week. I'll keep a running list (for those in my position of not having any real supplies in the shop):
1.) Rocker shutter jig
2.) all parts for shutters (nylon pins, hinges, clasps, bead bit)
3.) the basswood shutters themselves (I still have to buy my own basswood and make stiles)
4.) Bob Smith Industries BSI-201 Clear Quik-Cure Epoxy oz. Combined)
5.) Great Planes Epoxy Mixing Sticks)
6.) Great Planes Epoxy Mixing Cups)
7.) Yonico 18151 Louver Slat Router Bit- Medium 1/2" Shank (My next window I will attempt to make the shutters myself)
8.) Klean-Strip Green QKGA75003 Denatured Alcohol, 1-Quart
9.) Rust-Oleum Zinsser 304H 1-Quart Bulls Eye Clear Shellac
10.) Minwax 63000 Fast Drying Polyurethane Gloss, Quart
11.) SToC Pure Bristle 2 Inch Round Chalk Paint Brush Wax Brushes Painting (with boar hairs)
12.) 3M 10144 Between Coats Finishing Pads
13.) Red Devil 0570 18-Inch x 36-Inch Tack Cloth
14.) Solar-Lux NGR Dye Stain Fruitwood
15.) Solar-Lux NGR Dye Stain- American Walnut
16.) Old Masters 24991 80704 Gel Stain, Dark Walnut, 1 quart
17.) Dynarex Tongue Depressor, Senior, 6 Inches, Non-Sterile, 500 Count
18.) Royal Brush Crafter's Choice Hair Flat Brush, 1-Inch, Camel
19.) Loew Cornell 841 20-Piece Foam Brush, 2-Inch
20 a cat



















Picked up 70 bf of Knotty Alder (4/4 and 8/4). All casing parts are rough dimensioned. It's tough picking up lumber in my life. The hardwood supply store closes at 5pm and I get off work at 4:30pm. Have to speed home (20 minutes) and then return to the store by 5. Means I gotta ask the bossman to get off early a little bit. They are not open on weekends


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## RichT (Oct 14, 2016)

Holbs said:


> *lumber picked up, most parts & material arrive*
> 
> It's almost like Christmas in my house this week. 90% of needed items arrived this week. I'll keep a running list (for those in my position of not having any real supplies in the shop):
> 1.) Rocker shutter jig
> ...


Santa came early at your house!

Keep in mind, the mixing sticks are simply craft sticks you can get at Walmart. Same with the tongue depressors. Just a bigger stick. I buy 2 oz Solo cups at the restaurant supply in boxes of like 500. One thing I've found is that the 5 minute epoxy products will almost melt the Solo cups if you are mixing a large quantity, due to the heat generated as it cures. No big deal, they don't leak out or anything. I always leave the cup with the stick in it so I can see when the epoxy has cured sufficiently.

I love the non-woven pads for in-between finish rubbing.

I'm enjoying following along. My wife loves plantation shutters, and when I get past the other projects she has on my list, I plan to do just what you are doing.


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

Holbs said:


> *lumber picked up, most parts & material arrive*
> 
> It's almost like Christmas in my house this week. 90% of needed items arrived this week. I'll keep a running list (for those in my position of not having any real supplies in the shop):
> 1.) Rocker shutter jig
> ...


I know going via Amazon for most of this stuff is not the best "economical". As I get more experience with finishing, I'll be more aware of really what to get. I would call this a starter kit  And it is nice to have everything show up at once.
Noted about 5 min epoxy danger on solu cups.


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

*2 coats of Shellac, 1st coat of Old Masters Dark Walnut on distressed jambs*

This is the first time ever jumping into the shellac, distressing, and gel stain (glaze?). I was…skeptical of my aptitude to accomplish this because everything I have done has been simple workshop related projects with no finishing. I know I need experience in such matters. So jumped right into it. ROS sanded via 80 and 120 on my bosch 5", then 280 on my bosch 6" ROS (only has 280 grit…gotta fix that for 220 later). Dusted off the wood. I applied 2 coats of Shellac with finishing sponge in between coats. Pulled out a hand saw, chisel, and powered reciprocating saw for the distress'ing. I may have gone over board but I really like the hand saw look of dragging the teeth. ROS'd with 280 again. Dusted off wood again. Applied Old Woodmaster's dark walnut gel stain. Very happy with the results, though I have learned not to gouge/divet the wood so deep next time as the it's a pain to get the stain in there. I believe there is a 24hour period to dry before applying 2nd coat of shellac. These pieces are the window jambs and stool. The end grains and backside of the jambs will not be visible so didn't seal/stain those areas. Should I?


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

*Using Summit HVLP sprayer for 1st coat of Poly*

I bought this Summit HVLP sprayer over a year ago (ok..maybe 2) when it was on sale, knowing one day I will jump into the spraying of finishes. I used it for the first time ever today. I'm glad to have purchased this easy no frills HVLP sprayer kit because the upper echelon advanced (Earlex, Fuji, etc) sprayers have a lot of options that are beyond me at this time. It's only 1 stage and everything made of plastic but it works and is a great introductory device. Longevity is not it's key selling point, I'm sure  I sprayed 1 coat of poly, will wait 24 hours then sand with 320 grit (I believe) lightly, then spray 2nd coat. 
I started out with water in the cup to learn the spraying cone and how things worked. Maybe mine is defective or it's how this economical unit works but when you turn it on, nothing comes out (like it should). But after you hold the trigger and let go, some light spray still comes out. Undeterred, I put in 3/4 pint (I am totally unsure how "light" or "heavy" this thing sprays) with a slight mixture of water (about 5-10%). Sprayed top, bottom, and sides of these 4 pieces (was unsure if I had to spray poly on the back of these jambs and bottom of stool since they will be against the window studs but did anyway as I read it's best to do 100% all around to prevent warping). I think I messed up the first couple seconds of spraying. I did not "prime" the gun with poly so the first couple seconds was mostly water as it looked more "bumpy" than the next 3 pieces I sprayed. Will see how this turns out.
Was unsure what to do with the left over poly in the cup so poured into a clean mason jar (seems I have like 50 laying around).
Wore respirator and goggles, sprayed outside of garage. Next time, I'll be wearing jeans and long sleeve shirt. And, gotta find a way to suspend the pieces for spraying instead of laying flat.
Unsure how to tell if did good spraying after first coat. The pieces look a tad shiney compared to before (before and after pix below). 
Cleaned out cup with soap & water. Sprayed a pint of warm water to clean things out.


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## pintodeluxe (Sep 12, 2010)

Holbs said:


> *Using Summit HVLP sprayer for 1st coat of Poly*
> 
> I bought this Summit HVLP sprayer over a year ago (ok..maybe 2) when it was on sale, knowing one day I will jump into the spraying of finishes. I used it for the first time ever today. I'm glad to have purchased this easy no frills HVLP sprayer kit because the upper echelon advanced (Earlex, Fuji, etc) sprayers have a lot of options that are beyond me at this time. It's only 1 stage and everything made of plastic but it works and is a great introductory device. Longevity is not it's key selling point, I'm sure  I sprayed 1 coat of poly, will wait 24 hours then sand with 320 grit (I believe) lightly, then spray 2nd coat.
> I started out with water in the cup to learn the spraying cone and how things worked. Maybe mine is defective or it's how this economical unit works but when you turn it on, nothing comes out (like it should). But after you hold the trigger and let go, some light spray still comes out. Undeterred, I put in 3/4 pint (I am totally unsure how "light" or "heavy" this thing sprays) with a slight mixture of water (about 5-10%). Sprayed top, bottom, and sides of these 4 pieces (was unsure if I had to spray poly on the back of these jambs and bottom of stool since they will be against the window studs but did anyway as I read it's best to do 100% all around to prevent warping). I think I messed up the first couple seconds of spraying. I did not "prime" the gun with poly so the first couple seconds was mostly water as it looked more "bumpy" than the next 3 pieces I sprayed. Will see how this turns out.
> ...


A couple low-angle work lights help a great deal to see the finish as it is being applied. Before I added clip-on lights around the shop, I had no idea what the finish looked like until it dried. Now I can see the texture of the finish as I'm spraying, and adjust flow / speed accordingly.

I prefer to spray workpieces horizontally, as the finish lays out better and there's less chance of runs or sags.

Have fun!


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## AandCstyle (Mar 21, 2012)

Holbs said:


> *Using Summit HVLP sprayer for 1st coat of Poly*
> 
> I bought this Summit HVLP sprayer over a year ago (ok..maybe 2) when it was on sale, knowing one day I will jump into the spraying of finishes. I used it for the first time ever today. I'm glad to have purchased this easy no frills HVLP sprayer kit because the upper echelon advanced (Earlex, Fuji, etc) sprayers have a lot of options that are beyond me at this time. It's only 1 stage and everything made of plastic but it works and is a great introductory device. Longevity is not it's key selling point, I'm sure  I sprayed 1 coat of poly, will wait 24 hours then sand with 320 grit (I believe) lightly, then spray 2nd coat.
> I started out with water in the cup to learn the spraying cone and how things worked. Maybe mine is defective or it's how this economical unit works but when you turn it on, nothing comes out (like it should). But after you hold the trigger and let go, some light spray still comes out. Undeterred, I put in 3/4 pint (I am totally unsure how "light" or "heavy" this thing sprays) with a slight mixture of water (about 5-10%). Sprayed top, bottom, and sides of these 4 pieces (was unsure if I had to spray poly on the back of these jambs and bottom of stool since they will be against the window studs but did anyway as I read it's best to do 100% all around to prevent warping). I think I messed up the first couple seconds of spraying. I did not "prime" the gun with poly so the first couple seconds was mostly water as it looked more "bumpy" than the next 3 pieces I sprayed. Will see how this turns out.
> ...


Holbs, I agree with Willie about horizontal working better so I use painters' pyramids to keep the work piece off the table. Speaking of which, I have a lazy susan set up so I can rotate the work piece to make it easier to spray all 4 sides. HTH


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

Holbs said:


> *Using Summit HVLP sprayer for 1st coat of Poly*
> 
> I bought this Summit HVLP sprayer over a year ago (ok..maybe 2) when it was on sale, knowing one day I will jump into the spraying of finishes. I used it for the first time ever today. I'm glad to have purchased this easy no frills HVLP sprayer kit because the upper echelon advanced (Earlex, Fuji, etc) sprayers have a lot of options that are beyond me at this time. It's only 1 stage and everything made of plastic but it works and is a great introductory device. Longevity is not it's key selling point, I'm sure  I sprayed 1 coat of poly, will wait 24 hours then sand with 320 grit (I believe) lightly, then spray 2nd coat.
> I started out with water in the cup to learn the spraying cone and how things worked. Maybe mine is defective or it's how this economical unit works but when you turn it on, nothing comes out (like it should). But after you hold the trigger and let go, some light spray still comes out. Undeterred, I put in 3/4 pint (I am totally unsure how "light" or "heavy" this thing sprays) with a slight mixture of water (about 5-10%). Sprayed top, bottom, and sides of these 4 pieces (was unsure if I had to spray poly on the back of these jambs and bottom of stool since they will be against the window studs but did anyway as I read it's best to do 100% all around to prevent warping). I think I messed up the first couple seconds of spraying. I did not "prime" the gun with poly so the first couple seconds was mostly water as it looked more "bumpy" than the next 3 pieces I sprayed. Will see how this turns out.
> ...


I was not thinking. I sprayed the top first, waited an hour, flipped upside down to spray other side that will not see the light of day. I should of done the underside first, then flipped over. 
Lazy susan…good idea!
Maybe lightly drive some nails into the endgrain to extend upon saw horses. Hmm…of course, maybe I should of assembled the square jambs & stool then sprayed instead of individual pieces.


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

*Sanded with 400 grit and applied 2nd poly coat for window jambs*

Ahhh…I feel better now. Much better results after sanding with 400 grit (didnt have anything in the 300 range), vacuuming, and HVLP applying a 2nd coat of 100% poly (instead of my first coat of 15% water & 85% poly). Went a little heavier this time around as well. These are things I have to learn. I do have "Understanding Wood Finishing: How to Select and Apply the Right Finish" by Bob Flexner flexner coming in a couple days which should help. I do see 2 or 3 small "runs" buy may let them be since these are the inside window jambs and not the actual casings (which will be next up).
May not need a 3rd coat. Will see after 24hour drying time.


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

*Jambs & Stool installed, adjustable story stick, starting on casing*

Gots the jambs & stool installed and squared up. Used garage sale sign (well, the plastic corrugated stuff) as 1/8" shims which works wonderfully. Either I do not understand how, or I am missing something…but I find it impossible to square up the jambs & stool with a tape measure because the stool itself juts out and then having to bend the metal tape to the exact corner. I just couldn't do it as I felt it inaccurate. So, I made a adjustable story stick (this is a 5'x5' window, some of my other windows are 4'x4' so had to be adjustable) which made really quick work of making this square. Super handy for future large carcass squaring up! Used 16 gauge 1 1/4" nails at divets and marks so they are hidden from the eye mostly. Won't have to use a nail punch. After all of this installation, got to 80 grit and 220 grit on casings tonite. Tomorrow, shellac & gel staining. Am debating putting a cove piece under the stool to the apron. But right now, I only have the 1 1/2" router insert for my Bench Dog router table and I'll need the 2 1/2" for the 3/4" cove bit. More delays….


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

*Wood Finish error. I made booboo. Re-do*

Poly runs. Ug! Maybe I'm lucky to have found out now on easy wood and such small quantities. Not sure what was different between my window jambs & stool boards to these casing boards. But I have runs on the side. Bad. I had none on the jambs. I can only assume, went too heavy causing running drips. How to fix? I can only guesstimate sand down and re-finish. Again, it's only the sides. But still… Ug. Bob Flexner's "Understanding Wood Finishing" came in today. Guess I best go read. Have to figure out how to apply poly to the sides of boards. No problem along the faces, but only the sides.


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

Holbs said:


> *Wood Finish error. I made booboo. Re-do*
> 
> Poly runs. Ug! Maybe I'm lucky to have found out now on easy wood and such small quantities. Not sure what was different between my window jambs & stool boards to these casing boards. But I have runs on the side. Bad. I had none on the jambs. I can only assume, went too heavy causing running drips. How to fix? I can only guesstimate sand down and re-finish. Again, it's only the sides. But still… Ug. Bob Flexner's "Understanding Wood Finishing" came in today. Guess I best go read. Have to figure out how to apply poly to the sides of boards. No problem along the faces, but only the sides.


260 pages later… my brain hurts  But now I think I know what I did wrong (more than 1 thing, actually). That Bob Flexner book really helped me understand the world of finishing. Now if I can just remember it all…


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## TraylorPark (Jan 9, 2014)

Holbs said:


> *Wood Finish error. I made booboo. Re-do*
> 
> Poly runs. Ug! Maybe I'm lucky to have found out now on easy wood and such small quantities. Not sure what was different between my window jambs & stool boards to these casing boards. But I have runs on the side. Bad. I had none on the jambs. I can only assume, went too heavy causing running drips. How to fix? I can only guesstimate sand down and re-finish. Again, it's only the sides. But still… Ug. Bob Flexner's "Understanding Wood Finishing" came in today. Guess I best go read. Have to figure out how to apply poly to the sides of boards. No problem along the faces, but only the sides.


Having the runs can ruin a whole weekend . My guess would be it will need to be sanded down and resprayed. For the edges you will probably have to have a little more distance between the gun and the piece and lay a few light passes. Bob Flexner's book was a real eye opener for me too. The only problem I had after reading it was not having enough projects to try all the things I learned before I forget them. Before I dreaded finishing because it was a stage that had the potential to ruin the whole project for me, but now I feel very confident in knowing what to expect from what products and how best to apply them. Charles Neil's you tube videos are also an awesome source for how best to apply.


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

*Window Casing completed. Next, the shutter frame & shutters themselves*

Installed the casing, stop, frieze, header, and apron and posted on Project section:









=============
And now the 2nd phase of fun: plantation shutter frames and shutters and assembly and even more finishing.


----------



## FoundSheep (Feb 24, 2017)

Holbs said:


> *Window Casing completed. Next, the shutter frame & shutters themselves*
> 
> Installed the casing, stop, frieze, header, and apron and posted on Project section:
> 
> ...


Looking real good!


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

*rough dimensioning the shutter frames*

Finally got around to purchasing basswood for the shutter frames. 2 10' x 6.5"ish and 7' x 6".









Rockler science super computer says to make width at 1 1/6". So I had to buy what my local hardwood distributor had on hand and that would be 8/4. For future shutters, I'll have to ask if I can special order 5/4 (which might be pushing it) or 6/4 if those sizes even come in basswood. 8/4 is what I got so that means…my first time resawing! I gots an 2001 Taiwan clone 3/4 HP motor 14" bandsaw with a brand new 1/2" Timberwolf 3 TPI resaw blade with the help of the Kreg bandsaw fence. I previously tried out a 3/4" Timberwolf resaw blade but that was too much tension for my poor 'ol bandsaw. This 1/2" cut like butter for the 4 1/2" tall pieces and thankfully, no drift:










Some jointing and table sawing later…I have all the pieces roughly cut (everything is 1/16"-1/8" oversized til final runs). 16 stiles, 8 upper and 8 lower rails for 8 panels.


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## papadan (Mar 6, 2009)

Holbs said:


> *rough dimensioning the shutter frames*
> 
> Finally got around to purchasing basswood for the shutter frames. 2 10' x 6.5"ish and 7' x 6".
> 
> ...


Holbs, Do you need any of the old S shaped shutter holders?


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

Holbs said:


> *rough dimensioning the shutter frames*
> 
> Finally got around to purchasing basswood for the shutter frames. 2 10' x 6.5"ish and 7' x 6".
> 
> ...


I don't think so, Dan. However, how would those shutter holders work? I am open minded to try other shutter holders for future windows. Right now, going to use the Rockler shutter pins for this one window. I do have 9 other window though.


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## papadan (Mar 6, 2009)

Holbs said:


> *rough dimensioning the shutter frames*
> 
> Finally got around to purchasing basswood for the shutter frames. 2 10' x 6.5"ish and 7' x 6".
> 
> ...


Originally they used a big nail through the hole and now they use a lag screw. They are mounted beside the shutter and turned to hold the shutters open, folded back against the building. Turn it to release them for closing.









The reason for the question is, I have a bunch of these pieces and if you can use them, I would send them to you for the cost of a small flat rate box.


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

Holbs said:


> *rough dimensioning the shutter frames*
> 
> Finally got around to purchasing basswood for the shutter frames. 2 10' x 6.5"ish and 7' x 6".
> 
> ...


These shutters will be inside  You had me curious so went and looked online on shutter holders. Pretty neat actually. If I ever do outside shutters, I would use them. Thanks for the offer though.


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

*I just wasted all this wood because of a simple moronic mistake*

As stated earlier in my blog entry, I am a newb in the realm of sanding & finishing, coming from the world of plywood and construction lumber for all of my projects. I am learning as I go happily but mistakes will come about. I guess I'm lucky that I messed up this wood for this project now, instead of more costly and quantity of lumber later. I can not use the pieces I dimensioned for this project because I got carried away ROS'ing faces & edges which rounded over below minimum dimension specifications. I'll repeat that for other folk being fresh into sanding & finishing as I am… before sanding using random orbit sander (ROS) or whatever method you use to sand, keep everything 90 degrees and keep your minimum dimension in mind or even mark it while sanding so you do not over sand until you become comfortable with your sanding experience. My wood working sin for the world to see:


















-------
On that note, I now realize ROS'ing the edge is crazy. I was about to go looking into getting a 3" belt sander to have better control of 90 degrees but even then, going over 90 is a possibility. Then I remembered I have a porter cable 121 oscillating spindle sander which was MADE for edge sanding. Boy, do I feel stupid! This stupidity arises from never using it for it's intended purposes when I really needed to use it for it's intended purposes. I think I was concentrating on doing trying to do good job with the ROS that I forgot. Well, anyways… this PC 121 only came with a single 2" drum. Parts for this machine, I thought, were impossible to get. However, I found that Powertec 4 1/2" drums works for the PC 121. Ordered the assortment of sizes today. Since it's table mounted into my down draft table in my Unisaw's right side extension table, I'll have to figure out a way to make a simple fencing system for it and learn more about edge sanding correctly.
I am not totally down and distraught. This basswood is a no-go for this one project. I'll use it surely on other projects down the road. Maybe can re-use most of it for the smaller 4'x5' or 3'x3' windows too.


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## RichT (Oct 14, 2016)

Holbs said:


> *I just wasted all this wood because of a simple moronic mistake*
> 
> As stated earlier in my blog entry, I am a newb in the realm of sanding & finishing, coming from the world of plywood and construction lumber for all of my projects. I am learning as I go happily but mistakes will come about. I guess I'm lucky that I messed up this wood for this project now, instead of more costly and quantity of lumber later. I can not use the pieces I dimensioned for this project because I got carried away ROS'ing faces & edges which rounded over below minimum dimension specifications. I'll repeat that for other folk being fresh into sanding & finishing as I am… before sanding using random orbit sander (ROS) or whatever method you use to sand, keep everything 90 degrees and keep your minimum dimension in mind or even mark it while sanding so you do not over sand until you become comfortable with your sanding experience. My wood working sin for the world to see:
> 
> ...


That spindle sander is really cool. I have a bench top model, but that would be handy for situations where the piece is too big. To paraphrase, if the piece won't go to the sander, bring the sander to the piece


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## robscastle (May 13, 2012)

Holbs said:


> *I just wasted all this wood because of a simple moronic mistake*
> 
> As stated earlier in my blog entry, I am a newb in the realm of sanding & finishing, coming from the world of plywood and construction lumber for all of my projects. I am learning as I go happily but mistakes will come about. I guess I'm lucky that I messed up this wood for this project now, instead of more costly and quantity of lumber later. I can not use the pieces I dimensioned for this project because I got carried away ROS'ing faces & edges which rounded over below minimum dimension specifications. I'll repeat that for other folk being fresh into sanding & finishing as I am… before sanding using random orbit sander (ROS) or whatever method you use to sand, keep everything 90 degrees and keep your minimum dimension in mind or even mark it while sanding so you do not over sand until you become comfortable with your sanding experience. My wood working sin for the world to see:
> 
> ...


?


----------



## TraylorPark (Jan 9, 2014)

Holbs said:


> *I just wasted all this wood because of a simple moronic mistake*
> 
> As stated earlier in my blog entry, I am a newb in the realm of sanding & finishing, coming from the world of plywood and construction lumber for all of my projects. I am learning as I go happily but mistakes will come about. I guess I'm lucky that I messed up this wood for this project now, instead of more costly and quantity of lumber later. I can not use the pieces I dimensioned for this project because I got carried away ROS'ing faces & edges which rounded over below minimum dimension specifications. I'll repeat that for other folk being fresh into sanding & finishing as I am… before sanding using random orbit sander (ROS) or whatever method you use to sand, keep everything 90 degrees and keep your minimum dimension in mind or even mark it while sanding so you do not over sand until you become comfortable with your sanding experience. My wood working sin for the world to see:
> 
> ...


How are you joining the stile and rail? Is it possible just to square up the where the stile attaches to the rail and maybe just be off a 32nd on total width? Best way to square it back up would be a block plane. Alternatively, if you are planing on painting the amount of gap that will result by joining what you have as shown would easily be filled by some filler and unnoticed after paint. Even is you are staining that small of a gap could be covered with some sanding dust and glue and still match pretty well. I don't know that I would scrap it just yet.


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## FoundSheep (Feb 24, 2017)

Holbs said:


> *I just wasted all this wood because of a simple moronic mistake*
> 
> As stated earlier in my blog entry, I am a newb in the realm of sanding & finishing, coming from the world of plywood and construction lumber for all of my projects. I am learning as I go happily but mistakes will come about. I guess I'm lucky that I messed up this wood for this project now, instead of more costly and quantity of lumber later. I can not use the pieces I dimensioned for this project because I got carried away ROS'ing faces & edges which rounded over below minimum dimension specifications. I'll repeat that for other folk being fresh into sanding & finishing as I am… before sanding using random orbit sander (ROS) or whatever method you use to sand, keep everything 90 degrees and keep your minimum dimension in mind or even mark it while sanding so you do not over sand until you become comfortable with your sanding experience. My wood working sin for the world to see:
> 
> ...


I agree with Zach, there may be a way to save the material if you get creative. Sometimes parts can be thinner, and if that change is carried through the project it never will be noticed.

Do you have a block plane, or another type? I find it hard to keep hand held machines at perfect 90*s, but using a jointer plane can really be fast and easy, and accurate.


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

Holbs said:


> *I just wasted all this wood because of a simple moronic mistake*
> 
> As stated earlier in my blog entry, I am a newb in the realm of sanding & finishing, coming from the world of plywood and construction lumber for all of my projects. I am learning as I go happily but mistakes will come about. I guess I'm lucky that I messed up this wood for this project now, instead of more costly and quantity of lumber later. I can not use the pieces I dimensioned for this project because I got carried away ROS'ing faces & edges which rounded over below minimum dimension specifications. I'll repeat that for other folk being fresh into sanding & finishing as I am… before sanding using random orbit sander (ROS) or whatever method you use to sand, keep everything 90 degrees and keep your minimum dimension in mind or even mark it while sanding so you do not over sand until you become comfortable with your sanding experience. My wood working sin for the world to see:
> 
> ...


Yes, I have a range of hand planes. Considered doing just that, but I looked and shaving off 1/32" or in some places a 1/16" due to the round over on the both edges would lead to a substantial gap. If I shortened the stiles, I would have to shorten the rails by a smidgen. In the end, would have a noticeable gap between plantation shutter panels.


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## 000 (Dec 9, 2015)

Holbs said:


> *I just wasted all this wood because of a simple moronic mistake*
> 
> As stated earlier in my blog entry, I am a newb in the realm of sanding & finishing, coming from the world of plywood and construction lumber for all of my projects. I am learning as I go happily but mistakes will come about. I guess I'm lucky that I messed up this wood for this project now, instead of more costly and quantity of lumber later. I can not use the pieces I dimensioned for this project because I got carried away ROS'ing faces & edges which rounded over below minimum dimension specifications. I'll repeat that for other folk being fresh into sanding & finishing as I am… before sanding using random orbit sander (ROS) or whatever method you use to sand, keep everything 90 degrees and keep your minimum dimension in mind or even mark it while sanding so you do not over sand until you become comfortable with your sanding experience. My wood working sin for the world to see:
> 
> ...


Instead of remaking all of them, maybe you can just make wider stiles on the hinge sides.
I doubt it would be noticeable.


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## pintodeluxe (Sep 12, 2010)

Holbs said:


> *I just wasted all this wood because of a simple moronic mistake*
> 
> As stated earlier in my blog entry, I am a newb in the realm of sanding & finishing, coming from the world of plywood and construction lumber for all of my projects. I am learning as I go happily but mistakes will come about. I guess I'm lucky that I messed up this wood for this project now, instead of more costly and quantity of lumber later. I can not use the pieces I dimensioned for this project because I got carried away ROS'ing faces & edges which rounded over below minimum dimension specifications. I'll repeat that for other folk being fresh into sanding & finishing as I am… before sanding using random orbit sander (ROS) or whatever method you use to sand, keep everything 90 degrees and keep your minimum dimension in mind or even mark it while sanding so you do not over sand until you become comfortable with your sanding experience. My wood working sin for the world to see:
> 
> ...


I would be careful with that spindle sander too. It will hold a 90 degree edge for sure, but is likely to create little divots along the workpiece. The smaller the spindle diameter, the worse this problem gets. Your idea about a fence for the sander may solve this issue.

I do sometimes use an oscillating spindle sander, but it has a belt attachment so it is sanding on the flat.

I still think it's okay to use a ROS for edge sanding, you just might want to gang them up and clamp them to a bench first. Given a choice of spindle sander, handheld belt sander, or ROS… I would pick the ROS.

Best of luck


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## Commarato53 (Dec 13, 2013)

Holbs said:


> *I just wasted all this wood because of a simple moronic mistake*
> 
> As stated earlier in my blog entry, I am a newb in the realm of sanding & finishing, coming from the world of plywood and construction lumber for all of my projects. I am learning as I go happily but mistakes will come about. I guess I'm lucky that I messed up this wood for this project now, instead of more costly and quantity of lumber later. I can not use the pieces I dimensioned for this project because I got carried away ROS'ing faces & edges which rounded over below minimum dimension specifications. I'll repeat that for other folk being fresh into sanding & finishing as I am… before sanding using random orbit sander (ROS) or whatever method you use to sand, keep everything 90 degrees and keep your minimum dimension in mind or even mark it while sanding so you do not over sand until you become comfortable with your sanding experience. My wood working sin for the world to see:
> 
> ...


Don't get hung up on a mistake like this. if you are even 1/16"-1/8" small, wood can easily expand and contract due to moisture in the atmosphere…you aren't working with steel. That said, always be true to the plans and accurate as possible, but sometimes you must adapt to mistakes and move on, trying not to waste valuable resources.


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## Smitty_Cabinetshop (Mar 26, 2011)

Holbs said:


> *I just wasted all this wood because of a simple moronic mistake*
> 
> As stated earlier in my blog entry, I am a newb in the realm of sanding & finishing, coming from the world of plywood and construction lumber for all of my projects. I am learning as I go happily but mistakes will come about. I guess I'm lucky that I messed up this wood for this project now, instead of more costly and quantity of lumber later. I can not use the pieces I dimensioned for this project because I got carried away ROS'ing faces & edges which rounded over below minimum dimension specifications. I'll repeat that for other folk being fresh into sanding & finishing as I am… before sanding using random orbit sander (ROS) or whatever method you use to sand, keep everything 90 degrees and keep your minimum dimension in mind or even mark it while sanding so you do not over sand until you become comfortable with your sanding experience. My wood working sin for the world to see:
> 
> ...


I would take a smoothing plane to those pieces and remove the center humps. Too bad that it happened, we've all been there in one way or another!


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## AandCstyle (Mar 21, 2012)

Holbs said:


> *I just wasted all this wood because of a simple moronic mistake*
> 
> As stated earlier in my blog entry, I am a newb in the realm of sanding & finishing, coming from the world of plywood and construction lumber for all of my projects. I am learning as I go happily but mistakes will come about. I guess I'm lucky that I messed up this wood for this project now, instead of more costly and quantity of lumber later. I can not use the pieces I dimensioned for this project because I got carried away ROS'ing faces & edges which rounded over below minimum dimension specifications. I'll repeat that for other folk being fresh into sanding & finishing as I am… before sanding using random orbit sander (ROS) or whatever method you use to sand, keep everything 90 degrees and keep your minimum dimension in mind or even mark it while sanding so you do not over sand until you become comfortable with your sanding experience. My wood working sin for the world to see:
> 
> ...


Holbs, I agree with the others who suggested you square up the edges of the stiles and make new rails to fit the opening. The width is the stiles is not critical and the rails can be cut down to fit a narrower window.

I used to get rounded edges like that (someone told me it is called pillowing) until I started ganging pieces as Willie suggested. Ganging can create issues of its own. I lay the pieces on a flat surface like the table saw top and clamp them together, flip them over and sand the side that was against the table. Since the pieces are 1+" thick, I would only do about 3, maybe 4, at a time because they tend to get a bit unwieldy. Good luck.


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

*Tapered gaps mystery: solved!*

It was my jointer fence all along that gave me gaps between pieces. I'll explain: this is a 8" GeeTec 2001 jointer from the era of 8" clone Taiwan jointers. The fence system is popular and works. However, I guess my "technique" was wrong just enough to not be 90 degrees on jointing edges after jointing face. This fence system is "loose" below mid-level, meaning it can slide a hair inwards more than you want it to because it was designed to rotate 45 degrees for special cuts. I now apply pressure mid and high while straight downwards, instead of my old technique of pushing at a 45 degree angle, putting pressure at the bottom of the fence causing it to flex inwards. Lessons learned. After watching a couple more Charles Neil videos… I now take each individual piece on my table saw cast iron flat top and check for 90 degrees before continuing. Before, I "assumed" the fence being square before starting a project was good enough. Wrong.
old piece with a 1/16" gap at the bottom:










Removed all stops & screws to re-adjust things again:









New piece with squareness:


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## FoundSheep (Feb 24, 2017)

Holbs said:


> *Tapered gaps mystery: solved!*
> 
> It was my jointer fence all along that gave me gaps between pieces. I'll explain: this is a 8" GeeTec 2001 jointer from the era of 8" clone Taiwan jointers. The fence system is popular and works. However, I guess my "technique" was wrong just enough to not be 90 degrees on jointing edges after jointing face. This fence system is "loose" below mid-level, meaning it can slide a hair inwards more than you want it to because it was designed to rotate 45 degrees for special cuts. I now apply pressure mid and high while straight downwards, instead of my old technique of pushing at a 45 degree angle, putting pressure at the bottom of the fence causing it to flex inwards. Lessons learned. After watching a couple more Charles Neil videos… I now take each individual piece on my table saw cast iron flat top and check for 90 degrees before continuing. Before, I "assumed" the fence being square before starting a project was good enough. Wrong.
> old piece with a 1/16" gap at the bottom:
> ...


Oh my! Glad that mystery is solved!


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

*Re-Square window jambs, Charles Neil's trace coating*

Ah…more time to hit up the plantation shutter project after some work & personal time kept me away.
I made a flaw in my window jamb & stool squaring. The sliding story stick was not designed accurately leading me to have over 3/8" gap across 5 feet. Being that there will be 8 plantation shutter frames going in that are only allowed 1/8" gap, this 3/8" gap would not look good. So pulled everything down, de-nailed, and re-squared with 2 long boards & a Quick Clamp to give me square. I am now down under 1/8" total gap and I'm happy.
Next, sanding of pieces. I learned from previous mistake of cutting all pieces to dimension and then sanding. I tried to keep all pieces together where I could and will later cut after sanding. But first, a neat trick learned from Charles Neil that I am becoming to really like as it leaves no doubt in the end that you sanded correctly. Using food coloring to help you sand. See Charles Neil site for more info. I'll have to re-watch his trace coating video as he recommends using a scraper. It was getting late this Saturday night so didn't have time to sharpen my hand scrapers, pulled out my #4 instead and did a quick wonderful job. However, I think the grain is now … compacted? sheared flat? "too smooth" for the next step of putting on Shellac. I experimented on a test piece while the main pieces sit safely out of sight.
And I need better gloves


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

*2nd attempt at sanding pieces: success!*

Very happy at the end results with this batch. 
In previous blog entry, I mentioned I was giving a shot at the "trace coat" sworn by Charles Neil. It really helped to determine when to keep sanding, when to stop sanding. Though, I think I messed up the first board in the beginning by wiping 100% pure red food coloring instead of later boards of diluted water: 80% water / 20% food coloring (or so) to give that "haze" of color instead of rich color. If you are interested in this method, do visit Mr Neil's website for in depth talk and do's and dont's.
I was undecided if using a hand plane would work or using a scraper on the edges. I went hand plane and realized this basswood is finicky with the grain direction. I also added 1/16" addition on the edges when I sent pieces through the table saw knowing I would probably use a hand plane. But either way, I made man-glitter!









I think using a hand plane on the edges would "compact" the fibers so did a light sanding of 240 (really got to order some 180 & 220 soon), also ROS'd carefully the faces with 120 then 240. Broke the edges while I was at it and thank goodness I built this down draft table. Makes a HUGE difference. 
I have learned from my first batch. I fine tuned both my table saw (down to 0.002") and miter saw (0.004" over 12" length) so that everything would end up square. End result: everything is square and correct measurements.
Have to do some light edge sanding from the miter saw cuts tomorrow, but that shouldn't take long. Can finally get to the next step of assembling frames using the Rockler plantation shutter jig hopefully this week.


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## AandCstyle (Mar 21, 2012)

Holbs said:


> *2nd attempt at sanding pieces: success!*
> 
> Very happy at the end results with this batch.
> In previous blog entry, I mentioned I was giving a shot at the "trace coat" sworn by Charles Neil. It really helped to determine when to keep sanding, when to stop sanding. Though, I think I messed up the first board in the beginning by wiping 100% pure red food coloring instead of later boards of diluted water: 80% water / 20% food coloring (or so) to give that "haze" of color instead of rich color. If you are interested in this method, do visit Mr Neil's website for in depth talk and do's and dont's.
> ...


Holbs, the blanks look good. Now, the real fun begins when they will start looking like shutters.


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

Holbs said:


> *2nd attempt at sanding pieces: success!*
> 
> Very happy at the end results with this batch.
> In previous blog entry, I mentioned I was giving a shot at the "trace coat" sworn by Charles Neil. It really helped to determine when to keep sanding, when to stop sanding. Though, I think I messed up the first board in the beginning by wiping 100% pure red food coloring instead of later boards of diluted water: 80% water / 20% food coloring (or so) to give that "haze" of color instead of rich color. If you are interested in this method, do visit Mr Neil's website for in depth talk and do's and dont's.
> ...


Yep. Before continuing, I am researching how best to seal, stain, and protect the basswood frames & louvers. Mind you, everything in the above pictures are for the stiles & rails. I bought Rockler's pre-cut louvers already since they were on sale.
It seems basswood is even more difficult than Knotty Alder! Looking at Japanese burning of wood…


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## FoundSheep (Feb 24, 2017)

Holbs said:


> *2nd attempt at sanding pieces: success!*
> 
> Very happy at the end results with this batch.
> In previous blog entry, I mentioned I was giving a shot at the "trace coat" sworn by Charles Neil. It really helped to determine when to keep sanding, when to stop sanding. Though, I think I messed up the first board in the beginning by wiping 100% pure red food coloring instead of later boards of diluted water: 80% water / 20% food coloring (or so) to give that "haze" of color instead of rich color. If you are interested in this method, do visit Mr Neil's website for in depth talk and do's and dont's.
> ...


Looking good Holbs! Can't wait to see them come together.


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

*Testing of stain, gel, oil, charred, ammonia, and shellac on basswood. For science!*

So here goes my 24 hour test run of different ways to play with basswood. I could only play with what was on hand.

Top board has no sealing done. This is raw basswood sanded to 240.
Bottom board has 2 coats of Shellac sanded to 240 to start off with.

1.) Charred. Top board was charred, brass brushed, wiped with water, then shellac sealed. I was curious to see what happens when you charr shellac. Bottom board was shellac sealed, charred, brass brushed, wiped with water. Who chars shellac? Me  And I really like how it turned out actually.









2.) Behlen Fruitwood Dye. Blotchy on top board. Somewhat ok on bottom board (those white dots are from the aggressive use of my butane torch).









3.) Behlen American Walnut Dye. Same as fruitwood, yet bottom board looks… soothing.









4.) 50/50 combo of fruitwood and walnut dye. Same as above. Kinda like it…Kinda don't.









5.) Old Master's Dark Walnut gel stain (same as I have on my window casing & jambs). Top board..bleh. Bottom board dramatic difference with 2 coats of shellac.









6.) Watco Danish Oil. Have never used this stuff before, but I did have it laying around. So gave it a go. Not much of a difference from natural color.









7.) raw basswood with 2 coats of shellac for comparison:









8.) raw basswood will be sitting in general purchased ammonia fumes for 24 hours to see how it looks tomorrow:









Now everything sits for 24 hours. Shall see what happens.


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## RichT (Oct 14, 2016)

Holbs said:


> *Testing of stain, gel, oil, charred, ammonia, and shellac on basswood. For science!*
> 
> So here goes my 24 hour test run of different ways to play with basswood. I could only play with what was on hand.
> 
> ...


I'm not sure what you're looking for in a final color for the room, but several of those are excellent looking from a general quality of finish standpoint. I think you're going to wind up with some beautiful shutters.


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

Holbs said:


> *Testing of stain, gel, oil, charred, ammonia, and shellac on basswood. For science!*
> 
> So here goes my 24 hour test run of different ways to play with basswood. I could only play with what was on hand.
> 
> ...


Something between white… and black  I am not sure what color I want as the end result. Hence this experiment to see how things look with what I have on hand. For the first 5 minutes, I am leaning towards the shellac, then charring of shellac. Was surprised at that result. Or the gel stain as it will match the window casings. Or just simple shellac. Undecided right now. Really curious how the ammonia fuming turns out too.
Considered trying vinegar and 0000 steel wool method…but I think that takes a full week to sit before trying out.


----------



## AandCstyle (Mar 21, 2012)

Holbs said:


> *Testing of stain, gel, oil, charred, ammonia, and shellac on basswood. For science!*
> 
> So here goes my 24 hour test run of different ways to play with basswood. I could only play with what was on hand.
> 
> ...


Holbs, I don't think basswood has much tannin so the ammonia probably not do much. I will be interested to see if it changes at all.


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

*Rabbets, beads, ammonia basswood, and miter saw accuracy error*

Unsure which to pick though it's down to two finish colors: the 2 coats of Shellac, char, wipe with water or walnut gel stain. Still have time to decide. 
Ran the rails through the dado stack to create rabbets. Setup the router using the supplied Rockler bead bit. Forgot the ammonia "fumed" basswood yesterday evening so this is actually 48 hour result…kinda blandish hue icky. Apparently, I did not setup my Bosch 12" miter saw correctly though I spent 2 hours trying to do just that some weeks ago. Over 20" span, there is a large gap…nearly 1/4". Unacceptable but yet lucky that the rails are tapered outwards instead of inwards. I think I'll just use miter saw for rough cuts for now on and build a table saw sled this weekend.


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## edapp (Jun 27, 2014)

Holbs said:


> *Rabbets, beads, ammonia basswood, and miter saw accuracy error*
> 
> Unsure which to pick though it's down to two finish colors: the 2 coats of Shellac, char, wipe with water or walnut gel stain. Still have time to decide.
> Ran the rails through the dado stack to create rabbets. Setup the router using the supplied Rockler bead bit. Forgot the ammonia "fumed" basswood yesterday evening so this is actually 48 hour result…kinda blandish hue icky. Apparently, I did not setup my Bosch 12" miter saw correctly though I spent 2 hours trying to do just that some weeks ago. Over 20" span, there is a large gap…nearly 1/4". Unacceptable but yet lucky that the rails are tapered outwards instead of inwards. I think I'll just use miter saw for rough cuts for now on and build a table saw sled this weekend.


Have you put a straight edge on the boards? I wouldn't blame that gap solely on the miter saw. If it were the miter saw, you should be able to easily see that amount of error when holding a square to the blade/fence/bed. That would about a full degree off.
My guess is you had some movement at some point after the milling process, and you ought to be able to pull it in during glue up, and maybe use a dowel or other fastener to hold tight.


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

Holbs said:


> *Rabbets, beads, ammonia basswood, and miter saw accuracy error*
> 
> Unsure which to pick though it's down to two finish colors: the 2 coats of Shellac, char, wipe with water or walnut gel stain. Still have time to decide.
> Ran the rails through the dado stack to create rabbets. Setup the router using the supplied Rockler bead bit. Forgot the ammonia "fumed" basswood yesterday evening so this is actually 48 hour result…kinda blandish hue icky. Apparently, I did not setup my Bosch 12" miter saw correctly though I spent 2 hours trying to do just that some weeks ago. Over 20" span, there is a large gap…nearly 1/4". Unacceptable but yet lucky that the rails are tapered outwards instead of inwards. I think I'll just use miter saw for rough cuts for now on and build a table saw sled this weekend.


Yes I could allow that gap and proceed with dowels, glue, and clamping. It would look find in the end. I halted when I found this out, frustrated and needed to take a break. I'll investigate further with squares this weekend but I suspect my miter saw fence as the culprit. 
By my caveman math… This might be a wonderful way to test accuracy of miter saw cuts (or any cut) if you don't have a caliper or accurate measuring tool. Since 4 1/2" width rail board, maybe 4 1/2" divided by the 20" stile span divided by 2 (since using 2 edges) = how much you are off (as long as the 20" stiles are straight). Might try this on some 12" plywood cuts on miter saw to see (longer cuts "should" be easier and accurate than 4 1/2" for the math)


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## edapp (Jun 27, 2014)

Holbs said:


> *Rabbets, beads, ammonia basswood, and miter saw accuracy error*
> 
> Unsure which to pick though it's down to two finish colors: the 2 coats of Shellac, char, wipe with water or walnut gel stain. Still have time to decide.
> Ran the rails through the dado stack to create rabbets. Setup the router using the supplied Rockler bead bit. Forgot the ammonia "fumed" basswood yesterday evening so this is actually 48 hour result…kinda blandish hue icky. Apparently, I did not setup my Bosch 12" miter saw correctly though I spent 2 hours trying to do just that some weeks ago. Over 20" span, there is a large gap…nearly 1/4". Unacceptable but yet lucky that the rails are tapered outwards instead of inwards. I think I'll just use miter saw for rough cuts for now on and build a table saw sled this weekend.


My math was 1 degree over a one foot span would be 1/8th inch, so 1/4 inch over 2'. Anyway that is really the curvature of the board (or the cumulative error of both ends of the rail) so if it is the saw it may be more like 1/2 a degree, which again i would think you would easily see with a good square against the fence/blade or a straightedge along the length of the fence. You will need both of these tools to make a good crosscut sled so might as well check out the miter saw first.


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

Holbs said:


> *Rabbets, beads, ammonia basswood, and miter saw accuracy error*
> 
> Unsure which to pick though it's down to two finish colors: the 2 coats of Shellac, char, wipe with water or walnut gel stain. Still have time to decide.
> Ran the rails through the dado stack to create rabbets. Setup the router using the supplied Rockler bead bit. Forgot the ammonia "fumed" basswood yesterday evening so this is actually 48 hour result…kinda blandish hue icky. Apparently, I did not setup my Bosch 12" miter saw correctly though I spent 2 hours trying to do just that some weeks ago. Over 20" span, there is a large gap…nearly 1/4". Unacceptable but yet lucky that the rails are tapered outwards instead of inwards. I think I'll just use miter saw for rough cuts for now on and build a table saw sled this weekend.


Yep..more checking out this weekend. And I think my math is flawed as well because I made the rail cuts identical, meaning both ends of the rail edges should be identical / parallel to each other giving no gap but being out of square to the other edges. Conundrum. I'll investigate


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

*Drilled dowel holes, applied shellac, charred stiles & rails, wire brushed*

I am using the Rocker 3/8" dowel jig to drill holes in the stiles & rails. I do not like it. Even though I clamped down the jig, it moves 1/32-1/16" during drill operation at times. My next plantation shutter window, I think update and enlarge my router mortise jig and use a plunge router to make holes/floating tenons. But I'm tired of delays so used it to drill over 100 holes today.
I applied 1 coat of shellac, went to store for new propane bottle, used my anti-weed propane torch, and charred the siles & rails (no glue in the dowels as of yet so can take apart). Brushed with wire brush. Then, went to Subway for dinner 
More to come this week.


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## TraylorPark (Jan 9, 2014)

Holbs said:


> *Drilled dowel holes, applied shellac, charred stiles & rails, wire brushed*
> 
> I am using the Rocker 3/8" dowel jig to drill holes in the stiles & rails. I do not like it. Even though I clamped down the jig, it moves 1/32-1/16" during drill operation at times. My next plantation shutter window, I think update and enlarge my router mortise jig and use a plunge router to make holes/floating tenons. But I'm tired of delays so used it to drill over 100 holes today.
> I applied 1 coat of shellac, went to store for new propane bottle, used my anti-weed propane torch, and charred the siles & rails (no glue in the dowels as of yet so can take apart). Brushed with wire brush. Then, went to Subway for dinner
> More to come this week.


Interesting approach. I started reading and thought, oh no he's going to ruin them. However, that last picture looks really really nice. Can't wait to see what it looks like with the top coat on.


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## FoundSheep (Feb 24, 2017)

Holbs said:


> *Drilled dowel holes, applied shellac, charred stiles & rails, wire brushed*
> 
> I am using the Rocker 3/8" dowel jig to drill holes in the stiles & rails. I do not like it. Even though I clamped down the jig, it moves 1/32-1/16" during drill operation at times. My next plantation shutter window, I think update and enlarge my router mortise jig and use a plunge router to make holes/floating tenons. But I'm tired of delays so used it to drill over 100 holes today.
> I applied 1 coat of shellac, went to store for new propane bottle, used my anti-weed propane torch, and charred the siles & rails (no glue in the dowels as of yet so can take apart). Brushed with wire brush. Then, went to Subway for dinner
> More to come this week.


Looking great Holbs,, the char came out awesome


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

*charred & scraped & wiped stiles/rails and louvers.*

I jacked my elbow last month at my day time job giving me some serious tennis elbow I had it once before and it took forever to fade away so I took it easy til I felt it was ok to do the vigorous scraping that I knew would be required. 
Here is Saturday results: everything charred & scraped. *whew*. It's a workout. Almost the same as hand sanding upon MDF. Gots the frames cleaned up and the louvers. In one of the pictures below, you can see the difference between a charred surface and a scraped with wire brush surface.


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## FoundSheep (Feb 24, 2017)

Holbs said:


> *charred & scraped & wiped stiles/rails and louvers.*
> 
> I jacked my elbow last month at my day time job giving me some serious tennis elbow I had it once before and it took forever to fade away so I took it easy til I felt it was ok to do the vigorous scraping that I knew would be required.
> Here is Saturday results: everything charred & scraped. *whew*. It's a workout. Almost the same as hand sanding upon MDF. Gots the frames cleaned up and the louvers. In one of the pictures below, you can see the difference between a charred surface and a scraped with wire brush surface.


I love the color in the last picture, they will look very nice once installed.


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

*Stiles, Rails, Louvers: all assembled ready for HVLP'ing*

Finally had time to assemble the stiles, rails, and louvers into my 8 section plantation shutter project, after a number of months tackling other life issues.
Some things learned up to this point:
1.) purchasing slats from Rockler has it's advantages and disadvantages. The advantage is apparent in that you do not have to mill your own slats. The disadvantage is you do not mill your own slats  I ordered the slats from Rockler and they came 4'1"+/- x 6 pieces. Well, not all the pieces were dimensioned to each other. Meaning, they were to be all 3 1/2" tall but some were 1/8" to large or 1/8" too small. I may try to mill my own slats next time to have them all identical.
2.) I used the Rockler plantation shutter jigs plus dowel jig. The louver/slat jig works great for drilling holes. The jig to drill the holes in the ends of the slats… I'm off 1/16" - 1/8" which I believe is due to the inconsistent dimension from 6 pieces so can't blame this jig (yet). The dowel jig, eh… I wouldn't use it again. Sure, it's hard plastic and you can clamp it down using a single clamp… but we all know when you put torque on anything that is held down with a single clamp, things move. I tried to go perpendicular/ 90 degrees with my hand held drill so maybe it was user error. Next time, I'll use my router mortise jig for making accurate lined up holes.
3.) charring basswood. I really like how this turned out. I went "light" charring on the stiles & rails, more heavier on the slats. Learned, the slats char and burn away material on the edges too easily so next time to be careful, as you can see in the picture below.

Still have to do the front bar & holes and then mouse hole for the bar. Then, hvlp. Then, hinges and final installation.


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

*first shellac coat applied *

Now with my saw bench completed and before I start on joinery bench, I best finish my plantation shutter project. I needed a way to vertically hang my 8 shutters while drying. I saw this at a local auction and won it: a portable breakdown'able laundry hanger. Made hooks with my jack chain and 30lb fishing line. It works! Tried out the spray tent which also collapses to a small footprint. Lots of backspray as I did not have the back flap open but with garage door and man door open, cleared out the backspray quickly. 
Found an irritating issue about sanding the first coat of shellac: I kept bumping the vertical hand piece of the shutters and having those little metal inserts pop out of their holes. Now the holes are damaged. Grr… unsure what to do about it tonite but will think on it.
Comparing the first coat of Zinsser Sealcoat shellac with my plantation shutters and window casings: these shutters sure were dry…sucked down almost a full pint just for first coat with HVLP sprayer. Don't remember the window casings taking so much even though I wiped on.



























============
before sanding:









============
after sanding with 400grit:


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## Holbs (Nov 4, 2012)

*4 light coats of Sealcoat Shellac and all 8 frames. Looking mighty purdy.*

I used my Capspray 9100 4 turbine HVLP and gun for the first time spraying Sealcoat shellac onto my frames. I have learned, I have much to learn about spraying! It's easy to spray a 3" straight piece as I did for my window frame parts, but spraying a large area piece is a challenge for the first time. Experience will hopefully fix that. I tried to hang each frame in the backyard on a post but the actual pressure from the spray gun kept knocking it around until I braced the piece with my free hand wearing gloves. That helped but still did not feel ideal. In the end, 2 light and 2 medium coats applied with no sanding in between. As they stand, they do not look too shabby. My 5th coat, I was thinking on doing the cheesecloth, DNA, shellac by hand route… akin to French Polish without the pumice or more than 1 layer. And then deciding polyurethane or not. I am thinking not, maybe.
I am really liking how the charred basswood is coming along with the texture and look.


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