Frank Pellow
Member
- Messages
- 2,332
- Location
- Toronto, Ontario, CANADA
Isla, my 7 year old granddaughter, is very interested in the construction of buildings and, while she and I were sitting in our refurbished garden this week, it struck both of us that she could use the old cedar boards from the fence that I recently tore down to make “forts”, “playhouses” and other such structures. We put together a quick prototype in the shop and it worked.
Here is a photo of a portion of the fence taken earlier this spring before I tore it down:
The fence is 33 years old and the boards are cedar. They are in reasonably good shape.
I decided to make a “construction kit” of parts that could be put up and torn down at will. The basic idea for the parts comes from my Pan Abode cedar cabin that I assembled on Pellow’s Island thirty one years ago.
Thirty three years has resulted in some wear and tear and there are some cracks, missing knots, and nail holes, so I decided to glue and screw two boards together to make the parts. The boards were planed on one side then glued with waterproof glue and clamped:
Next the boards were planed on the exterior to a uniform depth (32 mm), to a uniform width (130 mm), and to one of several “standard” lengths. Next, two or four notches (depending on the part) were cut into each part using a jig saw. Depending on the parts, one to three stainless steel screws were inserted. The notches are 38mm wide which gives some play allowing children to easily put them together and take them apart.
The next step was to fill various holes in the part with Bondo auto body filler then to sand it. I will also round all the edges with round-over bit then paint each board with a couple of coats of spar varnish –but have not yet done so. Here is a photo of a typical part:
Here are the parts that have been produced so far:
And here they are assembled into a couple of typical configurations:
I need to make a LOT more of the parts that have already been designed and Isla and I have to design something for windows, doors, and roofs. Stay tuned!
Here is a photo of a portion of the fence taken earlier this spring before I tore it down:
The fence is 33 years old and the boards are cedar. They are in reasonably good shape.
I decided to make a “construction kit” of parts that could be put up and torn down at will. The basic idea for the parts comes from my Pan Abode cedar cabin that I assembled on Pellow’s Island thirty one years ago.
Thirty three years has resulted in some wear and tear and there are some cracks, missing knots, and nail holes, so I decided to glue and screw two boards together to make the parts. The boards were planed on one side then glued with waterproof glue and clamped:
Next the boards were planed on the exterior to a uniform depth (32 mm), to a uniform width (130 mm), and to one of several “standard” lengths. Next, two or four notches (depending on the part) were cut into each part using a jig saw. Depending on the parts, one to three stainless steel screws were inserted. The notches are 38mm wide which gives some play allowing children to easily put them together and take them apart.
The next step was to fill various holes in the part with Bondo auto body filler then to sand it. I will also round all the edges with round-over bit then paint each board with a couple of coats of spar varnish –but have not yet done so. Here is a photo of a typical part:
Here are the parts that have been produced so far:
And here they are assembled into a couple of typical configurations:
I need to make a LOT more of the parts that have already been designed and Isla and I have to design something for windows, doors, and roofs. Stay tuned!