Coffin Design and Construction?

[kenneth cooke]

Kenneth,
Im sure woodworking plans and projects magazine had an article on building your own coffin a few months ago.

Good luck

Joe

Yes They did!
If you would like a copy of the article & Plans let me know.

Thank you but see above I think I may not be carrying out the project. Good job I hadn't ordered the wood but I do so love Elm

 

[tenpin]

Kenneth,
Im sure woodworking plans and projects magazine had an article on building your own coffin a few months ago.
Joe

correct, i have that copy and it also came with a full set of plans to build one

 

[Pekka Huhta]

I have made one coffin together with my friend. He asked me to help him to build a coffin for his baby, and we made the coffin together. It was a long night with more silence than talk, more silent thoughts than words and more sharing than either the silence or words could describe. It was an honour to do it with him, I'm glad that he asked me to help him.

Around here pretty many people build their own coffins or urns. There are courses to teach it, and although it sounds a bit macabre, it makes death feel much lighter, just as a thing that happens to everyone. Although no-one wats to think of it, the death rate is flat 100% within time

I have promised to build the coffins for my parents and the family members who leave before me, and I have wood seasoning in the attic just for it. I don't see that as a death wish or a bad thing. Just as a last service to the ones I love.

Around here there is still a habit that the family members may go to the hospital after someone is deceased, wash him and prepare him for putting to the coffin. I don't know how it sounds to other people, but it really makes it easier to understand what happened - that someone is really away. Most of the time the biggest step in al is to really undesrstand that someone is away.


It seems that I got carried away a bit. The original poster probably won't have much use for the coffin of a 0-year old :?

It's a good idea to build your own coffin, go for it.

Pekka

 

[frank]

i was thinking of a flat pack coffin all sliding dovetails,to hold it together .and putting some dye in side so when they burn me,the smoke from the crem will be coloured. what colour is it for the pope. :twisted: :twisted:

 

[Digit]

White smoke for an successful election, black if the ballot is inconclusive.

As opposed to DIY coffins how about...

http://www.wickerwillowcoffins.co.uk/

Roy.

 

[johnf]

I made a casket for my fathers ashes and we buried them similar to a coffin.
here is a photo

everyone was pleased with the results[/img]

 

[BradNaylor]

I think you'll find that this is how coffins are put together commercially

http://www.gibbsfinishing.com/gibbs/cla ... logy.shtml

I suspect that a couple of biscuits in each joint is more than enough to hold the thing together. Glued butt joints would probably do it with a sophisticated clamping system like this.

Talking of buddhists though, I remember seeing a documentary about some buddhists in the Himalayas who simply lay out their dead on rocks and wait for the vultures to pick the bones clean.

I kind of like the idea of that.

I don't know what my local council would have to say, though!

Dan

 

[marcus]

Seems like tempting fate to me :wink:

 

[pren]

I've actually been thinking about this alot since my last post.

I've never really taken myself seriously, so I wouldn't want to start at my funeral. I do like the idea of making my own coffin. If I can sort things out for myself ahead of time, taking the burden off my friends, then I will.

I quite like the thought of having loads of photos of me and my friends covering the outside if my coffin. Shows how much I thought of them.

Also, possibly have a white space left for friends to leave messages. Not much use for me, but perhaps might be cathartic for them?

Hmm.