One for the new woodworkers - Simple 1 hour project - DONE

Hudson Carpentry · 19 Jul 2011

Well after needing an adjustable stand for my projector, I thought up a design thats basic and quick to make but while I was cutting the pieces I thought what a simple project this would make for someone thats new to wood working. Its cheap, useful around the workshop and gives you a change to try a lap joint.

Its basically a small adjustable platform that would be useful around the workshop to support material while at machines and with a few mods it could be a tool trolley or even a platform to hold your work up while you spray/paint/finish it.

All you need material wise is MDF, 12mm or thicker. Although I have used a bit of redwood also. A bolt, 2 penny washers and wing nut (in my case 2 wing nuts and some threaded bar).

If you follow my sizes then you will need a M8 bolt or M8 threaded rod around 75mm long. If you ask me, using threaded rod and 2 wing nuts is better as it prevents the possibly of the bolt head from just spinning while trying to tighten to wing nut. Also all these sizes are for 12mm MDF, if you want to use a thicker material then you will need add and subtract the difference where necessary.

For my projector I needed a total height of around 130cm so I cut all lengths to 76cm. Ok no I didn't that was just the length of the piece of crap I found to make this stand from :lol: For workshop use lengths of 55-65cm Would be better.

Widths
2x 26mm
2x 50mm
2x 51mm
2x 75mm

Grab the 26mm's and the 50mm's, some wood glue, a brad nailer if your lucky enough to have one with 30mm brads, drill with 3-4mm wood bit, some 4x30mm screws, a counter sink and No. 2 Posidrive screwdriver (or bit for drill/driver). We are going to make these into a square box section.

The wider lengths fit over the ends of the 26mm lengths. Apply the glue, line up the ends and use a few brads to hold the pieces together while you drill pilot holes and counter sink for the screws. If you don't have a brad nailer you could use panel pins, clamps or just wing it (hammer) .

Sorry about the blury imagin, it looked fine on the camera screen ...... honest

Do the same to all 4 pieces till you have your square box section 50x50mm. Choose which ever is the poorly aligned end

if one. Turn the piece so that one of the wider lengths is facing up, measure 70mm up from the end and 25mm in from the side marking with a pencil. Use a 8mm wood bit to drill a hole through your mark but only go through the one side. Turn over and do the same to the opposite side.

The reason you don't do both holes in one is for accuracy. With the 26mm void you may rock the drill unaware making the other hole a few mm off and at an angle.

Push your rod through to make sure its a good fit.

The next part we need to make a slot for the threaded bar to run in. The best way would have been a router table or even a handhold router but as I couldn't be bothered to set either up or even the bandsaw I used a table saw, drill and hand saw. Thinking about it if you wanted to practice cutting straight lines with a saw you could cut these slots by hand. As I used a table saw ill talk you through this way.

Take the 2 lengths at 75mm wide. Select an end and measure 70mm up and .... yes you guessed it .... 37.5mm in from the side. Use the 8mm drill the holes. If you have one a 10mm would be better. I do but didn't because I couldn't be bothered to change bits #-o see a pattern? :roll: :lol: Set the TS fence to 32 mm and run the length into the blade starting at the opposite end to your hole. Stop when you are 2 inch away from the hole. Reason being is the round blade under the piece will cut further then you can see. Flip the length repeat.

After finishing the cut with a hand saw you should have something like this:

Once you have done the other length make these and the 51mm bits into a box section the same way as the other. The reason we cut the larger lengths 1mm larger then required is to leave a little room for slight misalignment and a smooth non stiff action.

You might be tempted at this stage to slide the smaller box length into the larger one. Please do but don't force it if its stiff and do not leave it inside for long or they will never part again from access glue. If its stiff just sand the smaller box section down a little.

You should now have:

Anyhow im up to the attachment limit (i think) so ill continue in the next post.

Hudson Carpentry · 19 Jul 2011

Next you can practice cutting straight lines or just use a TS while we cut the top. I used 18mm MDF just because thats what was about in the scraps pile. 12mm will be fine. I cut mine to 13x11" as thats the foot print of the projector. You can make yours any size really but don't go over board. 15x15" is about the max I would go for this stand.

Find the centre by marking from corner to corner, then measure 25mm from the centre towards each end and then finally connect to make the square.

6mm in from each line drill a pilot hole, Turn over the top and use a counter sink. Drill the holes centre of the line not at the corners otherwise when you join to the box section you will brake out the MDF by hitting your other screws.

Finally align the top to the 50x50 box section using the box your drawn, drill pilot holes into the box section and then use 4x40mm screws and glue to join.

Now for the feet. You can do these by laminating some MDF lengths. I used some redwood as again it was just laying around. I would like to say you need to cut two lengths of 365mm but that was just half of the scrap I found

Anyhow this is 38x32 stock if you wanted to work with what I did.

Now for the Half Lap Joint. Challenge yourself to do it all by hand. Its easy to use the trenching feature on a sliding mitre saw but to do it by hand is a good challenge for a new woodworker.

We need to make the two lengths into a cross.
This is hard to explain in words so ill refer to the image. Draw a centre line down the end grain of one length and then a centre line across the centre point for the other length (gray lines in image). You then line these up which gives you the place to mark for the cheek cut for the joint (red lines).

Once you have these lines on one you can transfer them to the other length. Also place a mark half way down the side so you know how far to cut down.

Make the cheek cuts first then make incrementing cuts in between down to the half way line. Aim for about cuts 5mm apart.

More to follow...

Hudson Carpentry · 19 Jul 2011

Once you have your cuts you simply use a hammer to snap the "fins" out.

Which you end up with something like this:

Always slicing along the grain you then clean this up with a sharp chisel, guess why I used a blunt one :wink:

Be careful not to brake out the side like I did

Once you have done both, dry fit them and keep feckling with them if there not perfect. You don't need to keep removing more from both joints unless its a massive amount. You can remove material from the one till they fit flush. More so if your joint is right on a knot like mine was :evil: Anyway you end up with this.

You fit the feet to the larger box section the same way. Although I just aligned them to the centre by eyeball.

If you was wondering what that line was on the foot that i scribbled out. Quite obviously

it was to mark where to put that screw :lol:

Out of photo space again. await next post.

Hudson Carpentry · 19 Jul 2011

Next we slide the small box into the big box. Then up then down, what does that remind you off :roll: see woodworkings fun if your immature :lol: This also now hides that poorly aligned box end if you had one.

You will notice that due to the slots its not to tight and the smaller box wobbles about in the larger box. This is way using a router would be better as you wouldn't have to cut all the way through leaving some material to bridge the gap. To combat this we will but a bridging piece in. I am using same bits of maple I had in the scrap bin. Using glue and brads to join. You can use anything but if you screw fix make sure you pilot to prevent brake out.

I don't need mine to look pretty it just needs to be fit for purpose. Yours could be made to look far nicer.

If your like me and brought a 1m of threaded bar you will now need to cut it down. I used bolt croppers but a hacksaw or jigsaw would do it. Either method normally means you have to file the ends down to blunt them and file the thread so you can get a nut on. Bugger that, file the sharp bits off then before inserting the rod into the holes twist on a wing nut the wrong way around from the good end and then a washer. Now insert the rod and attach the other washer and wing nut and tighten.

Stand back and admire your work.

You could take this chance to make some nice shaped feet or even a profile around the top.

Well I hope you find this helpful/useful. It taken longer to write then it did to make.