The Shed - Projects

Create a coffee table

1 September 2022

Making an item of furniture does not have to be the daunting task it can seem. If you look closely at commercial pieces, you’ll notice that they share common concepts, and they are simple concepts at that. I’m not suggesting you suddenly choose to give away purchasing furniture and make all your own but making one or two items can become real statement pieces. Perhaps a hall table, or in this case, a small coffee table.
For this project, instead of choosing a basic option of joining a few narrow boards side-by-side to create a solid top, I chose to try a technique I haven’t used before – using wedges of timber to create a radial effect. For your top, you certainly do not have to go this far, and you can choose to have a solid top (these can even be purchased pre-made), or even a solid slab (with or without a natural edge)

Spinning wheel

20 July 2022

While we are rather spoilt these days for ready sources of energy, it was once a matter of harvesting what was available in the local environment. More often than not, what was available was a stream or river, and so the workshop was built on the riverbank and the harvesting was achieved by a water wheel.
I’ve always been rather taken by the concept of water wheels (and other mechanical devices that harvest energy from nature), and have been intending to make a small one of my own, even if it was just to be a garden ornamental feature.

Build a grandfather clock case

29 June 2022

I had always wanted to build a grandfather clock case and was given the incentive when a client gave me the a modern clock mechanism and a photocopy of a reproduction of an English Tall Case clock to follow. I had to increase the plan dimensions to fit the mechanism, ash wood was chosen and I ended up with 23 metres of approximately 200 x 25mm rough-sawn at an average length of 2.4 metres costing just under $300.
This is not the ideal style of clock case for anything other than an antique clock mechanism. In modern clock mechanisms, the pendulum swing (which should always be tested) needs a straight-waisted trunk style of clock. However, this project has been done to the requirements.

How to steam bend wood

5 May 2022

This project to make a stool was developed as a way of introducing students to a number of basic
wood-bending and shaping techniques, whilst also giving experience in several useful applications of the router.
The stool consists of two legs in the form of continuous steam-bent hoops or arches, which are housed into matching radiused slots at either end of a curved seat. The legs are stiffened by the addition of smaller arches that fit between them and the centre underside of the seat. For the purposes of this article, I am going to focus on the steam-bending aspect involving the legs as that is the technique that woodworkers seem the most reluctant to try.

Making your own campervan

7 April 2022

Converting an ordinary van into a campervan is a project I have been talking about for some time.
As a retired technical teacher, I felt I had the necessary skills, and when a 2005 Kia Pregio van in excellent condition became available I decided to take the plunge.
The van is a 2.7 litre diesel, manual, with 26,000 km on the clock and a cargo space of 2.8 metres x 1.65 metres. My plan was to fit the space with two beds, one on each side. They can be expanded to a full-width bed using the foam backs of the seats supported on shortboards between the sides of the seats.

Create this outdoor table using a chainsaw

23 March 2022

This design for a macrocarpa slab table is a general design. There are variations and you could do the legs of the table differently, but the general rule is to keep it simple. My old man used macrocarpa for fence posts years ago and they’re still in good condition.
When I was cross-cutting, it didn’t take much to find out I liked macrocarpa. It has a lovely grain and I like working with softwood. It’s a softwood until it’s been sitting around for a year – that hardens it up.

Making a classic claw setting

25 February 2022

This classic ring is called a six-claw, Tiffany-style single-stone setting and is the simplest of our school’s solitaire-diamond ring designs with a claw setting. The “Tiffany” label comes from the famed American jewellery house which boasted that its diamonds were of such quality that they did not need to place them in fancy settings.
As a design for round gems, this is just about as basic as one can get.

Build these honeyed Macrocarpa bar stools

19 January 2022

I use dowelling for ease of construction, measuring and cutting as I go, and joining them to the stool with PVA glue. Place the dowels off-centre on the end of the rails, to avoid hitting the dowels coming into the legs at right angles.
The front and rear sections of the stool are put together separately then joined.

Build your own robot arm

15 November 2021

This article is all about building your own Meccano version of a robot that can be programmed to work just like the big fellas – and you can learn just how challenging real-world robots are to control. The robot arm can be programmed to move small objects from one place to another. It can reach, grab, lift and swivel.

Making a classic chair

27 October 2021

The Red Blue chair, designed in 1917 by Gerrit Rietveld, has become one of the most discussed chairs of all time.
It’s not too difficult to make this as a classic chair as it’s all straight boards, but the dimensions and placement are critical.

A DIY farm gate

14 October 2021

The classic New Zealand five-bar farm gate is not too difficult to make on-site when you need a new one. Few people might consider building farm gates, but they can be costly and heritage gates are quite expensive so it might be worth it to build your own.

A road case to go

7 October 2021

The photography department here at The Shed required a means to contain and move all our
studio lights as simply as possible.
The collection of lights and accessories is growing and it made sense to keep them all in a road case for transport and organisation. This I thought would also be a good opportunity to build a case
and might be a basis for those who need to make other custom cases for sound gear, tools, or guns.

Create a sterling silver pendant

23 September 2021

You might well think a charming silver pendant is something best left to a professional, a master craftsman – and not a DIY project for your shed. But that does not mean you can’t make an impressive piece of jewelry, so long as you take a logical and careful approach.

Make a handy English wheel

14 September 2021

So it was time to start fabricating my own parts and for that I would need a so-called English wheel machine to mould the tank, guards, seat pan etc. But buying such a machine was “off the budget” as they come with a hefty price tag.
The next option was to build one. With not a lot of plans available, I could see that I’d have some homework to do.

Elegant planter box on a tablesaw

18 August 2021

The “Leader of the Opposition” has pointed me to the great outdoors and is making noises about things to house the shrubbery that materialises from the garden centre every weekend

Projects