Thread: My school project

You get to design stuff?! Lucky!



Also; Use mm not cm, Solid timber not Mdf, and pencil works better than texta.


But it looks like a pretty nice design - just make sure the legs can hold the weight.



Mr Grade 10,
Funky C

Lmfao yes i used pencil and i just went over it for the teacher And i thought it would of been best to have MDF on the side. But you suggest its not.

After i get some ideas of what sort of wood and all that to use i might do the plans again but do them neater and do them all in pencil and not go over them with texta.

And i was planning a thick bit of MDF for the shelves but then what would be the best way to stick the wood onto the legs etc. Just so its all together properly and the shelf is strong

Looking good DarkWolfz.

Choosing between MDF and solid timber is decided upon by:

1. How much money you have. Timber costs a lot more and is harder to work than MDF.
2. What finish you are after. Timber looks great when varnished/polished so you can see the grain, but if it's going to be painted a solid colour or laminated with Laminex then MDF is the way to go.
3. It's very hard to get large flat surfaces in solid timber, but easy with MDF.

I am going to assume you're making this out of MDF.
I'd use 25mm think MDF but you could also make it from 16 or 18mm MDF. If you wanted thicker parts then you could glue two pieces of 16mm MDF face to face and then cut them to size afterward. Thin pieces of MDF on medium to large objects looks cheap and nasty.

And, young year 9 man, it's nearly 11pm.... turn off the PC and get some sleep

Yeah when its finished I'm going to varnish it and i just decided ill use timber for the whole thing. If i used MDF i would only of used it for the top of the shelf and both of the sides then i could of just screwed the CD/DVD rack onto it.

And i might use Oregon for the legs because its supposed to be nice and strong lol

But what should i use for the rest? Like treated pine or what?

And what should i use for the top?

Originally Posted by DarkWolfz

...

And i might use Oregon for the legs because its supposed to be nice and strong lol

But what should i use for the rest? Like treated pine or what?

And what should i use for the top?

DW,
Please steer clear of the treated pine. You have a range of options, starting with basic pine which is cheap and easy, then moving up to Tas Oak which will cost a bit more and is a bit harder to work but still creates nice furniture. Another avenue is use solid wood flooring which will open up a lot of other species of timber to you. Bunnings usually have a few species of solid wood flooring. Check out timber millers and if your school has thicknessing equipment then buying rough sawn will save you some $$$ too.

Good luck and keep us posted.

Corbs

If you are using solid timber then do not use treated pine.
Take note of what Corbs has to say.
Also look for recycled timber - demo yards etc.
You mignt also get a few Brownie points for recycling.
All the best.

So whats good wood thats better than Treated Pine and doesn't cost a heap. Because whatever wood i get I'm going to have to order it at the local hardware and just run it through the school. They pay for it and when I'm done i pay for it.

And why not treated pine? or normal pine? Or are you just saying no to treated pine

And I'm in the process of re-doing all the plans. In gray lead. In Millimeters. And heaps neater

Treated pine is only for outdoor use and contains some pretty serious chemicals. There is nothing wrong with using normal pine, its probably where a large percentage of the woodies on these forums started. Its cheap, easy to work with and structurally sound. Have you considered using ply or veneered MDF? Sheets of the stuff are usually relatively cheap and will reduce the amount of panel glue ups significantly. There is a pretty big range of veneers available which can make some spectacular furniture. Good luck and keep the questions coming... and good idea re-doing plans in pencil & mm.

Corbs

hey so you are in year 9 or 10?? i am in year 12 doing 2 major works, and that is good you are given the chance to desing and construct your own project. it will prepare you for the major work in year 12 (if you do woodwork). treated pine is not recommended as it is for outdoor use, that is why it is treated to help prevent rot, and it doenst look very nice.

i would personally recommend radiata or hooop pine. they look nice, arent to expensive, and easy to work with. any mistakes that are made can be fixed cheaply as it is a cheaper timber.

i am using tassie oak for one of my projects (workbench) and jarrah (chair) for the other. but they cost abit more.

have fun, and i hope you do year 12 woodwork, and maybe i can give you a copy of my portflio (sofar 50pages, with about 70 more to go.lol, it is hard work).

good luck

Rhys

dam i posted a few minutes to late, corbs beat me to most of my info, lol.

G'day again Dark one.
Take Note of Corbs. No need for me to repeat his advice.
Now back to my original post. Ballarat is a pretty big place. Surely there are places around there where you can get second hand or recycled timber. Check that out first and get prices, the get prices of new timber and compare the two. Now hop to it!

Lol thanks i will probably use pine. But would it be strong enough to support a big TV etc?

Rhys Cooper i probably will go through to year 12 and i will definitely do woodwork. I'm planning a career in carpentry so the teacher can help me out and all that

and artme I actually live in Beaufort i only put Ballarat in because alot of the time people don't know where Beaufort is. Beaufort is 40min or so out from Ballarat

Re-done my plans. Both pages were done on graph paper for some reason the 1st one the graph paper didn't show up. So i don't know what was going on Its looks neater on paper lol.

All measurements are in Millimeters lol

But thats what I'm going to build


http://i179.photobucket.com/albums/w...zzz/img012.jpg

http://i179.photobucket.com/albums/w...zzz/img010.jpg

DW,
Just looking at your drawing dimensions & your top is 1200, left & right DVD racks are showing as 200 with what looks like your middle section @ 800. If this is the case then your design does not take into account the dimensions of the main supports. When I do my plans for construction I usually draw to scale and draw the materials being used into the plan.

In your case, assuming you are using 19mm pine then your DVD racks @ 200 (outside to outside) will have an inside diameter of 162mm. This is also the case for the other dimensions. I usually make plans after I have decided what materials I am going to use. Have an idea of what to make and quantities required to achieve objective but make it fluid enough to accodate any possible issues with sourcing materials. If you look at 19mm pine for most of the cabinet and use 32mm for the supports I don't think you will have any structural issues but there are much better woodies on these forums who should correct me if I am wrong (I usually over engineer).

I really like the concept of your plan and think if you do it properly will make an exceptional piece of furniture but take your time in the early stages or you will have potential problems down the track.

Keep us posted,
Corbs
(That was longer than I originally intended)