I am builing a crib for our 1st grandchild, almost done, looks great. I followed a plan, but the plan has some holes. It is designed to be doweled and glued in the end, which is not what I want to do. I want the abilty to break it down when done as it is quite large and heavy (it has two built in drawers and a very small cabinet).
My problem is the top rail that runs the length of the crib. I want an invisible joint that I can breakdown. The top rail attaches to an upright leg.
I am torn, I may go with a loose tenon and drive a dowel through to hold it in place. The dowel isn’t invisible, but could be attractive. But that is a lot of work.
I would prefer a fastener. A could use a teenut too, but I am worried about driving into birch? Will that work?
Any better ideas?
Replies
How about counter boring a hole and screwing it together and the putting a button in the hole as a decoration and cover for the screw. The wooden button could be held in with a tap fit is you slightly under size the counter bored hole. Some buttons you buy come with a tapered stem.
Edited 4/12/2009 3:23 pm ET by mrbird90
Riden,
Got a photo? I have built two cradles. Built both using furniture bolts/barrel nuts so they break down for storage. The photo would help me understand more specifically what your joint is.
They are a lot of work for a few months of use -- until I heard about someone else like us (woodworking grandfathers) who used the cradle, after the baby grew out of it, in their living room for magazines, etc.
Alan - planesaw
This project was fun, but a pile of work. I kinda placed boxes around the joints in question.
View Image
Riden,
This is the second cradle I made. For my son's first-born. My daughter-in-law chose the design and I modified it come be taken apart. Used "furniture-bolts." You can see them in the photo. It was put back together about a month ago for their second child.
Alan - planesaw
That is a fine looking cradle, do you think those furniture bolts will stand up to a toddler climbing in and out and shaking the bars like a little convict?
Riden,
Well, it's not designed for a toddler to climb in and out. It is designed as a cradle for an infant. When the infant can get up on its hands an knees, then it is time for the kid to get a a baby bed with high sides.
Now, will it hold up to some shaking and climbing? Yes. Abuse would eventually create a bit of a problem. And, if I was going to improve it to take shaking and climbing, then I would probably cut a mortise where the siderails hit the ends, to let the siderails go into the mortise (only about a 1/4 inch would be necessary) cut into the end pieces.
Your bed will hold the kid much longer than a cradle. Which, although each of my children asked for a cradle for their first borns, in hindsight, I might have tried to talk them into a baby bed which would have been used considerably longer.
But, I have no regrets. Each cradle has/is being used at least twice.
Looks like Mike might have an idea in response to your original question.
Alan - planesaw
Mike's idea is a good one.
I have designed this crib so it can be changed to a toddler bed when they outgrow it.
Agreed. Once I got a picture in my mind of what Mike was suggesting, I realized his concept is almost identical to the baby bed my dad built for me. And, after me, it held not only my two sisters, but was loaned out to young families for the next 20 plus years. Probably used by about 15 to 20 others over that time.
In a nutshell, think of a typical baby bed you see today. However, think full 3/4 inch plywood ends. Think four drawers, two to the left and two to the right, in the space below the mattress. Then, vertical grooves/dados in the ends where the railing would slide up and down.
Dad had a full railing on the back side and two half-height railings on the front side. While the the kid is still an infant (no crawling or pulling up) you had the lower half of the railing in. Made it much easier for the mother to lean over to take care of the baby. Then, once the baby starts sitting up / pulling up, you put in the top half of the railing. You could even move the two half-height railings to the backside and the full railing to the front. That way, if a kid was a climber, the would be against the wall.
Now, today, OSHA would never approve that design. But, it worked. No kids were hurt, fell out, climbed out, etc.
Dad would certainly like your design as it makes good use of space and has on-board storage.
Alan - planesaw
Edited 4/14/2009 11:46 am ET by Planesaw
Invisible, huh?
In that case, I think I'd design the whole front (top & bottom rails & bars) as a unit that slides into a groove in the legs from the top. Then I'd secure the whole deal with screws into the bottom rail from inside the drawer spaces. If you're worried about lateral stability of the legs, I'd make the groove a dovetail, at least at the top.
Mike HennessyPittsburgh, PA
After reading the title of your post, I thought "Dang, these kids are starting young in woodworking!!"
Kieran
lol
Any better ideas..
Yes BUT I cannot find a link to the hardware. As in.. like the hardware that holds a wood saw handle to it's blade. Captured but removable..
Make sense? I hope so!
Edit:
our 1st grandchild.. And I hope not the last new baby you will BOND with forever.
There is NOTHING like a Baby in your arms!
Edited 4/14/2009 4:05 am by WillGeorge
In Issue #100 of FWW on page 72 there is an article entitled Crib Hides Hardware by Bradley S. Rubin. He used heavy duty drawer slides. Not sure if that might be an option for you. The article is quite detailed about its construction.
Regards,
Bob @ Kidderville Acres
A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!
I am not a experienced woodworker by any means but i have been doing alot of reading on the subject. Ill read a little and go out in the shop and practice what ive read. The other day I was looking for information on sliding dovetails and ran into an article that uses the sliding dovetail in conjuction with a straight mortise to lock two large pieces together to build large case furniture such as a china cabinet. he basically cut a dovetail dado in his bottom case that was a few inches long and squared half of it off, then he cut the dado keys in his top and matched where the portion of the key that would correspond with the dovetailed dado and cut all but that portion of the key back off square. He ended up with a top that would drop the dado key into the mortise and slide back and lock into the dovetail. it seems to me that this concept could be incorporated into a crib fairly easily and if done correctly would not show through and would be plenty strong.
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