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| Rocket shelf |
| If your kids dream of being astronauts and travelling into space, make them their own rocket shelf so they can head for the stars without leaving the bedroom. |
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All this fun shelf needs is a coat of bright rocket red paint, some orange flames and it's ready for blast off.
STEP BY STEP
1. Cut all pieces to size as per cutting list.
2. Divide one of the end pieces into squares 100mm high and 90mm wide.
3. Reproduce the shape of the rocket on to the full size piece by using the corresponding squares and scaled down drawing supplied.
4. Use a jigsaw to cut out the shape of the side. Carefully cut just outside the line and if your jigsaw has variable speed, slow it down so you have more control.
5. Sand and clean up the shape to the lines.
6. Use the completed side as a pattern and trace around the shape to make the other side. Remember to make one left hand side and one right hand.
7. Continue to cut out opposite side, then sand and clean to the lines.
8. Mark out the position of the shelves and pre-drill holes. Remember to keep the sides in pairs.
9. Clamp the workpiece securely to the bench, rounding the top and bottom of the front edges of the shelves using a router. Also round off the bottom front edge only of the fixing rails.
10. Glue and screw the shelves to the ends using decorative cap washers (these give the screw head more surface area in contact with the end). The cap simply snaps over the washer, finishes off the screw head and gives it a much neater look.
11. Screw the fixing rail pieces to the large shelves. Screw the 16mm dowel between the ends at the bottom, one at the front and the other at the back.
12. Cut a small block with 30° angles on each end for the top point. Drill an 8mm hole into top of block, avoiding the fixing screws.
13. Drill an 8mm hole all the way through the wooden ball. This will need to be secured in a vice or homemade jig to prevent the ball from moving while drilling. If you have access to a drill press, you will find a hole in the middle of the table that allows the ball to sit tightly. Never attempt to drill the ball while holding it in your hand. To make a jig that securely holds the ball while drilling, make a small box, and drill a hole in the top slightly smaller than the diameter of the ball — the ball will sit snugly, allowing you to drill through.
14. Slide the 8mm dowel through the ball. Make sure the length of dowel protruding past the ball is equal to the depth of the hole drilled into the block.
15. Glue the ball and dowel in place. Bend the ends of unit towards the centre, meeting the block, then screw and glue in position.
16. Drill decorative holes in the ends, then sand the rocket shelf, removing any sharp edges. Paint and decorate in a style that suits you. We painted the inside of the rocket red and the outside blue. For decoration, we added small white exhaust clouds, tiny stars and some bright orange flames.
17. Snap on decorative caps to all screws, and you are now ready for take off.
NB: When painting MDF, use a good quality acrylic sealer/undercoat to seal the surface, the lightly sand the sealing coat before applying the finish.
Diagram
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Materials
Materials
1200mm x 900mm x 3mm MDF
1200mm x 600mm x 16mm MDF
38mm wood screw
8mm dowel
16mm dowel
45mm wooden ball
PVA wood glue (Poly Vinyl Acetate)
Decorative screw caps and washers
Tools
Jigsaw (with fine blade)
8mm drill bit
Cordless drill
Hole saw
Router
Rounding Over Bit
Cutting list
2 x 3mm MDF Sides 1100mm x 360mm
2 x 16mm MDF Fixing Rails 300mm x 50mm
2 x 16mm MDF Shelf 300mm x 330mm
1 x 16mm MDF Shelf 300mm x 290mm
20mm x 20mm x 40mm long block (for point at top)
2 x dowel 16mm x 300mm
1 x dowel 8mm x 160mm |
Total Cost
Total cost approximately $40.00 (paint additional)
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More Info
Timber and materials available from your local Home Timber & Hardware store.
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Disclaimer
All Fact Sheets and other material on the Our House website are provided as a general information service only and should not be relied upon as a substitute for the advice of a properly qualified tradesman. Neither ninemsn nor its licensors (including the Nine Network) assume or accept any responsibility for, and will not be liable for the accuracy or appropriate application of any information whatsoever in any Fact Sheet or other material on the Our House web site. Your use of the Our House web site is governed by this disclaimer and the ninemsn's Terms of Use.
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