The box and handle have two coats of paint and the next stage is to assemble these two pieces.
The finishing process is always important but especially important when trying to up cycle wood. The orange crate is low grade plywood and the wood for the handle has been laying around my shop for a while. After I pulled the unnecessary staple out of the box I rough sanded the box to get rid of the splintery edges. The first coat of finish was water based sealer and I really soaked the box well. After drying over night I gave the whole box and handle another rough sand with 70 grit paper cutting off the runs and bubbles. Now the wood is sealed and smooth enough to begin painting. My first coat of paint went on think and heavy, the plan was to fill the cracks and get a solid base laid down. Again I gave the paint over night to dry, yes I know it will dry in a couple of hours, but I wanted it as dry and hard as it was going to get. After the paint was dry I really sanded it with 70 grit paper again. The result could be passed off as 'distressed' but it then needs a clear top coat so there is no reduction in total work. Coat two of the paint is the last coat. That second coat is put on carefully with an eye to the quality of the final product. Since I have a smooth and well sealed base upon which to work, the paint looks good and feels smooth. If you didn't know you wouldn't guess the project began with throw away materials.
To make the handle I stayed with my target of limited tools.
I cut the basic shape with my back saw and instead of rounding the top corners I cut them off at a 45 degree angle and shaped them a little bit with my wood rasp as you can see from the photo above.
To make the handle hole instead of drilling several large holes with a Forstner bit which a home handy person may not have I drilled four 3/8 inch holes with my cordless drill and connected the dots with a coping saw. Once it was cut out I used a rasp,file and sand paper to smooth out the edges. * when drilling with a Forstner bit it is best to use a drill press*
Next I have compartments to make to hold up various small items. On my other box I used my band saw, on the box it'll be the hand saw again.
The tool list to make this project is quite short and can be value conscious.
Drill bit. Sets can cost a little or a whole bunch.
Rasp, not necessary, use sand paper. from $0.99 a sheet and up.
The paint I used is a $1.00 Opps sample from the Orange Big Box Store.
If I were going to start from ZERO to outfit a shop I would buy a medium quality Jig Saw , a medium quality cordless drill and drill bit set. From there my next money could be spent on things like clamps, a block plane, KREG jig etc. I would add the tools as the projects demanded and pretty soon I would have all the tools a home handy person would need.
cheers, ianw
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