"The Queen Sized Bench"
Part 3
With the continuation of this project. I took the side rail and cut then the length of the back measured in between the arm rest. One for the back to bring the opening down some and one for the front to connect the arm rest and give it stability, strength and the beginning of the seat frame. This has to be strong enough to handle people seating on the bench. By the time I am done this bench should be able to handle up to 500 lbs easily. Since this bench is easily 5 foot long I will be adding either one center seat leg or two. Another thing about this bench is that it will offer some storage under the seat area.
Let's continue:
We left off with both arms being drilled for dowels and the same for the backboard where they connect. They were clamped and allowed to dry for 12 hour minimum. When I am almost done I may put some screws into the back of the backboard to strengthen the arm connection other than just the dowels. But for it will suffice. This picture shows the progress up until now.
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| Arm rest attached |
Now it is time to add to the frame to square it off and begin to make the base for the seat. I took the side rails for the bed and cut off the ends which had the metal hooks that attached to the headboard and foot board. It is just easier to cut them off. Each rail supplied enough for length form side to side and the seat base attached to the arm rest.
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| The rails cut |
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| The metal hooks were cut off |
I cut the base to attach to arm rest. The rails had a 1"x1" strip of wood attached to it firmly. For the sides I decided to keep that strip on for more seat base but for the longer back and front pieces I decided to take it off.It was screwed and glued on so I had to sand some areas off and may have to do some more later on. I made these short of the edge by the thickness of the front rail so that it would be flush with front of arm rest.
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| Don't mind the glue. I glue all contacts. |
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| Notice in this one the side rail wood added to back side to extend the back down otherwise it would be a wide opening which would not look right. |
I installed the back rail to the back right under the backboard to extend it some and close off the the gap. I want some gap. It looks nicer with a gap by the top of the seat, but not a huge gap. If you put a cushion on the seat it should be able to easily cover the gap on the back.
I the installed the front rail by attaching it to the side arm rest seat base and of course with glue. I will probably add more strength to this area later on or it may be enough when I put on the middle floor support.
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| Back rail, side seat base & front rail installed |
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| Screws and glue for now |
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And this is what we have so far
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Up until this point I have not spent a dime besides what I have used in screws, dowels and glue. Add to that my time which up until this point it has been a lazy 1.5 hours. The bed frame didn't cost me anything because it was mine and it served its purpose for the many years it provided comfort and then I upgraded to a king size. whoo hooo! Most times you can find bed frames for free or real cheap at a garage sale or thrift store on online ads. And in my research of inside, full wood, made in America benches there are smaller ones, 3-4 feet in length and a shorter back (or less) selling for $200-250 easily. So if you spend a few dollars and a little bit of sweat you wind up saving money or making some if you sell like I will on this project. This is a 5 foot high back bench and I have a one bedroom condo. This is definitely for a bigger place.
I think I have about one hour left on building this bench not counting painting time. I need to put another back rail on which would close up the back for the storage. Then I need to make the bottom of the storage box with the center floor support and center seat support. I feel it will need then center support because this bench is so long and it will bend in the middle and loose strength over time. I want this to last a long time. And lastly, I need to make the seat/storage top. If I weren't adding the center support I would have chose an inch thick seat for comfort and stability, but would add so much weight. Since I will have the center support I will be making the seat from a half inch (0.5") lumber. For that matter the bottom of the storage area will probably be 1/8" inch lumber. The bottom doesn't need to support any heavy weight in the storage unless you are putting in some gold bullions ... and for that matter share the wealth and give me one. LOL
Anyway we will see in the next part the end of this project (painting +/-?). At least the building and paint ready product. Until next time>>>>
MORE TO COME!
LINKS TO THE OTHER PARTS:
PART 1
http://creativeprojectsbyjohn.blogspot.com/2012/08/queen-size-bed-frame-made-into-bench.html
PART 2
PART 3
This Page
PART 4
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