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| by:
Danny Proulx
photos: Michael Bowie
illustration: Len Churchill |
TOY STOREY |
Paul
Hill, a cabinetmaker in Morrisburg, Ont., gave me the idea for
this toy storage unit: He stepped on one too many stray playthings
before coming up with this simple design. If you’ve had it with
the daily ritual of tiptoeing around wayward toys, head into
the shop with these plans. And you can always bring your kids
into the shop with you. If they help you make this, they might
be little more likely to use it.
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| On
the ground floor: Cristian Bowie, son of the photographer
who shot this photo, takes his role as landlord
of the toy high-rise seriously. Here, he interviews
some main-floor tenants |
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Before you start work, buy and measure the plastic storage bins
you’ll need, just to be sure they’ll fit this design.
If you’ll be using solid wood for this project—I used pine—edge-glue
enough 3/4"-thick lumber for the listed parts. Plywood’s great
too, and it saves a construction step. After sanding the panels
and rough cutting them to size, prepare the required grooves—called
rabbets—as shown in the plan. These let the plywood back panel
interlock with the top, bottom and sides for more strength.
Custom-cut the back later, once the project is assembled.
With the side members and partitions
on your workbench, fasten the bin support strips to them using
glue and #8 x 1 1/4" woodscrews. If you cut a 6 1/2"-wide spacer
out of plywood, it’ll help you position the strips without the
hassle of measuring. See the plans and the photo for guidance.
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| Use
a plywood spacer (in this case 6 1/2" wide) to position
the plywood cleats without the hassle of repeated
measuring |
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Next, join the sides and partitions to the bottom member using
glue and three #8 x 2" woodscrews per panel. An 11 5/8" plywood
spacer will help you position the partitions perfectly. Attach
the top member to the ends of the sides and partitions in the
same way, except sink the screws used here into counterbored
pockets that you’ll cover later with ready-made tapered wooden
plugs. If you’ve never done this before, practise on some scrap.
Start by boring a 5/16"-deep x 1/2"-dia. hole using a sharp
spade bit. Next, continue drilling right through the wood with
a 1/8" dia. twist bit. This small hole allows the shank of the
screw to pass through easily, while the larger hole allows the
tapered plug to nestle in place on top. When working with pine,
you don’t have to drill a hole for the threads of the screw.
They’ll cut their own way in.
When the project’s together, custom-cut the plywood back panel
and fasten it into the rabbets with a thin bead of glue and
1" finishing nails.
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| CLICK
TO ENLARGE |
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Assemble the four base frame parts into a rectangle using glue
and finishing nails. Outside measurements should be 13" x 33
7/8". Now, fasten the base frame to the project with glue and
six #8 x 2" woodscrews set into counterbored pockets in the
top face of the bottom member, as you did before. Cover with
tapered wooden plugs and sand flush. Give everything a final
hand sanding, then finish. I used three coats of oil-based urethane.
| You
Will Need |
| Part |
Size |
Qty. |
| Sides |
3/4"
x 17" x 30" |
2 |
| Partitions |
3/4"
x 16 3/4" x 30" |
2 |
| Bottom |
3/4"
x 17" x 37 7/8" |
1 |
| Top |
3/4"
x 18" x 39 7/8" |
1 |
| Bin
support cleats |
3/4"
x 3/4" x 16 3/4" |
24 |
| Back
(veneer plywood) |
1/4"
x 30 1/2" x 36 7/8" |
1 |
| Long
base frame members |
3/4"
x 2" x 33 7/8" |
2 |
| Short
base frame members |
3/4"
x 2" x 11 1/2" |
2 |
| Storage
containers |
Rubbermaid
#JL0-2220-CO HGRN |
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