Leftovers

WWII Poster encouraging the use of leftovers

Generally speaking, leftovers suck.  After all, if something tastes good enough on the first pass, there shouldn't be any leftovers.  I can't recall which comedian said it, but there is a well known bit wherein the comic tells about going out to dinner and the waiter asks him if he'd like a take-home box for his leftovers.  He snidely replies, "Hmmm, let me think for a minute...it tastes awful now, but I bet if you put it in a cardboard box and it sits in my refrigerator for a week, then it will taste good."  Of course, there are those wonderful instances wherein a really great meal is made in a quantity that exceeds rational consumption (i.e. Thanksgiving, giant birthday cakes, pizza, etc).  Whatever the case, when you find yourself staring into a refrigerator full of leftovers, one thing is for sure....it always helps to add a dash of creativity when giving a meal a second go-round.  This was the approach I took when deciding what to do with the extra timber beam that has been taking up space in  my shop since last fall.

As probably no one recalls, the timber beams used for my project were delivered just over 1 year ago (if you're dying to revisit this momentous event, click here to be taken to the respective post).  After finishing installing all the beams, I found I had one leftover beam.  I knew instantly this extra beam could be put to good use near the end stages of my project....but I didn't know it would take an entire year before I could actually make use of it.  Its a good thing this "leftover" wasn't perishable.

The clock ticks for all leftovers...some last longer than others!

My vision for the leftover beam was to cut it into sections and create a built-in shelving unit around the mantastic 70" TV that will adorn the wall of my mancave.  In keeping with the room's theme, I was seeking something simple in appearance with minimal details and--if possible--no visible fasteners.  I came up with the following concept:
 

To achieve a "fastener free" appearance, I employed basic joinery:

Dados will be cut into each beam and then corresponding cut outs will be made in the shelves.

With my general concept determined, I set forth and cut the 24' beam into multiple sections:

Cutting beams to length

With all my beams cut to length, I spent some time "sanding the sequence" from 40 grit up to 150 grit...lets just say that while this was a ton easier than sanding beams overhead while perched on a step ladder, sanding still sucks...even if you're Ralph Macchio.

Even cool headbands don't make it any easier

With my lumber prepped, I called my buddy Anthony to help me with the layout and cutting the dados in each of the beams.  Anthony is a fantastic craftsman and brings a level of experience that is at once enlightening and reassuring.  We spent some time experimenting with the proposed layout in the room and the more I studied things the more I realized my original concept didn't fit the space correctly...everything appeared too cramped.  Consequently, I eliminated a pair of beams from the design and did away with the extended shelves on each side (the latter was the hardest to let go...I really liked those extended shelves).

Basic Layout

For the dados, we started by using a dado blade I have for my table saw....this proved challenging (especially with the taller beams).  Anthony then recommend we try using a router to cut the dados and it worked perfectly:

Beams were clamped together to ensure dados were uniform and cut at exactly the same height

Once the dados were cut, we made the cut-outs for our first shelf and attempted a dry fit...everything came together perfect:

The next big challenge was how to secure the beams to the wall without any visible fasteners.  Several ideas were discussed, but I ultimately opted for a hybrid of construction adhesive and countersunk bolts concealed within the dado behind each shelf.  A few of the beams happened to overlay studs which allowed me to use simple lag bolts while the rest required using molly bolts.

Construction adhesive and molly bolts (circled in red) on the first beam which does not overlay any studs

 Prior to the above photo being taken, I pre-drilled a pilot hole for each molly bolt and then countersunk the head:

Pilot hole with countersink to receive the head of the molly bolt

Countersunk bolt

A few beams overlaid studs...those were easier to secure.  A simple lag bolt did the trick.

Countersunk lag bolt.  Construction adhesive was also used.

With my beams secured to the wall, I then masked off each one and applied several coats of tung oil over the following days:

1st of six coats of tung oil

While I was slowly building my finish on the beams, I began working on the shelves. The slots were cut for each shelf, then each shelf was sanded from 80 to 150 grit, and finally six coats of tung oil:

shelves cut & sanded

Tung oil application

  

After several days of repeat applications of tung oil, I was finally ready for final assembly.  Just a little wood glue was all that was necessary as the fit was already quite snug.

Once all the shelves were in place, I trimmed off the wall with fir baseboards and called it a day.  here's a few parting shots (note, the TV is actually center perfectly, but it appears off center because of the angles used in each photo).

Until next time!