Popular Woodworking 2002-06 № 128, страница 38

adjust the depth of your router bit until it cuts right to that line. Now chamfer all four tapered edges. Near the end of the pass, watch the bit and the line you marked on the corner. When the bit hits the line, turn off the router and make the next cut.

Before you finish up with the posts, it's best to cut the ⁷/l6"-diameter clearance holes for the bed bolts in each post. For the bolts that go into the long rails, drill the hole centered on the post and ¹/2" above the center of the mortise. For the bolts that go into the short rails, drill the hole centered on the post and ¹/2" below the center of the mortise.

By following these instructions, the head of the bed bolt will sit proud of the post. If you want to recess it, you will need to cut a 1" countersink that's ⁵/s" deep before you drill the clearance holes. Then you'll need to pick out some bed-bolt covers and drill a little deeper into the rails.

Now cut off the top 1" of all the posts and finish sand them. I usually start with 100 grit and proceed up to 180 grit.

Bed Bolt Basics

Cut all your rails to length. The cut list is for a twin-sized bed, but

you can use the accompanying charts to accommodate other mattress sizes.

Now cut the tenons on the rails. All of the tenons are ³/4" thick, 5" wide and ³/4" long. Clamp the rails and posts together and mark the locations of the clearance holes on the tenons using a pencil. Take the bed apart and get ready to drill the clearance hole for the bed bolt.

I use a self-centering doweling jig with a V bushing to drill the holes for my ^"-diameter bed bolts. If you don't have a bush-

DEDICATED BED-BOLT JIG

ing, a ³/8" will work, too. Bore the hole 4" deep into all the rails.

Now you want to cut a slot that will hold the nut for the bed bolts. The easiest way to do this is with a router. I set up a template guide in my router and made a template that would rout a ¹/2"-wide slot that's 1" long. Chuck a ^1/2" upspiral bit in your router and clamp the template in place. I routed this slot 2¹/4" from the shoulder of the tenon. Cut the 1"-deep slot in several passes.

I build a lot of beds, and I always use bed bolts. For years I used a doweling jig to drill the holes for the bolts in the rails - the technique I show in this article. It works well, but there is (as always) a faster way.

One day I was eyeing my drill press and it came to me. I bought an inexpensive radial drill press and built a simple plywood cabinet to hold the machine on its back. ^

Now I have a simple horizontal fef¹

boring machine. A fence and a holddown clamp keep the rails in

place as I bore the holes. This setup has saved me loads of time. It's not the kind of rig you would want for a home shop, but it's proof that you can jig up just about any operation if you give it enough thought.

SUPPORTING THE MATTRESS AND BOX SPRINGS

Essentially, there are five common ways to support your box springs or mattress. If you're building a king-sized bed, you likely need a center support, too.

Bed Irons: This traditional and sturdy method is outlined in this article. Note that these work only with a quality box spring. Some inexpensive box springs aren't rigid enough.

Wooden Cleats: Screw 1 V-square cleats to the inside edge of all four rails and rest the box spring on those.

Angle Iron: Screw angle iron (or aluminum angle brackets) to the bottom inside edge of all four rails.

Cleats and Slats: If you're building a bed that won't use a box spring, screw square wooden cleats to the inside edge of all four rails and then screw 1 x 4s to the cleats 1" apart.

Cleats and Plywood: Screw cleats to the rails and then screw a piece of ³/4"-thick plywood to the cleats.

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Popular Woodworking June 2002