| Written By: Marv Wisneski Stanley’s West Arm Resort and NOTO President *Article Layout and Design by Jervic D.Swannack IV, General Manager, Vermilion Bay Vacation Area |
Originally Published in the April 1993 issue of The Outfitter Magazine. |
When I reviewed the Canada Select Grading Requirements, I noticed that Head-boards were recommended on all beds in bedrooms. I contacted one of NOTO’s Allied Members for a price, which was very reasonable. However, since we needed fifty head-boards for all of our beds, fifty times a very reasonable price comes up to a lot of dollars.
As a result of this economic inquiry, I decided to build them myself.
The tools required for the making of the head-boards are:
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Radial Arm Saw with a dadohead saw.
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Drill press or a good electric hand drill.
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¼” drill, 3/8” drill, ½” drill, and a 1 1/2” drill.
The material I used for the head-boards was Black Poplar or to be a little scientific, its proper name is Quaking Aspen (Populus tremuloides). I used this wood because the bark peals off easily in the spring up until the middle of July. When poplar is completely dry it is light in colour.
During poplar’s drying process it may turn a vibrant pink, but it will change back to white when dry. Most of the trees available to us peal easily in the spring and any kind of tree can be used.
The procedure for building a headboard for a Single Bed, thirty six inches (36”) wide is as follows:
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Build two (2) jigs, see drawings.
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Cut and peal logs three to four inches in diameter.
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Cut from the pealed logs two 25 ½” lengths, one log 44” length, cut one log 34” length.
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Using had drill, drill a 3/8” hole in the approximate center at each end of the 25 ½” log, 3-4 inches deep.
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Put the log on Jig (1) and tap with a hammer the 3/8” threaded rods into the ends of the 25 ½” log, make sure that the log can spin freely on the jig fixture.
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Raise your radial saw, with the dadohead saw on ¾” above the center of the threaded rod. This should be 5 ¾” above the surface of your radial saw table surface.
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Place the fixture, with the log in place, up against the side of the radial arm saw fence. Center the dadohead, which is set for a ¼” wide cut, over the threaded rod. Start the saw and feed the log into the dadohead 2”. Stop the saw and place a stopper on the radial arm saw table so that each dado cut would be the same depth. Start the saw and continue cutting and rotating the log on each cut until you have completed a 360 degree cut on the log. Repeat the same procedure for the 25 ½” log.
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Drill a 1 ½” hole 2” deep and 5” from the top of the 25 ½” log you just finished.
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Use Jog (2) and repeat the process above using the 34” log, however, cut both ends. When the first end is complete, reverse the Jig and re-center the dadohead for the second cut.
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Drill two 1 ½” holes 2” deep and 34 ½” apart on the 44” log.
The time required to construct one of these headboards is approximately one hour. I used four 3 ½” ## 10 wood screws, two in each side post, to fasten them to the wall. I mounted them so the bottom of the top log of the headboard was 34” from the floor. The reason I did not extend the side posts to the floor was for cleaning purposes – and with the bed in place the extra length serves no purpose.
In July my resort was graded by the Canada Select Inspector and he gave me a good rating on the headboards. If it is good enough for Canada Select then it is good enough for us.
By the way, the money you can save by building these head-boards yourself will pay for a Radial Arm Saw and a Drill Press.
You can save even more if you buy this equipment from your helpful NOTO Allied Member.
