David Rose
07-26-2004, 10:32 PM
The arbor on which many of you helped is now "planted". I wish I could have gotten better pics before the birds started dropping mulberry "paint" on it. But Cheryl and I cleaned it up a little for the shots.
The wedding was a huge success. No pics of the bride under the arbor yet. That is probably good so that you will see what you are responsible for instead of a beautiful (no predjudice) but already taken young lady. :D
Basic construction is from resawn 4x4 Western Cedar posts which was all the borgs had that was clear enough. The dowels and top features are store bought oak. The top caps and lower caps are Aromatic Cedar. Aromatic was all that my local mill had large enough to do them in one piece. All glue was West System Epoxy. I exposed as little of it as possible with the exception of a few filets. The primer was Sherwin Williams A-100 and top coats (3) were S-W Duration. All vertical surfaces are beveled to shed rain.
Starting at the top and going down: the keystone feature is an overlay on the faces which are edged with pieces cut out for the top and bottom edge bands for the arch. Yes, that is a "bit" of handwork. The cap and bottom pieces were inlet for these faces and ends. As much glue as possible cannot be exposed to the sun if paint fails. I hate repainting worse than painting. :o After cutting all top bevels on the bandsaw they were block planed to finished condition. The large pieces for the arms of the arches were laminated from two 1/2" pieces for strength. It didn't prove to be enough as I broke one in handling. The edge bands are very strong though as is the epoxy repair. The arch edge bands were the steam bent pieces. 3/4 x 3" Western Cedar steam bends very well and it was fun! Interior (to the bend) cuts such as the grooves to fit the face-arch pieces were cut prior to bending and needed no opening or cleanup. Very little sanding was required because of the bending. The caps were simply cut from 2 & 1/2" thick Aromatic cedar and inlet for the legs then beveled as other upward pointing pieces. The legs themselves are two piece attached at the lower cap with large tenons which go about 9" into the other piece. In other words, the arbor is 3 pieces, the top assembly and two leg assemblies. That had to be done for transport to the church. The legs are 3/4" thick lock mitered. Again to get straight knot free wood they are resawn from 4" posts. The arbor could have been solid but for the transport and handling weight. Much was done differently to allow both indoor and outdoor use. The leg assemblies are attached with 1" oak dowels and 1 &1/2" square stretchers both mortised about 1/2" into the far side of the legs to add rigidity. The letters are just computer fonts that were enlarged and printed, bandsawed and sanded. The "S" lays flatter as the "guy" thinks he is the racey on of the new couple. :D Several things like this were done to the "kid's" desires. And if they look fragile, the letters are like fine glass! I broke them more than once before finishing. They are just 5/8" glued up cedar panels and cut out for the best strength. Hah! What direction is that? :eek:
The anchoring... well, I took the easy way out and bought some brackets. I had much better ideas thanks to several of you. But time won. Wife assures me that this will be covered completely soon enough. These are anchored in small cement pads. This will be a ROSE arbor in several respects. ;)
The "skew" of the arbor is just perspective. Posts are verticle. And the beautiful lady pictured is MY bride, not his!
I really give many thanks for all the help from materials and techniques to finish that you gave me. By far most of my woodworking training comes from RIGHT HERE!
David
The wedding was a huge success. No pics of the bride under the arbor yet. That is probably good so that you will see what you are responsible for instead of a beautiful (no predjudice) but already taken young lady. :D
Basic construction is from resawn 4x4 Western Cedar posts which was all the borgs had that was clear enough. The dowels and top features are store bought oak. The top caps and lower caps are Aromatic Cedar. Aromatic was all that my local mill had large enough to do them in one piece. All glue was West System Epoxy. I exposed as little of it as possible with the exception of a few filets. The primer was Sherwin Williams A-100 and top coats (3) were S-W Duration. All vertical surfaces are beveled to shed rain.
Starting at the top and going down: the keystone feature is an overlay on the faces which are edged with pieces cut out for the top and bottom edge bands for the arch. Yes, that is a "bit" of handwork. The cap and bottom pieces were inlet for these faces and ends. As much glue as possible cannot be exposed to the sun if paint fails. I hate repainting worse than painting. :o After cutting all top bevels on the bandsaw they were block planed to finished condition. The large pieces for the arms of the arches were laminated from two 1/2" pieces for strength. It didn't prove to be enough as I broke one in handling. The edge bands are very strong though as is the epoxy repair. The arch edge bands were the steam bent pieces. 3/4 x 3" Western Cedar steam bends very well and it was fun! Interior (to the bend) cuts such as the grooves to fit the face-arch pieces were cut prior to bending and needed no opening or cleanup. Very little sanding was required because of the bending. The caps were simply cut from 2 & 1/2" thick Aromatic cedar and inlet for the legs then beveled as other upward pointing pieces. The legs themselves are two piece attached at the lower cap with large tenons which go about 9" into the other piece. In other words, the arbor is 3 pieces, the top assembly and two leg assemblies. That had to be done for transport to the church. The legs are 3/4" thick lock mitered. Again to get straight knot free wood they are resawn from 4" posts. The arbor could have been solid but for the transport and handling weight. Much was done differently to allow both indoor and outdoor use. The leg assemblies are attached with 1" oak dowels and 1 &1/2" square stretchers both mortised about 1/2" into the far side of the legs to add rigidity. The letters are just computer fonts that were enlarged and printed, bandsawed and sanded. The "S" lays flatter as the "guy" thinks he is the racey on of the new couple. :D Several things like this were done to the "kid's" desires. And if they look fragile, the letters are like fine glass! I broke them more than once before finishing. They are just 5/8" glued up cedar panels and cut out for the best strength. Hah! What direction is that? :eek:
The anchoring... well, I took the easy way out and bought some brackets. I had much better ideas thanks to several of you. But time won. Wife assures me that this will be covered completely soon enough. These are anchored in small cement pads. This will be a ROSE arbor in several respects. ;)
The "skew" of the arbor is just perspective. Posts are verticle. And the beautiful lady pictured is MY bride, not his!
I really give many thanks for all the help from materials and techniques to finish that you gave me. By far most of my woodworking training comes from RIGHT HERE!
David