Any advice for making plantation shutters?

[Allen Bookout]

I need to make some plantation shutters. I do not have a shaper so will have to use a router setup. About the only thing that I can find is Woodlines set: http://www.amazon.com/Woodline-WL-20.../dp/B000JES9XC (http://www.amazon.com/Woodline-WL-2055-5-Piece-Plantation-Shutter/dp/B000JES9XC) Looks like the only bit that is not common is the bit to shape the louvers. They also have the pin and tension kit. I suppose that the bits are of a quality to make at least a set of shutters for one window---or not. At least they have the instructions for building the shutters which I downloaded from their site.

Any ideas or suggestions?

What about the quality of the Woodline bits? Other options?

[Jamie Smith]

There was an episode of the NYW about them, I don't remember what he did for the louvers, but here is a link to the episode:

http://www.newyankee.com/getproduct3.cgi?0602


the stapling jig seemed pretty handy

[Roger Fitzsimonds]

Allen I have used woodline bits and they are pretty good in my opinion. I was going to suggest the NYW episode also. There was a guy doing DVD's that did one on plantation shutters. I am sorry but I dont recall his name.

Roger

[Jeffrey Schronce]

There was an episode of the NYW about them, I don't remember what he did for the louvers, but here is a link to the episode:

http://www.newyankee.com/getproduct3.cgi?0602


the stapling jig seemed pretty handy

He used molder to cut louvers. If you could get some time on one it would definately be the way to go. Maybe someone would exchange time on molder if you buy the cutters and let the owner keep the cutters?

I think the NYW video and plans would be great. There are a couple jigs involved that would be excellent. Got to be accurate and able to be repeated.

[Keith Outten]

Allen,

Woodsmith has an excellent set of plans for building window shutters. Years ago a friend of mine built their router jig and made shutters for his home, he was very pleased with the jig and how easilly everything worked.

.

[Allen Bookout]

Thanks guys!!! Good information. Allen

[Bill Wyko]

Norm did some on NYW a little while ago. You might check DIY.com. He did it with a router too I believe.

[Fred Floyd]

I've been working on plantation shutters for three windows in my house. The windows are large, so each will have four panels. This greatly increases the volume of work.

I set out with the router and after a few attempts, I ended up with the ShopFox moulder and a custom set of knives. I spent two days milling up the stock for the louvers and about 4 hours running enough stock to make 330 louver blanks (a few extra to accommodate wood defects and other disasters.

I have been following Norm's plan from the project he did in 2006. I've watched Norm's video about 10 times. Most all the steps are there, but some require looking very closely. I found the stiles and rails and their joinery to be an exercise in production.

The real challenge has come with the painting. I'm making my shutters out of poplar and they are being painted white. This was my first spray project and it has been quite a learning experience. I used a high quality acrylic enamel (Benjamin Moore) along with a good acrylic primer from the same mfr. I applied one coat of primer and so far one coat of paint. All this before getting to assembly. I plan to do one more coat of paint and then assemble. Following that, there will be (hopefully) one more light coat of paint on everything.

No single step is really difficult. This project, however, requires a high degree of accuracy and lots of patience (mostly on the sanding and painting).

More when I finish

[Carl Eyman]

FWW had an article on exterior blinds some years ago. If interested I can try to find a reference. I made 8 of them about 10 feet high. Making the louvres with a diamond cross section was done on the planer. A fixture is made to sit on top of the table with a sloping surface (6 degrees off horizontal?) You mill off half the surface on each of two sides of the stock. By half I mean half the width - from the edge to the centerline. Then you make a second fixture that is twice the angle of the first. Using it you mill the uncut halves of your stock. Now you have a piece of stock with a diamond cross section. This is much cheaper than using a molding machine.

While my shutters were big - the louvers were about 3" wide - I don't see why the method wouldn't work for smaller stock.

If you wish to e-mail me, I'll see if I can find the article. I photo copied it to make a shop copy and may still have it. I think I made the shutters in 1987.

[Bob Fisher]

I just finished assembly of four sets for windows and one set for a door Sunday afternoon. Norm recommends the use of a size B bit for the pin holes in the stiles. I found this to be so tight the shutters would not operate. I wound up drilling out all 600 holes with a ¼” bit. This is the size bit that the Woodline plans call for. In Norm’s plans there is an indexing jig for drilling the stiles. Don’t waste your time on it. Gang up all your stiles, layout the positions for the mortises and pin holes. Mark the centerline of your bit on your drill press fence and have at it. This is much easier, faster and more accurate than the jig. Last but not least, consider buying them and installing them yourself. I saved over $1000 by making these, but have way over $1000 worth of time in them.

[Allen Bookout]

A lot of good information here and many good tips that will help. I did buy the Woodline router bits set for plantation shutters but it is going to be a while before I can get to it. I would love to have a molder to do the slats but will try to get along without it. I have repainted plantation shutters before so I do not think that will be a problem.

My first step will be to get a price and compare that to how much I can make them for. We have several windows that have them now and everytime that I ask my wife how much they cost she says that it is better that I do not know. When she says that I figure that I can save a ton on doing whatever it is that we are talking about.

[John Stankus]

I built a jig to form the slats for plantations shutters using a planer. I have pictures somewhere at home.

The jig is pretty simple. Take three boards routing dados (if it is along the grain is it a dado or a groove I always forget) on two of the boards so you can assemble a long sled that from the end looks like an H . When you make the dados in the two boards make them different distances from the bottom edge. This will make the "H" sit a little sideways (like an italic H) This will determine the angle of planing.

Simply load a slat blank into the gap in the H, plane down, reverse the board and plane the other edge of the same face. This is the first side of the slat.

I took one of the boards with the first side of the slat ripped it and glued the pieces into the gap in the H that is on the opposite side. This provides a place to set the blank with the first side machined so the second side can be machined. This may be a bit cleared when I can get the pictures off my home machine.

Edges can be rounded over with a regular round over bit.

One of the issues will be jigging up to center the pivot pin hole consistently. One of the guys(a machinist by trade) from the woodworking club where I used live suggested a guide similar to that used to form the slat, mounted on end on a router table to plunge the slat directly on a spiral bit.

Luckily we moved before I had to complete the project. Plantation shutters may be nice to look at, but we found them a pain to live with.

Regards

John

[Allen Bookout]

That sounds really interesting John. Some pictures would really be great to understand exactly how the jig works that you are talking about. Thanks! Allen

[John Stankus]

Here are pictures of the jig. I have also attached a pdf of the dimensions I used the jig. A sample of a slat is shown, (this is a slat that looks a little on the thick side. You can adjust your stock starting thickness to get the dimensions you want.). The last photo shows a short piece demonstrating the machining of one side of the slat.

John

[Allen Bookout]

Very good John! That just might be the best answer yet. Thanks for going to all of the trouble.

Allen

[BOB OLINGER]

I just found this website after a google search for construction ideas for plantation shutters. This site is fantastic. I would like to make a number of plantation shutters. I ordered Norm's video, watched it several times; looks very helpfull. The biggest challenge appears cutting the slats. What brands, models, other do you recomend of molders or planers ? What about sourcing the knives? The Woodline router set-up appears a distant choice given the number of slats I need to make. Also, might there be a source to buy pre-made slats? Also, some plans (not Norm's) and sources of pre-made shutters mention a tension screw device to adjust slat tension - how does this work; need sources for it and instructions. I sincerely appreciate any suggestions to above questions.

Thanks.

[Allen Bookout]

Also, some plans (not Norm's) and sources of pre-made shutters mention a tension screw device to adjust slat tension - how does this work; need sources for it and instructions. I sincerely appreciate any suggestions to above questions.

Thanks.

Bob,

This is about the only thing that I may be able to help you with. Here is a source for shutter pins that will allow for what you need to do. Woodline also has these types of pins.

http://www.woodworker.com/cgi-bin/FULLPRES.exe?PARTNUM=812-395

[John Durscher]

I did my plantation shutters off some plans from an old Woodworker's Journal article - September/October 1997. Their method is the one using a jig and your thickness planer. It was pretty easy. The only advise I would have if you go this route is to make may thin cuts instead of fewer thick cuts - I ended up messing up the rubber rollers on my old thickness planer by taking too much off at once.

Rockler used to sell copies of the plans, I don't know if they are still available.

John

[Pat Germain]

Great information, everyone. I too would like to build plantation shutters.

In my research I have found buying plantation shutters to be prohibitively expensive. That is, buying good quality shutters is prohibitively expensive. Every option I encountered involved lots of measuring and custom fabrication; no "standard sizes" available. I didn't think the cheaper shutters I saw were worth the time, trouble or expense.

Making shutters looks like a lot of work, but hey, that's what we do, isn't it? :) And boy, our significant others will get major gloat opportunities. "Look what my woodworker made". :cool: I don't know about you guys, but sucessfully making plantation shutters would give me permission to buy whatever tools I wanted! (Hello sliding table saw...)

[lowell holmes]

I never made blinds, but in a previous life, I installed a few. I found that Sherwin Willams lacquer enamel primer simplified painting. The lacquer dries instantly and sands easily. It has a high build and fills thye wood for a good finish coat.

[Chris Padilla]

FYI, this is an old thread, Folks. Just keep that in mind. :)