|
|
 |
|
|
| |
 |
|
|
by
Rick Campbell
photo: Roger Yip
illustration: Len Churchill |
CUTE AS A BUG |
Show
your kids how to build this bug barn
while teaching them about workshop safety |
 I built
these colourful bug barns with my daughters, Michelle and Emily.
Before we started this project, I kidproofed the shop. I unplugged
equipment, hung up sharp hand tools and swept the floor. Michelle
and Emily were safely attired: they wore rubber-soled shoes,
short-sleeved shirts, their hair was tied back and they had
their safety glasses on at all times. They also wore hearing
protection while the power tools were on to avoid damaging their
hearing. |
 |
 |
 |
|
1. Cut
blanks for the bases and ends from 3/4" cedar on
your tablesaw. Get the kids involved: have them draw
the door opening and curved tops with a compass |
2. Cut
out the parts along the pencil lines. Michelle (age
12) has more experience in the shop than Emily (age
10), so she could make the cut safely using a scrollsaw |
3. For
young children or those with less power tool experience,
a coping saw is a safer way to make the curved cut.
The patience required when working with hand tools helps
kids appreciate power tools when they’re ready
to graduate to them |
 |
 |
 |
|
4. Measure
out 8 1/2" of 1/2"-dia. dowel, mark it and
then clamp it into a bench vise. Cut it to length with
a saw. This is the cross brace that will connect the
top of the end panels |
5. Make
sanding tools for the end and base pieces you cut out
by wrapping 80- or 120-grit sandpaper around a block
of hardwood and a piece of dowel. It’s time for
a little elbow grease: have the kids sand away all of
their saw marks |
6. Use
a drillpress with a Forstner bit to bore a 1/4"-deep
recess on the inside face of each end panel to receive
the dowel ends |
 |
 |
 |
|
7. Dry-fit
the parts. If all is well, apply glue to the base and
dowel ends, then use spiral finishing nails to secure
the end panels to the base. If you’re working
with younger kids, drill pilot holes for the nails to
help guide them straight as they’re hammered into
place |
8. Get
your kids to choose their favourite colour of water-based
paint, then have them apply it to the bug barn with
a brush |
9. Cut
out a piece of nylon mesh that is 10" x 18".
Use a staple gun to tack the mesh to the wooden frame.
A few staples along the bottom edge and each side should
do it |
|
| PART
1 | PART 2 |
|
|
|
|
| FREE
NEWSLETTER |
Subscribe to our newsletter. Every few weeks, you'll get a behind-the-scenes
peek at the magazine, the web site and the folks who put it all together.
CLICK HERE |
|
|
PROJECTS
