Starting my final design project in Stoel's Studio began with my visit to the wood store. When you purchase raw wood for your project, the cost is estimated by board feet. 12 inches wide by 12 inches long by 1 inch thick is 1 board foot. The wood comes in standard sizes with a quarter increments, and varies in lengths and widths. For my project I am using 4/4, which is nominally an inch thick. For my design I estimated my need to be 30 bf.
I bought some beautiful soft maple with a little curl to it. I chose my pieces by matching the color of the wood, and the straightness of the boards. I purchased 12 ft lengths and 8" wide. To fit the pieces in my Saab convertible, I had the wood store cut my pieces into 4 ft lengths. Since they were charging me to cut several pieces, I had them plane them as well. I would still be charged the same, and this would save time in the shop.
With my pieces all planed, I went right to gluing up my boards. Gluing can be a messy process, so we lay down some paper to protect the work surface and the vise.
I arrange the pieces next to their closest color and pattern match, tighten them up in the vise to see how the finish piece would look, then I draw lines across the boards to line them up during the gluing process. I only need to add glue to one side, but I need to be liberal with the glue to ensure a complete seal. If I did this step correctly, the wood would break before the seal.
After I let the glue set for about an hour, I can move the set up to the side of the shop to free up space, and let it set overnight.
The next morning I take of the vises, the paper, and inspect my work. Looks pretty good to me.
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