Bird House Ornaments

[BadBob]

For those who make the little 3d bird house ornaments.

Do you make your own stock or purchase something like turning blanks?

I'm cutting up 2x4s and gluing up cutoffs now but I would like to do this faster and use something other than pine 2x4s.

[scrollingforsanity]

I glued two 3/4in. pieces together and then cut to 11/4in on m y table saw. Still not ideal but it works if you don't try to do short pieces.  Good lick 

[dgman]

Hey Robert, I usually have stock thick enough. It’s perfectly fine to glue up two 3/4” boards then plane or cut to 1 1/4” square.  Just make sure you apply the pattern so the glue seam is on the side, not the front of the blank.The problem with using turning stock is it is usually cut on a band saw and aren’t always perfectly square. When cutting 3D items, you always want perfectly  square Stock. Also, turning blanks are not kiln dried, so they may be to green. 
Ochooch Hardwoods sells 1 1/2” Blanks in any species Of wood they sell. They are perfectly square and kiln dried. The perfect solution! I like to use hard and soft woods such as Maple, walnut, mahogany, Cherry, Cedar and Redwood. I have even used Yellowheart, Redheart and Purpleheart although they tend to burn at that thickness.

Edited May 10, 2020 by dgman

[Denny Knappen]

I purchase turning stock from Ocooch Hardwoods.  I just got Ash and can make 3 from one piece.  But then again, I don’t have any equipment to mill to size.

[NC Scroller]

I get most of my wood from a place that sells hardwood lumber and cabinet grade plywood.  There sell rough cut thicker stock either 6/4 or 8/4.  In a pinch Lowes and Home Depot sells poplar and oak that is 1 1/2" x 1  1/2".  Cost is about $6.00 for a 36" piece. 

[BadBob]

23 hours ago, NC Scroller said:

I get most of my wood from a place that sells hardwood lumber and cabinet grade plywood.  There sell rough cut thicker stock either 6/4 or 8/4.  In a pinch Lowes and Home Depot sells poplar and oak that is 1 1/2" x 1  1/2".  Cost is about $6.00 for a 36" piece. 

I can't buy much of anything locally. Certainly not rough lumber. The nearest place I can get hardwoods other than the big box stores is 125 miles away. I have never seen 1-1/2-inch lumber in Lowe's or Home depot, perhaps because I wasn't looking for it.

 

 

[BadBob]

On 5/10/2020 at 1:27 PM, Denny Knappen said:

I purchase turning stock from Ocooch Hardwoods.  I just got Ash and can make 3 from one piece.  But then again, I don’t have any equipment to mill to size.

That may be the ultimate solution for me. I can mill my wood, but I don't have a local source.

[scrollerpete]

I used all pieces of scrap wood that I have in my scrap box, mix and match wood of different thickness to get the size required for the bird houses. This way you get all kind of different colours, the front might be cherry, the back Walnut that is the beauty of cutting them. Your cost on wood is really nothing better use than the wood stove. Just let your mind explore all the possibilities.

Edited May 12, 2020 by scrollerpete

[BadBob]

22 hours ago, scrollerpete said:

I used all pieces of scrap wood that I have in my scrap box, mix and match wood of different thickness to get the size required for the bird houses. This way you get all kind of different colours, the front might be cherry, the back Walnut that is the beauty of cutting them. Your cost on wood is really nothing better use than the wood stove. Just let your mind explore all the possibilities.

Beautiful and each is unique. I had not considered mixing them up like that. Thanks.

[don in brooklin on]

Really like the 2 colour ones.  Never thought of that. 

I am in the process of making a bunch and I definitely will try that.

Thanks for posting

 

[Gonzo]

I agree with ScrollerPete.  It takes me  a bit longer due to glue ups, but I'm in no hurry. 

[amazingkevin]

On 5/12/2020 at 10:02 AM, scrollerpete said:

I used all pieces of scrap wood that I have in my scrap box, mix and match wood of different thickness to get the size required for the bird houses. This way you get all kind of different colours, the front might be cherry, the back Walnut that is the beauty of cutting them. Your cost on wood is really nothing better use than the wood stove. Just let your mind explore all the possibilities.

Fantastic looking gems Pete!!!

[NC Scroller]

On 5/12/2020 at 8:55 AM, BadBob said:

I can't buy much of anything locally. Certainly not rough lumber. The nearest place I can get hardwoods other than the big box stores is 125 miles away. I have never seen 1-1/2-inch lumber in Lowe's or Home depot, perhaps because I wasn't looking for it.

 

 

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Common-2-in-x-2-in-x-3-ft-Actual-1-5-in-x-1-5-in-x-3-ft-Poplar-Board/1000595603 

Link even gives you the aisle and bay #.

[JAC1961]

I've made a few and those have either been pine or basswood.  I find that basswood works well on the scroll saw, nice fine grain and easy cutting.

[Rockytime]

Those are cool! Love the colors!

[BadBob]

I found 1-1/2x1-1/2 inch poplar and oak at Lowe's. Home Depot didn't have any square stock. I bought all the straight poplar pieces. That should do me for a while.

 

 

[BadBob]

I have glued up many bits and pieces to make blocks for these Steve Good 3D Bird Houses. I got lots of practice with my plane and bench hook.

These are all wood reclaimed from discarded furniture. Poplar and mystery wood from Indonesia. I discovered than my smoother plane does a great job of removing paint.

 

 

[Rockytime]

Holy Smokes, you have been busy! Lookin' good.

[Paladin]

I've had some good luck with square cedar fence spindles from Lowe's/Menards as well - and they a really inexpensive.  The corners have a slight roundover to them, but as long as you get the pattern on there straight they still work well - and the cedar cuts like butter.

Also, last week I decided to try and alter the pattern for the bird portion of these.  I like the look that I get when using trustone for the birds, but it has gotten really expensive.  I figured out that you can fit two of the top profile of the pattern on each blank so now instead of 4 birds from each one I can get 8 - makes it a little more economical to still use trustone even at the higher prices.

[BadBob]

1 hour ago, Paladin said:

I like the look that I get when using trustone for the birds

What is trustone? I googled it and all I found was financial stuff.

 

[BadBob]

10 hours ago, Rockytime said:

Holy Smokes, you have been busy! Lookin' good.

Not as busy as I would like. With my wife working at home and trying to keep my grandson out of her way as much as possible, there isn't much time left.

[Paladin]

52 minutes ago, BadBob said:

What is trustone? I googled it and all I found was financial stuff.

 

trustone is a crushed stone composite material.  best source I have found is: https://www.randbcrafts.com/items/tru-stone-blanks/

it polishes up really nice, although it's sometimes had to hold onto the little birds while polishing (some of them take flight when grabbed by the polishing wheel on my drill press)

[BadBob]

23 hours ago, Paladin said:

trustone is a crushed stone composite material.  best source I have found is: https://www.randbcrafts.com/items/tru-stone-blanks/

it polishes up really nice, although it's sometimes had to hold onto the little birds while polishing (some of them take flight when grabbed by the polishing wheel on my drill press)

Nice, I casn see where the birds would look great cut from Tru-Stone.