Friday, August 9, 2013

Wednesday, August 7, 2013

DIY sliding barn door


If you search the internet for sliding barn door hardware you'll be shocked at how expensive they are. Miranda wanted one and I wasn't about to shell out $400, so I just made it.  The 'hooks' on the door are 2" plate steel that I heated with a torch and bent around a 1" dowel.  The long slider is just another piece of plate steel.  The wheels are garage door pulleys.  The round attachment points touching the wall are dowels with a lag bolt through the middle.  Everything including nuts and bolts were hit with black spray paint.  I probably could have found something cheaper than buying the plate steel at Home Depot, but even with that I probably have $50 in this setup.


Closeup of the garage door pulley.








... and yes, it slides like butter.

Camp fire creations

Here are a few things I made camping the other week.  I carved this spatula with a draw knife and spoke shave.


These twig whistles were a big hit with the kids, not so much with the grown-ups.  Some worked great, some worked OK, and some didn't work at all.  Still trying to figure out the right recipe.