How to Build a Simple Treasure Chest

My five year old had been asking for a treasure hunt and I finally found time to make a proper treasure chest for him to find. I wanted it to be weather resistant, durable, and to look like a "real" treasure chest.

The finished product

Supplies

• 3/4" oak boards (about two board feet)
• An old leather belt
• Brass hinges
• Wood screws
• Titebond II wood glue
• Boiled linseed oil

Tools

• Mitre saw or table saw
• Drill
• Pocket screw jig (optional, Titebond glue is probably sufficient on its own)
• Clamps
• Rachet straps
• Heavy duty scissors

Steps

I built the base first. The base consists of five rectangles of 3/4" thick oak, shown in the diagrams below. 

Base, top view

When building the base, I use Titebond glue on all joints. Before applying glue, I drill lots of small (1/16" deep, 1/16" diameter) holes in the contact surface to help glue adhesion. 

Base, end view

I used pocket screws and Titebond II glue to attach the upright "walls" of the base to the bottom. If you do not have a pocket screw jig, you can either drill pilot holes up through the bottom, or you can just do glue. 

The top was trickier to construct because I wanted an arched appearance.

Angled cuts in the top

To close the ends of the top, I made the arched section 6 1/2" inches long, then capped it on either end with a solid piece. 

End view with top

I sanded the whole exterior, then coated the whole thing with boiled linseed oil and let it dry overnight (remember, be careful with linseed-soaked rags, they can spontaneously combust). 

I attached the top with small brass hinges, and added some metal corner hardware. I cut small strips of leather from the belt and attached them to the sides with wood screws. 

Then I buried it in the dirt, drew its location on a map, and watched the adventure unfold. 

Let the hunt begin!

How to Build A Tree Fort

This summer my sons and I built a pretty awesome tree fort (technically it's just a fort near a tree, as we didn't want to injure the tree). Before building, I read through the tree fort guide in the Black and Decker Complete Guide to Outdoor Building. I love Black and Decker's guide books, especially their Home Wiring guide.

Supports

Figure 1: Posts and Rim Joists, Side View from the South

Figure 2: Posts and Rim Joists, Side View from the East

I opted to use concrete "feet" rather than proper footings, as the latter is far more permanent. I used Home Depot's cedar-tone treated lumber for all of the supports. I notched the posts to support the rim joists, as shown in Figure 1.

I wanted the fort to feel "up high" to my kids, so we put the deck about four feet off the ground.

Deck

Platform in progress. The temporary diagonals between the joists keep it square.

The deck is a six foot square platform built with a 2x8" rim joist and 2x4" joists. The joists are supported by a perpendicular 2x4" screwed to the rim joist, as shown in Figure 3. I opted to use this method instead of more expensive joist hangers as the span is short and the load is relatively small.

Figure 3: Joist Support, Side View from the South

Figure 4: Platform, Top View, North Up

Enclosure

I stick-built the enclosure from un-treated 2x4" lumber. The enclosure is a four by six foot structure, four feet tall on one side and six feet tall on the other. 

Figure 5: Enclosure Side View (From the South)

Figure 6: Enclosure Side View (From the East)

After erecting the  frame of the enclosure we sheathed it with plywood. For most of the structure I used 15/32 plywood, though for the rock climbing wall I opted for 29/32.

Enclosure with plywood sheathing

Roof

I ran 2x4" rafters from the west (lower) side to the east (higher) side, covered that with plywood, and then used tin roofing. 

Siding

My parents gave us some extra cedar shingles, enough to cover about half of the enclosure. The only place I could find additional cedar shingles was Fleet Farm. We stained them and stapled them. 

Porch

I used cedar boards for decking on the porch and treated cedar tone 2x2" boards for the railing.

Windows

I used 1" pine boards to build box windows, then I use a table saw to cut grooves in them for insect screen attachment.

Window with grooves cut for rubber screen attachment

Nuts and Bolts

For most structural connections I used GRK 2.5" star drive self-piloting construction screws. These are more expensive than most other screws, but the cost is absolutely worth it. Note that as the rim joists sit directly on the posts, I did not need to use lag bolts. 

The best screws in the universe

Project: Harry Potter Style Wand and Case

For my Harry-Potter-loving, soon-to-be sister-in-law's birthday, we decided to make a couple of magic wands.

I started with three pieces of 7/8" square walnut, each about 15" long.

That's a Glenlivet 16 year Scotch, if you're curious

I decided to try a couple of styles. I hand carved the first wand using the hatchet, chisel, and knife. The second wand was a bit more complicated. 

Improvisation

I don't own a lathe, but I do own a drill.

I drilled pilot holes in each end of the walnut, then drilled screws into each end. On the left side, I put a hex nut on the screw before driving it into the walnut. I tightened my bench vise on the hex nut, giving me a flexible, low friction rotation point. 

I clamped my drill to the bench at an angle so that the walnut would rotate smoothly. Then I tightened the chuck on the screw at the right end of the walnut. 

This worked surprisingly well. I didn't have a knife rest, so I opted to use a file for most of the work. I started with a rough file and gradually rounded out the piece.

After establishing the basic shape, I switched to a fine file and finalized the shape. Then I used 80, 120, and 320 grit sandpaper to get a smooth finish. 

Finally, I used a water-based protective finish to keep the wands in good condition but not detract from the natural color of the wood.

Enclosure

I wanted to make a case which felt like it could have been pulled from a thousand-year old shelf. I started by ripping 1/8 and 1/4 walnut planks.  

• Sides: 1/4x2x14"
• Top: 1/8x2.5x14"
• Bottom: 1/8x2.5x13.5
• Ends: 1/8x2x2.5

Using a table saw, I cut groves in the sides to accommodate the top, bottom, and ends.

I put Titebond wood glue in the grooves, then clamped it together (leaving out the top).

I sanded it with 80 grit sandpaper.

Finally, I used boiled linseed oil to protect it and give it a timeless look.

 Testing

Copyright 2016 Tyler Smith

---

T.D. Smith's books on Goodreads

 The Siege of Abigail Beson