New 180g stand and canopy build - DIY How To

snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member

So, this is the point at which I am at so far.
Once the front plywood is on there PERFECTLY, flush and square and glued down, screw it into place. Remember those plywood cutouts for the frame? They come in-handy at this point. Place them on top of the stand in this fashion and place something really, really heavy on it. In this case for me, I used three buckets of C-clamps. Yes, clamps really did come in-handy on this build. :D
More pics coming this week. :D
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member
Been really busy in the taxidermy shop lately with deer season going and all. The last week has been hectic! I havent been able to do anything on it put put pencil to paper on the trim work design. I think i might stretch my router skills on this one. I also think that i am going to screw the trim in place and putty over it. Since it is just going to be painted anyways. That way it has a much better grip on the stand.
I got most of the inside parts of the stand painted. I also cut the doors for the hidden storage and sanded them down. Ill upload pics later tonight if i get the chance.
Looks like he wont get it as a christmas present after all. But thats ok. Most of my customers want quality work and understand it takes extra time and care to get that quality done right.
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member
So, there is some progress on the stand.
For those of you following along, I apologize for the lack of detailed pictures. However, if you can read the instructions and use a little common sense, you will understand how to do this yourself.

After you get the front glued on and screwed down, add the top on and make sure everything is flush and square as can be. This is more difficult than what you think it is! I had to use a hand planer to get it "just right" so don't beat yourself up too bad if it's on perfect the first time. Make sure you put enough downward pressure on the top where it is glued and wait 12 hours for the glue to fully cure before starting on the next phase.
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member

This is a generic picture - you can't really see much in it, but the point is that you paint the inside with primer and paint while the top is off, then when you have to paint the top, you turn the whole stand on it's side so that you don't have to sit on the hard ground to paint. I'm all about saving my back!

This is the unfinished bottom of the left side of the stand. Note that it won't be too difficult to go ahead and paint the rest of the bottom when it needs paint. The problem is always going to be painting the top.
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member

I was 1/16th of an inch off on the right side - and that wasn't good enough for me, so I took the hand planer and chipped away at it. Always make sure that after you use the hand planer you go ahead and re-check for squareness.
This is about the most square box I have ever made. It won't matter that there is a bum spot right there because it will be overlapped with trim.
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member

Go ahead and prime the back of the stand before the end of the day so that it will be out of the way and so that you can concentrate on more important parts of the build. The back of the stand is just as important as the front to prime in and paint, or even stain - so that it is completely water resistant. Remember, we are dealing with really heavy aquariums - lots of water, lots of leakage from hands and tools in the tank over time - so we want to make sure that this wood is protected against that as well.
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member

For the next little while, the stand will be laid on it's back so that the front and side trim work can go on. Go ahead and cut each side of the front trim for an extra 3/4" on either side, so that the side trim can butt up against it and be flush. Glue it and screw it down. Clamp it for at least 2 hours before routing and adding the second layer of trim. This long dry time allows it to stay in the right place and get a nice seal. Make sure the bottom is absolutely flush. We don't want the weight of the water to be on the trim, we want it to be on the frame. Some people argue to leave about 1/16th of an inch gap on the bottom trim to ensure that the tank is sitting properly on the frame. I made it flush and went back with a hand planer and made it extremely flush - then sanded it down with 100 grit sandpaper... after all of the trim is put on.
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member

After all three sides of the first layer of trim is on, glue dried and clamps removed, go ahead and route it with a router bit design of your choice. Here I used a 1 1/4" roundover bit. It's not the most eloquent out there, but my client wanted a more modern and simple look - and that's what I gave him. :D
In this picture, you can see that the second layer of trim has gone on the stand - glued and clamped, but not screwed. Screw holes are easy to cover up with wood fillter, but screws are not necessary as the glue will actually give a better hold than the screws will over time. So, glue and clamp it and then wait at least 12 to 24 hours before continuing work on it. Make sure you are doing all three sides at the same time so that you can make faster progress on the stand.
Also, you can start to see some wood fillter going in the cracks and screw holes in the wood at this point. You can go ahead and start filling in any gaps that you see, so that it has time to set and cure before you go on to sanding everything down.
As a side note, I don't know if it is common sense or not, but ALWAYS pay attention to the quality of the wood that you are working with. Sometimes you can pick the absolute best in the store that you see, but then you get it home and you can see even more imperfections. Before you tack anything down, make sure you are choosing the best side out, and the worse side in. Knots, voids, and other things make your stand look more amateurish than anything - even if you consider yourself more than just a hobbyist - you need to be paying attention to the grade, grain, and quality of the wood on every mark, every cut, and every glue.
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member

I bought a new router. :D Porter Cable - for those of you interested in seeing what equipment I like to use. I don't think I will find it difficult to find jigs for this router either. I like the easy dial design and it's also very small and compact. The torque isn't that bad when you start it with one hand - and the box it comes in is also pretty nice - although it's sometimes a pain to fit the electrical cord into. This router also comes with two collets - one is 1/2" and the other is 1/4" and can fit any router bit that is made... as long as they are 1/2" and 1/4" shanks. :D It also came with two wrenches so that it is easy to change the bit out. I also like the easy adjusting swivel style depth adjuster.
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member

So, this is the major gap that I have in my photos. I was in a rush today to get as much as I could done to the stand and didn't stop to take pictures like I should have.
As you can see, both layers of trim is on the stand. Also, the trim has been routed with the bit that I chose. The top shelf around the aquarium was sanded, then routed, then sanded again. The ends of the stand had to be routed before the top shelf was put on. Everything on the outside of the stand got a 100 grit sanding with a powersander, and then I went up to a 150grit sandpaper after that. The 100 grit paper is mainly to get rid of any waving that a planer at the mill may have created - which is quite common. The 150grit kinda seals the deal and makes the rest of the wood feel better and smoother.
Once it is entirely sanded down and smooth, go ahead and use an air blower or air compressor to blow off the stand and get it as free of dust as possible. Remember, your not just sanding off the wood, but also leveling up all of the wood filler that you put on the stand as well.
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member

Doesn't look too bad at this point, does it? Remember, the entire inside and back of this stand has already been primed in, and most of the inside has already been painted black - at least all of the really tough spots.
If you notice in the photo that the right end of this stand comes up off of the concrete a little bit - it's not because the stand is crooked, but that the concrete is built on a slant so that water can drain off of the patio. lol. Yes, it is difficult to work with an unlevel surface for building projects like these. I don't recommend it - but if necessary, it can be done!
After you think you are done sanding, and blown everything off,... do it one more time. Really concentrate on the nooks and crannies and get all of the wood "burrs" off before you prime anything in. Then blow everything off again with the air compressor and wait for the dust to settle, and then do one final air blowing to get it all nice and clean. Your workshop should be relatively dust free with priming, painting, sand and sealing, glossing and especially so if you are polyurethaning or laquoring.
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member

Once everything is dust free and you have a little time, go ahead and prime the rest of the stand in. Take your time. Use a really good brush and keep it clean. Dip out of a container, not the can. Make sure that you aren't dripping all over your project or even on your concrete. We all know how our wives would react to primer on concrete! I like to work from top to bottom, personally. That way, if there are any drips, I can run my brush over it and smooth it out. Also, another tip is to paint WITH the grain of the wood. Painting against the grain doesn't yield as good of results.
A note as to what those three grey boards are - two of them make up the hidden storage fake doors and one of them is the actual bookshelf.
If you haven't already, go to the hardware store and pick out your handles, door hardware and other materials that you need to complete the project. Assess if you need more paint or primer and pick that up as well. Remember that you also have to build the doors soon as well, so if you don't have the materials for those, pick that up as well. It's late, and I repeat things as well. LOL.
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member
That's it for the update tonight. I'll probably start painting on it a little on Monday afternoon, and then I have to do the doors... probably Monday afternoon as well.
 
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