A Beginner’s Do It Yourself Woodworking Project: Basic Bird Feeder

More people are getting started with the woodworking craft all the time. Woodworking uses wood and specific tools to create beautiful pieces that can ...


More people are getting started with the woodworking craft all the time. Woodworking uses wood and specific tools to create beautiful pieces that can last a lifetime. For anyone interested in do it yourself woodworking who wants a simple plan to get started, this plan for a bird feeder is perfect. For a simple bird feeder, all you’ll need is some cedar wood, cedar shingles, a dowel, window screen, and deck screws to hold everything together.

To get started you want to cut out the back 8 x 10 with a 30 degree peak for the roof. This is going to give birds an ample angle to stand on where they won’t fall and also make the bird feeder look nice. Then you want to drill about a 1 ¬º‚Äù hole centered about four inches up from the bottom. Remember, the best woodworkers always measure twice and cut once.

Remember that good woodworkers always measure twice and cut once and this is a rule to live by. This is the rule of woodworkers, because you’re always going to be better off having to cut extra off a piece that’s too large rather than having to start over from scratch because you cut a piece too short. Now you want to cut the two side pieces which should be 1 ¬Ω x 6‚Äù and the front at 1 ¬Ω x 8‚Äù. One of the most common mistakes that beginner woodworkers make is they think all pieces need to be the same, when in reality the front and back need to a bit larger because they’re meeting up with the peak of the roof on the bird feeder.

Hold each piece as you’re gluing it together, for about a count of ten as this will give the glue time to bond to both pieces. Mount the sides and glue them onto the back piece, making sure you use proper carpenter’s glue that’s strong enough to hold the wood together securely. Carpenter’s glue is best for this as it’s really strong and regular glues may not hold the wood properly. For larger bird feeders and other projects in the future, you may need to use clamps to hold pieces together and ensure they’re glued together properly.

Trim off any extra screen on the bottom, as birds could get their feet caught in it if you don’t. All you need to do now is nail the stake onto the back and put the bird feeder outside in the ground. Then you just have to glue the stake onto the back of the bird feeder which is what you’re going to use to hold the bird feeder in the ground. This is a very basic bird feeder but a great example of the simple projects that beginners should start off with.

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