[MrPhotographer06]

1970 beetle..

i want a wood console..

is it easier to order one.. or just make one?

i dont really know how.. but i can try=D

[OneMoreTime]

I would certainly encourage a young fellow to make one as the skills you will recieve will be good down the road sometime..

Sam

[MrPhotographer06]

Originally Posted by OneMoreTime

I would certainly encourage a young fellow to make one as the skills you will recieve will be good down the road sometime..

Sam

haha

i'm not sure how to make the area around the hand brake..

i feel sure i could make it

no doubt

but i need some ideas

[OneMoreTime]

Take some card board and packing tape and make a mockup of your idea..then use the mockup pieces as patterns to cut your wood pieces..may take several tries to get just what you want..

Sam

[DanTwoLakes]

Great answer, OMT. This is a great project to start with. My first project was a 60 VW. There is a ton of aftermarket stuff available for a VW. (Is it at all disconcerting to the rest of you that this young man has the computr skills to navigate this site better than most of us? O.K. me.) BTW. I made plans and God is hyperventilating.

[Dusty82]

Originally Posted by OneMoreTime

Take some card board and packing tape and make a mockup of your idea..then use the mockup pieces as patterns to cut your wood pieces..may take several tries to get just what you want..

When I was a cabinetmaker (oh no, here he goes again,) the boss was a stickler for making a prototype piece whenever we built something new or a bit out of the ordinary. He did this to test machining and assembly techniques to make sure everything went smoothly, and to make sure everyone understood the job at hand before we started working with the real woods - especially exotics that can be very expen$ive. Usually these prototypes were made out of cheap fir plywood, MDF, and non-corrugated cardboard. We used hot glue guns and brads or staples to fasten everything together, and on the odd occasion, package sealing tape when nothing else would do. We did no hand carving at all because we were still basically a production shop - even though we did do custom pieces on occasion. Once the prototype was built and deemed OK by the Father Superior, as we called him, we took it apart and used various pieces as patterns if we needed to.

The only thing you have to remember when using this method is that the thickness of the wood will be a bit different than the cardboard you'll most likely use for the prototype. Most woods are actually anywhere from 1/64" to 1/32" thinner than it's advertised thickness. This might not sound like much, but it can lead to ugly gaps in joints if you're not careful. Measure the thickness of the wood you want to use for your final piece with a set of veneer calipers ($15 at Home Depot - cheaper at Harbor Freight) and adjust your measurements accordingly when it's time to start work on the actual piece and you'll be okay.

Don't be afraid to experiment - cardboard, hot glue, and tape are cheap.

[DanTwoLakes]

Dusty: So then you know what a flitch of veneer is, eh?

[Dusty82]

Originally Posted by DanTwoLakes

Dusty: So then you know what a flitch of veneer is, eh?

Why yes I do, as a matter of fact.

Actually "flitch" currently has two meanings when it comes to veneer. It's a flat piece of wood that is moved along the veneer cutting blade from which veneer is actually cut, and it's a stack of veneer cut from a single board (usually 8 pieces.) Eight pieces because that's what they could cut out of one average board while minimizing waste. You have to remember that this was before there was such a thing as the modern technology like we have today. Now veneer is made by basically "unpeeling" a log using computer controlled, high-speed cutters mounted to a rather slow turning lathe that can turn an average log into several thousand linear feet of veneer. Back in the day, you had woodworkers hand sawing logs into nominal sized planks, and then hand sawing those planks into veneer. That's still done today in the case of extremely rare species and top dollar exotics, and then usually only for small projects like jewelry boxes and such.

I know lots of stuff - just ask my wife...

Yeah, right...

[MrPhotographer06]

man yall sound like my grandpa.. telling all kinds of old stuff

lol

i think i'll build it out of 1/2" .. oak is expensive.. i think.. last time i checked.. but a good looking console is worth it..

i'll house a gauge panel and a compartment box

then the slot for the shifter.. and a few little boxes and compartments.. mabye .. if its not too hard maybe a close-lid compartment.. and have it covered by a friend of mine who does upholstry <i dunno how to spell it>

[yknot]

Have someone else do it for you since you obviously have no skills.

[poncho62]

Originally Posted by yknot

Have someone else do it for you since you obviously have no skills.

Yknot........Out of line, as are most of your remarks...........You said in another post that you don't want to make friends.......Well, you have none here......Suspending you for 60 days. If and when you come back, maybe you can not be the bullying, insensative boar that I see you as.....

I usually handle these things with a PM, but you don't even deserve that.

[OneMoreTime]

Good on you Poncho ...just got the response in the mail..

Sam

[MrPhotographer06]

Originally Posted by yknot

Have someone else do it for you since you obviously have no skills.

well when you were 14 .. and just started your first project did you have any?

man just go away and leave us alone

[Henry Highrise]

Good call Poncho! Cam...don't worry about it...everybody has to start somewhere. You are polite and good natured and you are asking questions and trying to learn and that is a good thing. Hang in there buddy!

[FordMan1951]

Originally Posted by DanTwoLakes

...BTW. I made plans and God is hyperventilating.

HELP...I cannot stop laughing!!!!