how to make a bookshelf?

Question

Can anyone instuct me on how to make a small 3 shelf bookshelf?

Answer 1

I would recomend purchasing 1/2 x 12" pine or other hardwood planking. Make sure that your planks are not warped and that they are not too green (wet). Put the planks on the floor of the hardware store and inspect for bowing and damages. The length will depend on how tall and wide you will want your shelf to be. The basic components will be your upright sides, your backing, and your shelves. Other matierials will depend on how involved you want your project to be and how strong you need your shelves.

Decide on a height you want for your book case to be and how wide. Cut your two upright planks to the length you need, and then do the same with your shelve pieces. Decide how much space you want between shelves and mark these distances on your uprights. you could make all shelves the same distances, but often there will be slightly taller spaces between shelves near the bottom, as heavier and larger items are often kept there. Also... a top self can rest on top or inside of the uprights, you decide. If your shelf is taller than your head, I recomend going inside. If your self is shorter than your head and you can look down at the top shelf, go on top. If you go on top you will need to cut the top shelf longer than the lower shelves (1" if you are using 1/2" thick planks, but you might want a little overhang for style).

The bottom shelf should be elevated from the floor level about 2 - 4". The small gap underneath that shelf can be easily filled with a piece cut to fit the height and width of the space, this is your "footer." To make this footer flush with the front of the shelf you should notch out the front lower corners of the upright pieces to fit the footer piece. You should (but don't have to) do this to the top rear and bottom rear corners of the uprights as well for side-to-side stability. The footer and rear stabilizers should be as long and the bookcase is wide (outside to outside).

From here there are to ways to go.

Way one (easier): To attach the shelves to the uprights you will need to nail/screw 1' x 1/2" x 2" pieces to the insides of the uprights at the marks you determined your shelves to be at (I recomend small headed finishing nails). The shelves will rest (and should be fastened) on top of these pieces.

Way two (nicer looking): using a router, notch the insides of the uprights 1/4" deep slots at the marks you determined your shelves to be at. The ends of the shelves will slide into these slots and you will use wood glue to hold them in place. Clamp the glued joints securly for 1 - 2 days making sure to not sinch clamps down on the product itself, use scrap wood to protect the bookcase from maring.

Make sure the shelves are level using a air bubble level and that they are 90 degrees to the uprights using a square. Make sure the uprights are 90 degrees to the floor also.

Once you have your shelves in place, insert your footer and rear stabilizers and fasten them with nails/screws. At this point you could be done, but it would look nicer with backing and trim. Vertical toung-and-grove pine planks are great backing. They look nice and are easy to use. Nail/screw them on the back of the shelf, making sure to fasten each plank to each shelf. This not only looks nice, but also makes your shelf significantly more stable side-to-side. If you want a simpler, but not as nice, backing... use 1/4" plywood or something similar.

On the front of the shelf you could add trim along the front of the uprights and top shelf. This would hide the joints where the shelves meet the uprights. Use 1.5 - 2 " trim. Cut the upper corners of it at 45 degree angles to fit flushly against eachother. Also make sure the trim is flush to the outside of the bookcase. Use finishing nails to attach the trim to the bookcase. Sink the nails using a punch and puddy over them.

Sand the whole thing down with a coarse and then a finer grain sandpaper. Choose a stain you like, or paint (I recomend a stain in a natural wood tone). Use a brush to apply the stain and allow to penetrate the wood for a short bit. The longer you leave the stain ont the wood, the more of it the wood will absorb and the darker the tone. Wipe away excess stain with a clean rag. If you still want a darker tone at this point, reapply the stain. Let the stain dry for a day or two before applying a finish. I recomend a polyurethane finish to maintain a nice tone and to repel water stains and protect the wood. 2 coats will probably do it, but it yuo really like high gloss, keep going. Any surface that will have things like a vase, fish tank, beverage, etc set upon it shoud be well sealed and will probably need 3 - 4 coats.

If your book case is tall, you should anchor it to the wall with a toggle bolt drilled into the wall and placed at a height just below the top shelf drilling a hole through the center of the top rear stabilizer. You should also consider this if you have small children around who might be hurt if the shelf were to fall, or if your shelf will hold very heavy or fragile things (like expensive art, fish tanks, gigantic hunks of metal, etc). Safety first!

Now all that sounds like a lot of work, and it is. I'm sitting next to a shelf I built this very same way... it's the nicest piece of furniture in my house. Good luck and have fun.

Answer 2

I don't have a bookshelf, I keep my books in a drawer... but at my mom's the bookshelf has books, random things like a flashlight, an ax, an empty candy box, business cards from someone she doesn't know, 2 tons of dust and 63 little elephant figurines.

Answer 3

Some wood, some screws, and a drill. Some panel for the back if you are wanting to be fancy, and some trim and wood glue if you want to be even fancier. If all you need is something basic, that is going to do it for you.

If you want fancier, you can probably afford to buy your own book shelf, or the thrift stores abound with them!

Answer 4

It's much easier to go to Menard's and buy a plan or book.

Answer 5

Thank you Big City !!!!Menards!!!!