B & W Harrison Specials

Three Levels of Special

I have been building Harrison Specials for a few weeks and making modifications to them as I see fit. Because I have a lot of old, rustic western cedar in stock, I have come up with, in my opinion, a very very good way to use some of it, i.e., a third level of special.

Level 1: Barnboard from Handley Lumber Mill, Fenelon Falls

"The face is 9.5 inches high x 6.5 in. wide"

Level 2: Rustic western cedar from Joe Flagler's dock reno, Fenelon Falls

"The face is 8 inches tall x 5 in. wide"

Level 3: Joe's cedar again, this time with a taller face, and more volume for feathered friends than level two.

"The new and improved face is 9 inches tall, 5 in. wide and the

two sides will be attached to the outside of the faces, not inside" 

More to follow along these lines.

Link to B & W Rustic Western Cedar

Photos GH

Rustic BH w a Twist 2

The Plans & Assembly Line

"I call this a 'small single w side apt, set back'. Makes sense, eh!"

Assembly related to six rustic birdhouses is underway and the process is much faster than measuring, cutting and sanding stock. I feel like I'm getting somewhere now!

Though I think the finished house is solid and stylish - in a rustic sort of way - I may make future models one inch taller. Modification is always allowed and takes place frequently inside The Workshop.

Once trim is applied, these will look A1, fer sure, fer sure. Not bad at all for lumber rescued from a landfill site.

More to follow on this model.

Link to Rustic BH w a Twist 1

Photos GH

Basic Barnboard BH 1

Measurements By Memory

 [The notebook page is almost blank. I know some measurements by heart]

Once I decide to build a batch of basic birdhouses I can write down a few dimensions by memory. For example, front and back faces should always be about 9 in. high by 6 in. wide at the very least. So, I made the faces 8.5 by 6.5 on these models. Solid, squatty, that's what I'm going for on these barnboard beauties.

[Sides (brown) are from rescued fir, from a neighbour's old door frame]

Sides are 6 in. long and 4.5 inches high. The base is 6 by 5 (30 square inches is excellent amount of space for most songbirds). Four roof slats are 9 in. long by 3 in. wide. Trim comes later, on a 'full-on trim day', after every piece for five 'basics' is cut and sanded.

Stay tuned.

Link to Large Triplexes 2

Photos GH

Finished Log Cabin (2)

Instructions and More Details

[The closest roof slat can be removed for Spring cleaning]

I make the logs on most cabins 3/4 or 7/8-inch square, and I stack the logs 7 - 8 tiers high before attaching the front and back triangles. I usually make the triangles about 1/2-inch longer than the width of the cabin so that when the roof is attached there is a gap between the roof's lower edge and top side of the logs to provide airflow inside the finished birdhouse.

[The items I call 'trim' are listed in pencil (almost invisible) above] 

[Hydro pole, windows, bench, etc., are added last] 

[This model comes with a free birdhouse and watchdog... cat]

Questions or comments are welcome.

Link to Finished Log Cabin (1)

Photos GH