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Pipe shelves

spent21

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 9, 2013
Messages
168
Location
Franklin, Tn
I've been building shelves. The wife has been coming back to this set that she found on pinterest:

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http://houseofhabit.blogspot.com/2011/12/home-workspipe-shelf-unit-in-boys-room.html

I just made the same exact thing, only bigger.

Reclaimed wood was out of the question. Too expensive, too rough, and too warped for me to deal with. I am NOT a carpenter.

So in order to get the weathered look, I distressed regular lumber.
I used all kinds of stuff. Screws, bolts, all-thread, pliers, screwdrivers, rocks. I even 'bowled' bricks across them. The handiest things were a piece of flat bar, a hammer, & a piece of threaded pipe.

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My wife is a web developer and got her start in the print industry. She has a thing about old printing stuff and had the dies on a shelf in the office. I surprised her by using them to stamp our names in random places on the shelves. I don't think she knows I was beating on them, and I'm not going to tell her. I wouldn't have done it if she still used them, but they're only for decoration now anyway.

The finish is a dark walnut with a couple coats of minwax, oil-modified satin.
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This one was still wet
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2x12's for the shelves and an additional 2x10 for the desk.

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I had to order a new chuck for my drill press to keep all the holes straight.

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I ended up using 1" black pipe & since I knew there'd be a few abnormal lengths due to the design, I ended up renting a pipe threader.
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I got all of the fittings from Zoro.com. I can not say enough good things about these people. I saved about $300 by using them compared to what the same fittings would have cost from Homo-Depot & got free shipping. I didn't take into account the extra width of the Tee fittings and soon found that the 8" ******* were going to be too long for the under board supports. I called them for a return authorization & expected to pay for the return trip, but they emailed me a return label for the 25 fittings free of charge. :D

We didn't want to screw into the hardwood floors, so the flanges only offer a base for the shelves to sit.
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I used more flanges to secure the shelves to the wall at the bottom and at the top.

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Word to the wise: measure the height of each section before moving to the next section. Uneven floors, bowed walls, and general out of squareness were not things that I had anticipated. :headscrat I had to pull 2 shelves off, move some sections around, and ultimately recut some sections to get everything realigned... Again, I am not a carpenter.

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I got everything together while she was out & she absolutely loved them when she saw them. She had everything in place before bed that evening.

The finished product:

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big.jim

Well-known member
Joined
May 11, 2011
Messages
1,011
Location
derbyshire uk
very nice lots of ideas for those of us that can work black iron and timber but for those among us that cant IKEA does something "similar"
 

shooting4life

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 19, 2012
Messages
334
Looks good, if you don't mind, how much do you have into the project? I have been trying to get my wife into the same type of thing.
 

scooternut

Well-known member
Joined
Jul 31, 2013
Messages
684
Location
Pittsburgh, PA
That is nice work! Our process was very similar, including using zoro, saved a fortune. Free shipping, and even found a deep discount code online. I'm making a few lamps now with the pipe look. Here are my nightstands and a sofa table for my bedroom

View media item 44301
 
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spent21

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 9, 2013
Messages
168
Location
Franklin, Tn
Thanks, guys.

I come from a mechanic background. I've worked with some carpenters, and almost all of them have a 'close enough' mentality. Nuts & bolts are pretty precise so 'close enough' bothered me in the past, but now I see why.

I've seen some of the store-bought alternatives, and I have 1/3 the money in this than I would have otherwise for something this size. This one below is only 8'x6' & $1200. Mine is 12' x 9'

http://www.rhbabyandchild.com/catalog/product/product.jsp?productId=rhbc_prod405203
http://media.rhbabyandchild.com/is/image/rhbcis/rhbc_prod405203?$PD$&illum=0
rhbc_prod405203


I specifically asked about the proximity to the window, and wifey says that she has no plans for window dressing on that one due to it being the 'corner window'. I don't have any pictures here, but the end of the boards are even with the outside of the window trim... the way she wanted it.

With the cost of the pipe threader ($200 for 2 days rental), I have ~$650 - $700, not counting sandpaper, the new chuck, saw horses, or roller stands that I bought. I could have purchased pre-cut/threaded pieces, but had no idea what to expect for take-up with the fittings.

scooter, your pieces look really nice. I like the aged grayish look of the long table. Did you happen to use a torch to get some of your coloring on the other pieces?

I tried various things on a test piece, but my burned pieces looked a little too dark/busy. I beat mine pretty good and sanded it way longer than I thought I'd need to, but I like the way they came out.
 

scooternut

Well-known member
Joined
Jul 31, 2013
Messages
684
Location
Pittsburgh, PA
The gray is just likely light playing tricks.

I used cheap white wood from Lowes, beat the **** out of it like you but with a few more twists.

1) I made a "paddle" with a bunch of screws randomly sticking through, and they're not all the exact same depth. This makes some of the holes deeper when you hit it. I used this same paddle to gouge the wood lengthwise.

2) I used a grinder and some sort of sanding flapper type disk to randomly knock corners down in some places.

3) And yes, I did hit the wood with a torch. Then a very heavy dose of dark walnut stain.
 

PugetDude

ALLIANCE MEMBER
Joined
Mar 13, 2013
Messages
22,384
Location
Superstition Mountains, AZ
Nice work! I love the industrial look.

I've done some distressed wood before, used a short length of really rusty chain, an awl, (push in on an angle for wormholes) 4- in- hand rasp for scuffs and scrapes, roofing hammer (square corner dents), a soft wire wheel (removes softwood), and a couple of cans of spray paint. Paint some of the the dents and dings a couple of different colors , then sand over- leaves paint in the dents to shine thru the finish- gives it depth. Multiple colors look like multiple coats of paint, with subsequent damage between coats.
 

koditten

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 10, 2008
Messages
5,528
Location
Midland, Michigan
Nice job!

I've too just started using the water based urthane. That stuff has me won over big time.

I find it works the best spraying it. More coats and less effort.
 
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