Do It Yourself Swing Set

a porch swing
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This do it yourself swing set shown in the illustration
can be made of southern pine at a very moderate cost. It should be suspended
by rustless black chains and eyebolts passing through the lower rails.
If cushions are desired they can be made up quite cheaply of elastic
felt covered with denim cloth.
These pieces, dressed and sanded, may be bought:
• 2 rails, 1-3/4 by 3 by 71 in., S-4-S.
• 1 rail, 1-3/4 by 3 by 65 in., S-4-S.
• 2 posts, 1-3/4 by 3 by 25 in., S-4-S.
• 2 posts, 1-3/4 by 3 by 17 in., S-4-S.
• 2 rails, 1-3/4 by 3 by 22-1/2 in., S-2-S.
• 2 arm rests, 7/8 by 4 by 28 in., S-2-S.
• 5 slats, 3/8 by 5 by 16 in., S-2-S.
• 8 ft. flooring for bottom.
• 2 cleats, 7/8 by 1-1/2 by 57 in., S-4-S.
Plane and square the ends of all the rails and posts of this woodworking project.
Lay out the lap joints for the back rails and posts. Use a knife line for this
and saw exactly to the line to avoid trimming with the chisel. When sawing be
careful to cut exactly halfway through the thickness of each piece. In the same
way make the lap joints between the front rail and posts. Have the two end rails
exactly the same length and proceed to fasten the front and back posts to them,
using 4-in. lag screws and washers. Bore through the posts and part way into
the ends of the end rails for the lag screws.
The slats of this do it yourself swing set are mortised 1/2 in. into the back
rails, or a 3/8-in. groove may be planed in these rails, the entire distance
between joints, to receive the slats. A rabbeting plane will be needed for this.
The arm rests lap over the back posts and are held to them with 2-in. round-head
screws. They may be fastened to the top of the front posts with round-head screws
or dowel pins.
Ordinary pine flooring makes a good, tight seat, or 7/8-in. board may be used
if desired. Fasten the cleats, which support the seat, to the front and back
lower rails with 1-1/2-in. screws.
To bring out the beautiful grain of southern pine, stain it brown or black
and finish with two coats of waterproof varnish.
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