Wood-workin folks.....

[Pappy]

Ok, this is really out of left field so bare with me:p

If you havent seen lately, i've been having a blast taking pictures of birds. So i've got my feeding station started and they are really coming in etc. Now we are looking into building some birdhouses and I know exactly dick about wood working type stuff:p

Now before you close the thread thinking i'm a moron for not being able to make a simple birdhouse...please read on.

The one's I want to make are made from actual tree's...sort of. Basically you cut a piece of wood, say 6,8 or 10 inches in diameter(depending on type of bird you want to attract), cut it in half long ways, I geuss use a router or something to hollow out the center portion(where the nest will actually be. Then install a latch and hinge(s) roof etc and your done.

Now, I can figure out how to cut the center with a router or even a drill and some chisel work.....but I am not so hip on how to do the hinges and latch so that it fits together tight.

I am also assuming it would be best to use a seasoned wood over green?

Hopefully there are some creative type folks out there that can give me some tips or thoughts on this. I dont really want 200 birdhouses scattered about the yard, and this would allow them to blend in. I can also set these in places with a perch nearby and the birdhouse wont or hopefully shouldnt be noticed in the photo. It will also help when the young birds start sticking their heads out to look a bit more natural as well.

Thanks in advance!

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3123/3250557115_5c802c911e_o.jpg

[05LSR250R]

You might get away with using a leather strap for the hinge. Maybe a piece off an old belt?

[Pappy]

Well thats the trick....

I dont really want anything seen in the photo that would elude to it being "built". I want to do my best to make it look all natural. I can use a mix of bark/water what ever log I use to help stain the area around the entry hole (which wont be a perfect circle) And I can make it tall enough that you wont see the roof(which I wil make out of natural stuff as well)

Two goals here....

1) make it look like a hole in a real tree

2) have nothing really evident that its man made.

This way I can position the houses for the best lighting(keeping in mind not to have the thing in the sun all day etc)

On teh smaller logs, say 4 to 6 inch, I can use a paddle bit and drill straight through, its the larger ones that have me asking these questions.

[05LSR250R]

I would glue it back together after gutting it. Then glue a piece of the same tree (about1") on the bottom. Then cut another 1" piece from the same tree and use that for a lid. This would eliminate the hinge problem being on the sides. You can then glue leaves and similar branches to the house to camo it.

[Pappy]

Yeah glue could work, maybe drill and use dowel pins to help support it more?

[05LSR250R]

When you cut your piece for the bird house cut 2 more pieces About 1' thick from each side of it before you rip it lenghtwise that way you'll have a bottom to glue back on and a lid for the top. This way things match up. Know what I mean?

[Pappy]

The top and bottom are pretty straight forward I think, and if I do it using the right measurements, you will never see it in a picture. Ive been searching online and there are a few that ive seen, but nothing thats getting me close to what I am seeing in my head:p

Here we go, after an hour of searching and finally making a thread i find something:p

http://www.wildlife.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=birds.househowtobuild

[Alberta_Qaudin]

well for the hinges again you can use a router.....buy the hinges you want to use...you can fine ones used in door that the hinges are hidden for aesthetics, take the hinge and measure the depth, you can set your router to 1/2 that depth (since you are going to be routering both pieces of wood.....then take a piece of say 1/2" ply wood and cut it to the size of the hinge. clamp this to the wood and router out the design of the hinge, only problem being unless oyu have a flat spot on the wood you will have to bevel back the edges where the hinge is or use a very narrow hinge.

have you thought about maybe just once the pieces are cut and hollowed drilling out small holes and dowling it, glue the dowls into the bottom and let the top just sit, it might be easier and give you a much better hidden seam

[Pappy]

I think I can drill the small ones without splitting....hopefully


Its the larger ones that will need the work. I would love to get a few Owls nesting here. I actually have a few pieces that are naturally hollwed to start, be nice if I can find more:p

[05LSR250R]

That house in the link looks like the ticket. Then just camouflage it using similar items from the same tree. The dowl pin top is a relly good idea.

[Alberta_Qaudin]

now that i've seem your pics you found. my explanation makes no sense i was thinking of two cutting the whole thing in 2 and hinging in the middle.....pay no attention to me, the dowling might still work for you though

[05LSR250R]

My son has a stash limb for hiding small items in. I'll take a picture in the morning, hes sleeping right now, and post it for ya in the morning. Just for the hell of it , might give you a good mental pic.

[Pappy]

Yeah the dowel pin would help for sure

I have a few dead trees that have hollow limbs from the gypsy moths killing the trees years ago. Some came down this winter so I might catch a break if the woods isnt to rotten etc.

Id like to snag up some drift wood as well

I just have to visit Home Depot and see what kind of drill bits they offer. Probably take a pretty decent sized one to hollow out a 4 inch hole.

[Alberta_Qaudin]

you could give a hole saw a shot you might have to chisel out some as you go but you can get them as big 6-7" for a 3/8" drill i believe

[Pappy]

Yeah I thought about that, I really need a lathe i geuss:p or whatever they use for that kind of stuff..lol

[05LSR250R]

Yoy can probably get away with a 1" bit and drill the piece like a revolver chamber then chisel the rest out. Might give it a more natural look inside. Some birds are finicky about that kinda thing.

[Pappy]

Yeah thats what led me to this kind of design. Some of the small birds here (im told) wont nest in regular boxes and such.

they told me barn swallows wouldnt nest in a box but I have pictures of them here doing just that:p

[05LSR250R]

What about those Owls? how picky are they?

[Pappy]

Not really sure. It might be a losing cause with them, simply because we have so many trees around the region (state-east coast) that are hollow from damage that natural nesting sites are abundant. Finding them and being able to set up on them for photography is pretty tough

Quite possible some ofteh smaller hawks might take it over. I have a mating pair of hawks here, and they had a nest last year but it is in a spot you cant begin to get close to

[05LSR250R]

Yeah, I have a huge horned owl I hear in the backyard everynight. Still cant find out where his nest is! Probably not even close. Though the homestead is very rural. We also have bald eagles nesting a couple miles down the road. You can actually see them in the nest if you just walk a couple hundred yards off the road.

[jonboy]

Hey Pappy you should check into on of these wheels for hollowing out the logs. You can get them from King Arthor tools. http://www.katools.com/

[05LSR250R]

PAPPY, thought this might help.Thanx.

[Alberta_Qaudin]

thats quite the rig.....the other option for hollowing is to do it like said in an earlier post, but cutting a 1" ring off at the bottom, if you mark a small line (2" or so) it will allow you to line up the pieces to give a more seamless look, and again go back to dowels and glue to re-attach. this would make the hole saw option a little easier and eliminate all the chiseling.

[Pappy]

Damn, that chainsaw type rascal looks mean!

05....I must be having connection issues cuz i cant see what you posted yet

[05LSR250R]

Yeah! It eas there this morning! I'll repost

[05LSR250R]

Originally posted by 05LSR250R
Yeah! It eas there this morning! I'll repost http://i555.photobucket.com/albums/jj468/horath2008/011.jpg
http://i555.photobucket.com/albums/jj468/horath2008/010.jpg
http://i555.photobucket.com/albums/jj468/horath2008/009.jpg

[S.A.J]

i kinda doubt it gets much more natural than that lol

[Pappy]

Yeah thats sort of like it, just mine will be bigger etc

I cut out 2 pieces today that will be my first projects:p I will get some pics as we go along over the coming days. I also changed up my entire bird shooting set up this after noon for some new looks. Maybe I can catch a few shots that will explain more of what I want...you cant get to much advice or have to many opinions!!!

Thanks!!!

[05LSR250R]

Yeah. all PAPPY has to do is make a large scale version of it then camouflage the top a little.

[Pappy]

Ok here is the start

[Pappy]

This one is large, but already hollow

[05LSR250R]

That looks perfect! You could use a piece of tanned leather for the lid and camouflage it with debris. That would take a lot of the hassle outof fabbing a wood lid?

[Pappy]

The 2nd one is rotted inside, but good on teh bottom

[Pappy]

It was easy to hollow out. this is what alot of wood around here looks like

[Pappy]

hollowed out and entry hole made 5 inches from floor

top will be made from a slab cut of the same tree, and the bottom will be reinforced with a peice as well.

[05LSR250R]

PERFECT! Great job! With all that holler'ed out wood around you might have a little left over to start makin'em for the public. You never can tell what some people are lookin' for.

[ZeroLogic]

05LSR250R has the same idea I had with his son's box.:p

Man Pappy, I'd get a wood mill and start milling up those oak trees. Throw then in a shed for a year or two so they dry out. Then I'll drive down there and buy it all up from ya.:p

Originally posted by Pappy
Well thats the trick....

I dont really want anything seen in the photo that would elude to it being "built". I want to do my best to make it look all natural. I can use a mix of bark/water what ever log I use to help stain the area around the entry hole (which wont be a perfect circle) And I can make it tall enough that you wont see the roof(which I wil make out of natural stuff as well)

Two goals here....

1) make it look like a hole in a real tree

2) have nothing really evident that its man made.

This way I can position the houses for the best lighting(keeping in mind not to have the thing in the sun all day etc)

On teh smaller logs, say 4 to 6 inch, I can use a paddle bit and drill straight through, its the larger ones that have me asking these questions. ok this is what ive heard , you can take a flathead woodbit about a 1inch size and drill half way in the tree and the you put something in there to burn and put it out and wiggle the bit until its a LIL BIRDY HOME :macho :macho :macho

[Pappy]

Thats cool...kill the tree:p dumbass:blah:

Originally posted by Pappy
Thats cool...kill the tree:p dumbass:blah:


haha i meant a alreay dead one , i mean how else can you burn it ? come on noww pappy? common sense:huh

[Pappy]

You are giving people to much in the way of common sense. I can already see the thread where someone tried to do what you suggested and burnt down thier woods:chinese: :o

Originally posted by Pappy
You are giving people to much in the way of common sense. I can already see the thread where someone tried to do what you suggested and burnt down thier woods:chinese: :o


thanx...........

[Aceman]

I haven't read the replies so maybe it's already been mentioned. But, just something I thought of:

4" forstner bit or larger and a holesaw to match. Grab your log round and core a hole up through the center as far as you want. Make a plug out of whatever(plywood, etc)with the holesaw to fit in the bottom and simply screw it, glue it, whatever you want. Drill a hole through the side into the hollow chamber for the bird and you're done. No visible latches, no obvious removable roof and you can shoot it from any angle without worrying about the seam or split and hinges being in the picture. Plus the birdhouse should stay drier since there are no openings above the nest.

4"+ forstners aren't cheap though maybe you can find one on Ebay. With some extension bits you could core out a pretty long log if you wanted too. Something else, you core holes side by side(so it looks like a figure 8) if you wanted a larger diameter hole without buying a huge bit.

[Pappy]

LOL..yeah budget is always an issue these days:p I think I can do pretty good with what I have and some work. I mean if the birds b!tch i will just give them the 870:eek: :blah:

I have some reading to do as well so that I make the dang things somehwat correct so the birds actually use it.

[05LSR250R]

If you hit one of those buggers with your 870 I want a phot of the moment of impact!(LOL) Maybe rig your camera shutter with your trigger somehow!! I may be onto somethin' here!! Hmmm!(LOL)

[Pappy]

;) No special gear to either trigger needed:devil:

[05LSR250R]

Nice!! But isnt that a clay pigeon? Guess it dont matter once ya pull the trigger. BTW is that your son?

[Pappy]

Yeah one of them:p

[05LSR250R]

Better sign that boy up for the football team! Looks like a real bruiser ya got there!

[cletusEX]

Man, those logs would make sweet wood duck boxes! I ain't much on bird boxes unless you can shoot what they provide.:D And all the 870 talk has me going thru withdrawls.:p I'm not much with metal but can hold my own with wood, I'll look on the farm this weekend and see if I can't come up with something.

[Pappy]

Haha thanks Nick.

I dont have any places to put up wood duck boxes here but I will make some as long as I can find logs like these. Maybe you guys could put up a few down on the marsh:p

Cody thought this was all pretty cool, but Ryan is all over it. He wants to make all kinds of things now:p You cant go wrong on something like thsi as long as the kids have fun!

Oh...I feel teh same way about the freezer, but for me, a shot can = money:p

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3478/3253087903_57b5ff6e40_o.jpg

[cletusEX]

Originally posted by Pappy
Haha thanks Nick.

I dont have any places to put up wood duck boxes here but I will make some as long as I can find logs like these. Maybe you guys could put up a few down on the marsh:p

Cody thought this was all pretty cool, but Ryan is all over it. He wants to make all kinds of things now:p You cant go wrong on something like thsi as long as the kids have fun!

Oh...I feel teh same way about the freezer, but for me, a shot can = money:p



I built about 10 wood duck boxes last year. I'm gonna check them this week to see which ones produced, but usually they take a few years to weather enough for wood ducks to use them, so we'll see. Might make for some good pictures come the end of Feb. early March, so I'll let you know.

That's awesome that the boys are into it. The more you can get them into improving the property, the more they will enjoy. Nothing better to see something you did being used by nature. The last few years I have had more fun trying to increase the waterfowl numbers than I have trying to deplete tham.:p
(well almost!) Anyways good luck with your bird boxes, should make for some awesome pictures!

[Pappy]

Oh ..also..I bought a layout boat! It should be really good for sneaking around places like yours for pics....and slaying ducks:devil:

Yep I agree, keeping the kids involved in all aspects of the outdoors is very important to me. Well, you have been here, and seen what we have done to improve the land for the deer, and they both are right there beside me helping and learning.

I may be broke....but I am one happy guy really:p If money improves, we are still considering doing a deer farm/high fence.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3044/3251685992_82b91faa3d_o.jpg

[05LSR250R]

Some of the happiest people I know are broke!