Yesterday was a good day: The sun was shining, it wasn't too windy, and I finished sanding the cedar planks for the top section of the bed. I got some great advice from an old friend who happens to be following my progress here, that will most likely turn out to save me a day or two during the staining process, and finally, I got to go shopping!
The advice my friend gave me was to buy a stain/polyurethane combo product by Minwax, called Polyshades, instead of staining separately, and then clear-coating afterward. This would (1) save me at least a day's work since I'll be doing two steps at once and not waiting for the stain to dry before moving on to the polyurethane, and (2) should reduce the amount of harmful fumes as the stuff is supposed to be less stinky than just wood stain (this means that I won't have to buy another fan and build a second fan box, I'm told that one should suffice). I spoke to somebody at Home Depot and found out that this stuff will get darker with every coat I put on it, so I ended up getting only enough for one coat, and then bought a gallon of clear gloss polyurethane, so I can add an extra couple of clear coats. I'm hoping that I have the patience to actually do this!
I took a quick scan through the lighting section to see if I there were any LED lights that I could use/cannibalize, or maybe to get some new ideas on how exactly I'm going to add some illumination to the bunk beds. I was wanting to inset LED lights into various places in the wood of the bed itself because I thought that would be super cool, but it turns out that I just about need an electrical engineering degree in order to figure out how to make it work, because I would not only have to inset and wire up each individual LED, but I would have to figure out exactly how much impedance each circuit would have, and how to deliver the various voltages to each light without popping them (too much power) or making them too dim (too little power). Nothing jumped out at me except a couple of stylized fluorescent light fixtures, but I'm really wanting to use LEDs, so I'm holding out. I'd better make up my mind soon, though!
I also got a wicked deal on a router table! I've been contemplating whether or not I should buy a router table or make one, which, ironically enough, would require the use of a router table. There are plenty of DIY plans online, but for something like this I'm a little hesitant to make one without having owned one first. Also, the off-the-shelf router tables have some great features like dust/particle exhaust suction port, mitre guages, featherboards, level/square guides, etc.. I don't really need one to make the bed, which is why I've been holding off, but I saw a Ryobi model for $99 that looked pretty decent and decided to make an impulse purchase! My favourite kind! I couldn't see one in a box so I asked a clerk to see if they had any in stock. They checked and found out that not only were they out of stock, but so was every location in the city, and the item was on clearance because they weren't going to be carrying it anymore (the manufacture has a new model). This meant that the display model I was looking at was the last in the city! I asked if they would make an exception to the Home Depot rule about not selling display units, and she said they would because this was a clearance item that was not going to be re-ordered. I ended up getting a 40% discount because I didn't get a box, instruction manual, and safety key that prevents the power from coming on without it in place -don't worry, I have a Ryobi table saw that uses the same key.
So now I have my stain. I have my brushes. And I have a router table that I really want to use but can't think what for. I really shouldn't be getting too sidetracked, anyways. I think the baby is going to come in the next few days so I'm starting to freak out a bit about the unfinished nature of the project!
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