This week’s project comes from Jim. It’s a dog feeding station that is worthy of the most regal beagle.
So here it is, my first attempt at semi-fine wood-working… a dog feeding station. This is my first furniture project and first project using the Domino, which I bought after watching your Domino episode about 8 times. WHAT A MACHINE! (sorry, about the caps but I love it). I used the Domino to reinforce/align the glue joint for the “table” top and it worked like a charm – a perfectly aligned and reinforced glue up. I then used the Domino to join the table skirts to the legs, and for the first time in my short wood-working career, came out with a perfectly square, strong frame. Although the price tag is a little hefty, its the best money I ever spent (except for that course of antibiotics in college, just kidding). At the end of the day the most satisfying part was that I designed the project myself from some similar examples I’d seen in the Orvis catalog. I tend to like mine *a little bit more* especially since they get $49.00 for theirs and its made out of pine. As for materials, I made the whole project out of lacewood – a slight upgrade from the pine I’ve used for everything else. Three coats of tung oil later, I’m ready to pass the project onto my brother and his horse/golden lab.
Interestingly, I gave it to my brother about a month and a half ago after putting 3 coats of tung oil on it. I saw it over Thanksgiving and it just didn’t look right – the slobber/water and food took its toll. The grain was raised and the whole project just looked dull. So, I hijacked it from him, re-sanded it, and just finished putting 3 coats of Minwax Wipe-On Poly on it. It looks a whole lot better and more durable but only time will tell I guess.
Jim
The poly aught to be a lot better as far as taking abuse. Claude
I love wood almost as much as I love building things using wood but, when I had to build our dogs a new feeding station I went for something a little more durable — 80/20 aluminum extrusions. I thought about using wood and just couldn’t come up with something that I thought would last.
Our original dog feeding station was made of mild steel and it lasted about three years until the splashed water and slobber got the best of it and the welds failed. That station was purchased at a pet store. Our newest one was built using aluminum extrusions and hdpe sheet purchased off of eBay.
I think that building w/ wood vs metal is like choosing hand tools vs power tools. Both can coexist in harmony and there are definitely situations where one is a better choice than the other.
regards,
Dave
A word of caution: Elevated dog bowls can cause health issues for many breeds of dogs (increased risk of ‘bloat’, which can actually lead to some pretty serious complications – at the very least, your dog won’t feel well).
The project looks first rate – Congrats!