Mesquite birdhouse

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TattooedTurner

TattooedTurner

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Joined
Aug 13, 2016
Messages
1,460
Location
Surprise, Arizona
My first birdhouse and it was a comedy of errors, which means I learned a lot. The next should be much better. Stands about 6.5" tall and the widest point which is the base of the roof is around 3.25" or so. I drilled the top so I can hang it in my palm tree which may or may not happen. Even with all the mistakes I'm satisfied with the result, and it was a lot of fun to make which is what really matters.


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Brotherdale said:
Wow that is very cool.
I am still pretty new to turning this is the first time I have seen something like this. I really like it.
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Thank you, and give it a try! These are actually pretty common and IMO are just a variation of a lidded box. If you make a small one you can just drill the body with a forstner bit and not have to mess around with hollowing it.

mark james said:
Very nice. I like the colors and the natural bark edges. Yes, these little buggers have a few steps that are easy to mess up.

Thanks for sharing.
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Thanks Mark. The most important thing I learned is to take notes when watching a video of how to make something instead of relying on memory...

Now what was I doing?

Dieseldoc said:
I agree with Mark as I have made bird house for some time, and natural edge one can be a pain, by the way great job.
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Thank you! I like the natural edge look but it was a little more difficult than expected. The bark wouldn't stay on the first two bodies.

Woodchipper said:
Very nice. FWIW, you can find little birds in the dollhouse section of Hobby Lobby.
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Thank you. I knew they had them but had no idea what section they were in, you made my trip to Hobby Lobby much easier.

greenacres2 said:
Great birdhouse!! I'll have to give that a try sometime.

I don't need the interior info, I seem to stay in the doghouse most of the time. :rolleyes:

earl
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Thank You!
 
magpens said:
Very nicely done, Jay !!! . BTW, could we see inside, please :biggrin:
Would kinda like to know the square footage !
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Thanks Mal. I drilled it with a 1" forstner then hollowed the rest with a sorby hollower. Sanded to 400 but I realized after taking this I forgot to put any oil on the inside! One more lesson learned. I estimate it to be about 8.8 cubic inches interior living space. Comfy for a finch or spacious for a hummingbird.
 

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That's great Jay! Very pretty, love the design and I'm a big fan of natural edges. Maybe you could outline the steps and point out the pitfalls? I'd like to make one! We have finches all over the place and hummingbirds visit on a regular basis. Thanks!
 
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SteveAxelrod said:
That's great Jay! Very pretty, love the design and I'm a big fan of natural edges. Maybe you could outline the steps and point out the pitfalls? I'd like to make one! We have finches all over the place and hummingbirds visit on a regular basis. Thanks!
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Thanks Steve. Mike Peace has a few videos and definitely explains the process better than I ever could. The main problem I had was that I drilled the hole for the perch where it curves, that proved to be a huge mistake. I made a nice perch that was beaded where it butted against the house which caused it to stick up at about a 45 degree angle! Turned a plain one, reamed the hole - too large as you can see in the pics - and chose to live with it. The one thing I did different is Imused my chuck for everything instead of a jam chuck. Me and jam chucks have never got along...

D.Oliver said:
Looks good to me. You make those a little smaller and you're going to have a very popular Christmas ornament!
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Thank you. And yes, I've already decided to make plenty of ornaments to pass around with the little birds on the perch. I'll be using both wood and resin too. I might even steal your excellent bird cage design for one.
 
Jay, since you are from Surprise AZ, could you let me in on where you picked up the blank. I'm down in Maricopa Az and have been looking for some blanks of Mesquite with a lot of figure like in your birdhouse. Great job. I'm also a fan of the natural edges.
 
Imaginethat said:
Jay, since you are from Surprise AZ, could you let me in on where you picked up the blank. I'm down in Maricopa Az and have been looking for some blanks of Mesquite with a lot of figure like in your birdhouse. Great job. I'm also a fan of the natural edges.
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I got lucky, one of my daughters had a tree cut down. Unfortunately it's cracking bad even though I sealed the ends. I have mostly large pieces I'll be using for bowls but what size are you looking for?
 
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