Built my first enclosure today!

[falconboy]

Hey all,

I'm completely useless as a handyman doing anything that requires wood being cut, and accuracy is dreadful, and I have no idea where to start.

Well, I've wanted to improve my skills, and decided to give it a go. This one is 600w x 600h x 445d, for the simple reason that it allowed me to get top, bottom and sides from one cut from each of 2 pieces of 1200x445. Used 'whitecote' board for the back, tacked on with cotter pins, sides are all dowelled, glued and screwed, tracks are nailed (bottom) and screwed (top) on. The thin bits the tracks are attached to I could not get in melamine, and didn't want more cutting, so bought pine strips and used iron on melamine to finish them.

I do have a few things to do - ventilation (by way of kitchen drainers in the backboard), buy the glass doors and put in a couple of light fittings. Thinking I might just go 2 ceramic ES fittings and not bother with a strip fluro, and just use a spot basking heat lamp and a fluro UV screw globe. I wasn't sure what screws to use, and these are chunky heads so I might also just get some of those little white things you can stick on screw heads to hide them.

Accuracy wasn't too bad, although I needed to do a bit of sanding with the long strips the tracks mount on, and I tend to round the corners.

Not fantastic craftmanship, but I'm stoked with it for my first attempt!!

Next time I might just buy all the wood cut for me from a kitchen maker, and just screw, not dowell and glue.

[ben1200]

conrats well done looks good enough what are you going to house in it.

[lovemypiggy]

cool, what's going in it?

[moosenoose]

Looks like you've done a pretty good job Congrates

[Auzlizardking]

You call this an enclosure OMG your dog could have done better blind folded and with his legs tided back behind it's head - mmmmm dog slapping oh yer
did the gut get in the way?
No you have done a bl00dy good job just don't do it again...lol

[falconboy]

Not sure whats going in it just yet - eventually arboreal geckos of some sort. I have a baby beardie here that I've had a week and he seems to be a little taken and confused by reflections in his glass tank and things going on around him, plus he isnt eating, so I want to stick him in something he can't see out of as much, even though its a bit big for a month old beardie, he'll be ok with a few hides and things, its just temporary.

[junglemad]

looks pretty good for a first attempt ...well done

[horsenz]

looks great well done

[mrmikk]

Good effort man, you undersell yourself, you've done well!

Mrmikk

[inthegrass]

good job, done fine. most suppliers of timber will cut to size, just give them a cutting list.
some will charge you for it ,some won't.
just curious what you used those cotter pins for.
cheers

[reece89]

well done

[dazza_wilto]

Good job, looks like you have done it before, but you have definately under estimated your handyman skills, congrats

[Chrisreptile]

yeh, it looks nice and square. well done

[Fester]

Yep, damn good job!

[falconboy]

Oh, gee thanks guys. It is surprisingly square actually. I was astounded. I thought it would go the same way all my other handyman jobs go - half finished when I stuffed a cut or something, and chucked it in with frustration. I did actually stuff the cuts - the thickness of the blade in the saw put me off - first time cutting a sheet of anything with a power saw (circular), so they were different sizes. Luckily, one from each sheet matched the other, so the 2 a few mm short were the sides, and the 2 other even ones were the top, so no great drama.

I'm not sure if cotter pins were the proper name, but I call them that - they are like little nails but have not really a thread, but they are 'patterned', not smooth like a nail, so they 'grab' the wood to stop them pulling out - you know how the backing to TV units etc tend to make their way out using those little nails, well these are to stop that happening.

Only having a circular saw to cut the big bits and handsaws on a old style black and decker workhorse to cut the smaller bits, I'm pretty happy with the outcome.