Cornices and steel

The weather has finally changed, and is now actually suitable for doing this kind of work. I don't think there's been a day under 30 degrees when I've been working on this thing yet. I kind of subconsciously associate the heat with this project.


I'd pretty much got as far as I could with the materials I had and the amount of warpage that had occurred. With the better weather some warping had relaxed and I was able to salvage two planks by soaking them in the pool for a week. Alas the only way to force several panels to straighten is with steel reinforcement. My Dad did mention at the outset that I should have built the thing from steel to avoid the issues I have faced.

So I bought some of those angle supports used in timber house frames. They don't look pretty but they're screwed to the insides of the wall panels and they certainly do the job. Straightened up both top and bottom panels and now warpage is at a minimum. I still have a minor issue with the box not sitting square at the front, but I've worked out a way to fix that.

I finally bought some cornice material as Stratco had some cheap stuff in stock. Still at the incorrect 19mm, so I shaved a couple of mm off one edge. It fits okay, but is a nightmare to screw in as the cornice timber is denser than the box and the screws don't want to bite. Got there in the end with some force.

Cornices in place. There's three per corner post so twelve in total. I butchered one in the saw so I'll have to get another piece. Much filling and sanding still to go.