# When theory & practice mesh one gets a better barrel



## JFPNCM (Dec 13, 2009)

Encouraged by the comments on my previous attempt at constructing an octagonal barrel (posted 16 July 2015) and rethinking the errors on that project I elected to try another one. Based on the assumption that the original “theory” was sound, the following summarizes the modifications to the “practice” part of that build.

1)	The 5/4 planks for the furring strips were passed through the planer and jointer for uniformity and to establish one good edge for measurements.
2)	The furring strips were cut thicker to enclose the barrel handles within the structure. Cutting the furring strips on my neighbor’s band saw facilitated the shaping and accuracy of each strip. 
3)	Precut spacers were used to position each furring strip around the barrel and they were squared vertically to the bench prior to being attached to the barrel. Even with these steps, some of the strips twisted slightly requiring additional trimming to the back side of the horizontal slats with a RIDGID oscillating belt sander. A bit like coping molding. 
4)	Starting the build from the bottom of the barrel resting on the bench made for a more uniform placement of the slats. 
5)	All slats, including the bevel of the tongue and groove were pre-sanded. 
6)	Once assembled the surface was sanded at 80 grit to round the barrel. 
7)	I considered rounding the top to match the barrel but elected to go with a squared corner approach. This presented an interesting problem in terms of establishing the dimensions for each section and position of the corners. I turned the barrel on its top, outlined the barrel and used a ¼” stick of BB to draw offset lines parallel to each side (see outline figure, sorry about the bad reproduction). The crossing points established the corners and a protractor placed the 22.5 degree angles for each section. In short, a poor man’s Sketchup. 
8)	The final finish was with clear Sun Frog sealer. 

As always, comments are welcome.


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## Stick486 (Jan 4, 2013)

well done..


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## RainMan 2.0 (May 6, 2014)

That's a great job you did there Jon


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

Looks good is the only comment I have. I can't see anything to improve on.


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## Stick486 (Jan 4, 2013)

Cherryville Chuck said:


> Looks good is the only comment I have. I can't see anything to improve on.


oh yeah...
barrels = beer...
where's the beer...


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## TwoSkies57 (Feb 23, 2009)

nicely done Jon... I'm liking it!!! I can see that looking nice at any number of locations around the house..

I can see a spin off on your design... a 3 tiered (or more) planter, 2 rows, space, 2 rows and so on...tapered as you go up...


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## Mike (Nov 22, 2004)

I'm glad you gave it a second effort Jon. I had confidence you could do it.


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

Stick486 said:


> oh yeah...
> barrels = beer...
> where's the beer...


Ok. I could see that as an improvement. Make the top solid and run a tap up through it with a keg inside. That would look really nice next to a couple of the originals with plants in them.


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## vindaloo (May 30, 2009)

A camoflage beer barrel, sounds good


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## Stick486 (Jan 4, 2013)

hide the tap inside of the plant cluster...


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## Ghidrah (Oct 21, 2008)

Nice work and a beautiful color and grain in the wood, Looks too nice to keep outside.


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## ksidwy (Jul 13, 2013)

It's worth try again. In fact we always learn more with our own mistakes. Marvelous job, Jon.
Sid.


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## old coasty (Aug 15, 2014)

Great job Jon.
SWMBO has been looking for cedar planters for the deck. I will have to give this a try as square boxes are not high on her list.


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## OutoftheWoodwork (Oct 4, 2012)

Awesome job!


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## JFPNCM (Dec 13, 2009)

Thank you one and all for the feedback! It's one thing to build something I like, it's entirely another to have it reviewed, particularly by members of this Forum. Those reviews, be they positive or negative provide the impetus to carry on. 

The possibilities of stacking these as suggested by Bill and adding a beer tap as suggested by Stick, Angie and others could add a whole no meaning to the phrase, "I need to visit the bushes". :yes2: Does that make it "bush" beer?

Mike, I definitely appreciated the comments on the 1st post that motivated me to try this again. Pleased you liked the second pass.


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## JFPNCM (Dec 13, 2009)

old coasty said:


> Great job Jon.
> SWMBO has been looking for cedar planters for the deck. I will have to give this a try as square boxes are not high on her list.


Bob:

I can understand the issue re the "square boxes". One can easily do these in the round as well as design up completely different planters as shown in the attached. Enjoy.


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## Stick486 (Jan 4, 2013)

sweet!!!


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## Mike (Nov 22, 2004)

Jon, sooner or later we all encounter that one project that drives us to despair. Taking a break from it and just setting it aside for a while is the smart choice. When we go back to it we have a fresh mind set that will usually make it work.


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## JFPNCM (Dec 13, 2009)

As a side note, the "panels" in those larger planters are all slate tlles commonly used for flooring and walls. Unfortunately the patterns and coloring the slates in the top 2 don't show well in the photos.


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## old coasty (Aug 15, 2014)

JFPNCM said:


> Bob:
> 
> I can understand the issue re the "square boxes". One can easily do these in the round as well as design up completely different planters as shown in the attached. Enjoy.


Jon thanks for even more great inspiration.

Bob


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## JFPNCM (Dec 13, 2009)

@old coasty

Bob: look forward to seeing posts of your designs.


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## TenGees (Sep 12, 2012)

Very nice, Jon. I love the colour too.

Reminds me of a "wishing well" planter that a friend built for my mom many, many years ago.


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