Boy bird house architecture

by Leon H. Baxter

Fig. 12. Putting Up a House.

Plane one edge of the board straight and smooth and call this the working edge, or edge from which all measurements are to be taken. Square one end square with the working edge and the surface. Measure from this square end, the length specified on the drawing, and square a line across the board, placing the try square handle tight against the working edge.

Next take the cross-cut saw and saw carefully just outside your line on the side away from the piece to be cut off. Plane now back to the line and no further. The width must next be obtained either with a marking gage, if you have one, set at the required distance, or by measuring carefully with your ruler.

Now saw and plane to your line. Treat each piece in this manner and mark with its proper letter, to be ready for assembling later.

We shall consider, for illustration, that we are making the Blue Bird House shown in Plate [3]. We have our pieces all cut out and numbered and shall now cut the shape of pieces A, which are the front and rear of the house, from our pieces that we have previously cut 8½ inches wide by 10 inches long.

A School Exhibit of Bird Houses at Crosby-Ironton, Minn.

Find the center of one end, which will be one-half of 8½ inches or 4¼ inches. Measure down on each side 4 inches and draw from our edge center to these points.

Find the center of our bottom edge next and measure 2½ inches each side to make our bottom edge 5 inches wide, as shown. Draw from the ends of this 5 inch lines to our points on the sides and we are ready to carefully cut out the form as shown in the drawing. Always remember when sawing to a line to leave about ¹/₁₆ inch between our saw cut and the line and finish with a plane to the line.