DIY lumber cutting for tank stands - pic warning

Ianab

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Sep 14, 2007
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OK.. now most times people talk about DIY fish tank stands they start by going to the local hardware store and buying some plywood and lumber. Fair enough.

But if you were a real dedicated DIYer then you would go and cut your own lumber ;)

OK.. thats my other hobby :D

First off.. go and find an unwanted tree. Best to check it's not something rare or the last of the Amazon rain forest. This is a big old Monterey cypress growing on a friends farm. They were planted many years ago as shelter trees on local farms. Now they are overgrown, huge, falling over etc and need to be removed.



OK.. so you have a tree.
Break out the chainsaw and have at it. :headbang2
Kids - dont try this at home :grinno:



OK.. so you have this huge tree on the ground....



Well.. best to start trimming the branches off, bucking the tree into sensible sized logs and getting them set up for sawing.



OK.. having a digger working on the site makes life a whole lot easier. Wish I had one of my own ;)

TBC
 

Ianab

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Sep 14, 2007
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New Zealand
Now.. logs are lined up on a flat piece of ground, so set up the portable sawmill.



And make some boards :D



A Monster Board - a table or fish tank stand top .. not sure yet.



Loaded up a ready to haul some boards home.



This is of course green timber, straight out of a tree. So it needs to be stacked up and left to dry for about a few months before it can be used for furniture.



next.. the finished stuff
 

Ianab

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Sep 14, 2007
681
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New Zealand
This stand is Radiata pine, designed for 2x3 ft tanks, but only has one at the moment



2 x 2ft tanks, build from the Monterey cypress shown in the first pictures.



And another low stand for a 4ft tank.




Anyway.. thats my DIY tank building setup, and might give people an idea of where that lumber they buy actually comes from.

Cheers

Ian
 

Tongue33

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Feb 11, 2006
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www.davescichlids.com
That's pretty cool!!!
 

jdryden

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Sep 5, 2007
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Bentonville, Arkansas
THATS true do it yourself!!
 

bmxer4ever

Fire Eel
MFK Member
May 25, 2006
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Glasgow, Scotland
Brilliant! That made me smile!
Good on you, a friend of mine builds oak frames for houses and does similar things to get his wood.
Not quite so practical where I live - the West End of Glasgow!
Takes a while to season the wood with our climate too!
Have to say that you are more in the craftsman league than the usual diy'er....
 

hbluehunter

Fire Eel
MFK Member
Jul 20, 2007
1,976
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Lynnwood, Wa.
Damn dude !!! That's the best looking stands i've seen in along time!!! Now that's one i'd be proud to spend some cash on !!!
 

Ianab

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Sep 14, 2007
681
1
0
New Zealand
Danh;1226818; said:
Did you plant the tree yourself? I think not. :) Nice post.

True.. the tree is one that was 'prepared earlier' as they say in the cooking programs :D About 70 years earlier :grinno:

Thaks for the comments, I thought it might be interesting to show how my hobbies cross over. My favourite forum (forestry and sawmilling related) is almost as busy as MFK so there are actually quite a few small sawmill operators out there. Most areas have someone that will saw for hire, so if you are into woodwork you can generally get a log sawn if you come across one.

Cheers

Ian
 
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