Shop update #123 (3-4-20)

This weekend was all about plyo boxes and exploding outhouses.

One of the Cub Scout parents asked me if we could make a plyo box this weekend.  I had never heard of them before so I did a quick Google search and found out that they are used for exercising.  There is a pretty standard sized one that can be made out of a single sheet of 3/4″ plywood and there are plenty of videos already out there on how to make one.

I modified the design to make it slightly smaller which made the cuts a little easier.

We started by cutting the sheet of plywood down the middle.  This makes the pieces easier to handle.

We then cut the 2 halves into smaller pieces according to the cut list/cutting diagram that I made.

We cut a series of 1 1/2″ holes for carrying handles and connected them with a jigsaw.  I gave the handle cutout a 1/8″ roundover with my cordless trim router.

The carcass was assembled with glue and plenty of 1 5/8″ screws.  My son helped us out with the last of the screws.

I then flushed everything up with the belt sander.  The owner is going to do the finish sanding and will give it a few coats of polyurethane.

I was browsing the web a couple of weeks ago and came across a video from the Rock-N H Woodshop where he made an exploding toilet coin bank.  I watched the video a couple of times and then my son and I made our own version.  It turned out pretty cool for the first prototype.  I think that it might work well for craft shows so I am going to try to make a version that I can cut on my X-Carve CNC machine.