Replies

1. 
   bearb4tree | Aug 09, 2008 06:09pm | #1

   I built bunk beds for my twins. They were my first real project and took longer than I thought, but the kids love them. I used a Domino to speed up the slats for the guards and headboard/foot board. I also drew up the design in CAD (Pro/Engineer), and could send you the *.pdf drawings of what I did if you were interested.

   Good Luck!

   Matt

1. 
   afreid | Aug 11, 2008 06:37pm | #2

   Hi MattSounds like I am in the same boat you were in. I haven't built a lot of furniture but the girls keep getting bigger and need different space. I would be grateful to see those plans. I will post a message to just you with my email address. Thanks very much.Andrew

1. 
   bearb4tree | Aug 18, 2008 06:33am | #3

   Andrew,

   I finally replied, sorry for the delay. 

   One thing I wish I had done was get the hardware ahead of time, as it would have let me know I couldn't use standard hardware with the wider rails I made.  I used a Domino for the floating tennons.  I used the lee-valley bed bolts.

   Also, I finished the beds with a non-toxic to apply finish so the kids could help.  I got the recipie from the real milk paint people (Tung oil and citrus solvent).  I used a homemade beeswax, carnuba wax, citrus solvent and walnut oil blend as a wax finish.  My resoning was that a repairable finish was better than a durable finish for kids furniture.

   Good luck in your project!

   Matt

2. 
   kng9000 | Sep 07, 2008 11:24pm | #5

   Could I get a copy of those plans too? :)  I'm going to make a bunk bed for my girlfriend's daughter.  [email protected]

2. 
   ASK | Aug 28, 2008 04:20pm | #4

   I'm a little late getting in here, but I did 2 sets of bunk beds for my girls about 25 years ago.

   I made each bed with a tall head board and a short foot board so that the 2 tall head could be attached to the bottom bed and the short ones to the top bed. Both were made with horizontal slats so it became a ladder to the upper bed. I used 1/4 lag screws to attach the rails to the head and foot but that's because I didn't know any better at that time. For the platform for each bed I used 3/4" ply.

   The beds were solid maple and I never did get around to putting a finish on them but the have held up pretty well. They have been used both ways as bunk beds and as separate beds and now my granddaughter is about to start to use them.

   ASK