Taking on a huge woodworking project

djnagle

AK Subscriber
Subscriber
I have a 12 x 12 room in our new house and decided to turn it into an old english style library with a walnut coffered ceiling and walnut floor to ceiling bookshelves covering every square inch of the walls.

I also plan on building swing out bookshelves doors to hide the closet.

Did you know that walnut veneered plywood is REALLY EXPENSIVE!!!
 
Good advise E.

Here are some of the features I am going for. All in walnut.
 

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Yes Walnut can be pricey have you considered using oak plywood and staying it a Walnut color?
 
I have a lot of planning to do but fortunately my best friend does this for a living but lives 400 miles from me. We are doing a lot of texting.
 
Ammonia fume finish for the oak. Skip the stain.
There's a story out there about Frank Lloyd Wright fuming an entire bank lobby literally overnight right before opening day. Probably stank to high heaven, but it was the right color.

So djnagle, have a lot of books? Want some more? ;)
 
That sounds like a totally awesome project! Are you doing frame and panel on walls/ceiling? You could make a secret door in one of the panels:)
 
That sounds like a totally awesome project! Are you doing frame and panel on walls/ceiling? You could make a secret door in one of the panels:)

Yes, everywhere. I've never taken on a project like this but looking forward to learning.

Since we are AK, are you building out with audio gear in mind?

Yes, I am building 4 mini subs to support these speakers on the desk.

That's going to be hell of a project - post updates as you do the build-out. Would love to see the progress.

I will.

Ammonia fume finish for the oak. Skip the stain.
There's a story out there about Frank Lloyd Wright fuming an entire bank lobby literally overnight right before opening day. Probably stank to high heaven, but it was the right color.

So djnagle, have a lot of books? Want some more? ;)

I'll read up on that. I've done that on oak vases I've turned. But I made a soup with a steel pad soaked in vinegar.

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The local lumberyards don't stock walnut ply, but both AA maple and birch are more than $100 a sheet. Walnut ply would likely be 50% more, perhaps even more than that. I can get solid walnut lumber for $11 a board foot, and sometimes for 1/2 that, so the plywood is likely by far the least expensive option for you.
 
Ammonia fume finish for the oak. Skip the stain.
There's a story out there about Frank Lloyd Wright fuming an entire bank lobby literally overnight right before opening day. Probably stank to high heaven, but it was the right color.

So djnagle, have a lot of books? Want some more? ;)
I believe that was a Tage Frid story. They had to run in every little while with rags over their faces to check the color and then open the windows when it was right.
 
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