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Short Summary
Main recommendation: Build a bookcase from a single sheet of 3/4 in pine plywood by first cutting parts with a circular saw and table saw, then using a custom pinhole drilling jig to make aligned dowel holes for assembly. The video also shows that a combined stain-and-polyurethane product gave blotchy, streaky results, so the presenter abandoned it and painted the project.
Key Points
- Cut the large 36 in shelves with a circular saw first, since they are too big for the table saw, then cut the 9 in and 2 1/2 in strips in batches so pieces match.
- Make a pinhole drilling jig from 3/4 in plywood: find the center, set a stop block about 2 in from the drill bit, drill four identical holes, and insert brass tubing (3/4 in long, inside filed to remove burrs) to act as guide bushings.
- Make the box parts with a 5/16 in drill bit, using painter's tape as a depth stop, and apply iron-on edge banding to exposed plywood edges before drilling so the jig still lines up.
- The stain-and-polyurethane combination was a failure: it went on blotchy and streaky despite following directions, applying a sealer first, sanding between coats, and adding a second coat.
Details Worth Noting
- Concrete instructions:
- Cut the 36 in shelves to exact length with a circular saw; cut the 9 in pieces and 2 1/2 in strips in batches with a table saw so identical pieces are produced together.
- Build the jig: find the center of a 3/4 in plywood piece, position a stop block, and drill four holes at the same location on each side; file the inside of 3/4 in brass tubing to remove burrs and seat one in each hole; attach a cleat flush on both sides with a brad nail.
- Drill box parts: clamp the jig cleat to the edge of each shell and drill 5/16 in holes halfway through, stopping at the painter's tape mark.
- Apply iron-on edge banding to all exposed plywood edges before drilling end-piece holes, because edge banding adds thickness that would misalign the jig.
- Orient two holes per short edge with grain direction up; end-grain holes go in deeper.
- Glue premade hardware-store dowel pins into the holes; the presenter notes they keep the assembly square.
- Mark the halfway point (4 1/2 in) on the bottom pieces and glue center support dividers, aligning the plywood center to the mark and clamping lightly.
- Finish parts before assembly: tape off glue areas with masking tape trimmed slightly thinner than 3/4 in, and apply pre-stain conditioner on pine to reduce blotching.
- Edge banding is applied only to the front edges of the boxes, since the back is not visible.
- The combination stain-and-polyurethane was abandoned for time-saving reasons, and the presenter says spraying lacquer would likely have been better.
Bottom Line
A single 3/4 in plywood sheet can yield a full bookcase, but accuracy depends on the custom drilling jig and edge-banding order, while the combined stain-and-poly product proved unreliable for this project.
