This Lockable Mailbox is created from exterior plywood and Cedar. It will be painted when complete.
4/7/2007 Click on image to see closeup.
The idea for these bird houses came from a small picture in a magazine.
10/13/2003 Click on image to see closeup.
Bill built and painted this decorative pine Birdhouse Bench using plans from Top Quality Woodcraft Products from their Winfield
Collection. It is 31" wide x 14" deep x 42" tall. Donated to ChildHelp USA for their semi-annual charity auction.
The second Birdhouse Bench was built for his daughter, Lynn.
5/21/2003 Click on image to see closeup.
Bill Gourlay built this rustic pine storage cart to a neighbor's specifications. It was finished by the neighbor and purposely
made to look weathered. The top working surface is hinged and opens for storage of barbecue and/or garden tools.
2/21/2003 Click on image to see closeup.
Bill designed, built and painted the flowers on this decorator item. Made from birch plywood and poplar.
2/21/2003 Click on image to see closeup.
Bill designed and built this 52' long redwood porch railing from porch dimensions provided over the telephone by
his son, Bob. It's 52 ft. long and has two 90 degree turns. Bill built it in his own backyard, disassembled it in sections,
and transported the completed work to his son's home in Long Beach, where, much to everyone's surprise, it fit perfectly,
without alterations. Amazing.
2/22/2003 Click on image to see closeup.
Bill designed and built this 7 ft. planter box for a neighbor from birch plywood and poplar hardwood. Drainage
holes were drilled in the bottom. It's installed below the neighbor's second story window, complete with potted artificial
flowers, which are replaced every 2 years. Painted Forest Green.
2/22/2003 Click on image to see closeup.
Bill designed and built several birdhouses for his backyard.
The "church" has a round, simulated stained glass window painted on the back.
Two octagonal birdhouses are shown, a one-story and a two-story. The cupola arches were routed with a 3/4" straight bit
and the top finial is from an old lamp. The inner (green) octagon has the holes in it and the outer (white) octagon has
arches. Bill made a jig to cut out the arches. The inner piece is partitioned. It slips inside the outer piece and may be
removed for cleaning (if a bird ever takes up residence). There's about an 1/8" clearance all the way around. The
one-story is about 15" high and the two-story about 24" high. These are real conversation pieces.
The third picture is a collection of birdhouses and a feeder.
2/22/2003 Click on image to see closeup.
Bill got this very practical idea from a TV show. It's a standard green aluminum (no rust) mailbox purchased at Home
Depot, mounted on a 4 x 4 green wood post, to be set in the ground 18" deep. Bill painted the rosebuds and vines. This
utility piece is intended for backyard use as a tool caddy, to hold garden tools and gloves. It was made for a Childhelp USA
charity auction and sold for $200. Bill made a similar tool caddy for his own
backyard and it is in daily use. Nice conversation piece, too.
2/22/2003 Click on image to see closeup.
Bill designed and built this fun backyard turtle for the grandkids to play on. It's about 30" long; the body is about 24"
across; and it's about 15" tall. The back is constructed of rings, whose elements were biscuited together and bandsawn to
shape. Then, the rings were glued and screwed together. Hexagons on the back were made with a Ryobi reciprocating
tool.
2/22/2003 Click on image to see closeup.
Bill designed and built this piece to enclose an air conditioner compressor in his son Scott's backyard to make it more
attractive and partially reduce the sound level. Mortise and tenon joints were used.
2/22/2003 Click on image to see closeup.
Bill designed these decorative redwood bandsaw birds, composed of two wings, a body and a 1/2" dowel (which will need to be replaced after several years). As you can see, they were a popular item and Bill made several in assembly line fashion.
2/22/2003 Click on image to see closeup.
Bill designed and built this redwood plant stand for the patio. The top was bandsawn using a homemade circle-cutting jig.
2/22/2003 Click on image to see closeup.
Bill created this piece of sculpture on biscuited, redwood 2 x 6's using a Ryobi reciprocating tool. It is mounted on his backyard fence.
2/22/2003 Click on image to see closeup.
Bill built and painted these "post people" using plans obtained from the Meisel Hardware Specialties catalog. There's a
nautical group and a Christmas group. Notice that the Pirate has a parrot on his shoulder and the old Fisherman in the
yellow slicker has a pipe in his mouth. Parts were cut on the bandsaw. Antlers on the reindeer are just twigs. The old
Fisherman has been sold. The others remain in protective family custody.
2/22/2003 Click on image to see closeup.
Bill built this piece from plans and parts obtained from a catalog. The red bulb noses flash. Bill added casters to the
bottom to make it easier to move around.
2/22/2003 Click on image to see closeup.
Bill built this three dimensional outdoor display of Santa in his sleigh, pulled by 3 Reindeer climbing toward the sky, from
plans obtained from The Winfield Collection catalog. The 3D is what makes it interesting. The reindeer are mounted on
aluminum conduit and the reindeer hips and legs may be disassembled for storage. The spring-loaded snap-on, snap-off joints make it easy. (Bill keeps a smaller scale model of the joints in his workshop as a sample.) When fully assembled
on the lawn as shown, it is about 32 ft. long. To raise the plywood sleigh off the wet grass, it is always set on redwood 2 x
4's.
2/22/2003 Click on image to see closeup.