House in Progress Diary

Keeping Jack Frost Out: Part 2

How to begin to do something I've never done before? Take apart what is already done and working, and then copy it. This only gets me into trouble if I forget how to put it back together. Ahem.

I took a wood frame that had already been weatherstripped out of the window and measured it to death, making cryptic notes on a napkin as I went. How wide was the groove for the weatherstripping? How far was the groove from either edge of the side of the wood frame? You get the picture. Overanalyzing? Me? Well, yes. Few can exploit that obsessive compulsiveness like I can. Ask Aaron. Or my mom. My dad would just ask, "What obsessive compulsiveness?"

Here is the edge of an already completed window frame (the window is laying on its side):

Here is what you are looking at in the above picture:

Yes, the drawing is awful. Man, I miss Adobe Illustrator. Microsoft Paint just doesn't compare. And it's late and the "little frog" is kicking up a storm in there. No respite. Better get used to that now, I suppose. Anyway...

I figured out that the groove I needed for weatherstripping could best be made by a:

1) Table saw. (We don't have one yet.)
2) router with a slot cutter that has a 5/32" kerf.

I could borrow a router (thanks Kurt!) so I chose to try that. Ordered one and waited for it to arrive. Fixed up a couple of sawhorses, two clamps and a stray piece of trim for a guide. Here's how the set-up looked:

Yes, that is me, pregnant and wrestling with a router. Had I ever used a router before? No. Was I willing to give it a try? Sure. I just practiced on some scrap wood before I even got NEAR a real window.

The clamps held the window frame, the guide and the top of the sawhorse together firmly.

And the makeshift guide helped me to guide the router and adjust the depth slowly so I didn't go to the full depth that I wanted right away. It was easier to cut the slot by 1/8" each pass than all at once until I became a little more confident.

After I got used to handling the router and measuring the depth of the slot each time, it was relatively easy to cut the slots in the sides of each window frame.

That just gives you the overview. I'll cover a few details and then explain the rest of the project in the next installments.

Right now, I need some warm milk and a soft bed...mmmmmm.

Posted by jeanne on October 5, 2005 at 8:42 PM (1)