Okay, let’s make a tree.

These plans are going to be very crude until I have more time to make detailed drawings. Anyone with a bit of free time and AutoCAD knowledge who would like to help would be welcome.

The base and post are made from 1” U.S. stock solid oak, which in reality is ¾”. You can use any wood you would like, and it can be stained or painted. I prefer to stain and varnish wood. I will be giving the dimensions in metric with U.S. measurements in parenthesis. Although I live in the U.S., I don’t like using our antiquated system of measurement. Measurements are NOT exactly converted from one to the other. This would give ridiculous fractions that are unnecessary, so don’t write and tell me my conversions are off. The two plans will produce almost identical trees. Learn metric, life will be easier. Check out my other web site www.think-metric.com.

Base

14cm (5 ½”) square, 2cm (¾”) routed around the edge

Post

44 cm (17”) tall, 2cm x 2cm (¾” x ¾”)

Branches

6mm (¼”) dowel rods cut to 10cm (4”).

Give a slight taper to one end, to fit in the post, and an angled notch on the other, to hold the ornament.

You will need 25 of these, but make extra in case you ruin one or the dog eats one after it’s finished

Holes for branches

Use a drill bit smaller than dowel rod by 1 or 2 mm. Experiment with a finished dowel and a practice hole. You want to dowels to have a snug fit.

The holes rotate around the post in a spiral. To get this effect, start with three holes 10cm (4”) apart, with the first one 10cm (4”) from the bottom. Then make three more holes, also 10cm (4”) apart on the corner, 125mm (½”) higher than the first. The best way to do this is to make 24 lines 125mm (½“) apart starting 10cm (4”) from the bottom. The 25th hole goes directly on the top.

The holes are drilled at a 70° angle to the post 70°

about 1.25cm (½“) deep.

Drill a hole in the center of the base to screw

the post on.