St Andrews Cross Plans

St Andrews Cross – Plans

Materials List

Timber

3 ½” x 1 ½” x 8’ 3 off 4’ x 4’ x ¾” 1 off

Hardware Carriage Bolt 5” x ½” 1 off Washer ½” 1 off Nut ½” 1 off

Eye Bolt 3/8” x 5” 8 off 196563 Flat washer 3/8” 8 off 63307 Loose Pin Hinge 3” 3 off 196341

Grey Primer Black Gloss Enamel Method

Firstly the 2 uprights need to be mitered together, originally I was aiming for a 3’ spread but my miter block gave me a 22 ½ o cut angle, so using this I actually got just over a 3’ spread.

The easiest way to do this is to saw another 3 cuts through the wood to the center line then chisel out the waste wood, if you leave the waste slightly high you can sand or plane out the miters for a perfect fit. When fitted together drill the center hole for the carriage bolt (seen here).

Next lay a straight edge corner to corner of the lower half of the 2 uprights and mark a straight line to saw the lower edges of the 2 uprights (seen here bottom left corner of picture). This is easier than trying to measure the correct angle (I used the 3rd piece of wood as a long straight edge).

Next drill the holes for the top eye bolts, these are ¾” to a depth of ½” (to allow for the nuts and washers) and then 3/8” through the legs the first one is at 2” then the other 2 are a further 6” apart. The ‘eye’ part of the eyebolt will draw nicely into the wood and prevent the bolt from turning out of line when the nuts are tightened.

The lower eye bolts are 4” on the inside legs from the base.

You will need to cut a square hole on the front side of the center of the cross to allow the head of the carriage bolt to recess correctly, the method I used was to tighten the bolt slightly, this marked the wood and gave me the pattern to cut to using a chisel, the depth you need to cut is only about ¼” as the bolt will form exactly the hole it requires. Once cut assemble the basic cross and tighten the center bolt. (this will keep the cross rigid).

You will now need to cut the rear support strut. The foot angle is 60o and top is 30o, the outside length is then 4’ 7 1/8” and the inside length is 3’ 11 7/8”, this gives a near vertical Cross, however if you want the cross to lean back then adjust these dimensions.

Next remove the pins from 2 of the hinges (I had to use ‘Mole Grips’ as they are very tight) and screw one half of the hinge to the bottom of the 2 uprights. Mark a line 30” from the rear edge of the base plate, the other half of the hinge will be screwed to the base plate. Do the same for the rear support bracket. The base plate will need to be chiseled out slightly to allow for the hinges to lay flat. When this is done offer up the Cross and refit the hinge pins loosely, do the same for the rear support strut. These should now touch each other nicely.

A ½” hole will need to be drilled through this support strut (approx 4” from the top of the support strut, however you may want to tap the carriage bolt through to mark the exact position), once drilled you will need to recess the rear of the strut to allow for the large washer and nut (I simply drew round the washer and chiseled it out).

Reassemble the entire unit when completed, you will have noticed that the hinge pins will not be able to be fully reinserted, you will have to file a flat across the head of each pin so that they lay flat on the baseboard.

I gave the uprights and the support 1 coat of primer and 2 coats of Black Enamel gloss, the base board required 2 coats of primer and 3 coats of gloss. Total Cost around $50.