Things You'll Need
- 1 half sheet of 3/4-inch plywood
- Ruler
- Pencil
- Safety goggles
- Gloves
- Saw
- #8 box of nails
- Wood glue
- Brush
- Wood stain or paint
Instructions
Use a ruler and pencil to draw the cutting measurements onto the half sheet of plywood, labeling each piece.
Four pieces will be cut from the top half of the plywood, measuring 15" high.
A -- 15" high x 12" wide
There will be an unused portion of the top half of approximately 6" in width.
The bottom half will create three pieces, measuring 16-1/2" high.
E -- 16-1/2" high x 24" wide. At 12" in on the top of this piece, it will be cut to 8-1/4" inches, then will be 24" wide x 12" high, creating an L shape.
Put on safety goggles and gloves before carefully cutting out each piece from the sheet of plywood. If using a circular saw, remember to adjust the saw before cutting so that no more than the height of a saw tooth protrudes beneath the wood. In order to prevent kickback, use only as much blade as is needed to clear the piece of plywood you are cutting. If the guard needs to be held in order to begin the cut, stay balanced and hold the guard open by hand, releasing as soon as the point at which the guard would have interfered has been passed.
Assemble the pieces by applying a ribbon of wood glue along the joints, then nailing together. To form an even stronger bond using wood glue, attach two pieces of wood edge-to-edge and apply a line of masking tape down one side of the joint, spanning the crack with tape. Turn the pieces of wood over and apply glue to the inside of the joint. Secure the two pieces of wood and use a cloth to remove excess glue. Once dried, the tape can be removed and the process repeated on the other side of the joint. E and F form the sides of the mounting block. G creates the back of the block. Piece A is the top of the upper step and D is the top of the lower step. Pieces B and C will create the front of the steps to complete the block.
Finish the completed mounting block by sanding and applying a stain or paint. For a personal touch, you may wish to add your barn logo, your horse's name or even horse artwork to the front or sides of your new mounting block.
B -- 15" high x 8-1/4" wide
C -- 15" high x 8-1/4" wide
D -- 15" high x 13-1/2" wide
F -- Measured just as E, only reverse so that it can be cut from the same piece of plywood.
G -- 15" high x 12" wide, leaving a 1" high x 12" wide unused piece of wood.