Kyserike Kraftsman

I’ve been asked by a few viewers to provide some more details of my backyard horseshoe pit design so tonight I took some time to enhance the sketchup model some and provide a couple of shots which include dimensions.

The first step in building the pits is to create the base. This is made from pressure treated 2″x6″ lumber as shown in the following diagram. I used 3″ exterior decking screws to secure the individual base pieces. (Click on the diagrams for a larger image).

Horseshoe Base Structure

Next the long side decking is added. Three 7 foot sections of 5/4″ decking are used for each side. Adjust the gaps between the boards so the three boards space the area that will become the throwing walkway. For the inside boards on each side I left a ridge on the support base (about 3/4″) showing so that it could be used to support the screens over the pit area.

Horseshoe Pit Long Decking

Next the shorter decking pieces are added to the front and back of the base structure again leaving a small area of the base structure that outlines the pit area exposed to support the screens. I used normal exterior decking screws to secure all decking.

Horseshoe Pit Short Decking

The backboard is a standalone piece that is comprised of 4″x4″ pressure treated posts and 5/4″ decking. The beverage holder is created using 2″x4″ pressure treated lumber. I created the complete backboard assembly, then drove the 4×4 posts into the ground behind the platform. Rather than using cement to secure the posts in the ground I decided to bolt the 4×4 posts to the base structure using 4″ lag bolts. I had to remove two of the short back pieces of decking temporarily in order to drive the lag bolts from the inside of the base structure.

Front view of the backboard

Rear view of the backboard

After the horseshoe pit assemblies where set in the ground and leveled I buried a 5 gallon bucket in the pit area to support the cemented spikes. I then covered the inside of the base structure with landscaping fabric before adding the sand to prevent weed growth.

So far after over a year the pits have held up well (except for the corner of one of them that my wife took out with the lawn tractor). If you have any comments or questions on the design feel free to leave a reply.

I created this jewelery Box as a gift for my sister for Christmas 2008. It’s made from black walnut (like all my other family gifts) and again I used the proven Danish Oil wipe on poly finish. This was my first attempt at something so small and the difficulty with crafting at this dimension is amazing. Every little misalignment, miss-cut, or miss- measurement is magnified when you are working with a project at this scale.

If you are interested in making one of these for someone special you can find the plans here.

This was a gift to my brother for Christmas 2008. I truly enjoyed creating this piece. It uses a frame and panel type of construction for the back and front that I really like and plan on using on the tack trunk that I’m currently designing and building.The Chest is made from black walnut with two coats of Danish Oil and 2 coats of wipe on poly.

If you would like to get the plans for the chest they are available at http://www.woodstore.net/crafpridtool.html

Google Sketch-Up Horseshoe Pit Design

Completed Horseshoe Pit

This summer we decided to create a pair of permanent horseshoe pits to use during the our gatherings. We wanted a quality set of pits that would last for years to come, wouldn’t get grass encroachment and were easy to maintain. I created the design shown in the graphic using Google Sketch-Up.

The stakes for the pits are 5/8  inch steel rods mounted in a bucket of cement that is buried in the ground. The joists for the pits are 2 x 6 inch pressure treated lumber and the decking and backboard are made from 5/4 inch pressure treated decking.

Horseshoe Pit with screen attached

I also built some screens that protect the sand from the neighborhood cats when the pits are not in use. Included on the backside of the backboard on each pit is a shelf to hold your favorite beverage when you aren’t throwing the shoes

The Playing Field

The Beverage Holder

I wanted to learn how to use Google Sketch-up to help to design and model some of my projects so I spent some time learning how to use the tool. The Fine Woodworking website has some great tutorials to get started.

Here’s a couple of shots of the design in Sketch-up. It needed to support the 4 foot by 20 foot heater level on a sloping grade of 1′ for every foot.

Top side Sketch-Up design

Underside of the design

By using Sketch-up I was able to determine very easily the exact amount of lumber that would be required and a cutlist was easily created. By using the ruler and dimensioning tools assembly was a snap and the platform came out perfect. This is a great tool which I will be using for all my projects.

It’s raining at the moment so I can’t get a picture of the finished project. I’ll attach one later.

Here’s the finished platform … or dock as my wife calls it.

Solar Heater Platform (above)

Solar Heater Platform (below)

Solar Heater Platform (3)