Sunday DIY: Hang it up in the hang out

Greig Morgan filled his rustic frame with fishing pictures - now he's looking forward to a trip down memory lane with the lads. Photo / Getty Images

Framed happy snaps add personality to to Greig Morgan's special 'corner'.

This handsome frame ties in nicely as the third instalment of the man-cave bar series. I've put together a collage of fishing photos to show the lads the ones that didn't get away.

Step 1
Measure and mark in about 100mm from the outer bark edges of your milled timber slab and use a skill saw to cut along the timber, using a straight edge as a saw guide clamped at either end.

Step 2
Choose the outer bark edges so it tapers inwards for the shape of the frame, then measure about 10mm in from the back edge and set the skill saw blade depth to about 15mm. Cut along the timber using a saw guide. Now cut in from the back edge so the blade meets the first saw cut to create a rebate for the glass and back to sit into the frame.

Step 3
Measure and mark equally for the top, bottom and two side pieces using the 45 angle on the combo square before cutting along the waste side of the pencil line with a mitre saw.

Step 4
Mix the two pot epoxy glue (following the instructions). Now apply the glue to all your mitres and clamp the joints together with a mitre clamp for each joint.

Step 5
Wait about 24 hours for the glue to set before moulding and shaping the mitred fronts and edges together using the sanding wheel attached to the drill. Then using a belt sander with 80-100 grit belts down to 120grit and finishing off using a finishing sander starting with 120 to 150grit.

Step 6
With the frame all sanded and finished, ensure it is free of dust and grit, etc by wiping with a damp cloth and then apply a liberal coat of floor finish with a brush, maintaining an even coat. When dry, lightly rub down with wet and dry paper and clean before applying a second coat. Repeat the process until you are happy with the end result.

Step 7
Measure and cut your 6mm MDF back board to fit neatly into the rebate, then take in your frame to a glazier to fit a piece of 2mm-thick glass. Clean the glass before placing your collage of photos. Now evenly place and fix glazier points using a flat-blade screwdriver.

Step 8
Measure down from the top about 200mm either side on the back of the frame and fix in a 30mm screw, three quarters of the way in.

Wrap the wire around one screw and fix the screw right down, pull the wire tight with a pair of pliers and wrap this end around the screw, cut the wire and tighten the screw.

Now your frame is ready to take pride of place in your man cave.

Tips• Place the mitred corners together as a dry run first, making for a tight fit before gluing.

• Remove excess glue with a damp cloth so it is easier to sand.

• When selecting milled timber make sure it's had enough time to dry.

Materials

Rustic milled timber (frame)
Sheet of 6mm MDF (back)
Picture frame glass (glazier to cut & fit to size)
Picture frame wire to take weight of frame
Glazier points
Two pot epoxy glue
Sanding wheel
100 grit sander belt
120,150 grit sandpaper
220 wet & dry paper
Floor finish

Tools

Mitre saw
Skill saw
Drill
Screw gun
Tape measure
Pencil
Mitre clamps x4
Combo square
G clamps
Paint brush