Hobbies And Interests
Things You'll Need
Instructions
Fabricating the Pieces
Drill a 1 1/2-inch hole in the center of the piece of 1-by-4. Insert the short piece of PVC into the hole, and glue the pipe in place with Household Goop adhesive. Place the part aside to dry while you prepare the rest of the parts.
Cut the 1-by-12 pieces of pine boards into trapezoidal shapes. Beginning at the one end of the board, trim a triangular piece from each long side. When you're done, one end of the board measures 11 1/4 inches, and the other end measures 8 inches wide. The narrow end is the front of the bellows. Repeat this process, so both boards are the same shape.
Round off the corners of the 1-by-12 board with the jig saw. Cut the square corners into a 1 1/2-inch radius. Sand the edges of the board and remove any imperfections or splinters.
Cut two strips of leather each 2 by 8 inches. These will be the hinges for the bellows.
Trim the remaining piece of leather to 16-by-46 inches. Lay the leather out on a table, and draw two marks on each end, dividing the width of the leather into three equal parts, each 5 1/3 inches wide. Measure up the long edge of the leather from the end, and place a small mark at 12 inches. Repeat this on each corner of the leather, and on each end.
Draw a line from the one of the marks on the narrow end of the leather to the mark at 12 inches up the long side. Your line creates a triangle on each corner of the leather. Cut these triangles off and set them aside. They are not used. The remaining leather is used to create the bellows
Drill two 3/4-inch holes in the center of one of the 1-by-12 boards. Cut a small piece of leather large enough to cover the holes. Use the tacks, and nail the leather in place over the hole. Nail the flap in place so it is over the hole, but is not completely nailed down. This piece of leather will act as a valve, and allow air into the bellows, but lay flat and cover the hole when the air pressure is pushed out the nozzle. When you assemble the bellows, the flap must be on the inside of the device.
Cut the wood dowels into two pieces 16 inches long. Use the jigsaw to cut the dowels lengthwise and remove approximately 1/4 inch thickness along the length of the dowel, creating a flat side on each dowel.
Assembling the Bellows
Take the 1-by-4 with the pipe in it, and one of the large pine boards. Lay the smaller board on top of the large board, with the PVC pipe sticking upward. Using the leather hinge and the upholstery tacks, attach these two boards together, attaching the leather like a piano hinge along the thin edge of the boards. Place the tacks right next to one another so the tack heads touch. Repeat the process, and attach the other large board to the 1-by-4. When you are done, the three pieces will form a U shape, with the PVC pipe facing outward, away from the 1-by-12 pieces of board.
Wrap the large piece of leather along the outer perimeter of the 1-by-12 pine boards. Begin at the front of the bellows, at the side of the 1-by-4, wrap the leather around the entire perimeter of the boards, and up toward the front along the other side. Position the leather so it stretches between the two 1-by-12 boards.
Nail the leather bellows along the edges of the pine boards, around the entire perimeter. Position the upholstery tacks so the tack heads touch each other around the entire perimeter. When you are done, the bellows looks like a leather and wood bag.
Screw one handle to each side of the bellows, onto the center of the 1-by-12 boards. Position the dowels along the center line of the 1-by-12 boards so they hang off the end of the bellows 8 to 10 inches
Point the bellows toward a fire. By pulling the handles apart, the leather acts as a balloon, filling with air. When you press the handles together, the top and bottom pine boards squeeze the air out of the bellows, toward the fire. The process increases the amount of air consumed by the fire, causing the fire's temperature to increase.