A Ladder That Levels the Field

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Treads or steps work well if they are one foot apart. The easy way to get your rabbet cuts accurate is to measure up one foot from the outside or long point of the leg and mark the point. Then measure up one foot from the short side and mark that point as well. Then connect the marks by using a straight edge. Mark the rest of the timbers in the same way. Be sure to mark on what will be the inside edge of each timber.

If you want to use rabbet cuts, determine first the thickness of the treads or steps and mark a line accordingly below the first line. For instance, if you want to use treads that are one inch thick, lay off a line one inch below the first line and parallel to it. Follow this procedure for all four legs of the UniLadder.

Now make the rabbet cut. If you have a router, this is a good place to use it. You can also set your table saw blade low enough that you will cut a quarter-inch rabbet into the side of the timber. Having neither table saw nor router, you can use a hand saw to cut along both lines a quarter inch deep and then use a hammer and chisel to clean out the wood between the lines. You can also use an ordinary circular saw, but you must maintain a very shallow cut or you will weaken the timbers.

Believe it or not, it is very easy to make a rabbet cut with a chain saw. Use only the tip of the bar and barely let it touch the wood. With a little practice (or a scrap length of wood) you will be making nearly perfect cuts in no time.

When all four legs are ready, you need to cut your treads or steps. While we used pine for the legs (for several reasons: the storm had already uprooted the tree, pine is very easy to cut with a chain saw, dries quickly, is very light so that the ladder is easily carried and set up, and we simply like pine), we did not want to use it for steps. It is not strong enough and it weathers badly.

We used oak. The same storm that felled the pines also dropped some huge oaks, and we cut boards 1.25 inches thick and 15 feet long and 4 inches wide. We planed the boards down to one inch in thickness. A one-inch oak board will support a great deal of weight, and oak does not become brittle when fully cured.

To give added stability to your ladder, you may want to use the plan we followed. The lowest step was 18.5 inches long, the next was 17.5, the following was 16.5, and so on, with each rung or step being one inch shorter than the previous. The result was that the top of the ladder was seven inches narrower than the bottom.

We think it is a good idea to install the bottom step first and then add the top one. Then all other steps are cut to exact length so that they will fit snugly into the rabbet cuts you made earlier. For the first step, fit the board into the rabbet cut and then drill a small hole (one-sixteenth of an inch works well) as a pilot hole through the outside of the leg and into the end of the step. Then use a two-inch screw to secure the step in position. When the ladder is in use, the weight of the person on the ladder is supported by the rabbet cut, and the screws simply keep the step from slipping or falling out.

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