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Indexing the Holes

Install a 5/16" brad point bit in the drill press chuck, and position the drill press table at the best height for drilling through the 3" width. Set up a roller stand or some other support for the far end of the material, as shown in photo 1. Clamp a 1 1/2" x 3" fence to the drill press table so that the bit is positioned on center to the edge of the board.

Mark the position for the first hole 2" from the end and the second hole 1 1/2" from there. Clamp the blank to the fence and drill the first hole all the way through (photo 2).

To index the rest of the holes, you need a pointer made of 1/4" scrap as shown in photo 3. Drill a i(6' hole in the scrap, and saw a slot from the edge to the hole. Now shift the blank so the second mark is under the drill bit, clamp it to the fence, line up the pointer with the first hole, and screw it to the fence (photo 3). Now drill the rest of the holes in the blank, referencing each from the one you drilled before (photo 4). Repeat this process for the shorter blank, shimming it up to the top of the fence with some 1" scrap.

Now cut these blanks into 7/8" strips, as shown in photo 5. Clean up one surface on the jointer; then plane the other side down to the finished thickness of 3/4" (photo 6).

Cut the legs (B) from the pieces made from the smaller blank. Use a doweling jig to guide you in drilling a 1/4" hole centered on the end of each leg to accept the leveling bolts (photo 7). Choose the ends that have 2" of undrilled length.

Cut the spanners (C), top support (D), and spacers (E) from the remaining lengths of the smaller blank. Mill some 4 x 4 stock to the dimensions given in the cutting list for the bike hooks (F) and end pads (G).

Making More Holes

Head back to the drill press for the next steps in preparing the bike hooks. First you need to drill a pair of holes that correspond to those in the uprights. Drill them 3" apart, centered along the length of the bike hooks as shown in the plans.

Next install a 1 1/2" Forstner bit to cut the arcs that will support the bicycle frame.

Forstner bits are designed in such a way to make it possible to bore a hole on the edge of a board. Clamp two pieces of scrap wood to the drill press table to reference this hole at the same point on both ends of each bike hook (photo 7). Drill one end, flip over the stock, and drill the other end.

Now lay out the shape of the bike hooks by enlarging the pattern using the gridded drawing in the plans. Draw one half on one of your pieces and cut it out on the band saw. Fair the curves using a file or sandpaper; then trace the shape onto another piece. Flip the first one over and trace it onto the other half of the second piece. You can stack the pieces with double-sided carpet tape between them and cut out a couple at a time (photo 8). Finalize their shape using files and sandpaper.

At this point I routed a slight chamfer on the corners of all of the pieces just to give the project a more refined look. This step is optional. Sand the pieces and apply the finish of your choice.

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