Wine Rack
Design
I went through several designs for this wine rack before I got started. Any thing that will handle the weight of 20+ bottles of wine has to be strong. The first version was too large with a 40+ bottle capacity so I downsized the design to be more practical in the average persons house.
The first version was to large for practical use
I had versions using bottle grids and X members. I decided on the X member design for it versatility. Then I decided to make the case have a face frame of contrasting wood.
Final Design
Build
As with many of my projects, three different types of wood were used. Strong 3/4 in birch plywood for the case, black walnut for the X member, and hard maple for the face frame. I used biscuits on the mitered corner of the case and added few screws to help reinforce the corners. The walnut X woods interlocked with half-lap joints. And I used pocket screws to construct the maple face frame.
Case glue up
One change from the original design was to paint the case with a black lacquer instead of staining. I used a black dye to stain the inside of the case.
Gloss black paint outside, flat stain inside
After the outside was finished I was able to fit the free floating black walnut X woods.
Dry fitting the X members
I then cut the maple face frame to fit the case and provide a way to lock in the X members.
Final dry fit
I applied a 45 degree chamfer to outside of the face frame to remove the sharp edges.
Face frame detail
After the final glue up I applied several coats of wipe on polyurethane to the walnut and maple parts. I then attached a french cleat to allow the case to be wall hung if desired.
Final glue up