How to Build an A-Frame Box

Materials

• You will need seven 4-foot-long two-by-fours and one 4-by-8-foot sheet of 1/2-inch plywood. The only tools you'll need are a miter box and saw, along with a hammer and 1-inch wood nails. The carpentry skills necessary are minimal unless you are using a power saw to miter, or cut, the end of the two-by-fours at an angle. Manual cutting is acceptable.

Preparation

• Miter-cut the ends of six two-by-fours with a 45-degree angle to be your "ribs" on the box. The cuts should be asymmetrical, or facing one another, so that the top edge of the two-by-four measures 48 inches and the bottom edge measures 40 inches. Cutting them with a hand saw and an inexpensive miter box already set for the proper angle is easy, but it can be time-consuming and muscle-wearying if you don't have much practice cutting. The lumber yard might even do the cuts for free if they are not too busy.

Assembly

• Place the remaining two-by-four flat on the floor, as if it were the backbone. Start one side of the box by placing the 45-degree angle of a rib stud against the upper flat side of the floor stud at one end. Nail through the rib stud twice to hold it to the backbone stud. Place a stud at the far end and do the same thing. Position a third stud in the middle between the two end studs and nail it into place.

Finishing

• Turn the unfinished box over so that the other side of the backbone stud is exposed. Nail the three rib studs to the backbone stud the same way as the first three. The box should resemble an "A" without the middle bracket. Carefully turn the unfinished box so that the six ribs are resting, feet down, in the middle of the plywood. With the miter cut on the feet, each foot should be flat against the plywood.

Covering

• Hammer two nails through each foot into the plywood so that the A-frame is secured and steady. Depending on your project, you can choose to keep the plywood apron that surrounds the A-frame box whole or to cut it off and leave a little margin around the edges. Options from this point include cutting plywood to cover the roof, front and back sides of the A-shaped box, or covering the roof and sides with stapled tarp, canvas or clear plastic sheets.