A dog box allows you to safely transport your dogs for hunting.
Hunting dogs can prove to be invaluable helpers when out on a hunt, helping to flush out birds as well as track birds you have shot down. In order to ensure your dogs are safe when driving, it is best to provide the dogs with a dog box to ride in, instead of allowing the dogs to be free in the cab of the car. A plywood box, reinforced with wood beams, can be placed in the bed of a truck when driving to the hunt.
Instructions
Constructing the Frame
1. Cut two pieces of plywood 42 inches by 24 inches for the front and back of the box. Cut three pieces of plywood 24 inches by 24 inches for the sides and divider of the box. Cut two pieces 45 inches by 27 inches for the top and bottom of the box.
2. Mark a rectangle 5 inches tall and 12 inches wide centered across the width of each side piece and 7 inches below the top of the side pieces.
3. Mark a pair of rectangles on the front piece, 9 inches wide and 12 inches tall, 5 inches below the top of the front piece with one rectangle 3-1/2 inches in from both sides of the front piece.
4. Drill a hole through each rectangle and use a jigsaw to cut out the rectangles.
5. Cut four pieces of 2-by-4, each 25-1/2 inches long, and four pieces 17 inches long.
6. Secure the 25-1/2 inch pieces to the side pieces with screws so one plank is flush with the top and bottom of each side piece, and each plank extends 3/4 inch beyond both edges of the plywood it is attached to.
7. Secure the 17-inch pieces to the plywood with screws so that each side piece has two 17-inch planks screwed to it, with the outer edges of the 17-inch planks flush with the ends of the 25-1/2-inch planks. Each side piece will have a frame made of planks around its perimeter that extends an extra 3/4 inch out toward the front and back.
8. Cut a pair of mesh rectangles 7 inches by 14 inches and secure each to the inside of the side pieces with the staple gun so the mesh covers the cut-out rectangles.
9. Cut four pieces of 2-by-4, each 45 inches long, and secure the planks to the front and back pieces with screws so that the plywood is centered across the lengths of the planks, with 1-1/2 inches extra plank on both sides, and a plank flush with both the top and bottom of both plywood pieces.
10. Cut four pieces of 2-by-4, each 17 inches long, and secure the 17-inch pieces to the plywood with screws so that both the front and back pieces have two 17-inch planks screwed to them, with the outer edges of the 17-inch planks flush with the ends of the 45-inch planks. Both pieces will have a frame made of planks around its perimeter that extends an extra 1-1/2 inches out from the sides.
11. Secure the side pieces to the front and back pieces by placing the front and back pieces between the side pieces, then screwing through the planks on the front and back pieces into the planks on the side pieces.
12. Place the remaining 24-inch square plywood piece inside the box so that it runs from the front to the back, centered across the width of the box, then secure with screws through the front and back of the box.
13. Place a 45- by 27-inch piece of plywood atop the box frame and secure with screws.
14. Turn the box over then place the remaining 45- by 27-inch piece of plywood atop the bottom of the box frame and secure with screws.
Adding Doors and Handles
15. Cut four 2-by-4 planks 14 inches long and four 2-by-4 planks 11 inches long.
16. Make a 45-degree cut on both sides of each plank, across the 3-1/2 inch width.
17.Arrange the planks into two rectangles, 14 inches tall and 11 inches wide, then glue together and secure with wood clamps. The angled cuts allow the planks to come together at right angles.
18. Cut two pieces of mesh, 13 inches by 10 inches each, and secure a mesh piece to one side of each wood rectangle. These are the doors of the box.
19. Secure a pair of hinges to the front of each door, with one hinge on each door 1/3 of the way down from the top and the other 1/3 of the way up from the bottom.
20. Fasten each door to the frame with screws into the 2-by-4s running down the sides of the front piece, so that the doors cover the cut-out rectangles.
21. Cut a 2-by-4 plank 14 inches long and secure to the front of the box with screws in between the two doors, so that the distance between the 14-inch plank and the top plank is slightly narrower than the length of the metal handles.
22. Attach latch pieces to each door and to the center beam. The loops the latch bars slide through are screwed to the center beam, while the pieces with metal poles that slide through the loops attach to the door pieces.
23. Attach a handle to the beam running across the bottom of the front piece, centered across the width.
24. Attach the remaining handle to the front of the box, centered across the width, with one end of the handle screwed to the top beam and the other end of the handle screwed to the beam running between the doors.
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