Baptismal Font Part 1.

Well it's groundhog day...again. But I'm doing new stuff in the Flying WoodShop! Today I'm beginning the preparations for the Baptismal Font (or pool) that I've been asked to make for my church (Precious Blood Catholic Church in Culpeper, Va).

The overall plan for the font is for it to be octagonal in shape and about 3 feet wide. It will be approximately 6 to 8 inches high and will be able to hold about 20 gallons of water. There are going to be about 15 baptisms at our church during the Easter vigil (Saturday evening before Easter). The adults will be able to step into the font and have the Holy Water poured over their heads.

The overall plan for the font is to have a plywood interior/structure with a solid maple exterior. The interior will be painted with a product called Pond Armor. This will waterproof the interior of the font. Pond Armor is made precisely for this purpose and is often used to make aquariums out of plywood. It's important to not let the wood get impregnated with water, as it will cause it to swell and possibly split.

Here's a quick video that shows the first steps I've take on this project. I'm getting the finger joints figured out (also called box joints).

Thanks for reading and watching!