A Simple Pine Box

[Matt Shade]

I'm not sure how I feel about being buried in a box to rot, but I have some issues with how folks handle cremation too.

When I worked for a landscaping company me and a buddy got sent to a church to do warranty replacements on some boxwood shrubs in their courtyard and we also had to pull up about a dozen pavers scattered about and replace them with bricks that had been engraved with names.

We did the pavers first and there was a little old man and 2 old ladies there to supervise us. Lets just add that it was some kind of baptist church and my buddy and I were the only 2 white folks to be found on the property. And that didn't matter beyond the fact that neither one of us knew the proper timing for throwing in "amen" and "praise jesus" in the conversation and it made things very awkward

So then it was time to pull the shrubs up. These things were dry and brittle and completely dead. I grabbed the first one and rocked back on it as my buddy worked on the root ball with a spade and as it pried out, we found that it was buried completely in what seemed like a very coarse gray/white sand. We looked at each other like what the hell kind of dirt is this and who thought a bush would grow in it?

I tossed it in the wheelbarrow and that brought the wrath of old lady number one.
"Young man, you are not to take ANY soil from this garden. Clean those roots off!"

I stood there confused

Old lady number 2 apologizes- "those are human remains, its all the people who's names are on those bricks"

The old man was sitting on a stone bench and he slaps the armrest "This is my wife!"

My buddy and I both looked at each other and he got a bit pale. I'm sure I was too.

We spent the next hour taking turns holding shrubs up while the other knocked "grandma" off the roots with a shovel while the 2 old ladies supervised.

I don't think that set up is really a proper final resting place.

[arizonian]

The second casket has been completed, ready for delivery on Monday to El Paso, TX. I started photographing the steps early on but got in the zone and and forgot about the camera.

I started with the floor, then built the sides. Once the sides and ends were complete, I sanded inside and out and rounded over the edges with the router. This is where the photos were interrupted. The lids came next, complete with plugging the screw holes with dowels. The hinges are surface mount black door hinges from Lowe's and the latches are what you would use to keep table leaves closed. I did remember to take a shot after the handrails were made and a shot of some of the equipment being used, a Delta table saw and Dad's trusty DeWalt radial arm saw. That DeWalt must be 65 yrs old or more.

Finally finished the woodworking and hauled it home to install the liner. After the liner was in, plunked it into the back of my truck and it is ready to ship.

[toprecycler]

Very nice.


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[Ironman]

Nice work, Bill. I think anyone would be pleased to rest in that box

[digr]

Another nice build!!!

[Tim KS]

Nice looking box, Bill. What's the empty weight on it finished, and is any stain planned for it?

[arizonian]

Long day today. Started at 7:00 am, drove to Hatch, NM to take care of paperwork for the burial on Saturday. From Hatch drove to El Paso, TX to deliver the casket to the funeral home. Fueled up, got dinner, back to Tucson by 9:30. My guess is 650-680 miles without looking at the odometer.

No finish on the box, just a plain brown wrapper. Weight is ~100 board feet of sugar pine, maybe 120 lbs max. Plenty stout to handle the occupant.

Sad to say the bickering has started. The survivors (2) have agreed to one (1) executive of the estate. There was no will, so any real property will go into probate and the court will decide how they split the proceeds. I just hope the executive can sell the house before it goes into foreclosure. The bickering is over personal property and Lord knows how that will go.

[camdigger]

Originally Posted by arizonian

Long day today. Started at 7:00 am, drove to Hatch, NM to take care of paperwork for the burial on Saturday. From Hatch drove to El Paso, TX to deliver the casket to the funeral home. Fueled up, got dinner, back to Tucson by 9:30. My guess is 650-680 miles without looking at the odometer.

No finish on the box, just a plain brown wrapper. Weight is ~100 board feet of sugar pine, maybe 120 lbs max. Plenty stout to handle the occupant.

Sad to say the bickering has started. The survivors (2) have agreed to one (1) executive of the estate. There was no will, so any real property will go into probate and the court will decide how they split the proceeds. I just hope the executive can sell the house before it goes into foreclosure. The bickering is over personal property and Lord knows how that will go.

If not for bickering over inheritances, some families would never talk to each other.

[mccutter]

Box looks comfortable!

Guy at the range had a fairly large box for his guns with that kind of fabric in it over a pillow-like foam the pistols would sink down into. Always full of wit, I says "Do you have a little blanket you are going to cover them up and tuck them in?"

[arizonian]

Just got back from Hatch, NM. A lot of stories, a lot of crying, then laughing, then crying, then laughing. I had the foresight to buy a fifth of bourbon last night and we toasted a farewell to a great compadre.