Stackable DIY Painter Pyramids - Homemade

"Painter pyramids" are used whenever you are painting a door panel or items that need to be flipped around to paint both sides in one go. The alternative of leaving one side to dry before turning it to paint the other side would just take to long. The tiny points leave minimal marks on the less visible side.

There are commercially available painter pyramids made out of plastic, that actually look like pyramids... Duh! But why buy if you can make it out of scraps in about 15-20 minutes? A very common solution is to take a few pieces of scraps and run a screw through them. The problem I find is that they don't stack well for storage and if you have a big bunch of them for a large project, it can get quite messy.

My little design improvement makes them stackable, thanks to the hole I added. This Instructable could stop right here as the picture pretty much says it all, but I'm going to give a few simple tips on how to "mass produce" them.

Step 1: Make a Prototype

I like to make a prototype to see if I like the final result before making a whole bunch of something. I also come up with improvements or better ways of doing things during the prototyping. But you can skip this part.

To make a prototype, take a rectangular piece of scrap. Ideally, the long side should be twice the small side.

Draw a line across the middle to create two squares, then draw the diagonals of each square to find the middle of each square. With a square, transpose the two centers to the sides of the rectangle so that you can use them as reference. Dimensions might be driven by the scraps available... You can finish it off by drilling a hole and driving a screw to see if you like the finished product.

In your pile of scrap plywood (3/4" - 18mm), cut long strips the same length as you rectangle, then go ahead and transpose the center measurements on those strips, and draw the lines across the length. This will save you a lot of measuring once you have cut out the small rectangles.

Step 2: Cut the Blanks and Drill Holes

Ideally, if you have a table saw, you should have a sled. On your sled, set a stop block to cut all the blanks out.

Remember those center lines we drew in the previous step? They come in handy now. Set the marking gauge to the center of the width and mark the centers on all the parts.

In this case, I am going to use a 13 mm metal bit to drill the hole. A: because its the largest I can fit on my drill press and B: I can drill a nice countersink with the same bit. Because this is not a brad point bit, I like to mark the holes with a punch to make the centering of the drill bit easier. But that is really optional...

In each rectangle, drill all the way through one half and make just a countersink on the other half. I went through the trouble of drilling a pilot hole in the center of the countersink because on my prototype, the screw went through a bit crooked. The pilot hole is quick to drill and takes that concern away.

Step 3: Put the Screws in and Adjust the Height

Just drive the screws in. The screw length should be just shy of twice the thickness of the board you are using so that it does not protrude when you are staking them.

Set them all side by side and check that they are all the same height roughly with the edge of a plank. Adjust as needed with a screwdriver.

And there you go, a big bunch of stackable, reusable painter pyramids made out of scraps... As many as you want!