A good friend of mine recently got back into playing guitar and was in search of a guitar pedal board for all of his various pedals. He had sent me a picture of conceptually what he wanted, and asked to keep the price under 180. The picture didn't include a lid, and the bottom of the board was open. I decided that I could add a lid and an openable bottom and stay within the price range.

Step 1: The Design

For my design, he wanted the board to be 26"x15"x3.5" (L,W,H). The lid of the box needed to be at least 3" off of the board so his pedals wouldn't be touched.

The board was to be slanted, so I used a 3.5">1.5"slant on the sides. This allowed enough wood in the front to still connect other parts together, but wasn't high enough to easily get a foot over. This slant was ~ 8*.

the bottom of the board needed to drop out so that the board could be stood up slightly and he could wire his pedals in.

The top and bottom all needed to latch on the front so that he didn't need to run around the entire board to get it ready for use.

Step 2: The Supplies

I went and bought some nice project pieces of Birch at the lengths of :

5 4x10's for the sides and fronts of the board and lid.

2 8x8 boards that were biscuited together to make the top of the lid, board face, and bottom panel.

I got several L brackets ranging from 1/2" to 2" for different areas of the inside of the board.

I used to 2" flip latches for the front of the board

3 detachable hinges for the lid

1 24"X1/2" hinge for the bottom panel
2 1" flip latches for the bottom panel

An 8" rubber handle

4 2" rubber feet for the bottom panel

Step 3: The Board

The Board: I cut the two side pieces down to 15"- the width of the two pieces of wood. I think made a jig and cut the pieces to the desired angle of ~8* on my table saw. The back of the board was a whole board cut to 26" and the front was a ripped board of 1 1/2" at 26".

I used one screw on each side to secure the sides to the front and two screws per side to secure the back to the sides.

I then cut two of the 8" boards to fit inside of the box. I used about 6-8 L brackets to secure these two board to the top and bottom of the box, matching the angle, and purposely leaving a crack in the middle.

I then found the middle of the two boards and made a line that went side to side, 2" off of each end. I used a 1" drill bit and drilled through the corners so my router would fit and then pulled it through to make a nice even hole.

(I also cut a hole in one side for a power cable to run into so that there aren't wires hanging out of the board. This isn't pictured as I forgot to do take a picture of it).

Step 4: The Lid

For the box, I cut two pieces at 26" for the front and back. The pieces were already 3.5", which gave plenty of clearance for the pedals inside. The two side pieces had to be cut to 16" and then I had to cut the ends at ~8* to slant the boards so they would sit flush with the pedal board. Once they fit snugly, I used 2 screws per side to create the rim of the lid. I then used two 8" boards at 26", biscuited them together, and screwed this down as my lid face.

I used three detachable hinges spaced evenly on the back of the pedal board to allow the lid to be taken off when the board is in use.

I used two flip latches to connect the lid to the pedal board.

Step 5: The Bottom

For the bottom panel, I simply measured the inside of the pedal board and cut the panel I had previously made (the two 8"s glued together plus a 1"strip) down to fit inside. I then attached the long 1/2" hinge to the board and screwed the 4 rubber feet evenly in all four corners. I then chiseled out two spots for the 1" flip latches so that they wouldn't touch the ground when the board is sitting on the rubber feet. I attached these to the front edge and bottom of the pedal board.

Step 6: The Paint Job

Helpful tip: don't place your stain on the same table as your project, just in case you knock it off into the floor and waste a whole can of stain.

I used what was left of the classic black stain with built in poly that I hadn't spilt on the floor. I did a wipe on method for the first coat. But it ended up being too light. I used a foam brush and added a second and third coat to everything and got the finish I liked. I then spray painted all of the parts flat black with metal spray paint.

After everything was painted I screwed it all back together.

Step 7: The Finale

I screwed on all the parts and tested the mechanisms several times. I then took strips of Velcro and attached them above and below each of the holes in the pedal board face so that he could change his setup whenever he wanted. I attached the handle to the middle of the lid and the pedal board was finished!

He came and got it the next day and was very excited to see it, and the budget I kept it in!