How to build a wine rack using pallet timber

MitchellMc

Difficulty: Intermediate

Bring some rustic charm to your home with this easy-to-build wine rack made from recycled pallet timber.

Inspiration for this creation comes from the extremely popular projects Wall mounted wine rack by experienced Bunnings Workshop member @LePallet and Wine storage and bookshelf using pallet timber by @KGriff1. Thanks again for sharing your wonderful projects with us.

Steps

Step 1

Take a full-sized pallet and remove about a quarter of it by cutting through the three runners (the larger timbers that the pallet boards are nailed onto). Make your cut about 40cm from the end of the pallet.

The smaller pallet portion will form most of our wine rack. Disassemble it by levering the boards off the runners with a pry bar. Work gently so as not to split them.

Remove extra boards from the other section of your pallet until you have a total of eight boards.

1.1 Selected pallet.jpeg 1.2 Cutting pallet.jpeg 1.3 Pallet cut in two.jpeg 1.4 Levering boards off.jpeg 1.5 Cutting through nails.jpeg 1.6 Timber prepared.jpeg 1.7 Pallet cut in two.jpeg 1.8 Section cut off pallet.jpeg

Step 2

Sand your three lengths of runner and seven of your eight boards with 80-grit sandpaper or a random orbital sander with 80-grit sheets. Pallets are typically rough, and sanding removes any splinters and adds to the aged effect.

2.1 Pieces ready to sand.jpeg 2.2 Trimming runner to length.jpeg 2.3 Vertical runners sanded.jpeg 2.4 Front boards sanded.jpeg 2.5 Front boards sanded 2.jpeg

Step 3

The three lengths of runner will be the verticals for your wine rack. The parts of the runners that have the cut-out for the forklift tines will be at the top, and the full-width parts at the bottom.

You’ll begin building your wine rack by gluing and nailing two of your boards to the lower, full-width parts of the runners. Pre-drill the holes for the nails with the countersink bit to prevent splitting.

3.1 Applying glue to runner.jpeg 3.2 Pre-drilling nail holes.jpeg 3.3 Front board nailed.jpeg 3.4 Bottom front board fixed.jpeg 3.5 Front boards fixed in place.jpeg 3.6 Nailing front two board onto runners.jpeg

Step 4

Screw two boards onto the back of the unit and nail one on the top. Then screw another board onto the bottom of the unit. Make sure to pre-drill the screw locations with the countersink bit.

Cut three sections 50mm long from your one unsanded board. Screw these at the ends and middle of the bottom board. These will act as spacers to gap out the bottom board and allow the glasses to be inserted.

4.1 Front boards fixed in place.jpeg 4.2 Back boards fixed in place.jpeg 4.3 Spacers cut.jpeg 4.4 Fixing spacers in postion.jpeg 4.5 Nailing and screwing bottom, back and top boards on.jpeg

Step 5

Take another board and mark out evenly spaced locations for your glasses. Using your 30mm hole saw drill evenly spaced holes along the length of timber. Mark out the mid-point of these holes and cut out a 1cm wide section with your jigsaw so you can slide the stems of your wine glasses in.

Sand the board smooth with 80-grit sandpaper before screwing it onto the spacers.

5.1 Marking holes locations.jpeg 5.2 Drilling holes for glasses.jpeg 5.3 Slots cut in glass holder.jpeg 5.4 Fixing glass holder in postition.jpeg 5.5 Marking front cutout.jpeg 5.6 Cutting out front board.jpeg 5.7 Nailing wine glass holder on.jpeg

Step 6

Finish off by sanding the whole wine rack smooth with 120-grit sandpaper.

Stain any sections you wish to, and then once dry according to instructions, apply two coats of a clear varnish to the entire rack. Once the varnish is dry to touch, screw through the back board directly into your wall's timber studs or fix it directly into a masonry wall.

6.1 Finished wine rack.jpg 6.2 Completed wine rack.jpeg . 6.3 Wine rack hanging in place.jpg