How to Build a Bar | This Old House

Senior technical editor Mark Powers builds a bar for entertaining. (See below for a shopping list, tools and cut list.)

If the notion of building a bar conjures fond and fuzzy memories of hammering 2x4s into some makeshift cup stand back in college, terrific. But that experience won't help you much here. This is a real piece of furniture, as you can see from the trimmed panels, sturdy oak bar-rail molding, and stainless-steel foot rail.

Follow along as This Old House senior technical editor Mark Powers and colleague Douglas Adams build this handsome rec-room centerpiece. And if you want to break out the toga when your DIY home bar is finished, well, that's entirely your call.

Shopping List for How to Build a Bar:
- Lauan to sheathe the outside of the bar. Get one-and-a-half 4-by-8-foot sheets.
- 1/2-inch birch-veneer plywood, to sheathe the interior. Get one-and-a-half 4-by-8 sheets.
- 3/4-inch utility-grade plywood, for the base of the bar. Get one 4-by-8 sheet.
- 1x4 common-pine boards, to be sandwiched between the sheathing. Get eight 8-footers.
- 1x4 clear-pine boards for the stiles and rails. Get seven 8-footers.
- 1x8 clear-pine board, for the bottom rail. Get one 8-footer.
- 1x10 clear-pine boards, for the shelves. Get two 6-footers.
- 1x2 for the capping and supports. Get one 6-foot common-pine board and one 8-foot clear-pine board.
- 1x1 for the shelf cleats. Get two 8-foot lengths.
- Panel or base cap molding, to trim the inside edges of the stiles and rails. Get six 6-foot pieces.
- 1x12 oak to finish the bar top. Get one 10-foot board.
- 1x2 oak for the trim. Get one 12-foot board.
- Oak bar-rail molding. Get one 12-foot length.
- Foot rail, brackets, and caps (optional)
- 1-inch nails
- 1 1/4-inch nails
- 5/8-inch brad nails
- 1 1/4-inch screws
- 3-inch screws
- Construction adhesive
- Wood glue

Tools for How to Build a Bar:
- Circular saw
- Miter saw
- Drill/driver fitted with a combination drill bit
- Pneumatic nail gun
- Small hand saw

Cut list:
½-inch plywood: 1 @ 60 by 42 inches
½-inch plywood: 2 @ 24 by 42 inches
Lauan sheathing: 1 @ 60 by 42 inches
Lauan sheathing: 2 @ 24 by 42 inches
1x2 framing: 11 @ 37 inches
1x2 framing: 4 @ 24 inches
1x2 framing: 2 @ 60 inches
1x4 nailing block: 2 @ 6 inches
1x4 stile: 5 @ 31¼ inches
1x4 corner stile: 4 @ 42 inches
1x4 corner stile: 2 @ 42 inches (Rip ¾ inch off the board’s width.)
1x2 stile: 2 @ 42 inches
1x4 rail: 1 @ 54½ inches
1x4 rail: Scribe 2 to size.
1x8 rail: 1 @ 54½ inches
1x8 rail: Scribe 2 to size.
Panel molding: Miter 32 to size.
1x2 shelf supports: 1 @ 54 inches
1x2 shelf supports: 2 @ 6 inches
¾-inch plywood bar-top substrate: Cut 2 to size.
¾-inch plywood bar-top substrate: Cut 2 to size.
1x12 bar top: Cut 1 to size.
1x12 bar top: Cut 2 to size.
Bar-rail molding: Miter 3 to size.

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How to Build a Bar | This Old House