Things You'll Need:
- (1) 8' 2X4 lumber (or for a rustic look, use rough cut lumber)
- (2) 6" sticks of 0.5" hardwood dowel rod
- (6-12) 6" wood screws
- Wood glue
- Wood saw (electric or manual, whatever you're comfortable with)
- Drill w/ 0.5" wood bit
- Tape measure
- Pencil
- Square (for marking straight lines)
- Screwdriver or drive bit for drill.
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Step 1
Gather up all your materials and tools. Nothing is worse than starting a project and discovering you're missing a tool! Make sure you have the proper safety equipment like gloves and safety glasses ... you don't want to loose anything you might need later. Remember, you don't have to use exact measurements, you can build it as big or as small as you like. Hey, you're the guy (or gal) holding the saw and pencil! Also, a 2X4 stud isn't exactly 2" by 4", unless its rough cut lumber. I'm rounding off here.
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Step 2
Using your tape measure and pencil, mark off 4 inches on the 2X4 (laying the lumber on a saw horse is helpful). Cut off the 4X4 block. Repeat this step until you have 4 blocks of wood. These blocks will be the base of what I call the "latch housing".
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Step 3
Ok, on your 2X4, mark off around 17". Cut and repeat. These two 17'X4" pieces will be the tops of the latch housing. If you'd like a tighter fit for your latch, cut your tops at 16". Just remember to measure twice and cut once! Just play with it and see what you think. If your horse's name is "Houdini", you might want to go with a little tighter fit.
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Step 4
On your stall door, place one top piece on the door itself and the other top on the door frame. Have a friend give you a hand here. Measure from outside to outside of your top pieces. Be sure to allow about 2 or three inches extra on both sides of the top pieces. Let's say that we measured 12" from outside to outside; now add three inches to both sides ... that gives us 18 inches. Go ahead and mark your 2X4 at 18" and cut it. This piece with be the latch board.
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Step 5
We have all these pieces of wood laying around ... let's make a latch! You want to glue the 4X4 blocks to the top pieces. Put one block at each end and make sure they're flush. You can clamp them and allow the glue to dry if you'd like, or you can go ahead and screw the "housings" to the stall ... one on the door and one on the door frame. Make sure that the housing is close to the edge of the door frame, but not so close that it keeps the door from closing. Another good tip is to make sure that the housings are level! That tends to help.
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Step 6
Now that the housings are mounted, take your latch board and slide it in the two housings. Make sure you leave a little room (2-3") on the outside of the housing mounted to the door. With your pencil, make two marks on the latch board..one on the OUTSIDE of the door mounted housing, and one on the INSIDE of the frame mounted housing. Pull the latch board out and make sure that the INSIDE line is still visible when the door is able to be opened.
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Step 7
Take your drill and drill a 1/2" hole next to the lines you just drew. Now, place the latch board back into the housings. Put some wood glue on your 6" dowels and stick those in the holes. You might need to tap them in with a hammer, but you want a pretty good fit. These will keep the latch board from falling out of the housing. You're all done. Be sure to clean up your mess before the wife fusses about it!
