CAT-TV-BED

There are many reasons that cats love boxes, but the main one is because they're confined, enclosed spaces. Cats are ambush predators and finding confined places where they can hide, hunt prey and feel safe and warm is an instinctive behaviour. After wearing out many a cardboard box, I thought our cat deserved something more upscale. Since we enjoy watching her antics, a vintage TV set came to mind. 

I like to re-use and recycle so I used materials I had on hand but you can substitute any type of wood for the box construction. I cut all my material to the following sizes using a panel saw, except the pine for which i used a small hand saw and mitre box:

 TV face- a piece of 5/8” x 13” x 20”.

Sides- two pieces, 5/8” x 8” wide x 13” long. 

Top and bottom- two pieces, 5/8” x 8” wide x 21,1/4” long.

Back- 1/8 inch MDF. 

Simulated speaker- 3/4” pine 2,1/2”x 3,1/4” 

Rabbit Ear antenna- 3/4” pine 1” X 3,1/4” with a 45 degree bevel on each end and 2 pieces of 1/4” dowel each cut to 12” 

Legs-4 pieces of 1.5” x 5” dowel 

Door- stop moulding to frame the front- 1.5” x 6’.

Hardware items: 

 2 knobs (mine are from an old stove)

4- 2” wood screws, 1- 1.5” wood screw

Construction adhesive, 5 minute epoxy, wood filler.

1,1/4” finishing, or Brad nails, staples

Two short pieces of 1/4” ID hose. (These fit over the ends of the 1/4” dowel) 

A piece of scrap carpet to line the bottom.

 Pre -cut wood lettering (optional) 

 I used Fusion self-priming paint- Midnight Blue colour for the box and Rustoleum Bronze Hammertone spray for the knobs, antenna, legs, lettering, and speaker.

Tools will be mentioned in each step.

Making a cardboard template for the face is a good idea, especially if you want to make more than one.

 All dimensions and drilling instructions are given on my template photo. 

Tape the template to the 13 x 20” wood face and punch through the marked areas or, just transfer the measurements from my photo directly to your wood and use a punch to mark the areas to be drilled.

Use a 3.5” hole saw chucked into an electric drill to remove material and provide a curved area for the 4 corners of the TV screen. Drill the holes for the knobs with the appropriate size drill bit. Use a straightedge to join the circumferences of the 3.5” holes and cut with a portable jig saw. These areas will require sanding to smooth them out. I used a a palm sander with # 80 sandpaper.

To assemble, glue and nail each side to the outside edges of the face- I used white, one side MDF and kept the white sides inside. 

Before attaching the bottom piece, measure 2.5” from each side, then 2.5” from the front and back on each line. Drill these with a 1.5” Forstner bit. These hold the legs- (1.5 “ dowels) Put a piece of masking tape about 1/4” from the bottom of the bit, and only drill that far, then all holes will be the same depth. Use a smaller, 1/8” bit to drill through the centre of each hole. Then place each leg in the hole and drill them with the same bit. This will allow the wood screw to hold each leg in place. 

Now glue and nail the top and bottom.

 Place the entire box over the 1/8” MDF. Trace, cut, then glue and use a staple gun to attach the back. 

Cut the moulding to size then nail to the front edges, thereby hiding the butted edges. Next, fill any voids with wood filler and sand the entire box till it is smooth. 

IMPORTANT: Make certain no nails protrude into the interior of the box. 

Drill a 1/4” hole in the centre of each 45 degree bevel on the antenna mount. Also drill a smaller hole in the centre of the mount for attachment. Use the epoxy glue to attach the 1/4” dowel in each hole then glue the rubber protectors to the end of each dowel. 

I gave the box two coats of paint, sanding lightly after the first coat was dry. I sprayed the hardware items with 2 coats of Rustoleum spray, waiting 1/2 hour between coats.

Begin assembly with the legs. Place each in its drilled hole and attach with the wood screws. 

Locate where the Rabbit- Ears will go and attach with epoxy and a wood screw. 

Put epoxy on the back of each knob and push it into its pre-drilled hole.

Centre the speaker block under the knobs and epoxy it in place as well. (I used 2 finishing nails also)

Use epoxy also for any lettering. 

Lastly, cut the carpet to size and lay it in the bottom.

This completes the PURR-FECT cat bed, however, knowing cats, they will either ignore it, hide behind or underneath it, or sit on top if it. With luck, they may even sleep in it.