Treehouse Doorbell / Kocker

An off-grid "doorbell" (or knocker?) for my grandkids Treehouse. You pull the string and the head pivots, making a knocking sound, to let you know someone is at the rear door. When mounted to the Treehouse, it's actually quite loud.

Scrap wood. I used a 1x4 3' long in the Home Depot scrap bin. And a piece of 1x6 (for the head) that was ~ 6" long.

ONE 3/8" dowel rod, that is 1.5" long - this allows the head to pivot when the string is pulled.

ONE scrap piece of 2x4 about 4 inches long (that will be cut down).

String

ONE 1/16" x 1/2" Screw Eye

Glue

1", 18 gauge brad nails

2", 18 gauge brad nails

TWO 1.25" screws (to mount bird to base from the rear).

Safety Glasses

Draw a head and wings on scrap wood. Doodle various versions until you get something you like. Remember in nature things are random, not perfectly symmetrical, etc...so have fun drawing. Randomness is your friend.

TIP: Not artistic? Neither am I LOL...but you can search the Internet for a "bird coloring page". Find your favorite bird, print, cut out and trace onto the wood.

Put on your safety glasses, and cut out the head (from the 1x6).

Cut out the wings & base (from the 1x4).

In my case:

Head = 4.5" high by 4" wide.

Wings = 3.4" high by 6.75" long

Base = 11.5" long (it came 3.5" wide).

NOTE: I included a Look Ahead Photo, so you can see the spatial relationship between the head and wings....but feel free to make it your own design. There is no wrong answer.

Cut the scrap 2x4 2.75" high. Leave it the full 3.5" wide.

Using a table saw, we need to cut the depth to 7/8" of an inch. Why? This will give us just enough play to allow the head to pivot unobstructed. Ie this provides axial rotation without rubbing the wings.

TIP: Be sure to use a push stick as illustrated to keep your hands safely away from the table saw blade.

NOTE: I included a Look Ahead Photo, so you can see the play/gap that exists to allow the head to not rub the wings.

Lay the head on the Main Body - when the head is fully back, to the right in my pic, ie in it's resting position (not knocking on the wood).. Draw a line to cut the Main Body as illustrated. This will hold the head in the rested position, just like the picture illustrates.

Drill a 1/4" hole, as illustrated, for the string to pass from the bottom to the head.

Stack your pieces together and estimate the tail size. In my case I decided on 5.5" long and 2.8" wide.

1. Mark the 5.5 x 2.8" on the 1x4.
2. Draw an arch connecting the 2.8", as illustrated.
3. Draw 3/4" wide mark down the center (this will mount ot the main body).
4. Now draw a taper as illustrated. My taper was 3.2" long, but remember randomness is your friend...that measurement does not matter.
5. Cut out the tail.

Lay the tail on top of the main body. Draw an angle line to cut:

1. Main body angle for the tail, as illustrated in last pic.
2. The top of the trail. We want it flush with the top of the Main Body.
3. Draw 3 lines on the tail to simulate the features.
4. Using a chisel, and hand pressure only (no need for a hammer)...press at a 45 degree angle from each side. This will remove a ~ 1/8" depth line.

TIP: Using the corner of the chisel, clean out the lines, forming a 90 degree grove (as illustrated).

Draw a circle (for the dowel rod) to the far left...so the majority of the head is on the right, as illustrated. This will allow gravity to hold the head in the rested (not knocking) position.

Drill a hole for the 3/8" dowel in the head. Note, the dowel will fit tight, so we need to ream the hole slightly larger. I used a round file, but ample alternative methods exist (ream with a drill bit, BUT be very careful an overly large hole will cause the head to wobble rather than pivot).

TIP: When holding the dowel, the head should freely fall to the down position, as illustrated. This indicates the head is free to pivot on the dowel rod.

Assemble the bird (dry fit) and when you have the dowel in the proper position, lightly tap with a hammer. This will tell us where to drill a hole on the bottom wing. NOTE: only drill the hole 1/4" deep....we want both wings to hold the dowel rod firmly in place.

Glue the dowel rod into place. Optionally, I then tacked it with a 1" brad to hold in place.

Place the top wing on top of the dowel and press firmly. This will create an indention / mark were to drill the hole on the top wing. Drill 1/4" deep ONLY.

From the inside, so we don't see the nails, add glue and 1" brad nails from the Main Body to the underside wing.

Feed the string through the main body.

Using a 1/16" drill bit, drilll a pilot hole for the Screw Eye.

Add the Screw Eye, and knot the string onto the Screw Eye.

Assemble the head onto the dowel rod, add the top wing...attach top wing with 1" brad nails. NOTE: I did not use glue, in case I ever need to rip it apart to service the string (which I don't think will be necessary, but just in case).

TIP: To aid in fishing the string through the Main Body, I used a small piece of 14-2 electric wire. A long drill bit, or coat hanger might be an alternative method.

Using glue and 2" brad nails, add the tail permanently.

This is what your doorbell should look like, from the underside. Note the single nail hole that holds the dowel in.

The goal here is to mount the bird to the 1x4 (cut to 11.5" long).

I added spacer on the back of the bird, so I can clamp the bird to the 1x4 (without putting pressure on the wings, since the glue has not dried). Why? I want to trace the Main Body, then drill holes on the top side. Ultimately I want to mount the bird to the 1x4 from the back, and this will be my guide to ensure my screws align perfectly (without hitting the string). After tracing, drill two holes 1/8" diameter...offset the top slight right and the bottom slight left to provide stability (ie if you do down the centerline it will hit the string).

Now re-clamp the bird to the 1x4 & flip over (so we are looking at the bottom)

Drive two 1.25" screws to affix the bird to the 1x4. NOTE: I did not glue in case I wanted to service in the future.

I used a ~ 3" branch to serve as the pull handle.

Drill 1/8" hole down the center of the branch....to allow the string to pass thru.

TIP: To keep your hands safely away from the drill bit, hold the branch with clamps.

Tie a knot on the bottom of the string and cut the string to length.

Mount the doorbell on the treehouse (for me, when the siding is done).

NOTE: I want mine to have a weathered look (not painted or stained).

Enjoy. The grandkids love it.