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Whiskey Barrel Tray

Billy Newton

I made a whiskey serving tray out of the head of a whiskey barrel!  I thought making a whiskey tray would be a fun project idea, but I needed to way to give it the character it deserved.  I decided to find parts of a whiskey barrel that I could use to make it.  I searched online and discovered heads or lids from barrels used to distill whiskey.  They seemed like the perfect material to build the tray! I picked one up from Midwest Barrel Company not knowing what the barrel head would look like.  I was really happy with the one I got.  It has some amazing character and a stamp for Old Fitzgerald Bourbon Whiskey.

The Design

I wanted to keep as much character from the barrel as possible knowing that it would give my serving tray the unique look I was going after.  Picking the right materials is key for woodworking projects, and this project was no exception.  I decided to use the center section of the barrel and make a rectangular tray from it. That’s the portion with the most character and the cool stamps!

If you aren’t aware, barrel heads are not a solid piece of wood.  They are multiple strips held together with dowels.  I pried the apart and glued together the pieces I wanted to keep.  I was going to cut the pieces off on the ends, giving me clean lines, but I liked the oval profile too much so I kept it and used it as a design feature for the tray. 

Tray Sides

I chose to make the tray sides and handles from walnut to complement the white oak from the barrel.  I thought using more oak would drown out the wow factor.  I decided to use sapwood from the walnut pieces I had so it was a closer color match to the barrel.  It would have a close enough color match that it wouldn’t be too striking, but it would also allow the barrel to be the main attraction.

I had the walnut sides of the tray flow up and around the ends.  I used Adobe Illustrator to create a graphic in which the sides flair up at the ends. I printed it off and then sprayed glued it to my walnut pieces. A little work on the band saw and some sanding and I was all set.

The reason why I had the sides flair up was so they could flow into the handles. This made the handles integrate into the sides.  I made handles out of the same walnut. Again, I used Illustrator to create a pattern. I decided on a curved shape for the handles, mimicking the barrel edge profile.

Assembly

The assembly for the tray was straight forward. I used Festool dominos for alignment purposes to attach one side of the tray to the barrel section. The dominos are not necessary; they simply keep things from sliding around. Dowels would also work for this. With the one side attached, I then glued my handles to the tray side, again using dominos. I could then add the other tray side, clamp it all together, and wait.

Finishing

I sanded the tray sides and handle with 180 grit sandpaper. I didn’t do anything to the barrel top. I wanted that to continue to look cool and didn’t want to sand away the character.

I went with a simple wax finish on this one.  You can also use a spray finish like lacquer.  Overall, I’m pretty happy with the results.  I think it would be fun to get another barrel head and try a completely different look since there are so many possibilities with a woodworking project like this.

This video was not sponsored and I have no affiliation with the company that provided the barrel head.  I purchased it from here: https://midwestbarrelco.com/collections/barrel-heads

 

•• About NewtonMakes••

I’m Billy and I make fun things.  Sometimes, it’s something I need like tool storage ideas.  Other times it’s silly or nerdy stuff that I want to build. If you want to get ideas for making stuff, or just want to watch something entertaining then make sure you subscribe.

 

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