How to make 2,000 crosses
To mark the deaths of 2,000 U.S. soldiers in Iraq, 2,000 white crosses were made and installed on Worcester Common. Here’s what we learned about making crosses.
Step 1: Materials
Ideally you’d find some scrap latticework, or some white, waxed corrugated cardboard. If a cemetary-supply company sells crosses cheap in bulk, that would be even better.
I was stuck using wood.
I used “pine strapping,” boards 1″x3″x8′. I could haul 50 boards in my minivan at a time.
I cut the boards in half widthwise, then into 1-foot sections, then cut these in thirds by thickness. I used a table saw. Some of the cuts were tricky.
Mike Leslie: You’re cutting the house in thirds?
Mike Benedetti: I’m cutting the halves in thirds.
The pieces are thus about a foot long, 1.5 inches wide, and 1/3 inch thick. (Actually, they’re a little smaller, because as you know a 1×3 board is not 1-inch by 3-inches. You knew that, right?)
One person with one saw can cut enough wood for 2,000 crosses in three solid work days.
