Cribbage Boards No. 005 and No. 006

Cribbage Board Prototype No. 005

No. 005 is a 20 inch pine 3 track cribbage board.  Lettering was using water slide decals.

Games Won peg holes are on the end of the board as how the Rockler Template has placed them.

Pegs are cut from #10 finishing nails and painted 3x with cheap enamel nail polish.

Finish was two coats polyurethane wipe on, drying each coat completely overnight . Apply lettering waterslide decals, blot and air dry 3-4 hours, followed by two coats of spray on polyurethane (3-4 hours between coats) to protect decals.   

No. 005 with Games Won peg holes on the end.  Peg storage is in two  3/8" holes drilled into the side of the board, a turnbuckle cover turns halfway to open holes to access the pegs, turns halfway again to close. 

No. 005 Cover Closed

No. 005 Cover Open

No. 005 Bottom side with felt pads

Prototype No. 005 was my first attempt at lettering cribbage boards with water slide decals.  I found while finishing the boards with wipe on polyurethane after decals were applied may cause the decals to lift and stick to the wipe pads or brushes.  Spray on Polyurethane after applying decals gave the best results with two coats (3-4 hours between coats).

I am not really happy with the peg storage being 3/8" holes with 5 pegs in one and 4 pegs in the other.  Drilling the holes needs upmost care not to break thru the top or bottom surface of the board. I drilled the holes crossed grain from the side because I was afraid to split the wood drilling with the grain from the end.

Cribbage Board Prototype No. 006 

No. 006 is a 15 inch pine 3 track cribbage board. Lettering was using water slide decals.

Games Won peg holes were placed in the open spaces along the spiraled tracks. 

Peg storage was routed in the underside of the board using a 5/8" straight bit 1/2" deep, followed by a 3/4" dovetail bit 1/4" deep.  I tore the dovetail edge so I did a second pass and widen the dovetail to 1". I used two Jumbo craft sticks glue atop each other for the sliding storage door. 

Pegs are commercial pre-stained wood pegs that have 1/4" diameter heads and tapers to 1/8" points. It is a tight fit in the storage compartment with nine of these pegs. 

Finish was two coats polyurethane wipe on, drying completely overnight after each coat. Apply lettering waterslide decals, blot and air dry, followed by two coats of spray on polyurethane to protect decals.   

No. 006 showing water slide decal lettering  and alternate placement of the games won peg holes.

Bottom side peg storage compartment and lettering details. The compartment holds nine wooden pegs required.  Check out the use of jumbo craft sticks as the sliding cover.
Note: picture was taken before adding the 1" felt pads for each corner.

Thanks to my Rockler 3 person track cribbage template making hole placement easy.

A lot of lessons learned with this prototype.  Especially in using a wood router.  I got a WEN plunge router as the best value for money spent,  It has variable speed and soft start and I brought 1/2" shank carbide bits for it. I used only three bits the 5/8" Straight, 3/4" Dovetail (14 degree) for the peg storage compartment and the 3/8" round over with bearing for the edges.

If I were to do it over I would have gone with a one-handed trim style router using 1/4" shank bits.  The big WEN is great for cabinetry and moulding, but feel heavy and cumbersome on these small cribbage boards.