Loft bed build: Day 1

Yep, these are the plans for the loft bed.

To the left is the design for each vertical support rail. 
Each rail is two 2X4's attached with 3.5" carriage bolts.  A 2x4 will rest on top of that, running horizontally, that will be the base support for the bed rails.  Each of those is shown in the two pictures in gray/slashed areas. 

Today, I was able to make four of the eight supports! Woot!
It might not sound like a lot, but after planning this for months, I'm psyched!

rail #1!
 

carriage bolts at top of rail #1

 

Day one tips: 
First, remember that 2x4's do not measure 2" by 4" at finish: they measure that before they are planed, and end up more like 1.5 by 3.5 or so.  So to get carriage bolts through 2 2" boards, you would think I would need a 4.5" bolt, right? But no, together they only measure 3 inches, so I bought 3.5" bolts.  As you can see, they worked perfectly.  Since this part of the bed will be inside, where kids will be playing, I will probably cut these off with my Dremel and make sure there are no sharp edges left.

Second, keep your tools charged. 'Nuff said.

Third, as always, stop when you are tired.

I can't wait to keep at this tomorrow!!