EAA Step Stool - Hangar Flying

By Charlie Becker, EAA Director of Chapters and Homebuilding, and Mike Hertz, Supervisor Facilities

Thanks to Chuck Burtch, EAA 10213, from Phoenix, New York, for suggesting this hint.

Like a solid workbench, a sturdy step stool is extremely useful around aircraft. For 20-plus years at least, EAA staff and volunteers have been using these robust step stools around our hangars when working on airplanes. These are very handy step stools since you can stand on them when working on a wing or checking your fuel, or sit on them when working on the engine. They are robust enough that you don’t have to worry about them toppling over when you stand on them. We took the original design and tweaked it a little to make it easier to build, better for storage, and lighter for easier movement around a hangar or workshop. Plus, if you make two, they nest when you stack them.

One sheet of 1/2-inch plywood will give you more than enough to make the stool. In addition to the plywood, you will need some 3/4-inch by 3/4-inch cleats for the joints.

Tools and Materials: The base material is half-inch plywood. Select a quality grade with a good finish since you are going to be sitting on this stool and you’ll have it a long time. A nail gun with 1-inch nails is extremely useful for nailing this project together.

**Step 1**: Start by framing up the base.

**Step 2**: Add wood glue at each step and hold the part in place with 1-inch finish nails.
A nail gun isn’t mandatory but it will speed up assembly.

**Step 3**: Center the top piece – there should be a slight overlap around the perimeter – and nail it into place.

**Step 4**: Glue and nail cleats into position.

**Step 5**: Clamp the first two sides in position. If you have a flat surface to work on, it will help square things up.

**Step 6**: Add nails to finish the side.

**Step 7**: Add the other two sides of the box and nail in place.

**Step 8**: Add cleats around the base of the second step.

**Step 9**: Apply glue for the top step.

**Step 10**: Align the top and nail it in place.

**Step 11**: Place some marks where the top step should be positioned and apply some glue.

Step 12: Place the step and nail it in place to finish the stool.
If you plan to use this outside, add some varnish to protect the wood.

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