We are renovating a bungalow style home and would like to put a nice
Craftsman or Missionary style front door on in a Mahogany or Cherry
type wood . The one at the hardware store the builder is using is
$2000. I have to believe I can do better. Anybody know any good
internet sources or something in the NH/MA/ME area?

Thanks,
Jim

Have you considered building one yourself?
You will spend less time building it then looking.
It should also cost you quite a bit less including the bits.
Lou

On Jun 5, 2:14 pm, Lou wrote:
Have you considered building one yourself?
You will spend less time building it then looking.
It should also cost you quite a bit less including the bits.
Lou

Lou,

Yes, in fact I would love to do it. But with selling one house,
renovating the other and commuting to a new job 65 miles each way, I
just won't have the time. I have a ton of other projects once we move
in. However, I might end up going with a cheap front door and then
building one after. I just don't think the bride will go for it. She
really wants the outside to look nice once the renovating is done.

That being said, you don't have a location for a plan do you? Just as
a backup...

-Jim

On Tue, 05 Jun 2007 17:26:40 -0000, jtpr wrote:

We are renovating a bungalow style home and would like to put a nice
Craftsman or Missionary style front door on in a Mahogany or Cherry
type wood .

Why not oak? Seems a much more appropriate choice of timber for this
style?

Incidentally, how does cherry hold up to weather ? It's a rare and
expensive timber locally, so it's never used outdoors like this.

The one at the hardware store the builder is using is $2000.

Making doors is hard. You really need access to a big shaper and
appropriate tooling. A horizontal morticer (or a big vertical) doesn't
hurt either. It's expensive to buy and not something you'll find outside
a joinery shop that makes doors regularly. Hard work to do without this
sort of machinery, although it is possible.

If you talk to a joinery shop directly, you should be able to beat that
price, even for a one-off. You'll also get a door that's much better
proportioned for your doorway. I hate "off the peg" doors -- there are
some real ugly ones around.

You don't need plans, just draw them up yourself, based on the detail
drawings appropriate to your cutter set. Panel proportions are best
lifted from photos of old doors that you like the style of.

On Tue, 05 Jun 2007 17:26:40 -0000, jtpr wrote:

We are renovating a bungalow style home and would like to put a nice
Craftsman or Missionary style front door on in a Mahogany or Cherry
type wood . The one at the hardware store the builder is using is
$2000. I have to believe I can do better. Anybody know any good
internet sources or something in the NH/MA/ME area?

You might try www.simpsondoor.com
You might be able to find a door design you like and they have a
dealer search button to find a local supplier. They have a wide
variety of doors at different price points. I've hung a number of
their high end doors over the years and have never received a bad one.

Mike O.

On Jun 5, 12:26 pm, jtpr wrote:
We are renovating a bungalow style home and would like to put a nice
Craftsman or Missionary style front door on in a Mahogany or Cherry
type wood . The one at the hardware store the builder is using is
$2000. I have to believe I can do better. Anybody know any good
internet sources or something in the NH/MA/ME area?

Thanks,
Jim

You might check out the masonite brand, http://www.masonite.com/DEMO/
template3.asp?df_id=barsc With out knowing additional details on the
door, it's hard to know if the price is out of line. I purchased and
installed an entry door with side lights and a transom, and and thank
god I was sitting down for the $. Toss in an thumbnail transom and
take another tick up in price.

good luck.