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Mail Sorter with Key Hooks[4/4 · 4ft · 5-Pack]
One pack. One build. All 5 boards used. • Makes 1 mail sorter
Shop Black Walnut 4/4 · 4ft Pack Shop All Speciesselect 4' Lengths
How it goes together
Black Walnut
Hard Maple
Cherry
White Oak (QS)
Red Oak
Ash
Hickory
Ambrosia Maple
Sapele*
Padauk*
Purpleheart*
*Exotic — not available for shipment to US customers.
One spot by the door for the things that always go missing. Letters drop into a long pocket, keys hang on five hooks below it, and a narrow shelf on top holds sunglasses, a wallet or a phone. The back is three boards edge-glued, and it screws into two studs.
Quick Build — for experienced woodworkers
| Part | Qty | From | S4S size | S2S size |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Back pieces | 3 | Boards 1–3 | 36" × 4" × ¾" | 36" × 3½" × ⅞" |
| Pocket front | 1 | Board 4 | 36" × 4" × ¾" | 36" × 3½" × ⅞" |
| End blocks | 2 | Board 4, short blank ripped in two | 3¼" × 1½" × ¾" | 2⅝" × 1½" × ⅞" |
| Pocket bottom | 1 | Board 5, ripped | 36" × 1½" × ¾" | 36" × 1½" × ⅞" |
| Top shelf | 1 | Board 5, rest of width | 36" × 2⅜" × ¾" | 36" × 1⅞" × ⅞" |
Back: boards 1–3 edge-glued, grain running the long way.
Pocket: 1½" bottom strip glued and screwed to the back's face; front glued to its front edge; end blocks screwed only.
Top shelf: glued and screwed flat on the back's top edge — long grain to long grain.
Hanging: 2 counterbored #10 screws into studs, or 2 keyhole hangers.
Finished size: S4S 36" W × 12¾" H × 3" D at the pocket · S2S 36" × 11⅜" × about 3¼". The pocket is 36" long and 1½" deep.
Before You Start
Shopping List
- 1 lumber pack — 4/4 · 4ft (S4S or S2S)
- Wood glue (Titebond II or III)
- About 15 × #8 flat-head screws: 1¼" (S4S) or 1½" (S2S)
- 5 screw-in or plate key hooks
- 2 × #10 × 2½" screws and 2 wood plugs (or 2 keyhole hangers)
- Sandpaper 120 / 180 / 220
- Finish: wipe-on oil, hardwax oil or water-based poly
Tools
- Saw for crosscuts (mitre saw or circular saw with a speed square)
- Saw for rips (table saw, or circular/track saw with a guide)
- Drill/driver, countersink bit, pilot bits
- ⅜" plug cutter or Forstner bit for counterbores
- 4 bar clamps, 18" or longer
- Stud finder and level
- Random-orbit sander or sanding block
- S2S only: jointer, straight-line rip jig or hand plane
S4S or S2S? S4S boards arrive flat and square on all four sides — cut and build. S2S boards have rough edges you straighten first, and finish ⅞" thick instead of ¾". No jointer? Choose S4S.
Our sizing assumptions: ⅛" per saw cut · S4S boards 23½"/47½" long with ¼" to square an end, 4" wide, ¾" thick · S2S boards trimmed ½" each end and ¼" off each rough edge (3½" clean), ⅞" thick · sizes drawn for the narrowest board in the pack. Wider boards give you a bigger offcut or a wider part — never a shortage.
Step-by-Step
S4S Lumber Pack
Surfaced 4 sides — no jointing
- 1 Cut the long parts. Square one end of boards 1–4 and crosscut each to 36". Boards 1–3 are the back, board 4 the pocket front.
- 2 Glue up the back. Edge-glue boards 1–3 into one panel, 36" × 12". Keep the ends flush and the faces level. Clamp, wipe the squeeze-out once rubbery, and leave it overnight.
- 3 Cut the end blocks. From the board 4 leftover, crosscut a 3¼" blank and rip two 1½" blocks from it. Clamp the blank or use a bandsaw — never freehand small parts on a table saw.
- 4 Rip board 5. Rip a 1½" strip off the full length for the pocket bottom. The rest, about 2⅜" wide, is the top shelf. Crosscut both to 36".
- 5 Sand. Flatten the glue seams on the back and sand every part 120 → 180 → 220 before assembly.
- 6 Fit the pocket bottom. Draw a line across the back 4" up from the bottom edge — right on the lower glue seam. Glue the pocket bottom on edge along the line, flush at the ends — long grain to long grain — and drive 4 pre-drilled #8 × 1¼" screws through the back into it.
- 7 Add the end blocks and front. Set a block on the pocket bottom at each end and screw through the back into each (no glue — the grain crosses). Glue the front to the pocket bottom's front edge, flush underneath, and drive 1 pre-drilled screw through the front into each block.
- 8 Add the top shelf. Glue the shelf flat on the top edge of the back, flush at the rear, overhanging the front. Drive 5 pre-drilled, countersunk #8 × 1¼" screws down into the back's edge.
- 9 Fit the hooks. Space 5 key hooks 6" apart along the back, about 1¾" below the pocket. Use screws shorter than the back is thick (¾").
- 10 Finish and hang. 2–3 coats of wipe-on oil or water-based poly. Find two studs, then drive two counterbored #10 × 2½" screws through the back into them, in the band between the pocket and the top shelf, and plug the holes. Or use two keyhole hangers screwed into studs.
S2S Lumber Pack
Surfaced 2 sides — straighten edges first
- 1 Prep the boards. Trim ½" off each end to remove any end checks. Joint one edge straight, then rip the other edge parallel (¼" off each rough edge is our planning allowance). S2S boards finish ⅞" thick, so screws and some sizes change — use the sizes in this column.
- 2 Cut the long parts. Square one end of boards 1–4 and crosscut each to 36". Boards 1–3 are the back, board 4 the pocket front.
- 3 Glue up the back. Edge-glue boards 1–3 into one panel, 36" × 10½". Keep the ends flush and the faces level. Clamp, wipe the squeeze-out once rubbery, and leave it overnight.
- 4 Cut the end blocks. From the board 4 leftover, crosscut a 2⅝" blank and rip two 1½" blocks from it. Clamp the blank or use a bandsaw — never freehand small parts on a table saw.
- 5 Rip board 5. Rip a 1½" strip off the full length for the pocket bottom. The rest, about 1⅞" wide, is the top shelf. Crosscut both to 36".
- 6 Sand. Flatten the glue seams on the back and sand every part 120 → 180 → 220 before assembly.
- 7 Fit the pocket bottom. Draw a line across the back 3½" up from the bottom edge — right on the lower glue seam. Glue the pocket bottom on edge along the line, flush at the ends — long grain to long grain — and drive 4 pre-drilled #8 × 1½" screws through the back into it.
- 8 Add the end blocks and front. Set a block on the pocket bottom at each end and screw through the back into each (no glue — the grain crosses). Glue the front to the pocket bottom's front edge, flush underneath, and drive 1 pre-drilled screw through the front into each block.
- 9 Add the top shelf. Glue the shelf flat on the top edge of the back, flush at the rear, overhanging the front. Drive 5 pre-drilled, countersunk #8 × 1½" screws down into the back's edge.
- 10 Fit the hooks. Space 5 key hooks 6" apart along the back, about 1¾" below the pocket. Use screws shorter than the back is thick (⅞").
- 11 Finish and hang. 2–3 coats of wipe-on oil or water-based poly. Find two studs, then drive two counterbored #10 × 2½" screws through the back into them, in the band between the pocket and the top shelf, and plug the holes. Or use two keyhole hangers screwed into studs.
Why screw the end blocks instead of gluing? The blocks stand with their grain up and down, across the grain of the back and front. Glue only holds well when the grain runs the same way, so screws do the work there.
Why does grain direction matter? Wood swells and shrinks across its grain, not along it. Every glue joint in this plan joins parts whose grain runs the same way, so nothing fights the seasons.
Why pre-drill? Maple, oak and hickory split if you drive a screw without a pilot hole. Pre-drill every screw and countersink so the heads sit flush.
Make It Yours
- Chalkboard strip: paint the pocket front with chalkboard paint for notes.
- Dividers: add a block in the middle of the pocket to split bills from everything else.
- Dog leash: swap two key hooks for one large coat hook.
Safety and Care
- Wear eye and hearing protection. Use a push stick for every rip under 4" wide.
- Cut the end blocks from a blank clamped down or with a bandsaw. Never freehand small parts on a table saw.
- Pre-drill every screw — hardwoods split without a pilot hole.
- Mount into wall studs (or rated anchors sized for the load). Check for wires and pipes before drilling.
Frequently Asked Questions
Not for S4S boards — they arrive flat and square on all four sides. S2S boards need their edges straightened: a jointer, a table saw with a straight-line jig, or a hand plane all work. No jointer? Choose the S4S pack.
Yes. At 36" it always spans two studs at 16" centres. Find them first, then plan the screw holes in the band above the pocket.
Put the top shelf at about 54–60" off the floor so everyone in the house can reach the keys.
Letters, bills and flyers stand up in the 1½" pocket. Magazines fit too; large padded envelopes may not.
Planned offcuts only: about 11" off the end of boards 1–3, about 7" from board 4 and 11" from both board 5 strips. All 5 boards go into the sorter.
No. The back, pocket and shelf are 36" long, so this is a 4ft-pack build.
