The old bush in this corner never flowered and was just a pain to trim 4 times a year. I thought about roses and what a climbing rose would need to be happy. Plenty of sunshine. Check. A good supply of water. Check (irrigation system nearby). Something to climb. A pergola built around the gate! I looked at designs online and around the neighborhood and started playing in Google Sketchup. By modelling in 3D I could look at my design from different angles as well as getting dimensions for cutting.
The 2x8s are 6 feet long cut out of two 12 footers. The 2x6 cross pieces are 3'8" long cut out of three 8 footers. The diagram below shows other dimensions used. The S curves were created by bending a slim piece of plastic around 3 finishing nails on a 1/8" piece of plywood to make a template. I cut 3/8" deep dados where the cross pieces meet the 2x8 main beams to help seat them. Since there are 24 dados I clamped the 6 cross pieces together, marked the dado positions and used a router set to 3/8" depth to cut away material. The cross pieces are held in place with 31/2" screws countersunk through from the top. The countersink holes are covered with buttons to keep the rain out. All the cut edges are treated with a matching (brown) stain made for this type of pressure-treated lumber.
