Make a Collapsible Step Poser for Photography

My wife wanted a step poser for use with her photography business. I saw similar ones to this that sold for $300 plus shipping. I had a lot of poplar and not so much time, but if anything, I'm cheap. I

had to rush to get this done for some dance pictures she was doing.

I ripped the legs and side to 2 1/2 inches and the seat boards to 3 1/2 inches. Then I cut the pieces to their final length.

I drilled pocket holes in the side pieces and joined the sides of each step.

I clamp the sides together so I can drill the holes for the bolts and get them to line up properly. I also made the holes a little bigger than the bolts to give myself more tolerance.

I splurged on the right angle camp and used it to help connect the sides to the cross pieces. 

I also used pocket screws to fasten the seat boards to each step.

After assembly, I sanded to 220 grit. I put wood conditioner and let i sit overnight. This was probably too long, but when I follow the instructions on the can I still get blotching. Why do manufactures give us instructions that do not work? It may have been too sealed, but I kind of like the "zebra" effect it made.

I used a 1/4 inch hex bolt with a washer on the head, another washer in between then two legs, and then another washer on the wingnut. I used wingnuts so they could be dissembled quickly and used individually. My favorite part of this step poser is that it folds up for compact storage.

You can find plans in Sketch Up or PDF formats.