DaVinci's Bed - Self-Sustaining No Tool Bed Frame

Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) was the instructable OG, having published in his codes designs for helicopters, war machines and... self-sustaining bridges. This sketch is reported in da Vinci's Codex Atlanticus (©Veneranda Biblioteca Ambrosiana/Metis e Mida Informatica/Mondadori Portfolio), yet similar structures are known from 1200s China.

On the internet, you can find kits, Instructables, and other tutorials to recreate small versions of the bridge, which are built for the amusement of having a seemingly magical object able to self-sustain. I adapted the design to make a sturdy bed frame which is able to self-sustain and has a look between the minimalistic and the "survivalist". I have been sleeping in this bed for 5 years now, so its stability has been thoroughly tested.

The design might seem complex, but I hope the step-by-step instructions will make it easy for anyone to replicate. Moreover, I made a model of it in Tinkercad, so you can copy the document and virtually take the bed apart.

"The best way to understand how something works is to take it apart."

-Someone, somewhere, just before being arrested

Anyone should be able to make their own bed because there is no tool needed to make this bed frame, provided that the lumbers and planks used are the proper length. Most home-depo places provide services cutting wood to the desired measure anyway.

Two other technicalities before starting:

-I have a mattress that is 160x190 cm, and the measures of the bed frame depend on this. Scale up or down accordingly!

-Although the structure is self-sustaining, knotting up joints with rope is necessary to prevent vibrations from loosening the structure. A person who does not like rope could resort to other ways of holding the pieces in place, like screws or wooden pegs.

7 long timber pieces for the legs and the length of the bed frame: these should be the length of your mattress (here in gray) + 20 to 40 cm.

4 short timber pieces for the width of the bed frame: these should be the width of your mattress + 30 to 40 cm.

So, in my case:

-7 long timber (red): 230x9x4 cm

-4 short timbers (blue): 210x7x4 cm

-Good-looking rope: 30 m

-Scissor

Place the timbers to form the frame of your mattress; the long timbers will be under the mattress, whereas the short timbers will be at the same level as the mattress.

To hold the timber in place, I chose square lashing. There are a bunch of Instructables (e.g. one, two, three) and tutorials on how to. True scouts would object that square lashing does not hold much weight on timber with a square section, but remember that the lashing doesn't hold any weight since the bed is self-sustaining. Either way, it will be very sturdy: I made three over-and-under passages and two choke passages.

Use the remaining short timber to elevate the frame from the floor and comfortably perform the lashing, placing them as in the 3D model picture. Do not tie these last two timbers, tie only the six intersections defined with an X in the picture.

The lashing should look like the one in the first picture!

PRO tip: when cutting the rope, wrap some tape around it to make a sharp cut.

Now we have to add the legs and let the magic happen. Put the legs one after the other, as shown in the pictures. You can also remove the short blue timber and add them at a second time.

Secure the legs with a lashing at the intersection of the two legs and the mattress frame. To start, make a clove hitch on the bed frame and wrap the rope around the legs and the frame three times. You can now choke the lashing between the legs and the frame of the mattress.

Add now the bed slats. These can be some fancy springy adjustable slats from a shop, or they can just be planks.

I find it useful to have a nightstand, so I added a plank 15 cm wide on the side of the bed to put books and a lamp. It fits perfectly between the short timber of the mattress frame and the short timber supporting it.

To hold it in place, you have guessed it by now, I used a square lashing.

Enjoy your new bed!