A co-worker of mine, recently commissioned me to make her a simple side table out or ribbon stripe Sapele. I knew going into the project that I needed to keep the cost down, but I still wanted the piece to have some flair. After some quick modeling in sketchup, I came up with the design shown below.
A significant amount of the piece’s presence comes from the legs, they have a gentle curve on two sides that thins them at the bottom to half their width. Two other details that add to the piece, are the under chamfer on the top, and the apron set back. The Chamfer makes the 3/4″ top look thinner, and helps keep the piece light and airy feeling. Setting the aprons 1/4″ back from flush with the legs, creates shadow lines that catch your eye and act as a focal point.
Perspective
Front
Top & leg detail
Continue Reading…
Work has been keeping me really busy lately, but this weekend I was able to get into the shop and have a little fun. I didn’t have a lot of time to spare, so I decided a dedicated stop block would be quick and fun. I decided to make it pretty, so I garbed a little chunk of Spalted Maple, and started milling it. It’s 3″ high by 5″ long and a little under 3/4″ thick. Both ends and the back have a 3/16″ square rabett to prevent saw dust build up form hindering part registration.
The other night I was preparing a cutting board blank, and while walking from the out-feed side of the planer to the in-feed side is slipped out of my hands. Instinctively I reached to catch it, and got reminded how sharp would can be. As I grabbed it, the freshly milled 90 degree corner sliced off 3 or 4 layers of skin about 1/4″ wide by 2″ long on my right index finger.
I didn’t even realize what happened at first, then 20 or 30 seconds later I felt what I thought was water or sweet running across my palm. When i looked, I realized it was blood and that the edge had cut me like a razor blade. This isn’t the first time I’ve been cut by a chunk of wood, and I’m sure it won’t be the last. If you Learn anything from my blog, I hope that its to always be safe, because even something that seems benign can hurt you.
I’ve wanted an out-feed table ever since I got my first table saw 10 years ago, but for one reason or another I never made one. Now That I’m on my second saw, I made having an out-feed table mandatory. Over the last 3 weeks I put other projects aside, and even skipped mowing the yard one weekend so that I had time to build a table.
Continue Reading…
A while back I saw this tip in fine woodworking on how to make a drill press accessory shelf. I thought the shelf was a great idea, because it allows you to keep other bits, and the chuck close at hand, but off the main table. The shelf I made is slightly large than the one in the article, and it adjustable, as it’s a loose fit around the column.
