Handcrated Egg Table (pic heavy)

TRPIV

I downloaded the Whiz's table plans and thought I'd see what I could do with them.

I started at 12:00pm today. My goal was to take the pile a pile of wood and get as far as I could before I had to make dinner at 6:30. My time would have to include time for clean up.

What you see took me about 5 and a half hours.

The pile:


My weapons of choice:


Bottom frame (version A) all tacked in place:


Holes pre-drilled:


More drilled holes:


Not a real big fan of screw holes, so I bought a plug cutter and made 200 individual plugs:


More plugs. I'll get out the seam iron and fix those dents:


A few quick swipes of some 80 grit:


More sanding:


I used some saw dust and glue to make some makeshift wood putty:


The top and bottom are coming together:


Getting there:


After all that... I needed one of these. Also handcrafted by me.:


Not too bad for 5.5 hours worth of work. Heh. I just noticed that from this angle, it looks like I parked a toy car on the table next to my beer. :


Ahhh... refreshing:


Placed some of the remaining planks on the table, just to get an idea of how it would look:


One lasts shot before I had to clean up the garage and get dinner started:


I still need to locate some 5/8 threaded rod. the two 10" tires, and 18 bottle openers.

I hope to get some more time on the table this week. I'll report back as I progress.

Thanks for looking,
Ted

EggSimon

fantastic !

Kailas

I really think it needs to be significantly longer if you wish to land that airplane on it!

TRPIV

Ha!

Ahh yes, the GeeBee. I built that from plans for my Daughter a few years back. She never took to it. My son came along and I had hopes he'd take to it. Nope.

It's take a few bumps and scrapes over the past 3 years, all from moving it around the "hangar".

Anyone care to take a guess what sort of wood I'm using on the table?

Ted

wkygriller

Table looks great!!! Even better since you actually built it yourself . My guess would be poplar wood?

TRPIV

Ding ding ding! WkyGriller nailed it, first guess.

I've never built with Poplar before. Pretty easy to work with. I can't wait to see what it looks like with some valspar on it.

I'm wondering if I can shoot the spar urethane through my HVLP gun. Anyone tried this before?

Any ideas?

T

wkygriller

After building 2500 linear feet of 4 board fence with poplar I can spot it miles away . I also had some milled into flooring for my office. It started out real light green and over the past 3 years it has darkened up to a nice brown color. With the right sealer it should last for many years outdoors.

MemphisQue

Nice craftsmanship

rcone

I have read that you should not thin spar. This would leave the spar way to thick to spray with a hvlp gun.

TRPIV

MemphisQue - Thank you for the kind words.

rcone - Thanks for the advice on thinning. I'll go ahead and plan to brush it on and sand between coats.

I did pick up the wheels and axles this evening.

Still looking for the Slate for the egg to sit on. I may wait until the table is done before I pick something. I'm not sure what color the wood will end up, so I want to get something I'm sure will match.

TRPIV

Today at lunch I went by a granite shop on a whim and the guy let me pick through his remnant pile.

I found a nice piece which I hoped would match the wood (poplar). I took the piece to the owner and asked if he'd cut it to size. $40.00 later I'm driving down the road with 18 x 18, and one 18 x 24.

I happened to have a can of dark green spray paint that matches the egg (for when I paint the wheels). I used this to make sure the granite didn't clash with the egg. When I get home tonight I'll lay them next to the wood and see how it looks.

Moving right along!

TRPIV

A little more progress this weekend:

Upper and lower frames coated with two coats of urethane. Inside and out. The wheels are now installed:


The other side. Nice clear shot of the granite I picked up. My wife noticed that it's the exact same granite we have in our master bath. My wife is sure it's the remnant from when they cut our counter tops. I liked it so much, I paid for it twice.


The lower table top cut and test fit:


Upper table top cut and test fit. Nice fit around the granite. I still need to measure and adjust the spacing on the slats :


Up close shot of the lower granite:


Up close shot of the upper granite:


Side shot. Granite looks good:


Oh yeah, while I was waiting for the urethane to dry, I built a quick Pizza peel:


Another shot of the pizza peel. Notice how the slats of the table aren't quite in alignment yet. I'll adjust those before I drill them and screw 'em down:


I guess I'd better check to make sure it's level. Oh no, this just won't do. We'll have to scrap the whole project:


Ahh, the pile of lumber is much smaller. Not too bad on the waste/scrap. I wonder if I can return those three extra boards?:



After another five hours, I'm about half way there. Maybe tomorrow or next week I'll get started on final assembly, cutting the 21" hole, and then urethane the top. I'll need to locate a bottle opener and some hooks.

Thanks for looking!
Ted

Kailas

Nice table! I wish I had the skill set required to do that! Alas, I'm a computer geek. My programming skills are top-notch, but don't translate well to manual labor.

Bottle opener will be easy to find. Lots of selection here.

http://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=wall-mount+bottle+opener&tag=googhydr-20&index=aps&hvadid=3854998821&ref=pd_sl_53z5b79aqp_b

TRPIV

Hey Kailas,

Thanks for the kind words. I've been in the software industry for nearly 15 years. I've found that woodworking helps me think about other things, besides programming. I've always enjoyed working with my hands, as well as, using my mind. If I can build a table so can you. It's really not hard. Especially if you go to a quality lumber yard who offers milling service. You can bring them the list of stuff you need, along with the dimensions. and they can cut it for you. At that point , it would be as easy as assembling something from IKEA(tm).

Give it a shot, you may surprise yourself.

Regarding my progress:
I didn't get any time to work on the table yesterday, what with it being Mothers Day and all. Maybe I'll get out there tonight and seal up the edges of all the boards so I can get them fastened to the table.

As always, thanks for letting me share.
Ted

Kailas

TRPIV wrote:

Hey Kailas,

Thanks for the kind words. I've been in the software industry for nearly 15 years. I've found that woodworking helps me think about other things, besides programming. I've always enjoyed working with my hands, as well as, using my mind. If I can build a table so can you. It's really not hard. Especially if you go to a quality lumber yard who offers milling service. You can bring them the list of stuff you need, along with the dimensions. and they can cut it for you. At that point , it would be as easy as assembling something from IKEA(tm).

Give it a shot, you may surprise yourself.

Regarding my progress:
I didn't get any time to work on the table yesterday, what with it being Mothers Day and all. Maybe I'll get out there tonight and seal up the edges of all the boards so I can get them fastened to the table.

As always, thanks for letting me share.
Ted

15 years? You're a newbie... lol. just kidding. I've been in the biz for over 25 years. Started in the hardware side repairing navigation computers for aircraft and missiles for a defense contractor. I'm a nerd through and through. There was a time, in my youth, that if you handed me a sharp tool, you might as well start driving me to the emergency room for stitches! Seriously!

TRPIV

Kailas wrote:

15 years? You're a newbie... lol. just kidding. I've been in the biz for over 25 years. Started in the hardware side repairing navigation computers for aircraft and missiles for a defense contractor. I'm a nerd through and through. There was a time, in my youth, that if you handed me a sharp tool, you might as well start driving me to the emergency room for stitches! Seriously!

HA! Too funny. Yeah. Just a n00b. I got my start working for Lockheed Martin Space Ops. I was a civilian working on training systems for the Air Force Satellite Control Network (AFSCN). I quickly moved into the private software sector with a major and world wide software company. Been here ever since (almost 14 years.) Can't imagine working anyplace else. I. Love. This. Job.

I need to get back on this table so my wife can put her car in the garage.

T

purcellj

25yrs and counting as well -- all non-military.

TRPIV...how many Hello World's have you written? Woodworking isn't any different. Coding and woodworking really isn't much different. Think through the steps logically and you'll be bug free

TRPIV

Another 8 hours into it and I think I'll call it done:

Last night I screwed down the table top and the lower shelf. 72 screws and plugs for each level. Pre-drilled each hole. Wee!





Once I had the table tops screwed down, I measured twice and cut that 21" hole. I meant to take photos of how I marked out the hole, but it was late and I forgot:


Three or four coats of sealer later:









Close up shot of the granite:


The angle on that right wheel is an illusion. The drive way slopes up pretty sharp and the camera created some sort of odd artifact:


I realized that I didn't put any screws from the end boards into the legs. Oops. I'll need to address that:


That's about it for the building on this one. Next up? A handle, bottle opener and some hooks.

TRPIV

As a general side note - I think I'm allergic to Poplar sawdust. All three times I've worked on the table, I've gone away with a nasty reaction in my sinus. Non stop sneezing and runny nose. Last night my chest was as tight as a drum.

I hope this reaction is limited to hard woods. I may have to get a mask or something as I love working with Balsa.

Ted

LPcreation

Great looking table! I love the plugs, it makes it look very clean.

Where did you find your tires? I've been to Home Depot and Lowe's and I can't anything. Thanks!

TRPIV

Hey LP,

Your home depot doesn't carry the pneumatic wheel barrow tires? I'm sort of amazed by that they don't. I found mine out in the garden area, waaay over in the corner by the wheel barrow parts.

$19.95 each. They also had some solid rubber jobs for $25.00.

The plug cutter was a neat find. In retrospect, when inserting the plugs, I could have been more careful to select plugs of similar grain and color. I'm not unhappy with the results, I just noticed a few of them had an alarming contrast.

At the end of the day, I spent way more than I would have if I had purchased a nest with wings. It's not nearly as mobile as a nest, but I'm not in the business of wheeling this thing around from location to location.

Now I just need to find a cover that doesn't cost $100.00!

Thank you all for letting me share my creation. Big thanks to Naked Whiz for the plans. Follow them and you will have a great table.

Ted

stahlee

Ted, did you use glue on the table build, other than the plugs. I'm trying to decide if I'm going to use glue or not. Going to start my table this week.

chris

TRPIV

Yup. I used Titebond II. Just helps to lock everything together and make a nice strong bond.

T

jgroes

Ted,

You finished your table after it was assembled, correct? Or did you finish individual pieces first?

Getting ready to either assemble mine tomorrow or finish each individual pieces.... and yes, it's already cost more than I wanted to spend

Cheers,
JG

jgroes

Ted,

You finished your table after it was assembled, correct? Or did you finish individual pieces first?

Getting ready to either assemble mine tomorrow or finish each individual pieces.... and yes, it's already cost more than I wanted to spend

Cheers,
JG

TRPIV

Hello JG

I actually finished mine in two stages. I framed it up, so that all I had left to do was assemble the horizontal 'table' slats. Once framed up, I inverted it (legs up) and then put four coats of urethane on the inside, outside, and undersides of everything on the frame.

I cut and dry fit the table slats, then glued and screwed them down. Once dry, I fit the plugs and all of that. Then coated the table slats in place.

Hope that all makes sense...

Ted