Table build thread - lots of pics

ETBee

Now that football has started, it's harder to find time in the shop to finish the table. This weekend I eeked out a few hours to get started on the circular pedestal that will raise the Egg to the proper height. I cut 16 pieces of cypress and mitred each end to 11.25 degrees.

 

In order to make this round on the table saw I need a point in the exact center. So I glued a brace right in the middle. This brace will serve two additional functions - a way to attach the pedestal to the bottom shelf with no visible screws and as a support for the weight of the paver and the Egg.

nolaegghead

I had that problem.  Football season puts a dent in productivity.  So I put a big screen TV in the shop...

Onegrecook

I'm enjoying the progress...thanks for posting pics. Can't wait to see the final product.

Ox1574

My wife said I couldn't start another project (baby coming in less than 2 months), so when I bought my egg on Monday I found the best table I could.  Made by a local guy who sells them at my neighborhood egg dealer.  I had to spring for the SS top....it just makes things so much easier.   It's been 2 days, so I am still happy with it.  :-)  It is made out of cypress, and was wondering if I should seal it with anything.  The dealer said the guy that makes them recommends not doing anything to it at all...thoughts?

tgkleman

If you don't do anything the wood will turn silver pretty quickly.  A coat of outdoor sealer will delay that process.

nolaegghead

I would seal it if it were mine.  I use Helmsman spar urethane.  Three coats.

ETBee

I managed to get in a few more hours of work on my Egg table this weekend. Progress seems pretty slow, but I'm exploring new territory trying to make the round pedestal to raise the Egg to the proper height. Instead of rounding off the "hexadecagon" on the table saw as I originally planned, I decided to use the band saw. The main reason is the thing was too tall to cut on the table saw. It's almost 4 inches tall and I can't raise the blade on the table saw quite that high. So this is my setup to cut it on the bandsaw.   I don't know why but the first pass of rounding the hexadecagon ended up with the bandsaw blade tracking in about 1/8 of an inch. I had to move the pivot point in a little and cut a second pass, which ended up coming out nice and round. Unfortunately, due to the second pass, the pedestal ended up a little smaller than I planned. It was going to be a tight fit to get the paver in. The pedestal was only 1/4 of an inch bigger than the paver, or 1/8 on each side. Even though I hated the thought of cleaning up the concrete mess again, I realized I was going to have to put the paver back on the table saw and make it just a little bit smaller. I bit the bullet and spent about 90 minutes cutting it and then cleaning up the mess. The next step was to use my trusty circle cutting jig and the router to cut a recess in the pedestal for the round paver to fit in. This is what the finished assembly is going to look like.

nolaegghead

Very nice.  I notice the staves on the round base are connected on the end grain - what did you use to glue them together?

I just broke my resaw band saw blade last night trying to cut up some pecan logs for BGE lump.
:(

ETBee

I went over to my woodworking board and asked for advice about orientation of the staves.  The consensus was that joining on the end grain was the lesser of two evils.  The joint would be weak but the expansion/contraction of the wood would not be such that it would tend to tear the joints apart.  I just used Titebond III, but I put a lot on each joint.  The end grain was sucking it up as fast as I could spread it on.

nolaegghead

That makes sense - less expansion in the long grain than there is in the cross grain direction, and I suppose there's really no stress on that joint, other than to stay together.

Vitaman

This thread's amazing. Thanks for keeping us updated.

Jeff

ETBee

Progress has been really slow for several reasons. First, it's football season and I have spent the last 5 weekends in a row traveling to college football games. Second, I hate the "finishing" phase of a project. And third, I've been grilling on my BGE most weekends rather than spending time in the shop! One thing you learn when grilling is you really need some work surface around the Egg and some storage. So this is all I have in the way of progress to show - a photo of what the spar varnish finish does to the bare cypress. I expected this, which is why I chose not to stain the cypress. I knew the varish would give it a nice yellow hue. I am finishing before final assembly because it allows me to keep the surfaces horizontal and reduce the sags and runs I might get if had to apply the varnish on a vertical surface.

GLW

You're a true artist.

bertscampers

Wow!!!!  You are a master.  Its like watch the new Yankee workshop!!!!!!

lowlightbw

beautiful work. True craftsman.

Onegrecook

Thanks for the update.

nolaegghead

ETBee said:

Progress has been really slow for several reasons. First, it's football season and I have spent the last 5 weekends in a row traveling to college football games. Second, I hate the "finishing" phase of a project. And third, I've been grilling on my BGE most weekends rather than spending time in the shop! One thing you learn when grilling is you really need some work surface around the Egg and some storage. So this is all I have in the way of progress to show - a photo of what the spar varnish finish does to the bare cypress. I expected this, which is why I chose not to stain the cypress. I knew the varish would give it a nice yellow hue. I am finishing before final assembly because it allows me to keep the surfaces horizontal and reduce the sags and runs I might get if had to apply the varnish on a vertical surface.

I do that all the time.  I put the finish on all the components before assembling.  Depends on what it is, but most things fall into that category.  Especially bookshelves.  I make two of them and it was way easier to finish all the components than try to finish assembled (hate painting upside down).

mb99zz

Looks great ETBee!

dweebs0r

Anything new to report on this table build?  Really nice table and cant wait to see the finished results.

DawgDays

Bookmarking this thread, even if it means complimenting a yellow jacket :-\"

ETBee

It's been a long time coming, but my Egg table is finally done. I spent many days applying 3 coats of spar varnish, trying to minimize the runs, drips, and sags. Sadly, it didn't work out as well as I hoped. I still ended up with a lot of flaws in the finish. If this table had been for inside use, like a coffee table, I would have sanded it down and started over again. But since it will live outdoors on my deck, the criteria for acceptability is quite a bit lower. The finish is mainly to protect the wood. The final assembly began with gluing the long aprons into the legs. I wanted to clamp this assembly to assure a tight fit, but I discovered my longest pipe clamps were a few inches too short. I had to make do with the web clamps.   The bottom shelf and top shelf are secured to the aprons using figure-8 clips. These pivot a little to allow the shelves to expand and contract. This is a shot of the bottom aprons and braces being glued together. I had to drop the bottom shelf in before I glued the top aprons and braces. In this shot the bottom shelf has been secured using the figure-8 clips and the top aprons are being glued and clamped. Here is the finished table, showing the Corian work surface. The requisite bottle opener with cap catcher. (DawgDays should like this one. If the Yellow Jackets don't turn around the season soon I will need a keg opener instead of a bottle opener!) I'm wondering if 8 hooks will be enough. I may need to install a few more on the other end of the table. All I need to do now is drop the Egg in place. Maybe next weekend I can post a few final shots of the finished table on my deck with the Egg installed.

nolaegghead

I don't sweat the occasional run unless it goes in the house, too.  Looks great, man! 

cspearce2

Awesome. Nice work!

SamFerrise

Why the small wheels?  I put 5 inch wheels on mine and they are smooth as glass.  I never had good luck with the smaller wheels for outdoor applications.

SmokeyPitt

Turned out great!  Thanks for sharing all of your hard work.  This has been a great read over the past weeks.  

ETBee

SamFerrise said:

Why the small wheels?  I put 5 inch wheels on mine and they are smooth as glass.  I never had good luck with the smaller wheels for outdoor applications.

I selected the casters based on the size of the mounting plate, the ability to lock, and the load bearing capacity.  Anything larger and the plates would have been bigger than the table legs.  I don't anticipate moving the table all that much anyway.  It will only be moved around when I need to re-seal the deck each year (or two).

Thanks for the question.  One of the reasons I started this thread was to generate discussions about design options, materials, and building techniques.

henapple

I guess it looks ok...if you're into craftsmanship, looks and awesomeness.

ETBee

My table is on the deck and Egged!!!!

 

 

One of my original criteria was that the Big Green Egg cover fit over the table. That drove a lot of the dimensions.

 I think I might need more storage...perhaps I could get started on a storage cabinet to go next to the table.

nolaegghead

Looks great, ETBee!  You could make a side-table.  On wheels, cypress, cabinet and/or drawers.  Use for storing everything egg-related, plus extra counter space.

maximus1

Looks Great!