It was time for a rebuild

The egg and the old table were beginning to show some wear and tear and so I finally found some time to dedicate to the project.  The first photo is the before.  It was time!   Refurb includes (a) new Rutland from RRP (thanks @RRP)and the installation with his rock solid instructions was a cinch, (b) new band assembly, which I find seals much better than the 20yr old band assembly, (c) I upgraded from the little ceramic feet to an egg nest.  When I originally built this cabinet I used a 2cm slab of granite beneath the egg along with the little ceramic feet.  The wood beneath the granite was charred.  My original cypress table from BGE was worse and for that one I had (2) 12" porcelain tiles WITHOUT the ceramic feet and I was fortunate to have never had a fire, it was pretty bad.  The egg nest seems to provide enough space to prevent thermal buildup.  While I was at it I also cut a block to hold the Smobot, no more aggravations trying to keep things organized.  The table received a complete strip job and two new coats of Old Masters marine spar varnish.  Finally, I went ahead and made a new handle from pecky sinker cypress and finished it with tung oil.  I really hated to part with my old custom handle made by the Lawn Ranger, but the new band assembly forced me to do so.  The 2020 version of the table also received a new granite top.