steve_g
12-03-2012, 02:19 PM
TV Trays
Hosting the family Thanksgiving dinner was thrust upon us unexpectedly when my daughter became ill and couldn't do it... That's when I noticed that the TV trays I made a number of years ago were getting rather ratty looking. I determined that a new set would grace our home before Christmas. The original set was a puzzle joint frame around a plastic insert... experience taught me that this design had too many crevasses to easily keep clean and that without a recess my soda can would skitter around the tray as I walked. Also I knew that I wanted the new design to nest... making carrying a stack of them easier.
I quickly came up with a design I wanted to try but couldn't decide on a material... I wanted these to last awhile, be easy to make, be easy to clean and look good in our home. Everything in my mind pointed to solid wood. The trays are about 12" X 16", but flat solid wood 12" wide that would stay flat after routing is not a guarantee. One day while shopping the blue big box store I came across their stair tread display... 11.5" X 48" X 1+", edge glued up from a multitude of pieces and available in pine, oak or maple. This seems like the ideal material for my project... The Pine treads are just over $10.00 and make 3 trays each.
The first version had a 1/4" recess inside the border with an additional 1/4" pocket to corral my soda can... unfortunately even thou it worked perfectly for my soda, it failed to accept my wife's coffee mug. In the spirit of peace and harmony I enlarged the pocket to 3⅛" dia. ... all is well now. I also figured out that a squared off circle recess (see photo) is easier to sand and works as well. A rabet on the bottom nests the trays and completes my wish list of features...
I'll put a finish on these and live with them for awhile before I make a full run of them. I would like the final version to have a radius in the bottom... It would save time and simplify the project if I had a flat bottom bit with a radius... say a 1/2" end mill with a 1/8" radius.
Question:
1/2" end mill with a 1/8" radius, Is anyone aware of a wood cutting router bit similar to this common metal cutting bit?
SG
Hosting the family Thanksgiving dinner was thrust upon us unexpectedly when my daughter became ill and couldn't do it... That's when I noticed that the TV trays I made a number of years ago were getting rather ratty looking. I determined that a new set would grace our home before Christmas. The original set was a puzzle joint frame around a plastic insert... experience taught me that this design had too many crevasses to easily keep clean and that without a recess my soda can would skitter around the tray as I walked. Also I knew that I wanted the new design to nest... making carrying a stack of them easier.
I quickly came up with a design I wanted to try but couldn't decide on a material... I wanted these to last awhile, be easy to make, be easy to clean and look good in our home. Everything in my mind pointed to solid wood. The trays are about 12" X 16", but flat solid wood 12" wide that would stay flat after routing is not a guarantee. One day while shopping the blue big box store I came across their stair tread display... 11.5" X 48" X 1+", edge glued up from a multitude of pieces and available in pine, oak or maple. This seems like the ideal material for my project... The Pine treads are just over $10.00 and make 3 trays each.
The first version had a 1/4" recess inside the border with an additional 1/4" pocket to corral my soda can... unfortunately even thou it worked perfectly for my soda, it failed to accept my wife's coffee mug. In the spirit of peace and harmony I enlarged the pocket to 3⅛" dia. ... all is well now. I also figured out that a squared off circle recess (see photo) is easier to sand and works as well. A rabet on the bottom nests the trays and completes my wish list of features...
I'll put a finish on these and live with them for awhile before I make a full run of them. I would like the final version to have a radius in the bottom... It would save time and simplify the project if I had a flat bottom bit with a radius... say a 1/2" end mill with a 1/8" radius.
Question:
1/2" end mill with a 1/8" radius, Is anyone aware of a wood cutting router bit similar to this common metal cutting bit?
SG