Surfacing Maple Table

[wberminio]

I need to surface a maple table top 36"x120"x2-1/2"thick.My Bot is 48x96.I would appreciate any suggestions.

Thanks in advance

Erminio

[beacon14]

Here's what I would do. Place the slab so that you get the maximum amount of surface under the gantry for the first pass. Shim under the edges/corners so that you are taking a minimum amount of material off to get a flat surface. Measure the distance from the table to the top of the workpiece at each corner, there should not be one corner much higher than the others. Keep in mind the end of the workpiece beyond the table when establishing your level surface. Then surface as much of the workpiece as you can reach.

Now reposition the slab, leaving as much of the previously surfaced board over the table as possible while still being able to reach the entire unsurfaced area. Again, shim the corners but this time put a straightedge across the previously surfaced section. Measure carefully the distance from the table to the overhanging straightedge at the four corners of the surfaced area that still covers the table. The closer you can get these four measurements the better your results will be. Zero the cutter to the previously flattened area and surface the rest down to zero.

Do you have a wide-belt sander? That's the next step.

I usually surface the bottom of the slab first - by placing the slab face down on the table you can see how much twist the face has and establish a bottom surface parallel to the desired top surface, then flip over.

7569

7570

[mzettl]

Here's a method that was suggested to me when I had the same issue about a year ago, and it worked very well.

Center your workpiece on the table, and in your case that will leave about a foot overhanging each end. Then do as David described, shimming to obtain as little material removal as possible, and then surfacing the largest area that you can. You will then have a large, flat reference surface.

Attach a piece of MDF, plywood, etc. to this surface by spot gluing, double sided tape, or whatever. Flip the board over. Now you can slide the board back and forth, and surface one entire side with no additional shimming, measuring, etc.

Flip the board back over onto the newly surfaced side, remove the MDF, and surface the remaining portions of that side. In this photo you can see a piece of bubinga that is about 4' x 6' being surfaced on my 48" machine. Note that there is a piece of MDF underneath it, allowing me to slide it back and forth to surface the entire side easily.

Hope this helps.

Matt


7571

[wberminio]

Thanks everyone for your suggestions.
Working on getting the job.I let you know how it works out.

Thanks again

Erminio