Massive conference room table going to Las Vegas

[Jerry Work]

Hi all,

I just added a tutorial section to my web site (www.jerrywork.com > tutorials) and an article on the construction of the large conference room table on its way to Las Vegas.  I mentioned this in an early post and several of you asked for photos.  Hope you enjoy the tutorial, it features some most innovative uses of Festool guided rail routing and cutting.

Jerry

 

[Eli]

Thanks Jerry

 

[Mike_Chrest]

Wow, Jerry, That's a lot of work. How much does it weigh? Clever tensioning system! I like the pop up electric outlets. Does the center part move?
Mike

 

[poto]

Really cool table. When the wood expands there must be a tendency for the sections to all push on each other and squeeze the wedges outward. Are those floating splines to accommodate the movement? Or did you glue it all together? How flexible is the central metal tensioning system? I guess if the sections are not glued you can assemble it on site (or hope they have big doors!).

Poto

 

[Jerry Work]

The spring loaded tension rod system constantly pulls all ten of the sections (each made from four tapered segments) toward the center as the maple shrinks from the low humidity in Las Vegas.  The splines are fixed in the grove on the five sections sitting on legs and they float in the grove on the five sections in between each of those.  The sections have to be free to pull into the center to keep the gaps tight over time.  The table top will likely shrink between 10 and 15mm in diameter over the next two or so years as it acclimates to LV.  Since the nominal humidity is much lower in LV than in So. Oregon where it was constructed it will shrink quite a bit at first.  Once it settles in there then it may expand a very small amount from one season to the next but living in a climate controlled conference room it will likely just take a final set and stay there.  Glad you like it.

Jerry

Really cool table. When the wood expands there must be a tendency for the sections to all push on each other and squeeze the wedges outward. Are those floating splines to accommodate the movement? Or did you glue it all together? How flexible is the central metal tensioning system? I guess if the sections are not glued you can assemble it on site (or hope they have big doors!).

Poto

 

[Jerry Work]

Hi Mike,

The table weighs about 750 pounds.  The center flame redwood burl piece just sits in place by gravity to cover up the tension ring and rod mechanism.  The design issue is how to keep it flat.  Burl has no grain in the conventional sense so you never know which direction or by how much it might move.  In this case I used a piece of 3/4" MDF screwed to the center point to locate the burl and then cut stepped groves in five places around the outer edge to hold the burl to the MDF with washer headed screws so they can move radially as well as laterally.  The MDF was then machined to nestle down over the five tension rods and the center tension ring.  Glad you like it.

Jerry

Wow, Jerry, That's a lot of work. How much does it weigh? Clever tensioning system! I like the pop up electric outlets. Does the center part move?
Mike

 

[dirtydeeds]

that is a piece of art and engineering

to say im impressed is an understatement

 

[Fred West]

Jerry, truly beautiful work. Fred

 

[Bill Wyko]

Jerry I'm impressed! You are incredibly talented. Very inspirational.