Had a customer ask me about making some tables for him. His family has a place on the coast and they collect "sea glass" that washes up on the beach. He had a table already that someone made that was a prototype for the idea (picture below). The tables' aprons, legs, and tops are made of 2 x 3 and 2 x 4 actual ash (lots of planing!) to be sturdy and get the depth he wanted. Inside the apron is a set of cleats upon which will rest a frosted panel of translucent Plexiglas, on which the sea glass is laid. A 1/2 plywood bottom is screwed into the cleats from below, and LED strips sit on the bottom under the Plexiglas for back-lighting. The tops are routed 3/8 x 3/8 for inset glass. The plywood bottom, and the shelf below have center holes. He'll run his extension cord under the table, then up through the shelf and a basket which goes on the shelf, through the bottom and out to the LED strips. The big table is 54 x 30, and the other two are a 28 square and a 28 x 34 rectangle. I think I used all of my Festool toys on this project.
I started with raw ash, used the TS55 to get my first edge (multiple passes, given the thickness), then to the rough lengths on the Kapex. Joiner, then planer, then table saw for ripping. Used 4 10 x 50mm dominoes for leg/apron joinery, and 2 each in the top joinery. Leg stretchers were put in from the bottom with pocket screws so they could be removed for pre-drilling the countersunk holes for the lag screws that hold the top to the apron. Had to do this going in from the bottom, since you'd see inside the table opening. RO125 used for all sanding, C12 and hole saw for 3" holes. OF1400 and a rabbetting bit for routing the rabbets for the glass. Finally, MFK700 for 1/8th roundover on sharp edges of the tops. The ash was really beautiful. This was a fun project, but a little hard to work 3 at one time. He's going to stain, and hopefully will send me finished pics with sea glass in them.
I started with raw ash, used the TS55 to get my first edge (multiple passes, given the thickness), then to the rough lengths on the Kapex. Joiner, then planer, then table saw for ripping. Used 4 10 x 50mm dominoes for leg/apron joinery, and 2 each in the top joinery. Leg stretchers were put in from the bottom with pocket screws so they could be removed for pre-drilling the countersunk holes for the lag screws that hold the top to the apron. Had to do this going in from the bottom, since you'd see inside the table opening. RO125 used for all sanding, C12 and hole saw for 3" holes. OF1400 and a rabbetting bit for routing the rabbets for the glass. Finally, MFK700 for 1/8th roundover on sharp edges of the tops. The ash was really beautiful. This was a fun project, but a little hard to work 3 at one time. He's going to stain, and hopefully will send me finished pics with sea glass in them.
