A Table Lamp. Inspired by Plant Stands

Table Lamp.  Walnut

This lamp design was inspired by my plant stand design. An evolutionary side branch of that design. Three legs up to a top, but in this case the top is a small platform hub that the light hardware mounts to.  The power cord runs up inside one leg.  The 4" diameter platform has a slight dome on the top, and a bevel on the bottom to meet the legs coming up at an angle. The outer edge bevel matches the slope of the shade.  For this idea I ordered hardware and shades for it from the jungle store. 

Everything I make starts with a drawing.  Sometimes a sketch on a notepad.  Sometimes a digital drawing on my PC. For this lamp an Initial drawing in my CNC software started the process.   My first iteration was unsatisfactory.  My second try looked better.  Then I added the shape of the shade in the drawing to see the whole composition. Once the shade shape was added and the leg angle adjusted to match the slope on the shade it became time to finalize the details.  

Top Hub

Making the top hub took a 2-sided CNC job and some contemplation on how to hold the part down to be cut. The bottom beveled side cut first didn't cut through as intended.  The top side curve also didn't cut through.  Then I bolted the part down through the center as I knew the final perimeter beveled edge would cut through.   The mistake I made was not cutting away the outer waste before starting that final cut.  On the last pass before breaking out the waste came loose and caused interference with the spinning bit path. There are  two flaws now left on the edge. When I make another one I know better now how to prevent that from happening. First attempt at any challenging part cut always has potential to show where the setup for it could be improved.  That was the case with this part.  I initially thought this could be done on my radial axis.  Holding it so it wouldn't spin was the challenge I couldn't resolve. One side would have been easy.  It is the second side that is always the challenge.  This is my first prototype. There will be another lamp, version 2. 

I used walnut for the dowel legs.  I found scraps I could make 3 legs from. One leg was made from two halves, so that a slot for the cable can run through it.  

Cable Slots

I had to round over the two legs halves before screwing them together with the cable in place.  Cutting the notched tenon on the end was simple using my fixture on my CNC bed.  I put one wood screw through to hold the bottom end together, and I know that when slipped into the mortise the top end will stay together.  This allowed me to cut the notched tenon on the top without dealing with the cable.

Screw holds the bottom end together.

Hardware for table lamps is easy to find and relatively inexpensive.  There are usually two ways to mount a shade.  One is to screw it onto a harp that surrounds the bulb and provide a place to mount the shade.  The second is to clip onto the bulb.  Clip-on hardware is available to work with shades that expect a harp to mount to.   A cord with a plug on the end and a socket for the bulb is included. The socket has a 3-way switch, although kits can be found with a simpler on/off switch, a pull chain switch, or no switch at all.  The shades did come with a clip on option and the option to not use it. 

Light On. Dome top of hub bounces light out into the room. 

I bought some antique looking bulbs that look good enough to stand without a shade over them.  I also have a few incandescent bulbs that won't mind hiding behind a shade and would likely emit more light.   Where the lamp lives may be the deciding factor. The Scenario of Use factor.   

Comments encouraged and welcomed.

4D

Ash and Red Zebra Wood Plant Stand

White Ash and Red Zebra Wood

Among the scraps of wood in my garage I found a nice big block of what looks like white ash wood. It was thick enough and large enough to make another plant stand top from.  Roughly 9" x 9.5", and 1.1875" thick.  

Taller and Wider

A little larger in diameter, and taller than the previous stands I recently made., This stand has three legs made from red zebra scraps I had. They are 3/4" diameter legs rather than the 5/8" dowels used for the previous two stands.  My thought is that if 3 rather than 4 they should be a bit larger to hold up the same weight. Using a little math tells us that four legs 5/8" diameter have a total cross section area of 1.227sq.in..  Three legs that are 3/4" diameter have a total cross section area of 1.325sq.in..  So in theory this little stand should be easily as strong as the two with 4 legs each.  A few other factors come into play, but with similar joinery and nearly the same angle to the floor both should do well. 

Detail continuity:  The radius of the dome shape is simply derived from the maximum useful diameter and thickness of the board used. The center point of the dome arc is also where the legs point to, and the chamfer on the edge also points to the same focus point. There is nothing arbitrary about each design consideration of these plant stands.  Even the length of the legs was determined from the diameter of the top.  They stop right below the edge.  The woods used and the finish applied are the only variables.  

The white ash wood was a bit splintery and chipped out an edge of the top surface.  A scar to remind us of its hard life before becoming a plant stand top. I could "fix" it with a patch, but that may be more obvious than the little chip out.  

I'd love to see a comment or ten with thoughts on what these should sell for.  There is about $20 of wood and finish in each one. 

4D

   

A Cherry and Walnut Plant Stand

Next Project. What wood do I have enough of to make something useful out of?   

1. Cherry.  Thick board found.  I can make a new plant stand with cherry as the top and walnut as the legs. 

2. Walnut.  5/8"diameter dowel legs.

Now there are two.

I like small simple projects such as this plant stand.  A simple but interesting top, with a simple set of legs below.  A small amount of material is needed. My CNC is already set up to cut the top and has a fixture ready to cut the tenons on the leg tops.  When done with those tenons the fixture can be reconfigured to hold the top to cut the mortises for the legs. 

I had a thought about mass production.  I could move the setup for cutting tenons to a different area on the CNC, and leave the angle jig set up for cutting the angled mortises on the top. Use G-code and 3 post processors so it will remember 3 home positions.  No, I don't have any plans to mass produce this plant stand.  A worthwhile mental exercise though. Readying  and clamping down the block for the top so it's center is always in the same place is a challenge to overcome. Blocks would all have to be the same overall dimension. 

The block of cherry wood was marked and clamped to the bed of my CNC.   Toolpaths for rough cut and finish cuts were created.   This top is cut from one solid piece.  While being rough cut it pointed out that the bit I was using was very dull.  The smell of burning cherry wood isn't horrible, but the smoke created persisted far too long.  That dull bit was thrown away. 

A lower point of view.

With walnut legs for contrast each part, legs or top, can be appreciated separately.  A bit more visually interesting than the monochrome stance if legs matched the top.  A design consideration I coined is "scenario of use".  Will a simpler plant stand all made of the same wood look best among the other things in the same room or space it ends up in?  Or perhaps the two woods/two colors both compose well among other things they share space with. 

Comments are welcomed. Self promoting ads aren't. 

4D

A Delicate Tea Table

Hard Maple

This maple tea table was inspired by a metal version I found on the web.  

I remembered I had a maple panel.  It was a bit thicker than 3/4".  19" x 14".  Room enough to cut four 3" strips from that were 19" long. Glued them together to make a 3" x 3" x 19" block I used to make the center post from:

Center post 

Mounted on my radial axis. First step was to turn the square block into a 3" cylinder. 

18 inches of 3"d cylinder

Then the roughing cut, which pointed out a few flaws in my setup. The square section left next to the 3-jaw chuck didn't care to run into the router chuck as it created a burning smell and left the router chuck black with carbon. 

I made a finish pass down the cylinder to cut the desired shape.  A few visible flaws left from the roughing cut that went haywire. I took the post from the CNC out to my garage lathe to clean up and sand. 

For the base I glued up some maple boards.  They were a bit thinner than 1.5" thick. When the glue was dry I scraped off what squeezed out, then used my drum sander to clean off and flatten both sides.

Uniformly flat, clamped to my CNC bridges, and getting the bottom cove cut out.

Cove cut.  Almost done.

Board flipped over, new file loaded, and the top surface was cut. Next to the bandsaw to cut off the corners.  After that a trip to my trim router table to flush trim the bottom edge, then round over the bottom edge just a little (1/8"r). 

Base trimmed and cleaned up.  Post trying it on for size.

A good snug fit. 

Next came the top for this table. A thin edge is desired. It would help the structure to be thicker in the middle where the post connects.  Made an intermediate plate that glues and screws to the post, but then can be screwed to the bottom of the table top.  I ordered some 3/4" thick maple strips I can glue up to make the top from. 

Maple to make the top arrived. Strips 2" wide, 3/4" thick, and 16" long. The strips were square and smooth and  ready to glue together. 

Some advice to minimize the chance of bowing after the slats are glued up, is to alternate the end grain curves on each piece. 

Once all the strip are glued together and the surface cleaned up a trip or two through my drum sander smoothed out any offsets and made both sides uniformly parallel to each other. 

Next was clamping the panel down to my CNC and cutting the bottom contour.  The hub was cut first.  Left on the CNC to check that the center post top tenon does fit in the mortise in the center.  Wisely done, as it didn't fit the first time tried.  A new CNC file was made and run to cut the mortise wider.  With fit verified the contour shape was cut.  Then the part was remove from the CNC and cut free from the starting block using my bandsaw. 

The top underside shape took the longest to cut and created a beautiful huge mess of fine maple chips.  

The only deficiency of this design is that from above where most will see it the contours under the top are not visible.

Simple thin edge.

This table will get a maple stain to even out the color of all the board strips. I don't drink tea, so am not sure where this table will end up.  😉

As I study the aesthetic details, the simple top seems naked compared to the post and base below.  My first addition is a 30 degree bevel around the perimeter.  To accomplish that required a fixture with bearings to add to my trim router table fence.

Bearings to keep the edge from getting too close to the bit. 

No room for a bearing to run on the edge. 

Beveled edge.

Comments welcomed and Encouraged!

4D

 

A Walnut and Cherry Wood Plant Stand

Walnut and Cherry

Often a project leaves useful scraps that also could be made into something useful.  That was the case with this simple plant stand. Some walnut salvaged from a previous design was re-configured to become the top. It became an eight inch diameter inverted dome cut from the glued up walnut.   

Walnut Top.  Ready for leg sockets

Lining up with the marked leg socket center

One socket cut.  

Four short sections of 5/8" diameter cherry dowels became legs. Each leg socket is perpendicular to the dome arc. The legs radiate out from the center of the arc. 

Standing up for the first time.

Deciding how simple or complex in detail the legs can be is a worthwhile iterative pursuit.  I've started with a simple cylinder with the bottom cut off to be flush to the surface it stands on. The sockets/mortises have a bump on their perimeter.  The legs ends have a notch to fit around the bump.  The reference orientation is what made it easy to cut the angle on the bottom of the legs as seen in the first photo.  

For detail I could add some plant inspired carving along the length of one or more leg.  I could simply roundover the ends or create more of a bullet shape or pencil tip shape.  I have the dowels connected but not yet glued into the top. It stands up to be observed and inspiring so this decision may be easier. If I do add more detail I'll post an updated photo.  With a plant on top to draw focus this little stand may be happy enough just supporting it rather than competing for attention.  ;)

A version with a cherry top and walnut legs:  Simple Plant Stand

A version with a white ash top and red zebra wood legs: Ash Plant Stand

Comments are welcomed and appreciated. 

4D

Iteration and a Simpler Trim Router Table

Iteration wins again.  After two failed attempts to make a version of my clamp on trim router table for the Performax (or Makita or Wen or Hercules or Avid Power or Mics HP Rocky or ...) trim routers I came up with this version.  It uses the braces of the previous attempt, but a new plywood top. No insert plate, but rather a recess for the router base and 4 holes for screws to hold it securely to the bottom of the plywood top. No worry about the insert plate being flush to the top

No insert plate needed

I found another piece of 12mm plywood large enough to cut the new table top from. It has a larger center hole for better vacuum suction around the bit being used. I rotated the mounting holes so the vacuum connection would be easier to attach to. 

Direct hose connection

I also enlarged the dovetail slots so the braces would slide in easier. They were still a challenge to insert all the way, but hopefully this is the last time they need to.  A simpler version for those who don't have a way to clamp the braces vertically would be to use simple blind dados and glue the braces in. 

All that is needed is 12mm baltic birch plywood, a 1" dowel with offset 3/4" diameter ends, and a short length of 3/8" dowel for the handle.  Rotate the handle 90 degrees toward you to release the trim table from the bench.  

A hook for the chuck wrenches keeps them close at hand.    I've got 4 of these trim routers and can put a different router bit in each. I can swap them out quickly as my needs change. 

The only thing better than having one trim router table is having two.  

Now there are two.

Of course two tables each need a connection to the dust collector.

Gated Hose Splitter

I can close off either side when I'm only using one table. 

 

A side project that may be useful would be a clamp on router bit rack. A place to keep the assorted bits I have close to the trim router tables.  Perhaps with a flip-over lid to keep the dust and chips out.  

My mind now rests easy having solved all the nagging problems found with previous designs.  These tables detach quickly and store under the bench they are clamped to.  

Comments and questions are welcomed and encouraged. 

4D 

A Coin/Key Cup , Lathe or Rotary Axis CNC Project

Key Cup  

When I taught furniture design we would have our first year students each make a coin/key cup on the lathe to learn the tools and procedures needed.  A simple project.  a 3" diameter 1" deep bowl on the face.  A 1/2" outside curve on the top, and a 1/4 x 1/4 bevel on the bottom edge were required.  The edge profile between was up to the student to design.  

Profile done on the Rotary Axis

This red oak version I cut using my CNC.  The top bowl I cut with the block standing up using a moulding toolpath. The bottom bevel, top round over, and the profile between the two were all done on my rotary axis.  This project is intended to be set on your dresser or any shelf near your entrance to throw your keys or pocket change or jewelry into.

A cherry stain was added to warm up the cup.  

Cherry stain applied

To avoid screw holes in the bottom we glued the starting block to a plywood scrap with notebook paper in between.  After the project was done on the lathe the faceplate was unscrewed and removed, and then the plywood was relatively easy to split off the bottom with a broad chisel and a few taps of a mallet. The bevel cut on the bottom made it easy to place the chisel on the paper seam. 

Plywood back split off.

 Once split what was left of the paper and glue was easy to sand off the bottom.  

Bottom sanded clean and smooth.. 

The bottom was then stained and finished. A felt self-adhesive 3.25" diameter disk was stuck to the bottom. A bit of cushion and a shadow line for effect. As pocket change isn't as common as it used to be this cup can still be useful. I park my car keys in mine. An official spot where they can rest in style between car trips when not needed. 

Questions and comments are appreciated.  Please no ad or self serving links otherwise they will be deleted.

4D

Self-Clamping Trim Router Bench Edge Table

My Milwaukee trim router came with an extra base plate. It is 5.75" in diameter and has an extra set of mounting holes around the perimeter. I suspect it fits their larger routers using those holes.  It can replace the stock one and add capability to hold guide bushings, or mount on a jig for cutting circles or ellipses, or install into a small router table.  This is the clamp on router table I designed for it. 

14" square

The side brackets slide into tapered dovetail slots on the underside of the top.  They slip over the edge of my workbench easily but clamp down tight with a turn of the cam dowel between them. You can glue the brackets in, but there is no real need. They are snug in the dovetail slots and had to be tapped in the last inch or so.  They won't be easy to remove intentionally. 

Side Brackets

I came up with the clamping dowel idea used here when I made a cargo box for my electric motorcycle.  It clamps the cargo box to the cycle frame beam. This router table is a good application of that idea. 

Cam dowel clamps the router table tight to my bench. 

Ends of the 1" dowel have an offset 3/4" section. Pull the smaller dowel handle toward you and horizontal to release the cam and remove the router table from the bench edge. 

Render from my CNC Software

A dust shroud came with my Milwaukee trim router.  Having the router mounted in a table is a good opportunity to put that shroud in place, hook it up to my dust vac, and see how well dust/chips are collected as it runs. I oriented the router so the shroud opening is forward for easy connection to my dust collector hose.  

Dust Vac Connection

The 14" square top greatly extends the support surface. A fence can be clamped to it for straight guided edge cuts or cuts parallel to an edge using bits with no guide bearing. 

Quick release fence.

All plywood parts except the fence were cut from a 16" x 25" inch rectangle of Baltic Birch 12mm plywood. The dowel used is 1" diameter and 8.25" long.  Offset ends are 3/4" diameter.  I used my CNC to cut the ends, but this could be done on a lathe using offset centers. 

I know I'll get plenty of use from this clamp on trim router table.  Advantages of the design:

• No floor space is needed. 
• It is easy and quick to install and lock onto the bench edge.  Easy and quick to release and remove.
• No other clamps are needed to hold it on the bench.
• The fence is quick to lock down or release to reposition or remove. Flip over the cam levers  to lock or release it. 
• It extends the uses for a trim router.
• The battery powered Milwaukee trim router means no dealing with plugging it in to use.  

I stow it under my bench when I'm not using it.

Comments and Questions are welcomed and appreciated.  No ad links in your comments please.

4D 

A Simple CNC Rotary Axis Project. A Lathe Tool Handle.

Oak handle for a parting tool

This handle design is a close copy of one I made while in my first college furniture design class.  All students were given a tool with no handle, and challenged to design and make their own handles for them.  Mine was a parting tool.  This project is also for a parting tool.

Handle and Blade

All projects made from wood require some prep work, and this was no exception. First came finding some wood scraps long enough and wide enough.  Job done.  Next came gluing them together to get close to the final thickness I was after.  Job done. Scrape off any dried glue that oozed out, then joint one side square to the front and back faces.  Jobs done.  Next to my table saw to rip the block to just a bit wider than 1.5".   To mount it on my rotary axis I glued a 1.5" diameter circle of plywood to one end with some paper between the plywood and board end. The center was carefully marked on the other end.  Then a 1/8" hole, 1/8" deep was drilled in the center.  This for the tailstock to pierce.   

First step after mounting it on my radial axis was to turn the square block into a cylinder. That was done with a pocket toolpath at 0 depth, spanning across the surface. As the rotary axis spun this toolpath trimmed off the high corners, leaving a nice straight cylinder. 

The ferrule end was done with a pocket toolpath.  The contoured surface was done with a moulding toolpath and a ball nosed bit. 

Done with the initial slope.

Over the hump and almost done.

CNC is done.

Once the CNC was done with its work, I took the block out to my mini lathe to sand smooth and trim off the back end. 

Handle and the tool it will hold.

A 12mm hole was needed in the tip for the tool blade. Done on my drill press. 

I'll put some Danish oil or Tung oil on the handle to finish it, and I may v-carve my initials in the back end.   I'll update this post with final finished beauty photos when that is done.

The End.

4D
 

Small table and a white pipe.

In an effort to use up materials I've collected over the years, this project employed a section of white painted pipe as the structural post of a small table. The table top I made awhile back as a challenge to use up scraps of short lengths of wood.  Scraps ripped and tipped and glued together to make a roughly 10" x 10" panel, then CNC cut into an interesting shape and bottom contour. 

The top needed some structure to hold it horizontally above the floor.  18 to 24 inches tall was the desired height I wanted the table to be. I have at least 3 identical section of white pipe.  One pipe alone made for a simple design.  I just needed to come up with a structural way to connect it to the top and a base that spreads out the load so the table wouldn't easily tip over. 

Connecting wood to metal pipe was the challenge. I deformed the end of the pipe to a shape that wouldn't spin in a pocket.  I chose a hexagon for the end cross section.  I had to CNC cut a negative form to press the pipe into using my bench vise.  

Round to Hex over 2 inches

1" thick HDPE I have on hand, so I cut forms from it. High density was the desired quality.  I didn't want a form that the steel would deform before the form could reshape the steel.  

HDPE worked.  

With a way to reshape the pipe ends, making a pocket for the hex ends came next. To hold the pipe between table top and base I ran a length of 1/4-20 all-thread through the pipe. I used a cap nut on the top and a nylock nut on the bottom end.  The bottom nut will be under the base and not seen.  The top cap nut is decorative, flush, and in the center of the top. The pipe runs straight up from base to top.   

It took two tries to cut a pocket that the ends of the pipe would slide into.  I checked the fit while the board was still on my CNC.  Next step was to simply enlarged the vectors used, recalculated the toolpaths and cut again. I had a 1 degree taper on the sides of the hex hole, and although the pipe can be drawn in I fear the board may split.  I replaced the initial block making a new one with a simple pocket with straight sides. 

A simple base design came next.

The center wood block has a board on each side. The boards extend to be the feet of the table.  The boards half-lap/interlock to surround the center block. 

Base slat with slots

I designed a wedging half lap joint cut with a CNC, and used it in assembling the 4 base boards.  A spline in two sides of the block and two of the surrounding wood slats will structurally keep it in place. Glue will do the rest. 

 

Base slat edge refined

To refine the edges of the base boards I drew a curve that when intersecting each board would be 3 degrees from horizontal.  Knowing I had a 3 degree tapered router bit I then cut the curves using that bit. Look close at the base of the table in this photo and you'll see the crisscross pattern curves all blend together. 

Now that all parts are made and assembly is verified, It is time to put some stain and top finish on the base boards and the table top.

I'll add a photo here when I have the table stained and finished.

Comments and questions always welcomed,

4D