Round cafe table

[GrahamIreland]

Hello, I am looking at doing a small round table maybe 2 to 2.5ft wide.
Will use a hardwood such as oak. Metal base.

Was wondering if just straight laminated boards at 1 1/2 inch oak would be enough.
Then route out a circle.

Or should I bedoing that round breadboard style edge around the outside?
Thanks a lot.

 

[RobinBHM]

Just straight laminated boards should be fine.

round breadboard ends sounds like a pain to do.

 

[GrahamIreland]

These are different designs I've seen.

 

[GrahamIreland]

Yes the breadboard would be a nightmare id say.

 

[custard]

If you've never routed out a circle before then aim for a bit oversize so you can have a few goes at it, reducing the diameter by a mill or so at each subsequent attempt, and design your trammel accordingly.

Fact is routing a circle is not quite as simple as you'd think. When you change over hand positions you can rock the router, or the cable can get tangled and you have to stop to sort it out, or the little panel pin you use as a pivot point flexes and you need to try again with a screw, or loads of other mishaps. In other words it's one of those jobs where your third or fourth attempt will be way better than your first or second effort. So leave enough meat on the bone for a couple of runs at it.

Good luck!

 

[Jacob]

Hello, I am looking at doing a small round table maybe 2 to 2.5ft wide.
Will use a hardwood such as oak. Metal base.

Was wondering if just straight laminated boards at 1 1/2 inch oak would be enough.
Then route out a circle.

Or should I bedoing that round breadboard style edge around the outside?
Thanks a lot.

A lot of old small round tables just have a plain board top - one piece or edge glued, 15mm thickness or more. No need for laminating.
I hate routers so I'd bandsaw the shape and clean up with a spokeshave. Be a lot quicker than setting up a router, which would probably still need to be cleaned up with a spokeshave.

 

[GrahamIreland]

Thanks guys, Im gonna give the router a whirl - as I've been using it quite a bit lately on other stuff.
Maybe if I secure it underneath with a screw fixing, might be sturdy enough and hidden.

What size would you cut the boards to be in width?

 

[deema]

I make a template out of 6mm MDF into which I've secured the router with a screw to obtain a perfect circle. I then use double sided tape to secure the template to the actual piece and route or spindle mould without incident and without leaving a pin hole / screw hole in the centre of the piece.

Everything Custard said about routing a circle is spot on.

 

[ColeyS1]

Hello, I am looking at doing a small round table maybe 2 to 2.5ft wide.
Will use a hardwood such as oak. Metal base.

Was wondering if just straight laminated boards at 1 1/2 inch oak would be enough.
Then route out a circle.

Or should I bedoing that round breadboard style edge around the outside?
Thanks a lot.

A lot of old small round tables just have a plain board top - one piece or edge glued, 15mm thickness or more. No need for laminating.
I hate routers so I'd bandsaw the shape and clean up with a spokeshave. Be a lot quicker than setting up a router, which would probably still need to be cleaned up with a spokeshave.

I don't really agree with that Jacob. Slide metal rod into holes where the router fence goes. Screw into underside of table (route from the bottom) plunge and spin around. Perhaps you could bandsaw the circle roughly to shape first to save the router cutter. Sand it, job done

Coley

Sent from my SM-G900F using Tapatalk

 

[Steve Maskery]

For circles like this I rout a shallow groove on the underside, using a trammel.
Then bandsaw or jigsaw to within a couple of mm of the edge of the groove.
Then use a flush-trim router bit.
Then sand, roundover etc, etc.

This way I am routing out only small amounts of material, rather than trying to hog out a whole router-cutter's worth.

 

[GrahamIreland]

I make a template out of 6mm MDF into which I've secured the router with a screw to obtain a perfect circle. I then use double sided tape to secure the template to the actual piece and route or spindle mould without incident and without leaving a pin hole / screw hole in the centre of the piece.

Everything Custard said about routing a circle is spot on.

Jacob does the mdf guide then give a nice edge to hold to while routing as well.

Or could i not just route straight away whilst screwed in underneath.
the pin hole will be hidden with a plate.

 

[GrahamIreland]

come to think of it, Im not sure I have a long enough attachment for my router.
edit: I'll prob have to screw into a length of mdf.

 

[ColeyS1]

come to think of it, Im not sure I have a long enough attachment for my router.
edit: I'll prob have to screw into a length of mdf.

I think this bit came from a printer its something you'll only ever have to make once- when I say make, I mean just drill a hole in the end

Coley

 

[GrahamIreland]

Thanks guys - will post pics later in week.

Graham

 

[Woody2Shoes]

I recently watched a couple of Jimmy DiResta's videos - he's got quite a good tip for routing relatively small circles at about 11m in the video below. His tip is to keep the router static and rotate the workpiece.

In the second video he makes a stool that sounds a bit like the table you want to make - instead he uses a slightly scary-looking but effective circle cutting process using a table saw- again rotating the workpiece. I don't think he has a bandsaw (or a spokeshave!). He simply glues and clamps straight pieces of walnut together to create a blank from which he cuts the disc-shaped seat.

Cheers, W2S

Router tips:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4cLBgKWD-k

Stool made from scrap strips of walnut and steel:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s2M1J6LeYxQ

 

[GrahamIreland]

cheers for them woody, nice to see options alright, Didn't he cut off part of a finger recently enough?

Found an 8mm bar in a bay next to mine - just 'borrowed' a piece for the router to swivel on.
Drilled a hole in it.
Bought two large oak boards, kicking myself I didn't take time and pic out a good one. but anyway.
Ripped a straight cut up middle with a circular saw then table sawed the other sides.

The planer thicknesser is a bit rough so have been battling with that today.
Turns out its mis-aligned and blades are blunt!

 

[GrahamIreland]

So I managed to finish off the round table. Quite a learning curve dealing with a hard wood like this.
I believe its a European Oak of some sort - quite pink in colouring. Heavy, almost like a hard plastic.
There was a bit of cupping in the board originally, and the thicknesser never really got all boards even.
But hand planned afterwards flattened it. The only issue now is there are quite a few marks from planning across the grain.
These aren't sanding out and I may need to plane the surface again somehow.

 

[GrahamIreland]

The router cut out went very smooth, happy with that.

 

[GrahamIreland]

Heres the finished piece by the way,

 

[ColeyS1]

The table looks well smart. You must be superchuffed !! Nice job

Coley