A good mix of things going on in the workshop this week. First up, a reception desk I’ve been helping the guys downstairs with for the last few weeks. One of the main things for this was the programming to cut the large veneered panels and the oak tops on the big green CNC. Tom gave me the drawings in DXF form for me to bring into the Vectric software, organise and create toolpaths. We had a bit of fun with some breaking tools while cutting the tops due to some power issues in the workshop but thankfully it did not damage the workpiece although it did shatter two half-inch tools.
In the first image below you can see the underside of one the oak stave boards being machined and in the second image one of the desks being pre-fitted in the workshop. The third image shows the logo of the company the desks are being made for. These were cut in different pieces of oak and then colour stained and limed to match their colours. This ended up looking great, with the grain specially positioned to flow in a different direction for each piece. The next three images show the installed desks with logos and lettering attached. Amazing job by the guys downstairs at Thomas Philpott Cabinet Makers on the design, cabinet making and install on this.
One of the other companies on the farm where the workshop is makes really nice custom VW campers. They asked me if I wanted to make some internal door panels for a customer of theirs who loves the Silver Surfer. Below you can see what I came up with. The material is black Valchromat with silver paint on the surface and then machined through to expose the black. After these are sealed and lacquered they’ll be put into a lightweight metal frame to make a really interesting internal door for the van.
Lastly a quick project for home, a pen tray to go into a drawer to help keep it tidy and stop me moaning if I’m trying to find a pen… This was a bit more heavy duty than I’d intended as I used some fairly thick pieces of (admittedly very nice) scrap maple. In the first image you can see the tray being cut from some 40mm thick butcher block then the second image shows the legs that were cut out of a 25mm thick board end. After cutting they were sanded, glued and screwed together with a quick coat of Danish oil to finish. You can see the finished tray nestled at the back of the drawer in the last image. Next week unless something new comes up it’ll be back on the big cherub and maybe on the chimneypiece…
