So there were three primary goals this week: finish the wall cabinets, build a new assembly table, and build a new outfeed table. None of these projects were dramatically different than things we’ve done in the past on the show but I’ll point out some of the changes and my reasons for them.

The Cabinets

The cabinet carcasses were milled up by my buddy Ron on his CNC machine. I basically brought all the parts home and did the assembly, but there was still quite a bit of work to do, including drawer construction and edge-banding EVERYTHING. I used maple strips for the edge-banding and attached them with glue/clamps when I had the patience, and glue/brad nails when I didn’t. Norm would have been proud!
Once all the parts were edge-banded and sanded, I slapped on a few coats of General Finishes High Performance (satin). Even though its a water-based finish, it did a fine job of highlighting the contrast between the alder veneer and the maple edging. I think the contrast looks good and honestly, it wasn’t intentional. It was simply based on the materials I had on hand and thankfully, it turned into a happy accident.

The Torsion Box Assembly Table

One of the most popular projects on our site is the Torsion Box Assembly Table. The original design was borrowed from David Marks and the table served me well over the years. During the first shop move, I needed all the space I could get so the assembly table was given to my buddy Greg. Now that I’m back in the old space, the need for an assembly table is greater than ever! Doing the Adirondack chair build without it was a huge pain in the butt!

Instead of simply rebuilding the old version, I decided to scale things down a bit and customize the base to my current needs. The first change was the overall dimensions. Instead of going 48″ x 72″ for the torsion box, I scaled down to 42″ x 60″. Truth is, I never really needed as much space as a 48″ x 72″ top provides. Instead of being useful workspace, it usually became a place for collecting crap. So instead of a three compartment base I went with a much simpler two-compartment design. On the one side, I have room for my compressor and a pull-out drawer for my pneumatic guns, and on the other side I have a little garage for my Festool vac or a shop vac. Each side also features a shallow recess that will be used for either adjustable shelving or clamp storage. The sides of the base will also be used for hanging things like hammers and small clamps. So its not 100% complete yet, but you get the idea. A few extra details for you. The height was strategically made to be the same as my Festool MFT3, providing extra support for really long stock. And the material I used was ultralight MDF, which was MUCH nicer to deal with than standard MDF.

Perhaps the biggest change with this project was the method and materials for the torsion box. One thing I have learned over the years of doing this woodworking thing is that many of us over-estimate the importance of “dead flat” surfaces. So I knew that as long as my torsion box was mostly flat with no twist, I’d be a happy camper. Instead of working up some complicated saw horse leveling technique, I simply used another surface that I knew was already mostly flat: my workbench. And during the grid assembly, I used scrap pieces of MDF on edge to ensure that the skins remained flat and true, trusting the workbench to help keep things in order in the long dimension.

The grid itself was a little different too. Instead of creating a perfect grid, I decided to stagger the short pieces which made the process of nailing them in place MUCH easier. Everything is held together with glue and once the skins are in place, I don’t think there is an appreciable difference in strength using this technique. Especially not on a torsion box that will be completely supported. You also might notice that I have no replaceable skin on this one. I guess I’ll just have to keep it clean. Yeah right!

So you’re probably wondering just how flat the top is. In the long dimension it is nearly perfect. Along the short dimension, it’s pretty much dead flat in the middle and I have a slight dip at the last 6″ at each side. Probably by about 1/32″ or so. I can absolutely live with that. Any time I use the table for true reference, I will make sure I’m using the center of the table.

So is this woodworking blasphemy?? Not worrying about things being dead flat? Nope….its reality. By the time you are assembling a project, there are many other factors at play that will dictate whether your project stays flat, square and true. The primary one being joinery. So flatness becomes much more of an issue on the tools that you use to make your joinery, including your workbench. So if you have good square joints and consistently-milled parts, a dead flat assembly surface is not really necessary. Don’t get me wrong here. If you can get a dead flat surface, why not, right? Better is better. I’m just saying that if your assembly table isn’t dead nuts flat, don’t worry about it. Figure out where your “flattest” part is and keep that in mind when you are assembling parts.

The Outfeed Table

This was another long-overdue project. I have been using a roller stand as an outfeed support for a while now and let me tell you, that’s for the birds! There really is nothing like have 100% full support for just about any piece that comes across the tablesaw. The design is pretty much the same a my previous version, with the only major difference being the top. Instead of recessing the top into the base for a flush fit, I now have a top that overhangs the base significantly. This allows the top to nestle right up against the tablesaw which minimizes the gap. The top itself is made from two sheets of birch plywood sandwiched together. This gives the unit some serious weight and really helps to stabilize the entire thing. The shelf on the bottom provides some much-needed storage for various tablesaw doo-dads and dingle-hoppers.

The Levelers

Both the outfeed table and the assembly table required precise height adjustments. This was fairly easy to do. I simply made sure the final height was about 1/4″ below what I needed it to be. Then I used these heavy duty levelers from Rockler. What I like about them is that they hook underneath the cabinet side rather than simply screwing into the face. All of the weight is being supported in a way that won’t result in screws ripping out at some point. With a level and a straight edge, I had both the outfeed table and assembly table adjusted perfectly in minutes.

So that’s what I did on my “summer vacation”, and I’d do it all again this week if I had the time. I need a turning tool rack, a fancy tablesaw auxiliary fence, and a few storage units for various things around the shop. But these projects will be made into full episodes for the show. I can’t wait! Now if you want to learn a little more about the projects I reviewed in this article, make sure you stop by for some of our upcoming live events. On Sept. 14th at 6pm Eastern I’ll be doing a quick live discussion/Q&A about the assembly table. And on Oct. 5th we’ll be doing one on the outfeed table. All events will be recorded for later viewing but its a lot more fun if you can participate in the chat. So I’ll see you there! And be sure to check the calendar for all of our live events and video releases coming up.

My question has to do with a bookcase I am building. I consider myself a novice woodworker. I certainly learn from my mistakes and this may be another one. I am building this bookcase from solid red oak. It has three fixed shelves that I have glued into dadoes. I am wondering about finishing the front edges to cover the dadoes. I have curved the top of each side, so I cant attach anything with any thickness. I cut some thin strips, but I am afraid they won’t be flexible enough to bend over the curve at the top. Any thoughts? Can I leave the edges unfinished? I am thinking I should cover those dadoes.

Hey Mark. Bottom line is you don’t have to cover the dados if you don’t want to. Since its solid wood, the edges probably look fine and I doubt anyone will ever notice the joinery. But if it bothers you, there are solutions out there. You can buy rolls of veneer tape in many species, including red oak. This thin veneer can take just about any curve you can dish out. Many even contain a heat activated glue so all you have to do is put it on the edge, run an iron over it, and use a roller to push it into the grain. Then trim the excess and you’re good to go. But that technique is usually reserved for plywood, since we don’t want to see the ugly edges. You can see how I apply this type of edge-banding here: Video – On the Edge. But boy oh boy it really pains me to think of you covering solid wood edges with veneer edge-banding.

So here’s one other suggestion. You might think this idea is crap so feel free to discard it, but this is something you should try to do whenever you confront a problem. Always try to think of a way to add something to your design, rather than just fix the error. For instance, what if you ran a decorative trim piece of walnut across each fixed shelf. It could look like an intentional design choice instead of something that disguises a joint. You could cut the strip with a bevel on it or even some kind of profile to make it really pop. The picture on the left gives you an idea of what this might look like. Obviously this may or may not work depending on the look you are going for, but its one possible solution.

Now we should probably also discuss how to prevent this in the future. What could have been done to prevent the exposed dado joint? The first thing that comes to mind for me is a stopped dado. So instead of running that dado all the way through to the end of the case side, you can stop it about an inch back. And your shelf simply receives a little notch at the front corner. This would give you the strength of the dado with the appearance of a simple butt joint at the front of the case.

***So how would you guys deal with a problem like this? And what ideas do you have for prevention?