Lee Schierer
02-01-2005, 12:58 PM
This was a paid job for me. It still took lots of time and figuring to get everything done with a nominal amount of space. The man wanted a crafting table with a drop leaf that would fold out of the way when not in use. The top had to be 30 X 72 so with the leaf open it would be 60 X 72. The top of the cabinet needed to be 37" above the floor for a comfortable working height for him. He wanted drawers and vertical storage for full sheets of mat board and his portfolio. It also had to be mounted on casters so one person could move it around and capable of holding lots of weight. Here's what I came up with:
http://home.earthlink.net/~us71na/craft_table4.jpg
The above photo shows the storage side. The compartment on the left has 5 removeable vertical dividers and is 29" deep. The center has three drawers on full extension slides, the right compartment has adjustable shelves. There is a 12" wide by 48" long compartment that runs behind the right hand compartment and the drawers that is accessible from the end. This long compartment also has two removeable partitions.
http://home.earthlink.net/~us71na/craft_table1.jpg
Here is the leaf in the down position.
http://home.earthlink.net/~us71na/craft_table2.jpg
This is the drafting position, note the pencil ledge at the bottom.
http://home.earthlink.net/~us71na/craft_table3.jpg
Here the leaf is fully extended. The two supports under the table nest inside each other and can be pulled out using a finger hole. They are held against the side of the cabinet with magnets. One person can raise or lower the leaf.
Oh yeah, I almost forgot. This is in a basement studio, so it had to come in the house disassembled. It took about 2 hours to put all the pieces together and adjust everything. The assembly was done using pocket hole screws. My cordless drill got a real workout tightening all the screws. It required 6 sheets of 3/4 inch plywood, 3 sheets of 1/4 inch ply and one strip of 1 X 3 maple. It took 2 gallons of finish to cover everything.
I had asked before making this what it should cost. If any of you would care to venture a figure now that you've seen the completed piece, I would appreciate the input. It has been completely paid for.
The customer is very pleased and has been showing it to all his friends.
http://home.earthlink.net/~us71na/craft_table4.jpg
The above photo shows the storage side. The compartment on the left has 5 removeable vertical dividers and is 29" deep. The center has three drawers on full extension slides, the right compartment has adjustable shelves. There is a 12" wide by 48" long compartment that runs behind the right hand compartment and the drawers that is accessible from the end. This long compartment also has two removeable partitions.
http://home.earthlink.net/~us71na/craft_table1.jpg
Here is the leaf in the down position.
http://home.earthlink.net/~us71na/craft_table2.jpg
This is the drafting position, note the pencil ledge at the bottom.
http://home.earthlink.net/~us71na/craft_table3.jpg
Here the leaf is fully extended. The two supports under the table nest inside each other and can be pulled out using a finger hole. They are held against the side of the cabinet with magnets. One person can raise or lower the leaf.
Oh yeah, I almost forgot. This is in a basement studio, so it had to come in the house disassembled. It took about 2 hours to put all the pieces together and adjust everything. The assembly was done using pocket hole screws. My cordless drill got a real workout tightening all the screws. It required 6 sheets of 3/4 inch plywood, 3 sheets of 1/4 inch ply and one strip of 1 X 3 maple. It took 2 gallons of finish to cover everything.
I had asked before making this what it should cost. If any of you would care to venture a figure now that you've seen the completed piece, I would appreciate the input. It has been completely paid for.
The customer is very pleased and has been showing it to all his friends.