Alcove Desk and Bookshelves

[sainty]

I don't often post my work here so I tought that I woud have a go.

The brief was to make and fit a desk and small shelving unit, with bookshelves above into an alcove. Pretty simple stuff, just needs to pick up on the details in the room.

Heres the door for the desk unit:



again with detail:



oops bit of a gap there, should have photoed one of the other corners

Heres the back panel for the shelves:



again with detail:



The book shelves are made from MDF ;D , infact most of it is MDF with the exception of the rails and stiles on the door, and the lippings for the shelves which is southern yellow pine (not for any reason, I just happened to have some).

That's all for now, more tomorrow hopefully!


rgds

Stu

[jfc]

Look forward to seeing your work Stu .

[engineerone]

i agree it is always useful to see how others solve problems that we all face in one form or another.

like the layout lines ;D

paul

[sainty]

Nov 5, 2008 22:07:02 GMT engineerone said:

like the layout lines ;D

paul

I decided to try layout linesout this time. Normally I would just guess.

Ok, couple of days later, not massive progress but it's a litlle bit further on.

Using the festool LR-32 system to route out the shelf holes in the book shelf back panel. Its only the second time that I have used it, and to be honest the first time was a bit clumsy. However, this time I "get it" and it was pretty good. Nice and quick and everything lines up nicely. If I get many more jobs like this I might invest in the longer guide rail with the holes




Adding lippings to the bookshelves. As you can probably see I'm a bit of a Festool geek. To be honest it really comes into its own on a job like this. The MFT table is great for clamping everything, coupled with a more traditional bench next to it which is much better when using hand tools.




Gluing up the worktop, two layers of 18mm MDF, should be plenty strong enough! How may different types of clamp?





Doesn't seem ike a lot of progress, but everything has been cut, lipped, glued and sanded. Ready for the morning and a full coat of primer and then topcoat if I can get the temperature in the workshop up to a respectable level!


rgds


Stu

[wizer]

Looking good Stu. Can I ask what the holes in the Festool Guide Rail are for. I haven't noticed those before?

[sainty]

Thanks Wizer.

The holes are part of the LR32 system that you can use to drill holes for shelves and cabinet hinges.

Heres a picture of it in action:



The router sits on a plate that runs along the guide rail, the plate then registers in the holes. You then plunge the router and move to the next hole. It works very well, but with all things Festool its ridiculously expensive, but then I'm ridiculous! (In fairness, it's much more accurate and repeatable that my homemade version that now rests in MDF heaven. If you trake into account the time it would take to make something anywhere near as good there probably is a payback, but I wouldn't want to work it out!)

You can see I'm working on the cabinet for under the desk, I would say to route the holes 4 times (front, back for left and right) including set up would take less than 10 mins and would be accurate. In fact the setup takes longer than the operation in this instance, when I used it on a kitchen, you could really see the benefits.

rgds


Stu

[wizer]

Ahh I suspected that might be it. Oddly this recently came up on the EZ forums. A regular there has invented/copied an indexer using the EZ Rails. It looked complicated to me, so I guess you either pay for Festool or work really hard to make your own. I'm likely to spend the money and get on with the job tbh.

Thanks for sharing.

[sainty]

Nov 6, 2008 18:34:44 GMT wizer said:

..... so I guess you either pay for Festool or work really hard to make your own. I'm likely to spend the money and get on with the job tbh....

Exactly!


rgds

Stu

[jfc]

OOOOOO I like that !

[jonnyd]

Hi Stu looking good so far.

I have been thinking about getting that small festool router and was wondering how you rate it. The 32mm system looks like it could be a real timesaver. Does it come with stops or guides for referencing the guide rail on the workpiece.

jon

[promhandicam]

Looking good Stu. On the shelf pin question, I went down the brass knob route as opposed to the lurid green one ;D. Veritas do a basic system for drilling holes at a 32mm pitch which costs under £70. Uses a drill rather than a router and ideally you need a depth stop on the drill bit - i just rap masking tape round at the depth I want to achieve. I'm very happy with it and have ordered a second rail from Brimarc so that it will be possible to drill both front and back in one hit.

Steve

[sainty]

Jonnyd, I like the router, I had it's bigger brother the 1400 and I liked the grip, so that lead me to the 1010 which is eaually friendly to use. Good dust extraction, well balanced, good plunge action, all the things you expect from a top end router really. For me having invested in Festool, it kind of made sense. The LR32 system comes either in kit form or you can buy the individual components, I went for the kit version which comes with all the necessary stops. It has end stops which are either 16mm or 32mm which means you can change to half stops for routing out the 32mm holes for the doors (if you get what I mean). It also has the stops for the guide rail which has a vernier scale on it so that you can set it up to 1/10th mm accuaracy. The guide plastic though so I'm not sure you will quite get that accuracy but pretty close. There is a video on this website which explains it better than I can. ;D

Prom, I think that there are a few systems out there for this operation, I chose the festool because I already had a lot of the gear already. I think these systems are pretty good at what they do, it's just taken me a couple of goes to get the most out of it. What length of holes (i.e. height of cabinet) can you get with that system? I found I had to position my rail twice to get the full length of the bookshelves, which waas a bit of an inconveiniece.

rgds

stu

videos on his site appear to be down - here it is on you tube

uk.youtube.com/watch?v=7eBCsC5FYIk

there are some others on there that give you more info.

[jonnyd]

Thanks for the video links they explain the system pretty well. I cant seem to find the LR32 kit on the festool website or any of the retailers i googled only the guide rails. Do you know roughly how much it is.? I think i may get the 1010 as i have already had 3 dewalt routers blow up on me in the last 12months or so and could do with a reliable hand router.

jon

[sainty]

Try Healys but make sure you are sitting down!

rgds


Stu

[jake]

Better at Bunny's Bolts (who are good for Festool accessory discounts) www.bunnysbolts.com/quick-search?terms=lr32

[jonnyd]

Thanks for the tips guys. I made the first step yesterday and bought the router and even managed to negotiate a discount. ;D Only had a quick play with it so far but first impressions are good. The LR32 will have to wait until i get some spare cash. Has anyone dealt with Bunnysbolts as there prices seem good they seem much cheaper on dominos than anyone else.

jon

[jake]

I bought some stuff from them the other week (first time I'd used them). It came within three or four days, everything there. Doesn't seem lightning quick, but a couple of the items were spares which they couldn't have had in stock, so it was pretty slick. Slightly disconcerting that they don't acknowledge the order or let you know when its shipped - but I wouldn't be bothered now I know they are OK. Otherwise, all fine. The goods turned up, and were the right things. Very clunky website, but the search tool finds festool part numbers.

[promhandicam]

I've also bought stuff from Bunnysbolts, however I went in person as they aren't too far from me. They seem to keep quite a bit of festool gear in stock and have kit that you can try out. They are also pretty knowledgeable about woodworking as they are connected to Mayford Joinery. As you probably are aware, for most Festool gear, the prices are identical from one supplier to another as festool dictate the sale price and there is no negotiating unless you are also buying consumables in which case you might be able to haggle a bit. On the subject of Festool, if you want empty Systainers have a look at Anglia tools as they are or were cheaper than anywhere else - very good service too.

Steve

[sainty]

Not much progress on the desk/shelves a the moment - its all been sprayed up and is sitting in the workshop waiting to be fitted. So, I thought I'd show you some other alcove shelves that I've been working on. (For me this time)

Left:


Right:


"Secret" Keyboard shelf


All painted on site using Dulux QD Pimer/Undercoat - which I really rate and Dulux Diamond Eggshell which might be the worst paint that I have used - I just cant get a good finish with it. Luckily, this is for me, and I can go back and re-finish it.

Just got to fit the doors and shelves in the cupboards.

I'm a bit gutted as I took loads of WIP photos, but I had changed the settings on my phone and they were only thumbnail size and didn't show enough detail . They included my way of sizing alcove shelves, which I timed a about 15 mins from measuring to firing the last pin - it was going to be a good little how-to, shame really.

When I've finished the first job I'll post some pictures of that.

rgds

Stu

[cnc paul]

Nov 8, 2008 18:30:34 GMT jonnyd said:

Thanks for the tips guys. I made the first step yesterday and bought the router and even managed to negotiate a discount. ;D Only had a quick play with it so far but first impressions are good. The LR32 will have to wait until i get some spare cash. Has anyone dealt with Bunnysbolts as there prices seem good they seem much cheaper on dominos than anyone else.

jon

I don't think you should mention that here ... You will have the festool police after them ;D

[jfc]

Looks good mate . I use the mitre lock cutter to do shelving and sections like that . Love the keyboard draw !

[sainty]

J, do you make the shelves up first then fit them then? I find it easier to fit some batten to the alcove and clad it in situ - that was going to be my "how-to". For me, it's easier to get a better fit around the cheeks of the chimney breast which I find are usually well out of square. (saves on painters mate too!)

rgds

Stu

[jonnyd]

I don't think you should mention that here ... You will have the festool police after them

Where i shop (not mentioning any names) had a bit of a falling out with festool and now has to order through a third party as festool closed the account so i dont think they will be that scared of the festool police ;D. The router had been hanging around for a while so i was able to do a deal on it.

jon

[jfc]

I used to when i made them on site but now i make everything in the workshop so the unit would have sides and the shelves adjustable .

Like this one ....

[jonnyd]

You must have a lot of patience Jason I have found it takes ages to set up properly by which time i could have done the job I was trying to set up for.

jon