Making an Eight Sided Serving Tray

P. Michael Henderson

Now that I have the dewaxed shellac on the panel, I'm going to use this water based lacquer on top of it.  Target is a good water based lacquer and very forgiving in application.

Here's a picture of my Porter Cable HVLP conversion gun.  It's a good gun and works well as long as I keep it clean.

I start with the back side because once I finish with the front, I don't want to do any more work on the panel that might mess up the finish.  I give the panel a light sanding with P220 sandpaper in my ROS, wipe the surface off well, and then shoot a coat of lacquer.  When the lacquer is good and dry (hardened), I'll sand it again and shoot a second coat.  I may, or may not, put a third coat on the back - it just depends on what the second coat looks like.

The front is a longer process.  I want a smooth, glass like surface, without the grain showing as indentions in the finish.  To obtain that look, I shoot a coat of lacquer, and when hardened, I sand the finish with the P220 sandpaper.  Then I shoot another coat.  I repeat this process until all the voids and grain lines are completely filled and the finish is completely smooth.

To get a really smooth finish, you need to wait quite a while between the last two coats.  Lacquer continues to "dry" for quite some time, and as it dries, it shrinks.  So you'll look at the surface in glancing light and it'll look smooth as glass.  But a few days later, when you look at it again in glancing light, you'll see a lot of little indentions along the grain lines where the lacquer shrunk.  I like to leave the panel for a week after I get a "glass" finish, then shoot another coat.  Sometime I have to repeat the process in another week to get a really smooth surface.

Then we have to rub out the finish.  I use the Menzerna product line but you can also go to an auto parts store and buy a can of rubbing compound (orange) and one of polishing compound (white).  They work quite well.

I don't use the coarse polish on the panel - just the 2L and the polishing compound.

I haven't rubbed this tray out yet so I don't have any pictures of it rubbed out.  Maybe later.

Next, we'll start on the sides of the tray.

I bought a piece of 1/2" walnut long enough to go completely around the tray.  I want the grain to be continuous as the sides wrap around the tray.  I jointed the edge and cut a 2" piece off the board.  In the picture, below, you see two pieces 2" wide. One of the pieces will be used on a rectangular tray I'm working on and the other will be used on this tray.

The tray bottom will be inset into a groove in the sides, and I'm going to cut that groove before I cut the stock to length.  To cut that groove, I'm going to use my table saw - and my standard blade - and make multiple cuts to get the width I want.

To set up my saw, I put the fence about 1/4" from the blade.  Here, I'm just a bit less than 1/4".  Then, I want to adjust the height of the blade to cut about 1/4" into the wood. To prepare for that, I use a small combination square and set the blade for 1/4". 

Then, I adjust my blade to a bit less than 1/4" and make a test cut into some scrap.  I cut and check, then raise the blade until I am satisfied that the cut is close to 1/4".

Note that with an ATB blade, the bottom of the groove will not be flat.  Doesn't matter.  The wood goes all around the tray bottom so you won't be able to see the bottom of the groove. 

Examine your 2" walnut piece and decide which side will be down, and which side will be in.  This piece has a small amount of sapwood on one side so I'll put that sapwood down and in.  Mark the board to indicate your choice.  It's embarrassing to realize you cut in the wrong place because you got confused when handling the board.

Make your first cut in the 2" board.  Then move your fence away from the blade by less than 1/8" and make another test cut on your scrap.  Check it against your tray bottom, but it's unlikely to fit because the substrate is 1/4", plus you now have two pieces of veneer glued to it, and finish applied.

Run your 2" piece through the saw to widen the groove.

Now you need to be careful.  With this third cut, you want to cut the groove just wide enough to allow the tray bottom to fit into it.  You don't want the bottom rattling around in the groove.  So move your fence away from the blade a small amount, make a cut on your test piece and test the fit against the tray bottom.  Sneak up on a good fit. 

When you're satisfied with the fit, run your 2" piece through the saw.  Your groove should now be finished.

Next, we're going to round over the top edge of the tray sides.  This is easier to do before you cut the pieces to length.  Take a 1/4" round over bit and put it in your router (table mounted router, that is).  Although the round over bit has a bearing, use a fence.  The reason is that when you make the second cut, the bearing will not track accurately and the second cut will be deeper than the first.  If you use a fence, you won't have that problem.  To see this, make a few cuts on some 1/2" scrap (both sides) and you'll see what I'm talking about.

Use some scrap to set the height of the bit.

This is what the profile will look like after a pass on one side.

Once you have the height of the bit set correctly, run your 2" piece through on both sides.  The next picture shows the profile you want.

Your stock is now prepared.  Next, we'll go to cutting the pieces to length. 

The tutorial continues here.