Napkin & Condiment Stand

I used a sacrificial board under your project material to protect cutting into my main X-Carve waist board. Carefully measure thickness of your material. You will be thru cutting, so add .020" to this depth for your material thickness in Easel. This will make sure it goes completely thru your material, and will make a cleaner bottom edge on your cut. Also add .020" to your tab height. Don't want that piece breaking loose. It's a good idea to check your work by checking the Show Tool Paths box. This gives a better indication of how it will cut, and if there are any problems that need attention. This little step has saved me countless times.

I used a .0625 up cut, 2 flute spiral bit for these side panel cuts. My Dewalt DW611 spindle was set at #2 speed. Cuts were performed at .05 in depth per pass with a feed rate of 80 in/per min. (these specs can be set in the Cut Settings box under custom). You may have to adjust these settings according to your machine and spindle, so experiment on what works best for your setup.

This is the link to Easel for the panel cuts: http://easel.inventables.com/projects/cZ_xkaPlh6W2GnFHb-hqAQ

Estimated time: 20 minutes

Decided to add some Bling (as my wife calls it). Added glass particles that resemble Turquoise. You could do something similar, paint, inlay, or even cut these bubbles completely thru. This would be a personal choice.

Estimated time: 20 minutes

I milled a piece of 3/8" Monkeypod for the base piece. Before I actually cut into this expensive wood, I did a few trial cuts with some MDF of the critical slot and pockets to get a perfect fit. This time I used a .125 down cut, 2 flute spiral bit. Depth of cut was set at .05 in and feed rate set at .080 in/min. The use of a down cut bit is the way to go with this kind of operation, as it gives you a much cleaner top edge. In fact, if I could find down cut bits in the sizes in need, that's probably all I would use.

This is the link to Easel for the base part: http://easel.inventables.com/projects/SJqiIvkLGMJ8qZlgLLzOtw

I sanded all parts with 80, 120, and final sand with 320 grit. Applied 4 coats of spray lacquer to all surfaces with light sanding between coats just to remove any dust or anything else, like those bugs that know instinctively where there's wet paint. I glued the panels into the slots with just a couple of drops of CA glue. Probably didn't need to glue them, as they were a tight snug fit, but didn't want everything coming apart and end up on the floor.

Altho I used dolphins and bubbles for this design, you could use anything you want for the side panels. Engrave your Family crest, a message, the possibilities are endless to make it truly your own.

Well there you have it. A fun, unique, decorative and useful project to adorn your dining room table.

Have fun making sawdust and skip the yard work! Aloha....Jeff