Router Question

[ufg8r85]

I am building a desk for my kids to do homework on. The top is 3/4 oak plywood. On one end of the desk I'm making a rounded corner so there is no sharp edge as you enter the room. I'm build the corner edge up by gluing 3 0r 4 layers of thin strips I've cut from a 1 x 2 piece of oak. I then plan on putting on the straight piece of oak to finish the front edge of the desk. Should I put all this in place then router the edge, or should I do the corner on the desk and run the long straight piece through the router mounted to a table? Sorry for the lengthy post, hope the ? makes sense. Thanks in advance.
Steve

[JimD]

Steve,

If the radius of the corner is 3 or 4 inches, you will have to make the pieces pretty thin to be able to bend to this tight a radius. You may want to play with this a bit. If the radius is small like this, you may even want to saw it out of a piece of solid stock instead.

For something large like a top of a desk, I would probably round over the edge after glueing on the edging. I would do this mainly so I could readily sand the two pieces of edging flush with each other first.

Jim

[drumpriest]

I'm with jim, glue it all up, and round it over after with a bearing on the bit.

[Tom Hintz]

I think you should seriously consider Jim's suggestion of using solid stock. Even if you get the strips bent and glued up, routing them could be a challenge and may give you an odd look as the layers are exposed at different angles during rounding.
I find it is almost always easier to route an edge after it is applied rather than making up the edge stock first. For one, you can install the edging and sand it flush so it all is aligned properly before cutting the edge.

[cabinetman]

Good question, and some good answers. I would like to add that glueing up square stock first gives you a better edge to clamp. Once on then rout. I also agree with the solid stock and would cross miter the joints between the straight pieces and the one formed for the corner.



"I'M NEVER WRONG - BUT I'M NOT ALWAYS RIGHT"

[ufg8r85]

Thank You

I went ahead and cut 3 thin strips for the bend, so far it's coming out better than expected. Now I just have to practice with the router until I feel comfortable using it on the finished piece.
Steve