need guidance regarding flip-top base

[Anna]

Hi, Tom,

The way I figured it, my planer is about 18" high. If I put it on a 10" high base, it will come up to about 28" to clear countertops or the workbench, but the working level will still be pretty low (in your case, it's 12"). With the fliptop table, the total height is just under 30", and I get to have the planer at a comfortable height when it's right side up. In theory anyway.

I don't think I'll put the sander or grinder on the flip side of the planer. I'm looking for plans for sturdy hanging shelves that can support those and the miter saw instead.

[messmaker]

You could double up your shelves and run a 3/8 deep 3/4 wide groove in each side down the middle.That would leave you with a 3/4 inch square hole.Plenty big enough for a piece of 1/2 inch all-thread. Put a jam nut on each end and some nylon tubing to fill up the excess room in the grove.I would not mount anything on one side but use it to secure more moble type tools(grinder,sander,pocket screw kit) on an as needed basis. You can always use another flat surface to work on if your shop is like mine. I have thought that a mobile downdraft sanding station would be nice but you would have to overcome the dust that would be displaced when inverted.

[Tom Miller]

I don't think I'll put the sander or grinder on the flip side of the planer.

Ah, I'm with ya now. When I see "flip-top", I just assume....

So you're actually doing the thing that I've been talking about with my planer! Don't forget the full report when you're done, including pics.

I was thinking of making mine with a pivot point closer to the center of mass of the planer. But I think that would either make the whole unit too tall when flipped down, or too low when in use. Or both....

Regards,
Tom

[Anna]

Well, I'm almost done, and feeling a bit depressed. I am beginning to hate this mobile base. Sooo many mistakes. Where to begin?

First off: I assembled the sides and bottoms first, without thinking about putting in the stretchers. Now I realize I should have had the stretchers ready to go in before assembly. Getting that fitted in and still serve its purpose will be a bit of a challenge.

Even then, everything else was going swimmingly. I even managed to put in the stud casters from Rockler. After the sides and bottom were put together, I stepped on the base and hopped up and down to see how stable it was. So far so good, and I was starting to feel pretty good with myself.

Until I started drilling the holes for the pivot bolts. I picked up the wrong Forstner bit, and instead of drilling a half-inch hole to hold the bushing, I used a 5/8" bit. I almost had a heart attack when the bushing fell through the hole. So I had to hunt for a bushing for the bushing (that's not a stutter). Found one, although it was a pretty tight fit. Now, I normally don't want to use a hammer in these projects because it's so, well, unelegant. But hammer it I did, and finally got the smaller bushing to fit in the bigger one.

Then I realized that when I was cutting the parts up, I didn't account for the washers that were going between the flip-top and the sides, so the top fitted exactly between the sides. Out came the power planer and the sander because I had to trim the top just a little bit. After a bit of contorting, I finally got the top bolted in.

As I was installing the barrel bolts, I realized that an important part is to have the front of the top flush with the sides. I was off by 1/2" (the top is a full inch narrower than the sides - another long story). So I got some scrap 1/2" plywood and basically shimmed the bolts.

Then I put the planer on the top. I couldn't wait until I put in the stretchers because I really wanted to see how it works. There were a couple of mishaps with bolting the planer to the table top, ending in several random 3/8" holes on the top, but I did get the planer bolted down.

So I tried the flip. Well. Let me just say that the planer's weight is not evenly distributed, which I should have thought about to begin with. But it was 10 PM! Oh, well. There was a near disaster when the top swung away from me because, as we all know, the back of the planer is heavier than the front. Nothing was damaged that I can tell. But then again, it was 10 PM, and maybe my eyes were functioning just as well as my brain, which means they weren't functioning very well at all.

As of 11 PM last night, the whole assembly was still standing, so that's good. I should get back in there soon to finish up the stretchers and whatever, but I'm almost afraid to open the shed's door and see a collapsed table and a disjointed planer on the floor.

And by the way, I think the Delta TP-305 is too big and heavy to be used on a flip-top base. So I guess I'll end up with a 10" rolling base for it after all.

Anyway, pictures so far. Pardon the messy background. Some of it is due to a lack of storage. Some of it is due to just throwing things around when I'm, uh, unhappy.

[JR]

Looks good to me, Anna! You get the stick-to-it award for the week, though.

Hang in there, it looks like it's going to come together nicely.

JR

[Tom Miller]

Ahhh, the true joy and sense of accomplish....what? Still too soon?

Trust me, you're going to tickled pink to have that thing once you start using it. Most of the time it's going to be flipped down, and you'll have a nicely sized mobile utility table. In fact, you might find that aspect of it more useful than the planer stand functionality -- good thing you made it a little oversized.

Yeah, I'm jealous.

Regards,
Tom

[Anna]

JR and Tom,

Thanks. Today wasn't so bad. I finished the edging for the "front" and the stretcher for the "back." I put those words in parentheses because I inadvertently turned the base around while I was working on it and I put the edging on the back and the stretcher in the front. It's a minor detail, and considering all the other things that have gone wrong and could go wrong, I'm counting my blessings.

Next step is building the drawer for the front. The cool thing is that with the stretcher in place, the base doesn't rack (rock?) anymore, making me feel a lot better about its stability.

Now I'm preparing for my next project: a jointer base. Yum.

-Anna

[gimpy]

Good job, Anna. What this shows me is the adaptability that you have. I think that is something we all need in this hobby, especially us (I mean me) newbies. I always do something wrong, it seems, but, somehow it usually turns out alright (maybe just OK). Maybe not exactly right, but good enough. Usually you are the only one that knows what has happened as others never know/notice. Again, from what I can see in your pics, it looks really good to me.

Frank

[Anna]

Okay, here's the "final" version. I managed to wedge a half-inch plywood between the two 3/4" pieces that formed part of the "shelf," and that finished that. I'm going to put the same stain on it tomorrow that I put on the rest of the oak plywood.

The drawer took me five hours to make, mainly because I kept changing my mind about how to build it. I didn't want to use drawer slides, so I used tempered hardboard for the bottom of the drawer. I dadoed the front and rabbeted the back to accommodate the sides, which is the first time I've done that (this is the fourth drawer I've ever built). Someday, I'll try the sliding dovetail technique.

That adaptability that I'm supposed to have? It''s one of those boon-or-bane things. I think I ended up fixing a lot of the stuff I "fixed." It's also become a source of amusement for my husband. He looked at the holes on the top where I misjudged the placement of the bolts, and he said that my planer base must be Catholic. I asked why. He said, "It's hole-y."

If anything, I think I'm getting pretty good at cutting stuff sized to fit. I'm now preparing my next project, which is the jointer base.

Thanks to everyone who offered me advice and allowed me to just vent. It's only my third project, and I've got a ways to go before I'm ready to build my Murphy bed. So you'll be hearing more venting from me.

[JR]

It looks great, Anna! Well done.

JR

[Texas splinter]

Anna, don't appologize, it looks good enough to put in a living room. Remembeer there is an old saying about mistakes; something like "Wisdom comes from experience, experience comes from making mistakes." I probably got that wrong but the key is to learn from your errors and press on.

[GeekMom]

Anna, you should be proud of your work. It looks great!

[Ken Weaver]

Anna - ya done good!! Be proud!

[Ken Massingale]

That's great, Anna. Can I place my order now? :-D
ken

[Anna]

Well, thanks, guys. I know I shouldn't complain too much about it. It works, and it seems pretty stable.

It was a real learning experience. First time to use hardwood for edging, first time to use rabbet-and-groove joinery, and that drawer is my most sophisticated so far (so you can imagine just how bad the other three are).

I'm determined to become good enough to build my Murphy bed and a bunch of cabinetry inside the house. My husband is already teasing me that this will be the most expensive Murphy bed ever, considering that I'm putting together an entire woodworking shop to do it. That'll teach him to let me pursue a hobby.

Anna