Time to get a move on with the coffee table build. I have a large offcut of butcher block from the kitchen countertop that I decided to use as a coffee table. I wanted a nice blocky/square look to it, and decided to try my hand at some welding (which I’ve never done before) so settled on a steel box section frame.
The table top is mostly finished and ready. It’s been sanded heavily and finished with the left over Danish Oil from my office desk build. I’ll wet sand it with the oil to finish it completely, once the frame’s ready.
The frame will be powder coated clear when ready, just to give it a bit of protection and to stop it from rusting immediately.
Here’s the table top (upside down) and the first cut of the top frame and legs:
The table top (right side up now) with some of the frame pieces, just testing for basic fit. Looks like there shouldn’t be much, if any, trimming needed.
Again, this project gave me an excuse to pick up a new tool. A decent sliding compound mitre saw, the Evolution Fury3. Cuts wood and metal, using the same blade, and does a pretty good job of it. Slapped together the stand for it, as the workbench isn’t quite deep enough for the slide.
Finished the workbench. Nice and sturdy, as it’s screwed into the masonry on two sides. The top is 18mm ply, which I might put a sheet of hardboard over at some point. The bottom shelf is just OSB, not even fixed in place so I can remove it and get underneath where theres a drainage channel. Gives some space to organize some of the crap in the garage, and frees up some space on the old, decrepit shelving on the opposite wall, so I can tear that down sometime and put up some better storage there as well.
Got to buy a jigsaw as well, fun :)
Now that i’ve got my office desk built, it’s time to add some storage and a workbench to the garage. Need somewhere to put all my stuff!
Starting with a simple workbench made from 2×4’s and some plywood. There’ll be a shelf underneath the bench and some pegboard above it once it’s done.
Gallery of the build:
The desk is done, finally. Put some cable management in place, and need some more as well, but it’s all up and running now.
Decided to repurpose the “shelves” under the desk to help manage the UPS and the power bar and cables. Speaker bass unit on top. Works pretty well.
MacBook with dual external 24 inch monitors:
So the full desk is basically in place now. It’s not quite finished though. Still need to finish/strengthen the supporting frame, add some more dowels to the butt joint between the 2 pieces (only 2 in there at the moment, just to locate the pieces), figure out how to deal with the uneven floors (the drawers and the desktop aren’t quite meeting correctly), and then bolt it all down.
It’s quite usable as is, but is just a tiny bit wobbly.
