johncbrownmd

I agree with previous comments that a cut list should be available on line for subscribers and for folks who bought the issue and want a cut list - one could give a code in the article to access the cut list online.
That would be the best of both worlds.

Very nice design and I have the perfect place for it. The design is key - not the wood; although free wood is great no matter what the species. Unfortunately in Miami Fl the free roadside wood is mostly bamboo and palm - try to make something out of that!

Also it's nice to know that everyone has a project to be finished. I told my wife that the first thing she says to me in the morning should not be a list of backlogged projects - she just can't help it though, especially when navigating through piles of materials.

I just completed a couple of kids lap desks from an online woodworking plan - scaled down to kid size for my niece and nephew and loaded with stuff from the Office Depot and some books recommended by Mom. They were to be all pine for weight considerations but I built the sides out of hard maple for durability and ease of joinery. Finished with Waterlux, steel wool/oil for a nice satin sheen. Can't really tell the two species of wood as all the top parts are pine. Plugged the screw holes with walnut plugs for contrast.

You can find the plans by googling children's lap desk.

Nice gift in this day and age of the computer screen.

1/4 ply is another dangerous rip - I had two kickbacks from this material, one requiring sutures to my hand. Use your guards and splitter.

Next time you get something protected by a styrofoam sheet and feed it through the saw to see the dynamics without the pain.

I have been injured on a tablesaw secondary to kickback of 1/4 ply (classic error) and on a router table, where using guards are problematic. Yes the guard was off the tablesaw and it was pre-riving knife on American made products.
The fact that riving knives are a recent addition to American made saws when they were standard in Europe really shows the true colors of American companies where the bottom line is king. American manufactures need policing to add safety standards. I got an aftermarket splitter and have been happy ever since until the router injury when I sold the 66 and got the professional SawStop.
That moment of not wanting to look down at what was left of my finger is something I did not want to repeat and it is only a matter of the proper set of conditions when the tablesaw is going to bite.
So the bottom line is American industries do not police themselves; the government has to do it for them but the biggest incentive is $$$ from lawsuits not user safety or the desire to build the safest product possible.
So if the lawsuit is a means to an end - so be it. Look at tobacco.....
And do not ignore the statistics of tablesaw injuries - I am sure that the majority of users did know what they were doing and used proper precautions until that one perfect set of circumstances resulting in injury.

I have been injured on a tablesaw secondary to kickback with a 1/4 ply (clasic story) and by a router table - where guards are a problem depending on the cut. I

I have been injured on a tablesaw secondary to kickback with a 1/4 ply (clasic story) and by a router table - where guards are a problem depending on the cut. I

Also to add to Cadabra's comments.

The guy who discovered Dilantin for seizure control did not patent the use of the medication as he thought it should be free for all to produce which dramatically reduces cost. Maybe Saw Stop take his or her led and allow other manufactures to use the technology. I am aware that the inventor is angry about the attempt of the other tablesaw manufacturers to block the use of his product but safety should super-cede.

Accidents will always happen - that is why they have a name for them and even though we try, the right circumstances combined with a dose of fatigue and the need to finish that last bit of cutting so we can start on another part of the project the next day.....

Two words - Saw Stop.

Also I do not see why congress has to mandate the riving knife - we knew it was necessary and produced aftermarket models for our deficient saws. I do not think the European saw makers needed a law to force them to make a safe tablesaw. I just don't get it. If the saw companies voluntarily added safety features more people would buy the saw and the industry would follow.

Again accidents will always happen. Saw Stop helps and will save fingers - kickback - well that is preventable will the guards and the riving knife and watching for thin potentially warped plywood.

Nice job with the demonstration. Too bad I missed the live version.

It's always nice to add another dimension to woodworking as inspired by this craftsman. Wood is constantly moving in nature and after project construction - this project highlights this - beautifully.