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I struggled for a few days trying to figure out the best place to put this thread... unfortunately I couldn't find the dakka cabinetry subforum, so I hope it's ok that I'm posting it here...

I have played Warhammer on everything from dining room tables, ping pong tables, to the floor (as I'm sure most of you have). When I recently moved to a larger place I finally had the room to have a room that can be dedicated to nothing but the grim dark, so instead of going out and just buying a dining room table or some kind make shift "it will work well enough" kind of product I decided I wanted something that looked the part of a 40k table and gave players a sense of awe when they saw it.

So this is my project log for producing said table. I have never made anything out of wood or tried to make any kind of furniture before, so it has been quite the learning experience.

I knew I wanted a larger table as my local group tends to play larger games with super heavies regularly. The biggest the room could support was 8x4ft, so that is what I went with. I also wanted it to be counter or bar height as I feel it will be much more comfortable to play with out having to lean over all the time. I wanted LED lighting and also really wanted to have some kind of fog effect but have thus far not been able to come up with a viable solution. Fog machines get very hot and the liquid they work with can leave an oily residue, not good for painted miniatures. I also looked into ultrasonic foggers but they don't seem to work very well from what I have read. If anyone has any ideas please let me know! I would love to figure out a solution to this.

I decided to go with pine as it is the most reasonable and the budget for this project is already kind of out of control.

Now some pictures!

This is the way we used to play at my old 1bedroom apartment we just moved away from:


What it looks like when you and your friend get a bunch of lumber and load it into a compact car:


First load of wood delivered and ready to go:


None of this would be any fun without.... power tools.


Work begins!:


Stay tuned! More to come soon!


Automatically Appended Next Post:
The frame together:


My better half posing with the top and bottom frames for scale/height:


Progressing a little more... Sides and the corner columns are starting to come together:


The Servo Skulls that will go on top of each of the columns:


Base of the play area is in and one of the columns is more together:


Stay tuned! More to come soon!


Automatically Appended Next Post:
I placed screws every 3 inches along the hand railings, both to give it some detail and what I think will ultimately play in to the 40k theme and also to give some quick measurement assistance for shooting/moving and deployment:


A quick test fit with my Realm of battle board (good news.... it fits!):


Another quick test on the lighting effects:




This is kind of the look that the servo skulls will have on the columns:


Pay no attention to the loose boards in various places, everything will be squared up and screwed down once it's finished.

Stay tuned! More to come later...

No woodworking experience, you say? I know a few carpenters that would hire you on the spot, regardless.

I'm really liking the design - the two large, hollow columns for support instead of the usual legs and cross-braces keep your toes safe and still adds potential storage space below the table (I assume you'll be adding shelves to use them as cabinets?), all while looking cleaner and more substantial. An elegant design, really - highly functional, but with some thematic and artistic flair thrown in, for good measure. Excited to see further progress!

 oadie wrote:
No woodworking experience, you say? I know a few carpenters that would hire you on the spot, regardless.

I'm really liking the design - the two large, hollow columns for support instead of the usual legs and cross-braces keep your toes safe and still adds potential storage space below the table (I assume you'll be adding shelves to use them as cabinets?), all while looking cleaner and more substantial. An elegant design, really - highly functional, but with some thematic and artistic flair thrown in, for good measure. Excited to see further progress!

Wow... thank you so much! And yes this is my first venture into working with wood, and I have to say it has been a lot of fun and certainly won't be my last. I am planning to make the "feet" into shelved storage to hold terrain and actually plan to also run boards across from one "foot" to the other, leaving them open on both ends so that I can store extra battle boards. I hope to keep them high enough up that they are not really noticeable unless you actually know to look for them. I also plan to finish the "feet" better so that it matches the finish of the top of the table.

The rest of the Servo Skulls have arrived:


The trim detail is installed around the sides:


Some gratuitous play area shots with LEDs on:



and one last regular old boring table shot:


That's all for now! I should be about finished up with the upper part of the tables construction soon, and then on to staining!

Very nice so far! Are you planning on staining the wood?

BaronVonSnakPak wrote:
Very nice so far! Are you planning on staining the wood?

Yeah I'm planning on going with something like a mahogany color and probably a semi-gloss sealer.

bladeiai wrote:

BaronVonSnakPak wrote:
Very nice so far! Are you planning on staining the wood?

Yeah I'm planning on going with something like a mahogany color and probably a semi-gloss sealer.

Cool, that should compliment the LEDs nicely.

Oh man oh man thats a fair bit of awesome.

Good job.

What a great table!

I wish my lack of woodworking experience looked like your lack of experience!

I can't wait to see the finished product.

Epic multiplied by epic.

Really looking forward to seeing the end result.

Disappointed that this has nothing to do with Epic 40k.

I saw something kinda similar that you are building at gen con, so I gotta say congrats on saving 8 grand ! Can't wait to see how it turns out.

Awesome board, for a novice the workmanship is great. Looking forward to seeing the completed board!

In on kickass thread with a super quality table build. Rawr that's some goodness right there. The servo skull bit is awesome. Will you have drink holders integrated somewhere in the design?

Thank you all for the kind words!

 PrehistoricUFO wrote:
In on kickass thread with a super quality table build. Rawr that's some goodness right there. The servo skull bit is awesome. Will you have drink holders integrated somewhere in the design?

I'm glad you asked this, yes I definitely plan to incorporate drink holders. The issue so far has been that I have not been able to find any that work how I would like them to. I wand something to attach under the table and flip forward for use but be hidden completely when not in use. I may have to make something myself if I can't find what I need.

And a little update, this is the prototype for the modular dice trays I will be making to attach to the sides of the table.


Also we played a test game on the table last night, and I'm very happy to report that the table is the perfect height for playing. I was rather worried it would be to high just because it looks so much taller than normal furniture.

As a furniture builder I'd say you have to an A+ job as your first venture into wood working. I'm loving the LEDs man. For the finish coat I 'd suggest using Old masters Gel Polyurethane varnish. You put it on with a rag in a wax on wipe off motion (wiping off excess in the direction of the grain) so you can build it up to your desired glossiness. It also wont sag or drip at all.

Make sure you post a battle report on this bad boy when its done!

 Opeth30 wrote:
As a furniture builder I'd say you have to an A+ job as your first venture into wood working. I'm loving the LEDs man. For the finish coat I 'd suggest using Old masters Gel Polyurethane varnish. You put it on with a rag in a wax on wipe off motion (wiping off excess in the direction of the grain) so you can build it up to your desired glossiness. It also wont sag or drip at all.

Make sure you post a battle report on this bad boy when its done!

Thanks man! I'll be sure to check that varnish out. Is it something you can get in a Lowes/Home Depot or do I need to find it online? I am actually having a table launching / house warming party to kick things off in January, and it will be played on this table and another 3x3ft table that will be represent subterranean corridors under the battle field. So far it looks like it's going to be a 21,000+ point game. Here is the flyer:

bladeiai wrote:

 Opeth30 wrote:
As a furniture builder I'd say you have to an A+ job as your first venture into wood working. I'm loving the LEDs man. For the finish coat I 'd suggest using Old masters Gel Polyurethane varnish. You put it on with a rag in a wax on wipe off motion (wiping off excess in the direction of the grain) so you can build it up to your desired glossiness. It also wont sag or drip at all.

Make sure you post a battle report on this bad boy when its done!

Thanks man! I'll be sure to check that varnish out. Is it something you can get in a Lowes/Home Depot or do I need to find it online? I am actually having a table launching / house warming party to kick things off in January, and it will be played on this table and another 3x3ft table that will be represent subterranean corridors under the battle field. So far it looks like it's going to be a 21,000+ point game. Here is the flyer:

That subterranean battle board sounds so cool. I would totally go if I actually have 3500 points of any army

By the gods thats going to be insane haha, I wish I lived closer! I've always gotten it from home depot but I'm sure lowes also sells it too. If you go for it just be sure your stain is also oil based so the varnish doesn't repel.

here it is
http://www.myoldmasters.com/products-intclear-oilbased-gelpoly.htm

 Ustrello wrote:
That subterranean battle board sounds so cool. I would totally go if I actually have 3500 points of any army

Well if you are in the Maryland area and want to come by just to check things out you can. This is the underground/corridor board:

 Opeth30 wrote:
By the gods thats going to be insane haha, I wish I lived closer! I've always gotten it from home depot but I'm sure lowes also sells it too. If you go for it just be sure your stain is also oil based so the varnish doesn't repel.

here it is
http://www.myoldmasters.com/products-intclear-oilbased-gelpoly.htm

I will pick some up next time I'm at Home Depot, and I am using oil based stain so it should be all good. Thanks again for the recommendation.

This table will be something of legend

which company made the underground system if so I want one! if handmade I envy you!

 Great White wrote:
This table will be something of legend

Thanks to you sir. You are a gentleman and a scholar.

 e.earnshaw wrote:
which company made the underground system if so I want one! if handmade I envy you!

They are from a kickstarter I backed, which he is still fulfilling so he hasn't started reselling yet, but will once he is done. This is the kickstarter:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/981366386/corridor-sets-from-sci-fi-to-steampunk-available

It's great stuff and he has a lot more things he is planning to release in the future.

I was excited about the table I built...then I saw your thread and I burned my table to the ground.

Just kidding but seriously your table is sick.

Whoa what a motivating thread! I hope you don't plan on moving again anytime soon lol. That thing looks heavy! But almost all things of quality are.

I would probably forget about the fog idea. I'm right there with you thinking that it would look outright amazing, but I don't think you can do it without damaging your models over time. Maybe just photoshop the fog into your pictures

For the cup holders have you considered something like this:



You can see that it has holes in the back that you can use to screw it to the table. Maybe the insides of the posts? You could get 8 cup holders on an looking nice that way. I think you'll like that they fold up and aren't in your way when you aren't using them. The drinks also wouldn't be resting on the table leaving rings and whatnot.

Looks really good keep up the good work! I'm excited to see what it looks like after its been stained!

Rx8Speed wrote:
Whoa what a motivating thread! I hope you don't plan on moving again anytime soon lol. That thing looks heavy! But almost all things of quality are.

I would probably forget about the fog idea. I'm right there with you thinking that it would look outright amazing, but I don't think you can do it without damaging your models over time. Maybe just photoshop the fog into your pictures

For the cup holders have you considered something like this:

You can see that it has holes in the back that you can use to screw it to the table. Maybe the insides of the posts? You could get 8 cup holders on an looking nice that way. I think you'll like that they fold up and aren't in your way when you aren't using them. The drinks also wouldn't be resting on the table leaving rings and whatnot.

Looks really good keep up the good work! I'm excited to see what it looks like after its been stained!

Yeah I have given up on the fog idea unfortunately... It just doesn't seem feasible at this point. I saw those cup holders on amazon, but I don't really have anywhere to put them, and I really want the cup holders to be completely hidden when not in use. If I can't find something better I may have to go with that though.

On a side note I am by chance a fellow RX8 Owner, this is it on Race day:

I don't know how you would completely hide them. The best I can think of is to use a router, on the insides of the poles, to get a square inset so the cup holder is flush with the pole when folded up. You can then put some kind of gw medal on it to make it look 40k-ish. There's chrome versions of the cup holder too which might look better. Only concern is whether the cup will still fit with the holder indented in the wood


is that... chrome!?? or is it just that clean? If that's chrome I'm eternally jealous! I also like the hood pattern and metallic turquoise lugnuts!

Mine is my daily so there's nothing special to it. Here's a gakky pic of it with snow tires on taken last year (only one I gave at work with me lol). And don't worry I'm not driving it this winter! It is my garage princess till next april and never again will it have steelies

Rx8Speed wrote:

I don't know how you would completely hide them. The best I can think of is to use a router, on the insides of the poles, to get a square inset so the cup holder is flush with the pole when folded up. You can then put some kind of gw medal on it to make it look 40k-ish. There's chrome versions of the cup holder too which might look better. Only concern is whether the cup will still fit with the holder indented in the wood


is that... chrome!?? or is it just that clean? If that's chrome I'm eternally jealous! I also like the hood pattern and metallic turquoise lugnuts!

Mine is my daily so there's nothing special to it. Here's a gakky pic of it with snow tires on taken last year (only one I gave at work with me lol). And don't worry I'm not driving it this winter! It is my garage princess till next april and never again will it have steelies

Spoiler:

That is a good idea, I'll to give it some more thought and see if there are any other options out there.

Thanks! The car is just Sunlight Silver, I just washed and waxed it the day before. I don't know if you do or have ever considered doing Autocross, but the hood is great for that if you ever do. As I'm sure you know the 8 generate massive amounts of heat and the hood is great because when you do a run you push the car super hard and then go and get back into grid and then just sit there until your next turn, so the alternative is you get out and fan the crap out of the hood to try and bring the temps back down.

Your car looks good man! Love the red and I have the same interior colors. If you haven't ever tried autocross out I highly recommend it. You would be amazed at what the 8 can do with a set of good tires on it.

Back on topic, I got the other LEDs installed and finished up the rest of the dice tray prototype. I will try to get some pictures up tonight or tomorrow.

It might be cool to put admec circles on the holders.

it would fit the servo skull theme.

That's not a table, it's a gamer's dream came true! Great job!

As for the drink holders, have you tried looking for sliding/pull out cup/drink holders?

Got some results with that, mixed in among car cup holders (Don't think you can use one in your car though!)

Try out also poker tables/gamers suppliers, drinks and tables seem a very popular combo there too...

That looks awesome man, how far outside of Baltimore are you? Dunno if I can make the 11th but it looks like it will be a blast.