Serving Tray With Brass Handle Inserts

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SERVING TRAY WITH BRASS HANDLE INSERTS

This is a copy and paste of my  box joints with router table page.  Above serving tray completed on 02-20-24.  Length 17 1/4", Width 11 1/4", Height 3 inches at corners.  The bottom panel is 16 5/8 length x 10 3/4 inches width x 1/8 inch thickness.

LETS GET STATED WITH A PROTOTYPE 

 I had a piece of 3/4 inch plus width of walnut and ripped it in half using the table saw yielding two pieces 3/8 inch thick, however the saw cut wasn't perfect, but will do for testing purposes. 

The four pieces above has box joints routed using the above jig and will route a groove for the bottom using a scrap piece of 3/16 inch thick Burch plywood.  The box joints are slightly proud of the ends to allow for final sanding.

ROUTED THE GROOVE FOR THE BOTTOM

There was not much room to spare with the slot and will reduce the height of the next tray where there is a full width box joint at the bottom of the boards.  I believe I made this prototype about an inch taller than the original serving tray. The slot is 5/32 inch width.

The long sides of the tray has the slot stopped about half way in the box joint from the end, otherwise you will see the bottom panel.  The router table had a stop installed at each end and the material had to be lowered onto the spinning router bit, which can be dangerous if not very careful.

This is the same technique used when putting a bottom in a tray and/or napkin holder using dovetails.

ROUTER JIG FOR TRAY END PIECES

I made a router jig for the table router to profile the ends of the serving tray.  The ends will be cut to length and the curvature rough cut using the band saw to within an 1/8 inch of the profile and then placed on this jig.  A flush cut profile router bit will be used which has a bearing that will follow the curve of the profile pattern jig.  To keep from any tear out, the piece will first be routed starting at the center of the curve and the jig will be moved into the router bit from the right to the left.  Once that cut is make, the piece will be flipped over and re-clamped in the jig.  Normally, you will feed the material to be routed from the right to the left.

I used a pair of DeStaCo knock off clamps HH225D which to me works better than the DeStaCo 225U clamps, plus they are a lot cheaper. This jig is SN 383.

ROUTING THE HANDLE SLOT

I cut the slot in the test serving tray using a forstner drill bit at each end and then used the jig saw to complete the cuts.  However, this is too slow and required additional sanding and will use a router plunge bit the appropriate size and my mortise fixture.

Above first prototype serving tray completed less glue up.

USING MY PAT WARNER DESIGN MORTISE FIXTURE

I didn't do any sequence pixs of cutting the handle holes in the ends of the serving tray, but will show the fixture and explain what I did.  The handle slots in the original serving tray were 13/16 inch width and 2 15/16 inch length.  I did not have a router bit 13/16 inch in diameter, therefore I used a 1/2 inch diameter spiral up cut plunge router bit and routed an appropriate opening for your fingers.

The mortise fixture will allow you to set the east to west limits needed and also has stops for the North to South direction of the router.  As evidenced by the above pix, the mortise fixture and router does a beautiful job requiring little if any sanding!

 

Close up of the mortise jig and router.  The router can slide on the 3/8 inch stainless steel rods left to right and have the stops set to give me an approximate 13/16 inch width slot.  The opening in the Plexiglas top of the fixture is 3 inches wide by 6 3/4 inches length which will allow for any mortise that I might need!

If you are making a mortise the same width as your router bit, you tighten the two brass screws on the base of the router base which locks the router in place onto the stainless steel guide rods.

ROUTER JIG FOR END CURVATURE

I used scrap aka unallocated 3/4 inch birch plywood for the pattern jig to cut the curvature of the handle ends of the serving tray.  I later added a piece of wood and several layers of masking tape to fine tune it to the exact width that I needed.  My goal for the box joints was to have an equal width box joint at the top and bottom of the sides, therefore the modification to this jig.

The end pieces were rough cut on the band saw to about 1/8 inches of the line and then placed on the jig using a pattern bit that has a bearing that follows the curvature of the pattern jig.  The pattern router bit I used was way too long and have one that is 1 inch in length and will use that one when I set up to do a series of the serving tray.

End pieces ready to route the curve of the handle.

Ready to route the end pieces.

The pattern fixture aka jig leaves a good finish cut to the curvature requiring very little if any sanding.  I later went back and sanded the edges of the pattern jig to remove most of the band saw marks left.

I will show the glue up of the serving tray later and will round up some lumber and plywood for the bottom.  I plan to add a thin brass insert for each handle to give it additional strength, but will no doubt free hand the route.

JIG FOR ROUTING .025 BRASS

I am planning on building at lest six (6) or more of the serving trays, therefore I am thinking about routing the thin .025 inch thickness brass using my DeWalt 625 3 HP variable speed router using a pattern and a flush cut pattern router bit.  I have never routed brass or aluminum in the past, however I have used a scroll saw and jewelers saw blade to cut .062 inch brass which was very laborious to say the least and have stamped brass using a punch press and die set.  Here is an example:

Below is pix of example where I cut the tone holes in the nickel plated brass using the scroll saw and jewelers saw blades:

I did some research via YouTube and the internet how to cut brass using a router and it appears to be doable for sure.

FIXTURE/JIG CONSTRUCTION

I first made an exact wood pattern: one for marking the brass and the other for the wood pattern to use with the router and a flush cut pattern router bit.

There will be about 3/16 inch width inside the outer edge (curvature) of the handle area and the wood pattern was cut to size using the band saw, table saw, miter saw and final sanding to the edge of the line traced onto the wood.  The center portion was cut out using my Pat Warner design mortise fixture first while the wood was full length.

Five (5) small countersinked holes were drilled into the pattern for attaching the brass plate.

Scrap wood was used to fabricate the fixture/jig and above pix the first stage to make the base plate.

I glued a double layer of the pattern so the bottom of the pattern flush cut router bit would have clearance since it has a nut on the base to hold the bear and the carbide cutter in to the shaft of the router bit.

I rounded up addition scrap wood to extend the length of the fixture/jig to give plenty of real estate for the large router base.

From this angle (view) you can see the actual pattern is below the surface of the top base plate to allow for stacking several pieces on brass to the pattern using flat head screws.

To use the fixture/jig, the brass will first be marked and drilled using the pattern marking plate.  A hole drilled in the center portion to allow for threading a jig saw blade and cutting the inside portion where you fingers will go and then cut the outside shape slightly oversize of the pattern jig.  The brass plates will then be screw to the pattern and routed using the DeWalt 625 variable speed router with reduced speed around 12K RPM using a flush cut pattern router bit.  This jig is SN 384.

Above with the pattern glued in place to the fixture jig.

There was a good amount of time to make the fixture/jig up to this point and I certainly do hope it works as intended, grin if you must!  Otherwise, the brass plates will be cut free hand on the scroll saw! 

NOTE:  After cutting out the brass handle insert with the scroll saw and a # 6 jewelers saw blade, I decided not to use the above router jig for the brass.

ROUTER PATTERN JIG FOR THE CUT OUT IN THE HANDLE

If the above jig works ok, I will fabricate a router jig using a guide bushing to inlay the brass insert into the handle of the serving tray.

Above is part of the jig making process to route the cut out for the handle brass insert.  The top is a pattern cut, of which I started to make the cut on the band saw, but switched over to the scroll saw using a jewelers saw blade.  The next portion is the actual route in a test piece of wood which I had to fine tune the upper jig a few times to get the bottom pattern to fit in the routed portion.

In essence, I used a small DeWalt DWP611PK 1 1/4 HP plunge router with a 3/8 inch outside diameter guide bushing with a 1/4 inch solid carbide up cut router bit which means I had to increase the lower pattern size .062 inches all around.  I marked around the lower pattern with a Sharpie marker and had a thin piece of wood between the pattern and the marker to give me an approximate .062 inch clearance or increase in the pattern.  Again, it was very laborious; e.g., trial and error.  With CNC, this would be a piece of cake, but have to use what is available in my woodworking shop. 

A pix of the pattern inside the jig cut out for the router.  It is not perfect, but close enough!  I later glued a small piece of wood to fill in the gap left by the band saw blade to keep the wood from opening up any further.

Pix showing the router guide bushing with the exposed 1/4 inch diameter router bit.  The guide bushing will follow the inside cut out of the wood pattern.  As stated, there is .125 inch total difference between the outside diameter of the guide bushing which is .375 inches and the .250 inch diameter router bit., which equates to .0625 inches all around the pattern desired.

A jig to position the end tray member to be pattern routed.  I am figuring this jig out as I go and will no doubt mount this jig onto a larger piece of Burch plywood to give the small router base more real estate to work with.

The router pattern will need to be precisely located in position on top of the serving tray handle end.

BRASS HANDLE INSERT CONSTRUCTION

I "changed horses in the middle of the stream", so to speak and after cutting one of the brass plates out with the scroll saw using a # 6 jewelers saw blade, I could cut freehand to the pattern close enough without having to use the router jig made for the brass. 

In the past, I cut mother of pearl and abalone musical instrument inlay patterns and was very accurate with the scroll saw.  After cutting the above brass handle insert, years of experience quickly came back and no need to route the outside profile of the brass insert. 

After cutting a couple of the inserts out, the light bulb came on and I decided to rough cut the outside profile from the sheet brass which is 6 x 12 inches x .025 inches using my Milwaukee 4.5 inch angle head grinder with a thin friction cut off wheel which cut the thin brass easily.

I first marked the pattern onto the brass using a extra fine Sharpie marker, then used a 1/8 inch diameter center transfer punch and marked the screw holes.  I then went to the small drill press and used a 120 degree countersink bit for the screw holes.  I then drilled a 1/8 inch diameter hole inside the cut out where your fingers will go on the brass/serving tray handle to thread the jewelers saw blade to complete the cut out. 

After the center finger hole was cut out, I then took the brass handle insert to the 6 x 48 inch belt sander and sanded the outside diameter to the line marked.  This was "working smarter, not harder" in my humble opinion.  I checked the fit with a test route piece of material.

I was able to get five (5) brass handle inserts from one piece of the 6 x 12 inch .025 inch sheet brass.

I am thinking about building six (6) of the serving trays for family and one for our neighbors.

On Monday, our Lord willing of course, I will complete the router jig for the handle brass insert.  There is not much room for error in this jig since the routing jig has to be precisely aligned over the top of the serving tray handle end which already has the cut out for your fingers routed into the wood piece.  I increased the width of the router jig pattern and mounted the base to a piece of birch plywood to give more real estate for the router which has the guide bushing and the 1/4 inch diameter up cut solid carbide flat bottom router bit.

INSTALLING BRASS HANDLE REINFORCEMENT

The brass insert was placed into the cavity excavated aka routed out and then used a 7/64 inch spring loaded self-centering drill guide, pix below which works for # 6 wood screws:

 

I then used a 80 degree tapered countersink drill bit to account for the taper of the flat head screws, pix below:

 

ROUTER JIG PATTERN FOR CUT OUT CONTINUED

 

In the above pix, I have glued additional side material to the router profile pattern cut out jig which hopefully will allow me to position the above jig on top (pattern plate) of the base plate that positions/holds the serving tray ends in place.  I will trim the sides to the desired width.

I also glued in additional strips of wood on the sides of the jig that is flush aka level with the serving tray end piece that will contain the brass inlay handle reinforcement that will strengthen the handle area.  I have marked where the brass inlay will be positioned once routed out.

I screwed a piece of 4 x 4 scrap wood to each end of the above fixture/jig to elevate the jig off the table and/or circular saw table where I will clamp the fixture down.

I will have to figure out a hold down method to keep the top router pattern in place and do have enough material on each side for alignment pins.  I will probably glue a couple more filler strips of wood the same height as the serving tray end piece to keep it from moving; East to West.  The North to South portion is secured in place with end stops with a few thousands of an inch clearance.

ROUTER PATTERN PROFILE JIG COMPLETED

The pattern profile was fixed into position over the serving tray end piece using # 6 drywall screws 1 1/8 inch in length.  I used a tapered pilot and countersink hole drill and drilled in several places on the outside of the pattern profile to keep the pattern profile jig in place and flat to the piece to be routed.  This jig was more or less "fly by the seat of your pants" and figured it out as I went!

There is plenty of real estate surface for the small router to move on with the additional "wings" added to the original pattern profile jig I made earlier.

The serving tray end piece is routed for handle brass insert.  I used a chisel to clean the top edges of the piece routed.

This pattern profile router jig is not perfect, but not too shabby for making the jig freehand without the benefit of a CNC machine.  I am sure there are better ways to construct the profile jig using intermediate profile jigs using the master pattern to locate from.  This jig is SN 385.

NOTE:  I definitely made the router profile pattern jig the hard way since Whiteside offers a router inlay kit # 9500 which allows you to make a profile pattern jig using a template, which in my case would be the wood master pattern used to cut the brass inlay and you then make a template using their router bushing(s).  In the future, I will purchase the inlay kit for my next inlay project!

I will route the box joints in the end pieces and side of the serving tray and then route a 5/32 inch width groove in the bottom of the members for the 1/8 inch thick Birch plywood panel aka bottom.

ROUTING GROOVE FOR THE BOTTOM OF SERVING TRAY

Above stops that control the length of the groove in the handle ends of the serving tray.  As stated earlier, you have to lower the end piece onto the spinning router bit which can be dangerous destroying your end piece and could hurt yourself.

Alternate method would use a router on top of the end piece, but you could easily ruin the piece since there is little margin of error between the groove which is 5/32 inch width and only 3/8 inch width of the box joint.

No stops were needed for the sides of the serving tray.

GLUED THE SERVING TRAY TOGETHER

With making only maybe seven (7) +- serving trays, I will not make a glue-up fixture just for the serving trays, but will use clamps as above.

One of two serving trays without a brass insert which were my test trays!

TO COMPLETE THE SERVING TRAY

The serving tray box joints will be sanded flush when glue is dried overnight, final sanding and inserting and screwing in place the brass handle inserts.  When the weather permits, a few coats of musical instrument grade lacquer will be sprayed onto the serving tray.

I have an adjustable # 6 drill centering bit to drill pilot holes into the ends of the serving tray to secure the brass inserts.

When using pattern profile jigs and fixtures, it is imperative that all your parts to be milled/profiled be as accurate as possible to locate to the jig for repeatability. 

FINISHED PROTOTYPE SERVING TRAY

I sanded the serving tray and installed the handle brass inserts and then sprayed a couple coats of lacquer on the serving tray.  This prototype serving tray will be SN 386. I have two other test serving trays to complete which will not have the brass inserts.

I am well pleased with the serving tray.  I decided not to stain the Baltic Burch plywood bottom and I like the contrast between the two woods.  I have mahogany wood ordered to complete additional serving trays for family members and our closest neighbor, our Lord willing of course.

STARTED EIGHT ADDITIONAL SERVING TRAYS

I received the mahogany wood ordered and got the ends and sides cut to dimensions along with cutting the curved portion of the serving tray end pieces.

Today being 02-23-2024, I started routing the cavity out for the handle brass inserts.  I reworked my router jig by adding additional shims glued to the sides for a flush fit of the end piece to prevent torking the upper router profile pattern.

As stated earlier, the end pieces are marked from the profile pattern and band sawed close to the line and then clamped onto the router profile jig and using the router table.

The profile router table jig for the handle curve saves a bunch of time and sanding in my humble opinion.

I was short brass for the handle inserts and ordered a 6 x 12 x .025 inch piece which will give me five (5) units.

PROJECT MOVING ALONG

I glued up two serving trays today (02-26-2024) and test fit the other six (6) units.  I had four end pieces that had the box joints in the wrong orientation, (my bad) and cut the box joints off and routed them again which shortened the width of two of the serving trays approximately one inch.  The box joints on a couple were "tight as two coats of paint" because I didn't have enough scrap aka unallocated material to adjust the box joint jig to fine tune it properly.

The above Bessey parallel clamps bar clamps worked good for this project.  I used them on my custom keepsake boxes, but did not like them.  The Merle band clamps worked much better keeping things at a right angle.

I sprayed a couple coats of musical grade instrument lacquer on the serving tray that did not have handle brass inserts (test serving tray).

I will get into my cruise control mode aka retirement mode and glue up one serving tray each day and do a final sanding on it and install the brass inserts into the handle ends.  When the weather permits, I will then apply a couple coats of musical instrument grade lacquer.

Cutting the brass handle inserts was the most time consuming and challenging part of this project.

FINAL SERVING TRAY COMPLETED

I sprayed a couple coats of Deft lacquer on the last serving tray completed.  It rained a day or two and put the project on hold until today.

This has been another fun woodworking project and I am going to insert a table of the cost for the 10 serving trays that have the brass handle reinforcements.  I did a couple test serving trays without brass inserts using scrap aka unallocated wood.

SERVING TRAYS COST

143.38 Mahogany wood
46.01 Baltic Birch plywood 1/8 inch thick
74.10 Brass .025 x 6 x 12 inches 4 pieces
11.83 # 6 flat head brass screws 3/8 inch length - shorted to 5/16
30.00 Deft lacquer - 3 cans, a couple were partial cans
4.00 Titebond Ultimate III wood glue 4 to 5 ozs. used
   
309.32 TOTAL COST

Web page created by Bill aka Mickey Porter on 01-26-2024 and updated on 02-02-2024, 02-03-2024, 02-10-2024, 02-16-2024,   02-17-2024, 02-19-2024, 02-22-2024, 02-23-2024 and 02-26-2024.

LEAVING ON A SPIRITUAL NOTE

If you do not know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, please take this moment to accept him by Faith into your Life, whereby Salvation will be attained.   

Ephesians 2:8 - 2:9 8  For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: [it is] the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.

Hebrews 11:1 “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”

Romans 10:17 “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”

Open this link about faith in the King James Bible.

Romans 10:9 “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.”

Open this link of Bible Verses About Salvation, King James Version Bible (KJV).

Hebrews 4:12 “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”

Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

Romans 3:23 “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;”

Micah 6:8 “He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?”

Philippians 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me."

IN GOD WE TRUST - GOD BLESS AMERICA - "FOR GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD, THAT HE GAVE HIS ONLY BEGOTTEN SON, THAT WHOSOEVER BELIEVETH IN HIM SHOULD NOT PERISH, BUT HAVE EVERLASTING LIFE"   JOHN 3:16 KJV 

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