Then, just as I got “rolling” on this project, my lathe decided to go on strike! Most of us would agree that woodworking is a proving ground of the old saying, “necessity is the mother of invention.” That is what drove me to create my rolling pin jig. I managed to mill the sleeves round, cut the grooves and even make the handles with a table saw, router and this new jig. In the next few pages, I’ll show you how it is done and, along the way, I’ll introduce you to the bird’s-mouth router bit and teach you how to make large diameter dowels on the router table.

Fashioning the Sleeve Blanks

Everything in this project is determined by the size of the rolling pin sleeves, so they need to be made first. Six segments (pieces 18) form a hexagon that gets milled round in the jig later. Mill your stock flat and straight. Remember that you are making three sleeves, so you need 18 pieces for your three-roller set. You will certainly want to make up a few extras for setups. My sleeves were to be 9-1/2″ long, so I cut 20 pieces a bit long — 10″.

I set up the bird’s-mouth bit in the router table. Into one edge of the piece, this ingenious bit cuts an angled notch, which mates with the square end of the next, forming a 60° angle. Setting the bit is not difficult: the top part of the notch should be 5/8″ long (the same as the thickness of the end it mates with, as shown in the photos and illustrations). The peaks of the hexagon will get milled off, so the joint only needs to be close. Mill one long edge of each part, then dry-fit them together.

The width determines the overall diameter of the finished sleeve, which should end up just about 3″ at the smallest point. Spread glue into the notches and assemble them. For clamping, I used several rubber bands wrapped around the assembly. After they are done drying, trim off the ends, but leave them a bit long.

Creating the Core

The sleeves you just made will slip over a core that also holds the handles. Since the interiors of the sleeves are hexagonal, the core needs to be as well. It also needs a hole through the center to house one of the threaded rods (piece 19). Rather than try and drill a straight hole through the core, I made it in two parts (pieces 20), with a groove along the center of each.

Carefully measure the inside of the sleeve along the widest point. That is the overall width of the core halves, with the thickness being half the small width of the sleeve. Mill the groove down the center of both halves. Then set the bevel angle on the saw to a 30° tilt, and bevel each long edge of the blanks. Test the fit inside the sleeve before gluing these pieces up, and be sure to err on the side of too large. Later, you can joint the faces of the core to adjust the fit.

Routing the HDPE End Caps

The end caps (pieces 21) keep the sleeves in place on the core. I milled them from 1/2″ HDPE (high density polyethylene). Inexpensive plastic cutting boards are a great source for this material. I drilled a 1/4″ pilot hole in the plastic, then used a router and trammel to cut a circular groove halfway through the plastic. The inner ring formed this way (bottom photo, right) was cut to fit close inside the sleeve. I then reset the trammel and cut their overall 2-7/8″ diameters.

Assembling the Jig Box

The trick to milling the hexagonal sleeves round is a box-style jig. It holds the core and sleeve assembly so it can be turned underneath a router bit. On top of the box, a sliding plate guides the router back and forth along the length of the box. Although I only needed one point to turn the rolling pin under the router, I made the ends with slots at three levels so I could use the jig for other projects with different diameters (see Drawings). The ends (pieces 1) are cut to size and notched for the sides. To make the slots, I used a 1/4″ drill bit at the endpoints and I cut the slots at the band saw. I then cut the sides (pieces 2) to length. Assemble the jig with glue and screws, and add the clamping blocks (pieces 3).

Building the Router Slide

The router slides across the top of the jig box on a custom base. It needs to slide easily but be snug enough to not shift, spoiling the grooves during milling. I used 1/2″ Baltic birch for the base and attached a fixed fence to one side (pieces 4 and 5). To keep it snug, I attached a spring-loaded fence (piece 6) to the other side of the base. It consists of a base part with offset spacers and face strips to provide a stiff spring action, keeping the slide tracking smoothly (see Drawings).

To be sure that the router is properly centered, I mounted the slide on the jig box and transferred the center lines. Then I drilled the mounting holes and through hole for the router. Bore the through hole large enough so you’ll be able to see your work.

Adding the Indexing System

Rounding the hexagonal sleeve is smoother and easier with the router drawn fluidly along the length of the jig. Cutting evenly spaced grooves on the other two sleeves is impossible without an accurate indexing system. Both of these are accomplished using a threaded rod system mounted to the outside of the jig (see Drawings).

Fix one of the rods (piece 7) to the jig side with steel angle brackets (pieces 8). The outer hole in the bracket is drilled out to 1/4″. Set jamb nuts and washers (pieces 9 and 10) to either side of the bracket so that the threaded rod does not slide side to side. Add a cross dowel (piece 11) between the brackets to connect the slide to the indexing rod, and fabricate the small crank (pieces 12, 13 and 14) for the end. Use two nuts tightened against one another anywhere the nuts must stay tight.

Drill a hole into the bottom of the cross dowel bracket (piece 15) of the slide plate. The cross dowel fits into this hole, allowing the indexing system to move the slide back and forth.

The last pieces of the jig to add are a pair of locking cleats (pieces 16). The assembly will be mounted on a threaded rod resting in one of the slots at the ends of the jig box. You’ll fix these locking cleats in place on the jig with pairs of hex head wood screws and washers, to trap the rod in its slots.

Mounting the Rolling Pin

The second piece of threaded rod, along with two sleeve clamp discs (pieces 17), jamb nuts and washers are used to hold the rolling pin assembly in the jig for milling. Another crank handle assembly is attached to one end, then sets of jamb nuts and washers are placed at each side of the jig box ends to keep the assembly from moving back and forth. Set the rolling pin in the center of the jig box with the clamp discs and jamb nuts and tighten to keep the assembly from slipping on the threaded rod as you move on to turning it.

Rounding the Sleeves

For rounding, a standard straight cutter can be used, but there are better choices. A round-nose (or core box) bit cuts more smoothly, since the rounded end takes a shallow cut at the edge and deeper toward the center. This really reduces the possibility of tearout. Because of its round tip, the core box bit needs to be moved in small increments to leave a smooth surface behind. The best bit is a dish carving bit. It has the same smooth cutting properties as the core box, but a wide flat in the center means that the cuts overlap, leaving a very smooth finish.

With the rolling pin mounted in the jig, and the router mounted on the slide base, turn the indexing handle until the router is off the end of the sleeve. Plunge the router down and lock it. Only take a shallow cut at first. With the router running, begin slowly turning the rolling pin assembly and the indexing handle at the same time. The router will begin shaving the high spots off the hexagonal sleeve. Do not let go of the rolling pin handle, or the rotating bit will tend to spin it fairly rapidly! Keep moving the slide across the jig evenly until you reach the other end. Then lower the bit and mill back across. Continue this process just until the sleeve is round.

Cutting the Grooves

Obviously, one of the sleeves will be left as a smooth cylinder. The other two get grooved, and the indexing system allows you to cut evenly spaced grooves. The threaded rod has 20 threads per inch, so each full turn of the rod moves the router bit by 0.05″. For the narrow strips, we want 1/4″ grooves spaced 1/8″ apart. So center to center, the bit needs to move 3/8″, or 0.375″. That means 7-1/2 turns per groove. In order to ensure even ends, mark the center of the sleeve length, and start there. With the router unplugged, plunge the bit down to the surface of the sleeve.

Now set the depth stop to 1/8″ deep. With the router running, plunge it down slowly as you turn the rolling pin assembly. Be sure to turn the assembly so that the groove is an even depth all the way around. With the center groove done, move the bit over by turning the indexing handle 7-1/2 turns, and start the next groove. Work from the center to one end, then return to the center and work across the other half.

The last sleeve is grooved wider, but the process is the same. I used a 1/2″ round-nosed bit and cut no more than 3/16″ deep. Center to center, these grooves should be 5/8″ apart, or 0.625″. This works out to 12-1/2 turns. (In either case, you can actually just do eight or 13 turns and ignore the half, since you will be trimming the ends of the sleeves later, making the grooves even. You can use a small sander to smooth the sleeves while they’re still in the jig.

Shaping the Handles

The last parts to make are the handles (pieces 22). You may be able to find handles at a craft store, or you can buy 3/4″ or 1″ dowels. I chose to make my own in the shop. I started with a 1″ x 1″ piece of stock and installed a 1/2″ roundover bit in the router table. For safety, I made the stick several inches longer than needed. Leave the ends square and rout the center section only, rounding over all four long edges. Cut the handles 5″ long, then round their ends. I used the same setup to do this, but I moved the fence in a little and added a block to rest the handle against as I rolled the end over the bit. Then I drilled a 1/4″ hole three inches in to each handle, followed by a 1/2″ counterbore deep enough to house two jamb nuts (pieces 23).

I finished all of the wood parts with three coats of salad bowl finish, lightly sanding between coats. Wax the core to ensure that the sleeves will slide smoothly on and off.

Final Project Assembly

Trim your three sleeves to final length. Mine were 9-1/2″, but it can vary a bit to even out your grooves. All three do need to be the same length. Cut the core section 1/2″ shorter, to account for the step in the end caps. Now cut the threaded rod to length (add up the sleeve plus the endcaps, plus three inches for each handle. (In my case, this was 16 inches overall.)

Now thread two nuts onto one end of the threaded rod, about 3″ in from the end, and jam them together there. Use epoxy to glue this end of the rod into one of the handles. Wax another scrap of threaded rod, turn two nuts onto it, and epoxy them into the other handle. As the epoxy begins to harden, carefully unscrew the threaded rod from the second handle, leaving the nuts behind, glued in place in the handle. You now have one handle with 13 inches of threaded rod in it, and another with just the nuts embedded in it.

To assemble the rolling pin, slide one end cap down the threaded rod, then the core, one of the sleeves and the other end cap. Thread on the other handle. To change sleeves, simply disassemble the parts, slip the new sleeve in place and replace the endcap and handle.

Use the smooth sleeve to roll out the pasta, then switch to one of the grooved sleeves
to cut the pasta into strips. Bon Appetit!

Click Here to Download the Drawings and Materials List.

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In order to make the desk more stable and accommodate a typical laptop, I increased the depth to 16″. I added a second tenon to the bottom shelf to stiffen the desk, and included a cutout for more leg room under the desk, along with some other minor changes.

Not every woodworker has a shop equipped to easily handle sizing and flattening large glued-up panels, so I decided to order two sets of panels from online sources to see how much they would cost and to test the quality of panels bought this way. You certainly can lay up your own, but if large, flat solid-wood panels are hard for you to deal with, ordering your panels pre-made may be an option.

Large Solid-wood Panels

If you decide to glue up your own panels, make them just over the actual part sizes shown in the Material List. Not knowing exactly what I would receive in terms of quality, I ordered the pre-made panels well oversized. The panels for the middle and upper shelf were sized to include enough stock for the door frame, so I did not need to buy and size rough oak lumber. This also helps ensure that the door will match the color and grain of the desk. You will also need a half sheet of 1/2″-thick oak plywood for the door panels and the back of the desk.

The panels were delivered from both vendors in multiple packages. They were very well wrapped and protected, and none of them suffered any damage in shipping. One vendor provided me with quartersawn white oak, and the other with plainsawn. I unpacked the panels and laid them flat with stickers in between for a couple of days to allow them to acclimate. Both sets were uniform in thickness and sanded to what looked like about 80-grit. There was some minor bowing in the plainsawn panels not seen in the quartersawn stock, but that is as expected, and none of the bowing was enough to worry about. I was very pleased with the quality of what I received. The quartersawn set was $409 with shipping and the plainsawn ended up at $337.

The Side Template

In order for the desk to come out square and straight, the two sides must be exactly the same, so taking the time to make a full-scale template pays off. I laid out the dimensions on a quarter sheet of 1/2″ plywood. I cut and sanded the profile and mortise locations. Make sure that everything is true: any flaws in the template will be repeated on the parts. Also be sure that the mortises are sized properly for the thickness of the panels you are using. You want the tenons to be a bit loose in the mortises. And do not forget to drill the hinge location hole as well.

When the template is ready, clamp it in place and mark the outline of the sides on both larger (18″ x 50″) panels. Removing the template for now, use a jigsaw or band saw to cut out the side shape, being careful to leave about 1/16″ extra around the outside edges in case of some splintering here or there.

Once again, clamp the template to the side, making sure it is within the rough cut just made. Chuck a 1/2″-diameter flush-trim bit into a handheld router, then trim the side to the template, being careful that the template does not shift as you are working. Before removing the template, you can also rout out the mortises. Use a 1/16″ pilot bit to drill through the center of each mortise location on the template, then drill a 5/8″ hole with a Forstner bit, using the pilot hole as your guide. Drill halfway through with the Forstner, then flip the part and drill through from the other side. This prevents tearout as the bit cuts through the other side.

With the router turned off, set the flush-trim bit through the hole, ensuring that the bit is not touching the wood. Hold the router steady as you turn it on and remove the waste inside the mortise. Now the template can be removed and the mortises squared up with a chisel. If you try to chop through from one side, the grain can break away as you reach the bottom of the mortise. Work through from both faces toward the middle for the best results.

Next, mill a groove to accept the back. This is the point where the sides become left and right, so lay them out carefully. The important thing is that the sides are mirrored to each other. Use a straightedge and rout a 1/2″ groove from the top of the part to the mid-point of the bottom mortises. The groove should be 1/2″ in from the back and 3/8″ deep.

The last step is to drill the pivot hole for the hinge. Lay the template on each inside face and drill the 9mm pivot hole 1/2″ deep into each side part. Be careful not to drill all the way through the sides.

The Shelves

Take your panels to the jointer to straighten one edge, and rip them to final width at the table saw. The bottom shelf is ripped to 16″, the middle to 12-1/4″ and the top shelf to 9″ wide. Save the offcuts, especially from the middle and top shelves, and set them aside for now. (This will be the stock for the door’s frame.) Now crosscut the shelves to 14-1/2″ long.

The middle and top shelf get a single tenon on each end, exactly centered. (See the Drawings for details.) Each tenon gets a through mortise for the wedge. These will need to be chiseled out from both faces, just as you did with the mortises in the sides, so be sure to mark both shelf faces before you cut the tenon shoulders to shape.

Since all the tenons are the same size, I made a story stick to speed the layout. Mark the shoulder line and three lines for the through mortise, as shown in the dimensioned Drawings. Cut the shoulders away, being careful to keep them square to the face of the shelf. Once the shoulders are removed, you can cut the outside corners of the tenon at 45 degrees using the layout lines.

The mortises can now be chopped through. You want to cut the mortises 3/4″ across the grain, but only 5/8″ along the grain. The outside face of the mortise is cut at an angle to match the wedges, but for now just cut them 5/8″ wide. Again working from both faces to the center, drill a 1/2″ hole through the waste, and square up with a chisel.

To create the angle for the wedge, choose the best face to be the top of the shelf. With this face up, use a chisel to chop from the outer line of the mortise down to the existing opening at the bottom of the mortise.

The bottom shelf gets two tenons on each end. They are made the same as those on the other shelves, but they are NOT centered. The back panel of the desk sits on top of the lower shelf, so be sure to lay out the tenons so that the back shoulder of the shelf is 1″ longer than the front.

The top shelf gets a 9-degree bevel cut along the front edge for the door to rest against when it is closed. Be sure to orient this cut so that the bottom face of the shelf is wider than the top face.

The bottom shelf gets a section cut out of the front edge for some extra leg clearance. Use a jigsaw to cut this out, and sand the edge smooth. This is a good time to dry-fit the desk and confirm that all the tenons line up properly and fit in their mortises.

The Back

Rip the 1/2″ oak ply to 30-3/4″, then crosscut one end square. Edge-band this end with a thin piece of solid oak, left over from ripping the panels, to hide the panel’s edge plys. After the glue dries, trim the banding flush if needed and crosscut the panel to 36-1/4″ long. The back slides into the grooves in the sides and rests on the bottom shelf. If the fit is snug and the back is square, it will keep the desk square during use.

The Door

The door is a standard frame-and-panel style. The only critical detail is that the back of the door becomes the work surface of the desk when opened. This means that the panels must be flush with the frame in back, and have no real gap between the panel edges and the frame.

Start by cutting two panels, 11-3/8″ x 11″, from the leftover 1/2″ plywood. Next, rip the leftovers from your shelf panels to 3″ wide, and crosscut them into two stiles, two rails and one center stile according to the Material List. Next, set up a stacked dado and cut a 1/4″-wide by 1/2″-deep groove into one edge of the stiles and rails, and both edges of the mid-stile.

If the ply panel were exactly 1/2″ thick, this groove would be centered on the stiles and rails. But you will have to adjust for the actual panel thickness. With the grooves cut, widen the dado stack and cut 1/2″-long tenons on both ends of the rails and mid-stile. Remember, your groove is probably off-center, so you have to cut the tenons in two setups to match any offset.

Once the frame parts fit properly, cut a 1/2″-wide rabbet all the way around your panels. The depth of the rabbet must be the same as the inside shoulder of the frame. This should leave a 1/4″-thick tenon on the panel edge that fits perfectly in the frame groove. Assemble the door and set it aside to dry.

Wedges

You can cut the eight wedges out of the scrap left over from the sides or the bottom shelf. They are 3″ long, 3/4″ thick and taper from 7/8″ at the top to 1/2″ at the bottom. They are small, so cutting them out on the band saw and sanding them smooth is the safest way to go.

Finishing

Since the desk is designed to assemble without fasteners, finishing is easy. All the parts were sanded to 120-grit prior to staining. I used Minwax® Toffee water-based stain to simulate a traditional fumed oak finish. There are large areas to cover, so apply the stain to small areas, wipe it off right away, and keep a wet edge working to maintain as even a tone as possible.

The water base will raise the grain, so sand again using 220 once the stain is dry, then apply your top coat. I sprayed on several coats of Minwax Polycrylic, sanding with 400-grit between coats. I also applied a generous coat of paste wax to all the parts. This greatly helps with assembly and disassembly when the desk needs to move.

Assembly

With the finishing done, the door needs hinges added and chains attached to hold it flat when being used. The hinges mount on each end of the door with the pivot pin 1/2″ up from the door bottom. They are surface-mounted with two supplied screws, and can be adjusted to square up the door when closed.

The easiest way to assemble the desk is to stand one side on its back edge and slip the bottom shelf through the side, securing it with two wedges. Then the middle and top shelves can be locked in as well. The second side is slid over the shelf tenons and the door pivots inserted into the sides just before the second side is seated. Insert the rest of the wedges and stand the desk up. Lastly, slip the back into place.

The final bit of assembly is to attach support chains for the door. Flat-link brass sash chain is a good choice here. Cut two lengths of chain at 18″ long. The chains attach to the door in a small mortise on each side. A 5/8″ Forstner bit cuts the mortise. (I used a roller stand to support the door and hold it parallel to the floor as I attached the chains.) Since the mortise is offset to one side, a block clamped to the door keeps the bit from “skating” as you drill about 1/2″ deep. Attach the chains with a panhead screw driven into each mortise. Center the screws.

Hard to Find Hardware

Pivot Hinges (2) #30007
Threaded Brass Inserts (2) #33183
Brass Thumbscrews (2) #70003

Click Here to Download the Materials List and Drawings.

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You can find the cut layouts for the plywood by Clicking Here.

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Want the plans for this miter saw station? You’ll find them in the May/June 2015 issue of Woodworker’s Journal. Order the May/June 2015 issue here.

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The banding is made up of cross grained mahogany with black edges. I ordered dyed black veneer that came in 4 x 36″ pieces.

In order to get the cross grain, a piece of mahogany about 6 inches wide was selected and cross cut into 5/16″ wide strips. These were then glued into 4 inch wide stacks. The ends of the stacks were trimmed square and the stacks were then glued into a long strip.

This long strip needs to be laminated between two sheets of the black dyed veneer, so one face was scraped smooth, and then planed/sanded until the glued up substrate and the black veneers measured 3/8 inch thick. The three parts were then laminated together.

With the blank dry, all that remains is to rip it into thin strips.  The wide black faces now become thin banding on the outside edges of the cross grained mahogany. It is a fair amount of work to complete, but you can cut a great many strips from the blank, and the final effect is well worth the effort.

Holly Stringing

The thin strips used for the string detail on the legs of the table were cut from a wider sheet of holly veneer. A knife can be used for this, but it is hard to hold securely and maintain clean edges. A veneer saw was designed to cut these thin strips.

For consistency, I cut a narrow kerf into the edge of a piece of hardboard (two came as packing around the holly veneer) and clamped them together on my bench. I slipped the holly under the lip of the hardboard and sawed along the edge. This gave me very clean and consistent strips of holly to use for the stringing.

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Photo 1

Signmakers often raise letters by removing the background around them, and all sorts of serving trays, bowls and stands are dished out to provide a rim for keeping things in.

Photo 2

I used to use a simple round-nose bit to mill out these areas, (Photo 2) but the Dish Carving Bit (sometimes called a bowl bit) vastly simplifies the process and has other uses in your shop. Since the very tip of a round-nose bit is quite small and has no real flat on the tip, it takes many passes to mill out an area, and typically needs carving and scraping to smooth the bottom. The Dish Carving Bit provides a wide, flat cut at the tip, but is rounded over on the corners of the cutting edge so the area being milled always has a smooth curve transitioning

from bottom to side. This is especially important for serving trays and such as it makes them much easier to clean after use.

Photo 3

Photo 4

This particular bit comes with a matching bearing (Photo 3). The bearing makes it easy to use templates to control the shape and size of the pocket being milled (Photo 4). For deep cuts (like snack bowls) as the cut deepens, the bearing will guide along the previously cut edge, so the template does not need to be overly thick. Templates allow you to make a number of pockets that are the same size and shape, or even irregular shapes. The only real limit is in the corners. Their minimum radius is determined by the bit diameter.

Photo 5

Here, I am using the bit to mill a water well for a Japanese style tea tray (Photo 5). Because the pocket is wider than the router base, I am using an auxiliary base to span the template, insuring a smooth bottom. Waste will need to be removed as it builds up or the bearing might be guiding along a pile of chips rather than the template.

Photo 6

This bit earns its keep in my shop just for making pockets, but I find myself using it for other tasks as well. Here, I am using it to trim edge banding on a cabinet side (Photo 6). The rounded corners keep it from leaving lines. The smooth transition from side cut to bottom cut also minimizes tearout along the outside edge.

Photo 7

Mounted in the router table, the round corner and flat bottom combine to make an excellent back cutter for door panels (Photo 7). Thicker panels tend to sound and feel better than using 1/4″ plywood, and this setup allows you to tailor your panel to fit the groove (Photo 8).

Photo 8

For serving sets, reproduction tables, gameboards and a host of other projects, the Dish Carving Bit will become your “go to” solution for many common tasks.

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