Made My own Desk !!! - for ~$125!!

[Enablingwolf]

MDF is softer to work on. It is Medium Density Fiber board. Easy to get in side details. Since it refers to the core, not the laminate.

Birch/Alder is a good wood and if you use Canuba Wax and it will mimic Maple.

The only drawback to Birch/Alder is it tends to a softwood. It is easy and cheap to work on. But dents real easy. Get a good detail going on the facing and that will be one sharp desk.

I would go for a 3/8" bullnose on the top and bottom of the detail. Not to round, not to sharp.

 

[cullam3n]

Not to bust your bubble, although I love your creativity, my friend just bought a desk similar to what you are making for $80 at Staples. However, I love the work you are doing and that this doesn't deter you; in fact, I hope it can give you some ideas or spark something you have not thought about.

 

[princeofdarknes]

Awsome desk autolex, i love it. I myself need to build me a desk because my current one is kinda wobly, i dont feel that safe ^^;.

Wish i still had a garage though, and i hope i my dad kept that table saw... whence i get me some extra money i'll start thinkin about it though.

 

[AlabamaCajun]

The store bought desk is nice but the solid construction of his hand crafted desk will outlast the storebought. A little edge veneering and a corner palm rest would make it a piece of funiture.

You can see the edge veneer in this picture and more in the thread of what birch plywood looks like when finished. This little 24x48 inch table is about 17 years old. Sorry, these pictures wer about the wood tower case but the desk/table is visible below. The polyurethane finish has held up well. Needs a week to harden before use.

http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=427481&page=1

Autolex84 will end up with an even better looking piece of funiture than my simple table.
Looking nice.

 

[Herr Rogers]

When I posted and told him to round off the edges or make them less sharp I didn't know the technical term, "edge veneering". You should DEFINATELY do this, I can't imagine having my arms resting on that while I type.

 

[GQBalla]

i like it!!!

good job!

 

[Kevin007]

Nice Desk! I love the dual UPSs, I would really like one, it gives you a feeling of power hehe.

 

[autolex84]

1. again, the desk is in no way finished (the edge trim is going on when I get back)

2. I am currently in steamboat springs colorado until the 8th

3. I am going to add some bookshelves attached to the back and going up above the monitor BEFORE I finish it

other than that, THANKS for the Replies guys and gals!

 

[Susquehannock]

DIY rules ! .....

Now what you need to do is design yourself one of those custom "L-shaped" cases
to hide your wires & make the optical drives more accessible.

 

[Enablingwolf]

The plastic edging is cheesy. I think this nice of a project deserves real wood edging. It will not pull away from the edge over time. Almost all vinyl edging is held on by hot glue. Easy and fast to apply. That is why most commercial manufacturers use it. It comes in rolls and you just slide the material along the edger iron. If the Op used glue in the correct spots. This will last much longer then any prefab unit.

Real wood it much better. Alder is similar to pine in price. Maybe a few cents more per linear foot. Depending on the grade used. 5/8x3/4 is dirt cheap since most moulding is made from scrap rips.

I think that would much better looking since the OP could get some fantastic effects when he gets around to it.

Even a nice ogee would be a sweet detail for the edge. Try and avoid a royal/imperial style crown detail(any 90° edging). It is hard to keep sanitary. For edging on high use details, rounded is your friend. Plus it is easy to make in your home. A slight pass with your circlesaw set to 22.5°. A swipe or two of some sandpaper and it is done.

Instead of metal retainers I would of used a corbel system. I am picky when it comes to furniture though. I like some of the techniques you used. Very easy to implement, and simple to assemble.

I say great job!!!

The Birch laminate is a really nice looking wood when it is finished. I would not use a colored stain or coating. I know preferance, but Birch/Alder has some wonderful grain effects. Nice to see someone not use Oak or other high dollar material. Some of the softwoods seem to be neglected for projects. By the way, FYI Alder is used for the facing and Birch is the laminate, since the grain is visually the same.

 

[DerekDRP]

AutoLax nice desk dude ( home made desks look better then stor boughts )

 

[shellshock]

Sweet job bro! I love all the bracing, sure to be strong and solid. imo, I like birch ply way better than mdf. Its lighter, and it dosent make all that dust when you cut on it.

overall looks yery good!

 

[Celeron_Phreak]

Uh oh, was I influencing again???

I can't help to think about how much that looks nearly identical to my first desk (although mine was smaller). It looks great.

BTW, there's no such thing as over kill on your desk. Would you rather put two 19" - 21" CRT displays on your desk and have it collapse, possibly breaking anything sitting on or under the desk????

 

[DietPepsi0219]

looks awesome, i love the grain of the wood...*jealous*, im deffinately going to give this a shot this summer...yet ANOTHER thing im postponing until the end of school

 

[Electron Chaser]

Nicely done. If you have access to a router. Break the corners on the desktop to give it a nice rounded look.

 

[autolex84]

I am about to add a large upper shelf and LCD stand to the desk here in the next week or so, ill kep you guys (and gals) updated with pics as I progress.

 

[autolex84]

Uh oh, was I influencing again???

I can't help to think about how much that looks nearly identical to my first desk (although mine was smaller). It looks great.

BTW, there's no such thing as over kill on your desk. Would you rather put two 19" - 21" CRT displays on your desk and have it collapse, possibly breaking anything sitting on or under the desk????

yeah, your thread on your desk(s) is what motivated me to act on the Idea that I had!! thanks Man!!!

 

[autolex84]

Just ordered one of these to house two samsung 940b's side by side.

http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?invtid=LCD-194&cat=MON

I'm going to make a base out of the wood I built the desk out of for it so it matches a little better as well, as usual I will post pics as I recieve/build stuff

 

[osiris999]

awesome

 

[Amarkarian]

skills