A Folding Table with Split-Bamboo Tray for Top
A folding table frame, designed as a support for a circular split-bamboo tray, is shown in the photographs reproduced and detailed in the working drawing. It is a serviceable and inexpensive piece of furniture, and can be constructed readily by the home mechanic. As the trays vary in size, the frame must be made to correspond, those from 24 to 28 in. in diameter being satisfactory. The tray may be made by the ambitious craftsman or purchased at stores dealing in Oriental goods. A wooden top may, of course, be substituted. The frame is made preferably of soft wood. The following finished pieces are required for a 24-in. tray: 4 legs, ⁷⁄₈ by 3 by 30 in.; 4 crosspieces, 1 by 2 by 25 in. Mortise the legs to the ends of the crosspieces, one set of mortises being ⁷⁄₈ in. below the other. Assemble the parts and fasten the joints with glue and 2-in. flat-head screws, countersunk.
This Tray Table Is Readily Portable, and Useful in the House and on the Porch or Lawn
Adjust the crosspieces of each set so that their centers match, and fasten them in this position with screws, from the under side. The two parts of the frame revolve on them when the table is “knocked down.” On the ends of the lower crosspieces of each set, fasten blocks to level the support for the tray. Finish the frame to harmonize with the furniture of the room. Conceal the screw heads under bands of hammered or oxidized copper, fastened with copper or brass pins. A second tray may be placed on the lower crosspieces.—F. E. Tuck, Nevada City, Calif.