Lift Top Coffee Table

Nice job. Isn’t that hardware pretty pricey? At least the last time I looked at it, it was.

-- Respect your shop tools and they will respect you - Ric

Yes, I searched High and Low for a less expensive lift mechanism. Lee Valley was about $160 which was $40 less than anyone else. The wife wanted a lift top so the price was really a non-issue.

-- The rule is measure twice and cut once. My problem is I still measure with a mic and cut with an axe!

Outstanding!

I would love one of these, but my wife would complain that I’d be wanting to eat in front of the TV all the time. :-)

-- Charlie M. "Woodworking - patience = firewood"

Very nice.

-- Rodd, Texas grandpa

stunning !...........

-- cut it saw it scrap it SKPE: ANDREW.CARTER69

That is a big one. I like the storage, I can see a bunch of remotes stored in there, and dvds and…

-- A thing of beauty is a joy forever...

Nice table and great work. I think we could use one like that but I think my wife would still make me eat in the dining room with her.

I would suggest you get a copy of PhotoShop Elements on your computer (about $80). Then you could take dark pictures like these and brighten them up. I also use the program to remove stray visuals that detract from the picture. Things like the dog or cat that just walked through or a corner of the chair, bed or what ever that are hard to keep out of the frame. The program is also great for fixing up all kinds of pictures; including old family picts.
Of course you can also enhance the appearance of your work but that would be cheating (-:

-- Les B, Oregon

Photoshop is great for fixing pictures but $. Picassa is free from Google an it will do minor edits like brighten dark pictures…

-- A thing of beauty is a joy forever...

This coffee table is exactly what I’m looking for. Could you please tell me where you got the plans for such a beautifl project. I’d be very interested in starting this project as soon as possible. Thanks Roy

-- Luvtractor, Penasco, NM

The Plans are my own, I just drew out the dimensions from my own sketch that was designed from my wife’s vision of her very own coffee table. The tiles are easily removed if you should like to change colors at a later date in order to match new furniture or floor & wall colors. You should be able to get a good idea of the rough dimensions from my first post, along with the pictures. You might want to adjust the overall dimensions to fit your own personal needs. The storage areas could be changed from doors/drawers etc…

I am glad you like it, if you have trouble, I can take some measurements if you need them to get started. (If I had time and knew how to use sketchup I would be glad to post the design but alas I am not very good at sketchup yet.)

Thanks to jm82435 I now have google picassa to enhance my poor picture taking skills.

-- The rule is measure twice and cut once. My problem is I still measure with a mic and cut with an axe!

How much does the top of your table weight? the mechanism from lee valley says it holds 20 lbs? do they have differnt size ones?

cool table

-- W James Brokenbourgh Custom furniture maker http://artisticwoodstudio.com/

I am not sure how much the top weighs, I am pretty sure it is over 20 pounds. I don’t think they make more than one size.

You do have to lift the table top, it won’t lift by itself. It does stay in the up position without any problem.

-- The rule is measure twice and cut once. My problem is I still measure with a mic and cut with an axe!

Nice work.

I know it’s been a year, but could you possibly tell me the approximate rise and travel? Also, after having used it for a year are there any changes you might make?

Thanks much

The rise is 9 inches and the travel is about 17.5 inches. My wife loves the table just the way it is, and the kids use it a lot more than anyone else. If I were to build another one, I would make the lift mechanism myself (stronger springs and heavier materials) I would also make the spindles on the ends a little wider.

This table was what got me back into woodworking, I have built more furniture / cabinets / jewelry box’s /pens and misc. items in the last year than I could possibly list. So this year I have decided to record each item with photo’s, measurements, materials, finish, and completion time. I have also started to sign and date each piece before it leaves the shop.

Thanks again

-- The rule is measure twice and cut once. My problem is I still measure with a mic and cut with an axe!