# Pine Computer Desk -Completed



## syntec4 (6 Jun 2006)

Just a quick one this weekend. I needed a smallish desk for a computer to go in the lounge at home. 

Knocked this out 








Not that happy with the finish. Its a bit 'streaky'. I have Wet 'n' dry papered it since it dried, which has helped. But still, It'll do for now. One day I would like to build my 'ultimate desk'. But I'll have to save up for some proper wood for that  

More pictures on my website http://homepage.ntlworld.com/lee_harrison944/Computer Desk/index.htm

This was project #8. If I do one a week, will I beat Phillys record :wink:
Thanks for looking.


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## Anonymous (6 Jun 2006)

One weekend?????

HOW? :shock: 

Looks pretty nice Lee, as you say, shame about the streaking but this is often a problem with pine in my experience


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## Woodmagnet (6 Jun 2006)

No guard on the pillar drill! :shock:


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## mudman (6 Jun 2006)

kevin":2c5oxjcr said:


> No guard on the pillar drill! :shock:



I removed the guard from mine, right nuisance I found. Finally got ripped off after cutting my nose on it once too often.  :evil:


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## dedee (6 Jun 2006)

Same people just make me sick :lol: 

Words such as "knocked this up" and "this weekend" make me go green - with envy of course.

Nice work

Andy


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## Matt1245 (7 Jun 2006)

> This was project #8. If I do one a week, will I beat Phillys record



I think your in with a chance :lol: 

Looking good Lee.

Matt.


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## Gill (7 Jun 2006)

Are those panels pine?

Whatever, the desk looks fine and constructing it over a weekend is pretty good going.

Gill (who's got in trouble before an 'Murrican forums when using the phrase 'knocked up'. Oh oh... did I just say I'd got myself in trouble? Here we go again :roll: )


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## syntec4 (7 Jun 2006)

Gill":3ky7ai11 said:


> Are those panels pine?



Yes, the sides are made up from the same 12" x1" Boards. 

Lee.


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## syntec4 (7 Jun 2006)

kevin":19ie9ubv said:


> No guard on the pillar drill! :shock:


 
Do you need a guard? How would you fit one if you wanted one? 

I don't have a guard on the cordless, is it not the same? 

Lee.


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## engineer one (8 Jun 2006)

interesting thought lee, nice desk, but about the drill

cordless do not need guards because they have hand tightened
chucks, whilst drill presses as a pillar drill is properly called
have chuck keys, and thus are supposed to be supplied with a 
plastic shield which mounts on the top support of the pillar, and
stops the shaft rotating with a chuck key in it.

even my cheap and nasty ex-B&Q has one.

paul :wink:


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## Matt1245 (8 Jun 2006)

> cordless do not need guards because they have hand tightened
> chucks, whilst drill presses as a pillar drill is properly called
> have chuck keys, and thus are supposed to be supplied with a
> plastic shield which mounts on the top support of the pillar, and
> stops the shaft rotating with a chuck key in it.



Wouldn't help much with mains drills, or older cordless with standard 3 jaw chucks tho. Mind you, when using a pillar drill the bit is being used closer to your face and eyes.

Matt.


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## engineer one (8 Jun 2006)

matt 
remember that in principal a corded drill of the older type was likely to be held horizontally, and therefore there is a likelihood of the key dropping out, whilst with the pillar drill the key was horizontal not the chuck.

anyway having seen some of the early photos in safety lectures
during my apprenticeship, i don't want my hair attached to the shaft
thanks.  

paul :wink:


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## Alf (8 Jun 2006)

engineer one":3pxyyo7p said:


> cordless do not need guards because they have hand tightened
> chucks, whilst drill presses as a pillar drill is properly called
> have chuck keys, and thus are supposed to be supplied with a
> plastic shield which mounts on the top support of the pillar, and
> stops the shaft rotating with a chuck key in it.


It's a theory. But why does my Axminster keyless chuck drill press have one then? And why does it have a second part that slides down?

Cheers, Alf


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## devonwoody (8 Jun 2006)

That the picture of your lounge :wink:


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## engineer one (8 Jun 2006)

ah alf 
dare i say it, i guess it is the dreaded health and safety :twisted: :twisted: 

paul :wink:


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## tim (8 Jun 2006)

I took the guard off my pillar drill pretty much immediately. I found that light reflected off it in such a way that I realised I was craning my head round and underneath to see close up! Totally pointless IMO - much better to be wearing tap, tap, tap safety glasses.

Cheers

Tim


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## engineer one (8 Jun 2006)

interesting perspective tim, i think it is how you learnt to use
one, i was trained in an engineering shop, so the guards
became second nature, but i can understand that to those
new to a pillar drill it is frustrating and a pain in the a**e.

in the old days, one of my mates had one of those "fly presses"
which you may have seen in vintage films :lol: 
and was told that it was too dangerous for his employees to use,
but he was free to use it since he was the director :? 

so i guess until and unless someone has an inspection, it is up to you,
but in your case tim i would guess that safety has become even 
more important since the famous router.

i think the thing is that common sense has gone out the window
in many places cause the kids are all taught that it will 
ALWAYS be someone else's fault and they can sue, even if they
have been bloody stupid. :twisted: :twisted: 

as long as you understand it is a machine which you tend to get your
head near to the revolving shaft, and take care then just continue to 
work safely

drill in good health

paul :wink:


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## Scrit (11 Jun 2006)

I thought the reason why a fixed drill has to have a guard was to prevent you from getting fingers, noses, spectacles, hair, etc enmeshed in the chuck/drill - much more likely on a drill press as there is a natural tendency to put one's head near to the centre line of the drill or the workpiece to see more clearly what is going on. The stance you take with the right hand on the lever also tends to pull you further towards the machine, unlike a wood boring machine (no longer made) where the rise and fall could be controlled by a floor pedal leaving both hands free to support the work and resulting in an operator's head and body naturally further away from the drill bit. This stance thing may be why the better quality floor drills have the option of a foot-operated eStop, yet the PUWER 98 regs don't call for brakes to be fitted to drill presses...... Guards have been a requirement for training establishments for something like 40 years, as have secondary stop buttons, and they became mainstream industrial requirements years back. 

Personally I don't think the chuck key argument holds water as the guards need to be adjustable to accommodate nasty dangerous things like tank or fly cutters, although there are one or two companies making drill presses which won't start unless the chuck key is inserted in a special recepticle. 

I do recall an accident years ago where someone with long hair (I did say it was long ago) and not wearing a mop cap to hold the hair back had got his hair caught in the spinning chuck of a metalworking drill press and had nearly removed a strip of scalp several inches wide from one ear to the other :shock: . I used to have one of those mop caps at school (they were actually sold for girls in bakeries) - not wearing it when drilling on a lathe meant a detention  

Scrit


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## mudman (11 Jun 2006)

I don't know about more expensive machines, but on the budget ones, I think that the guards are more dangerous than the unguarded machine.
I find that they quickly become opaque and obscure visibility to the extent that you are often bending forwards to see where the point of the drill is going. Giving you an awkward body stance and bringing you closer than you need to be to the machine.
So, to position everything before switching on, you need to leave it up. This then means that to see what you are doing, you bend over and inadvertently bash the bridge of your nose on the edge of the upraised guard. It cuts and hurts thus resulting in the removal of mine.
Don't get me wrong, I can see that a guard is always a desirable thing, but when it is badly designed it can be more dangerous than having no guard and a healthy respect for the machine.


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## engineer one (11 Jun 2006)

scrit in the most part you are right, maybe that was the same guy
in the photos i used to see in our safety lectures.

the thing is it is easy to forget that this thing is wizzing round so 
near to your face, and at least the guard reminds you.

losing fingers just proves you are a woodworker, or in the
old days, a butcher who put his hand in the mincer  

but losing eyes or your hair because of stupidity just
reinforces the power of H&S.

paul :wink:


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## Matt1245 (11 Jun 2006)

Still doesn't answer why you don't need guards on pistol type drills tho. Surely hair is just, if not more. likely to fall onto a chuck when drilling horizontally.

Matt.


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## Scrit (11 Jun 2006)

I always thought that you sighted down a hand power drill to keep it in alignment - that puts your head behind the drill, doesn't it? If you are leaning over it the way you describe why isn't your hair in a net? And how do you ever manage to drill a true hole?

Scrit


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## Matt1245 (11 Jun 2006)

> always thought that you sighted down a hand power drill to keep it in alignment - that puts your head behind the drill, doesn't it? If you are leaning over it the way you describe why isn't your hair in a net? And how do you ever manage to drill a true hole?



Suppose it depends what your doing, hard to sight down a power drill when fixing skirting for example. And as far as i know, it's not a H and S regulation to wear a hair net when drilling, but i might be wrong.

Matt.


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## Matt1245 (11 Jun 2006)

Anyone else think it would be a good idea to have a sticky thread under general woodworking for health and safety discussions?

Matt.


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## Mike B (11 Jun 2006)

Not just hair - ties, shirt sleeves, and even some (protective!) gloves also get snagged in moving parts (drills/lathe chucks/bandsaw blades etc) and then "drag" the user in/toward the sharp bits....


Mike


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## Scrit (11 Jun 2006)

Mike B":15b6vqdi said:


> Not just hair - ties, shirt sleeves, and even some (protective!) gloves also get snagged in moving parts (drills/lathe chucks/bandsaw blades etc) and then "drag" the user in/toward the sharp bits....



Must be posh tradesmen where you are - ties indeed!!!!! The dress code with machines is short sleeves (not rolled up) or close-fitting cuffs and jackets, etc buttoned up. That's why machinists either wear overalls or lab coats in engineering shops. It's just common sense, really.

Scrit


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## engineer one (12 Jun 2006)

ok i am not an expert, but seems to me that the chuck on a 
cordless, or even a corded drill is always in front of your hands, and thus
by definition, your hair.
whereas, on a pillar drill, in most cases, you are trying to centre a drill on
a piece of material which is not accurately placed or held, until you 
have centred it. even in a vice, until you have pushed the actual drill 
bit down, you cannot be sure that it will go where you want. in past workshop experience, people then tend to press the on button whilst their
head is quite near to the shaft, then you get problems with flapping 
clothing, rings, watches, or hair.

we had to wear aprons, and make sure any ties were well below the
top of that, indeed it was recommended even in those far off days not 
to wear ties in the workshop. to this day, i wear my watch on the right
wrist although i am right handed, because when you work a normal lathe, the chuck is at the left end, and when you are draw filing for instance on a metal lathe( using a file to put a smooth finish on a rotating bar)
then the chuck is likely to catch the watch strap, and if it does not
strip off your skin into what they called de-gloving, when the
strap broke it bloody hurt. you only do it once   

the other thing, drill chucks that take keys have odd shapes around which can catch you, whereas keyless chucks are much less dangerous for protrusions.

i do agree though that we should have more H&S details on the forum.

paul :wink:


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## syntec4 (12 Jun 2006)

Blimey :shock: I only wanted you to comment on the desk  

Did anyone notice it? It was next to the drill without a guard on it.....  

Lee.


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## devonwoody (12 Jun 2006)

syntec4":3sdwb2l7 said:


> Blimey :shock: I only wanted you to comment on the desk
> 
> Did anyone notice it? It was next to the drill without a guard on it.....
> 
> Lee.



I thought I saw a hifi unit in that picture you posted


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## engineer one (12 Jun 2006)

whoops sorry lee
yes the desk was actually pretty good, but you know how this
thing goes of at a tangent :lol:   

does it work though( the desk that is?)without the guard and 
safety switches :? 

paul :wink:


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## syntec4 (12 Jun 2006)

devonwoody":12mwhv3o said:


> I thought I saw a hifi unit in that picture you posted


 
Yeah there is... Don't tell anyone, but the speakers are not wired in accordance with 'part P'  

Did anyone actually do any woodwork this weekend? :? 

Lee.


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## woodbloke (20 Jun 2006)

Agree with much said re guards and particulary long hair and drilling machines. As an ex-technology teacher in a past life, guards were always used on pillar drills, together with goggles and no ties ( kids didn't need much encouragement to take them off ), cuffs rolled up past the elbow.
In my shop now I don't have a guard on the pillar drill as its a real pain to use with it in place, though I have been using a Trend Airshield over the last couple of weeks which ought to keep all the nasty bits away from the face - Rob


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## devonwoody (20 Jun 2006)

I've taken off string ties that were used to hang my push sticks on the wall.


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