Lazy Susan questions...

[Steve Wurster]

I'm going to be building a 34" lazy susan for use on a decent sized dining table, and I have a few questions for the group.

I'm not going to have a base, so the bearing will simply sit directly on the table. I'm leaning toward these bearings from Lee Valley (http://www.leevalley.com/en/hardware...,44013&p=44014), but I'm not sure which size to get. The 17-3/8" bearing seems best from a visibility standpoint, in that you probably won't be able to see the bearing from a normal sitting height. But I'm worried about tipping if the items on the platform aren't distributed evenly. The 23-1/2" bearing should solve that problem thanks to only 5.25" of overhang, but at a 5/8" bearing height would the bearing become visible and therefore annoying to look at? The big 29-1/2" bearing is almost certainly out because at only 2.25" overhang it would definitely be ugly. So which should I go with, the 17-3/8" or the 23-1/2"? Keep in mind the wood will be black walnut at about 7/8" thick, so there is the weight of the wood to deal with... although I haven't figured out what that might be yet.

Secondly, what kind of finish should I go with? I don't expect cutting to occur on the platform so something like mineral oil probably isn't necessary. Can I just go with a simple poly or shellac and still be okay from a food perspective for the occasional spillover or dropped food that is still edible?

Thanks.

[Sam Murdoch]

If this is a home project I think you could use the 23-1/2" turntable but if for a commercial setting, where anything goes, I'd be inclined to go with the big one. Veneer some walnut to the edge of the turntable - an easy job with a band clamp and some epoxy. Finish is dependent on the same considerations - residential/ poly or Watco oil is OK, commercial - I would suggest Waterlox Original Sealer. Actually I would use the Waterlox regardless. It is an excellent looking and extremely durable finish. Sounds like you are working on a table for a Chinese dining room - more info ?

[Mark Rakestraw]

I think the 17" one would work fine. While you will have 8" overhanging the the bearing anything placed there will have 26" of 7/8" thick walnut as a counter-balance. Hard to imagine anything heavy enough and small enough to be placed at the outer edge to overcome that counterbalance. Gold bricks? A big pot of soup will overhang the bearing and therefore partially counterbalance itself. All that said it should be dark enough in the small gap under the lazy susan that the 23" one won't be that visible.

[Steve Wurster]

So I got two comments and two different answers.

The lazy susan is for a 6' round table at my in-laws shore house. I didn't build the table. We're typically there with the whole family, and with 6-7 people eating at one time it gets annoying passing the food around. So I suggested, and volunteered to build, a lazy susan.

I'm wary of veneering anything to the bearing since A) I've never done any veneering, and B) I've never done anything with epoxy.

I don't have a sprayer, so is there a wipe-on version of Waterlox that I can use?

[Mark Rakestraw]

Probably six more answers out there An easy test would be to go ahead and build the lazy susan then cut some 1/2" plywood disks in the diameters of the different available bearings. Then it's just a matter of laying the lazy susan on the different plywood "bearings" and deciding what feels stable enough to you. Wipe on poly might give more protection, but from what I understand wipe on waterlox would be easier to refresh/repair...See, there's no one answer to anything!!!

[Steve Wurster]

Lee Valley's free shipping ends on the 18th. I'll be lucky if I get the wood glued up by then, given my limited shop time.

But perhaps I can test things out in the short term by making a mock-up out of something else or by ganging up the existing boards somehow. Gives me a chance to test out cutting some circles, too.

The Waterlox sounds good... I'll have to check it out.

[Sam Murdoch]

So I got two comments and two different answers.

The lazy susan is for a 6' round table at my in-laws shore house. I didn't build the table. We're typically there with the whole family, and with 6-7 people eating at one time it gets annoying passing the food around. So I suggested, and volunteered to build, a lazy susan.

I'm wary of veneering anything to the bearing since A) I've never done any veneering, and B) I've never done anything with epoxy.

I don't have a sprayer, so is there a wipe-on version of Waterlox that I can use?

You might just find a nice bronze colored spray paint in an auto parts store to get your shadow color just right.
My suggestion for going with the bigger diameter is to allow for any action/reaction such as what might happen when the the 13 year old jumps up and drags the entire pot of chowder right to the edge of the turntable with one hand while texting with the other hand . Maybe your gang is more well behaved than mine - respect and manners and all . Just sayin' - I wouldn't go less than 23 -1/2" .

[Steve Wurster]

Nope, our gang isn't all that well-behaved. Although at the moment they're just 2, 3, and 4 (1 son, 2 nieces), they're a handful right now and I'm sure it will get worse.

I like the idea of using spray paint for the shadow issue. With that I think I am leaning more toward the 23-1/2" base. I'll chew on this more this evening.

A big thanks to the two of you.

[Erik France]

You could also recess the bearing into the walnut a bit. It would be pretty easy with a circle jig and a bottom cutting router bit.

[Steve Wurster]

I hadn't thought about that... that's a great idea!

[Sam Murdoch]

This is a case for doing a mock up. Reducing the clearance between the underside of your turn table and the table top by recessing the bearing might not work depending on the overhang and how much weight is brought out to the edge. I don't know what the limits are, so I propose a mock up. Certainly would solve a problem to be able to reduce the clearance to a 1/4" or 3/8". The thickness of the walnut turntable could stand to give up a 1/4" or so.

[Steve Wurster]

I might start with the bearing installed on the flat bottom and see how that is before thinking about recessing it. Maybe it will look fine.

Do you think 7/8" is too thick for the platform? I cannot remember why I picked that thickness...

[Sam Murdoch]

It will be thicker than needed but if you profile the edge that will make it look lighter and the thickness allows for some good length screws through the turntable into your top.

[Steve Wurster]

I was planning on putting a roundover on the top and maybe a slight chamfer on the bottom to relieve the edge.I still cannot remember why I chose 7/8". Oh well... I think I'm going to go with whatever thickness I can get out of my 4/4 rough walnut.