Lap Desk for Kids

 

Using a 4?-long piece of 5/16 dowel
as a pin punch, drive the lid hinge pin
flush with the bottom of the counterbore
in the side (A).

 

Trim the plugs flush with the
sides (A) using a flush-trim saw.
Keep the saw blade flat against the
sides to ensure a straight cut.

 

With the lap desk shimmed level
and a 3/4? scrap clamped to the
side (A) to prevent tear-out, bore
the turn-button recess.

Assemble the Pieces (Continued)

5 From a 1/8" brass rod 6" long, hacksaw two 1"-long pieces for the hinge pins. To install a pin, position the case vertically on a side (A), holding the lid (E) in place. With the hinge-pin holes aligned, slip a #8 brass flat washer between the lid and the side, center the washer with the holes, and insert a pin into the holes as far as you can. Then, holding the pin and lid in place, lay the assembly bottom up on your work surface. Now seat the pin, as shown in Photo D. Repeat to install the other pin.

6 Save your helper make plugs for the 12 counterbores, as explained in the Shop Tip, on the last page. Then glue the plugs in place, aligning the plug grain with that of the sides (A). Let the glue dry overnight. Then trim the plugs, as shown in Photo E.

7 Using a 150-grit sanding drum in your drill press or a disc sander, let your partner sand radii on the corners of the bottom (F) to fit it in the rabbeted recess in the case. Then glue and clamp the bottom in place.

8 Apply glue to the bottom edge of the divider (G). Then clamp it to the bottom (F), where dimensioned on Drawing 1.

9 Mark centerpoints on the top edges of the sides (A) for 1 1/4"-diameter recesses for the turn buttons (H), where dimensioned on Drawing 1a. Next, chuck a 1 1/4" Forstner bit in your drill press. Place the lap desk on the drill-press table with the front (C) against the fence. Then insert a shim of the needed thickness under the front of the desk, as shown in Photo F, to make the top level. To prevent tear-out, clamp a small piece of 3/4" scrap to the side (A), as shown. Now bore a 3/8"-deep hole. Repeat to bore a hole in the other side. Using the centers of the counterbores as guides, drill. 5/64" holes 1 1/8" deep for the turn-button mounting screws.

10 Lending your partner a hand, glue and clamp together the pencil-box front/back (I), ends (J), and bottom (K), noting that the front/back pieces overlap the ends. After the glue dries, drill two holes for magnets in the bottom, where dimensioned on Drawing 1b. (Using a Forstner bit, we drilled 3/8" holes 3/16" deep to fit 3/8"-diameter magnets 3/16" long from a hardware store.) Then install the magnets using 5-minute epoxy.