I want to build a semi-circular table for my living room. The top of the table will be glass with a thin (1" - 1.5") maple border. The radius of the circle will be about 18". My question is how to build the border?
I can think of two options: The first is to build a mold from plywood, and bend a long peice of maple around it. The problem with this is that I've never bent wood before, so I don't know how acurate the final shape would be (it would have to match the glass exactly). Also, I'd be afraid if I sanded it down a bit, the wood might unwarp.
The second solution would be to combine several wider boards together and then use the jigsaw and sander to take away the excess. My concern with this method is how to join the wood to give me sufficient strength. Also, how many boards is a good number for this (more boards means more joints, but it also reduces the amount of waste).
If anyone has any sage advice, I'd love to hear it.
John