Yesterday I jointed and surface planed the shelf blanks that were produced by resawing thick lumber the day before.  While surfacing them, the Delta planer started sounding really angry again and this time I was not able to tighten anything up to make the sound stop.  I suspect it's in the bearing next to the drive pulley.  I managed to do what needed doing that day, but it will probably have to go to Knoxville to be rebuilt again to get it working properly.  I'm not sue I want to put that much into it again.

Then the shelf blanks were drum sanded to smooth away the ripples left by the jointer and surfacer.

I laid out my cut pattern on masking tape so I could see the lines clearly. From each edge of the blank, I will cut a strip (I must also remember to allow for the saw kerf) the strips will get flipped up and glued on top of  the shelf leaving a trough down the middle.

By doing this, the edge of the shelf - particularly on the front - will match up especially well and should look like a solid piece of wood with no joint at all. 

I set up the table saw, mark the blanks to help me keep the strips oriented properly to the shelf base and rip the strips.  I am very careful to keep the strips with their shelf base.

Now I get out a whole mess of clamps and the glue pot.  Making sure that the edge strips are oriented so that from their original position they simply roll up onto the shelf base, I apply glue and clamps.

These will not have to sit for long, just long enough for the glue to tack - an hour or so - then I'll remove the clamps and use them on the next shelf.  I won't work with these parts again until the glue has set up hard.  It will take two days to get all he shelves through this step.

While I'm waiting for glue to tack I begin setting up to cut the front legs. This starts by taping the template to the two leg blanks stacked together.  I use the template to cut the angles on both ends.

The stair-step shapes that support the shelves will be cut on the band saw.  I've been waiting for a special blade to come in, and it has arrived.

Because of the steep angle of the first cut, I have to turn the angle gauge around backward so it will sit on the table and securely hold the leg blanks as I make the cuts.  I test the set-up on a piece of scrap first.

When I know it's set properly and will hold the bundle like it should, I use a quick-clamp to hold the bundle against the miter gauge as I make the first cuts that will remove the triangular areas for the shelves.

To make the second cuts I re-orient the gauge and make the base cuts. 

The right-most cut-out could not be cut because the left end of the bundle hit the wall.  The saw is bolted to the floor, so moving it out a bit will be a chore.  It was easier to cut that one last, swing the gauge around the other way and lay-out that final cut on the back of the bundle.  That only took a few moments because I have a good gauge that is accurate and fast to set.

With the bundle broken down I now have two identical front legs that will support the candle shelves.  If my figures are right, this rack will hold 224 of those memorial candle cups.  That ought to handle it for a while!

I'll continue gluing up shelves for the rest of this day.  In between I'll sand the baffle parts that will be attached between the front legs.  They are stacked behind the legs in the photo.

See you tomorrow!