07-30-2016, 11:39 AM
I am going to be building two lecterns soon. I couldn't find anything out there that I really liked so I decided to design my own. Here is what I came up with so far. I would like to open it up for any comments before I begin construction.
It is basically four frames attached to each other at the corners to form a rectangle. I haven't drawn any joinery in the model, but my intention was to rabbet the stiles of the front and rear frames and put the side frames into those rabbets. The top is supposed to appear to float and is mounted on some supports that travel from the front frame to the back frame. One concern is whether these supports will be too exposed if the lectern is on a stage and people look up at it from the front row. I have considered painting the supports black instead of staining to match, but not sure if that would hide them or make them stand out even more. Right now I have it drawn with some 1/2" aluminum bar supporting the cross, but I am considering using aluminum dowel rod and going into the ends of the cross parts and into the front panel rails and stiles instead of mounting to the back of the cross and the back of the rails and stiles. (I have an method for the dowels in mind that would allow this to be installed as a final step rather than having to do it when the front frame is initially assembled.) The dowels would improve the appearance from the back (if that really matters).
The model is created with 3/4" material but I will start with rough sawn 4/4 and stop whenever it is clean so probably closer to 7/8" or slightly less. The only exception is the top and the feet. The top is drawn at 7/8" and the feet at 1 1/2".
As I generated the images I noticed that there is an extra line on the support for the floating top near the top of the third image. There is no transition in the component there - just a stray line that I forgot to delete. (I am a sketch-up rookie.)
I will also add a strip near the bottom edge of the top to prevent papers/books from sliding off.
A couple of thoughts I have already had.
1. Strength with respect to racking. Do I need any diagonal bracing from corner to corner near the top or near the feet? I could pretty easily add diagonal bracing right on top of the feet, but I am not sure I like the look of that if it isn't needed. Maybe use some more of the aluminum bar to tie it together both aesthetically and mechanically?
2. Would it be better with solid (square) posts at the corners with rails connecting them (more like an end table with aprons) instead of the method here with four frames? I f I did it with solid posts I would probably set the rails back on the posts slightly rather than flush.
Please take a look and give me any feedback that you think might improve it. Thanks.
Then one final question. I have been asked to build one of these in memory of a friends' father. They wanted to use some of the memorial funds for a lectern and asked me to build it. I am not a pro and have very little experience with pricing things like this. They had an upper limit of $500 and I told them I could definitely build this for less than that amount. I know these questions are always hard to answer, but what would be a fair price to charge them for this built from oak and I do the staining and finishing?
The second one will just be donated to my own church. We have a beautiful chapel off to the side of the main sanctuary that is done entirely in cherry panels and beams. But the current lectern is oak and it drives me crazy every time I go in there. So since it is always easier to build the second one at the same time, I will build another one of these out of cherry to match the rest of the chapel. I know at my church the weight is a big concern. They don't like for things to get so heavy that it takes two people to move it around so I am trying to accommodate that concern here.
It is basically four frames attached to each other at the corners to form a rectangle. I haven't drawn any joinery in the model, but my intention was to rabbet the stiles of the front and rear frames and put the side frames into those rabbets. The top is supposed to appear to float and is mounted on some supports that travel from the front frame to the back frame. One concern is whether these supports will be too exposed if the lectern is on a stage and people look up at it from the front row. I have considered painting the supports black instead of staining to match, but not sure if that would hide them or make them stand out even more. Right now I have it drawn with some 1/2" aluminum bar supporting the cross, but I am considering using aluminum dowel rod and going into the ends of the cross parts and into the front panel rails and stiles instead of mounting to the back of the cross and the back of the rails and stiles. (I have an method for the dowels in mind that would allow this to be installed as a final step rather than having to do it when the front frame is initially assembled.) The dowels would improve the appearance from the back (if that really matters).
The model is created with 3/4" material but I will start with rough sawn 4/4 and stop whenever it is clean so probably closer to 7/8" or slightly less. The only exception is the top and the feet. The top is drawn at 7/8" and the feet at 1 1/2".
As I generated the images I noticed that there is an extra line on the support for the floating top near the top of the third image. There is no transition in the component there - just a stray line that I forgot to delete. (I am a sketch-up rookie.)
I will also add a strip near the bottom edge of the top to prevent papers/books from sliding off.
A couple of thoughts I have already had.
1. Strength with respect to racking. Do I need any diagonal bracing from corner to corner near the top or near the feet? I could pretty easily add diagonal bracing right on top of the feet, but I am not sure I like the look of that if it isn't needed. Maybe use some more of the aluminum bar to tie it together both aesthetically and mechanically?
2. Would it be better with solid (square) posts at the corners with rails connecting them (more like an end table with aprons) instead of the method here with four frames? I f I did it with solid posts I would probably set the rails back on the posts slightly rather than flush.
Please take a look and give me any feedback that you think might improve it. Thanks.
Then one final question. I have been asked to build one of these in memory of a friends' father. They wanted to use some of the memorial funds for a lectern and asked me to build it. I am not a pro and have very little experience with pricing things like this. They had an upper limit of $500 and I told them I could definitely build this for less than that amount. I know these questions are always hard to answer, but what would be a fair price to charge them for this built from oak and I do the staining and finishing?
The second one will just be donated to my own church. We have a beautiful chapel off to the side of the main sanctuary that is done entirely in cherry panels and beams. But the current lectern is oak and it drives me crazy every time I go in there. So since it is always easier to build the second one at the same time, I will build another one of these out of cherry to match the rest of the chapel. I know at my church the weight is a big concern. They don't like for things to get so heavy that it takes two people to move it around so I am trying to accommodate that concern here.
