Eames remixed

2022-01-07

overview

There are a lot of Eames Conference Tables in the world. They all have gorgeous, well engineered bases, and they all have uninspiring laminate tops. That base can take a lot of weight, so let’s right a wrong.

method

Buy a three leg, three spider Eames Conference Table frame heavily used from a NASA office undergoing renovation. Law firms like these too.
Make sure you don’t have them ship the top. You only want the base and the base is very economical to ship because it breaks down to nothing larger than the table support spiders.
Sandblast and powdercoat the dark pieces (they are steel).
Leave raw the aluminum pieces. You could polish them, but they’ll get chewed up anyway so just let them have scuffs and patina.
Find all the quartersawn ribbon Sapele you can. Wait for it to come in, cross shop sawyers, be insistent that you get nice stuff in long board lengths. In this case, about 12’.
Square and plane the Sapele, match the grain and glue it up into a slab.
CNC machine the slab to absolute flatness.
CNC cut some slots in the underside for steel C-channel to bolt up- this helps avoid warping over time.
Sand everything, ease the edges, and finish in Rubio Monocoat.
Fit the assembled frame up to the table top so you know where the spiders will support it, and where to install threaded inserts (I use stainless steel) for the bolts which hold the top to the spiders.
Bring some friends on the install day. This is heavy and too large to really manipulate in most rooms. That’s ok, it just needs to get in place and it’ll rarely move thereafter.
You were picky with the wood selection, so use rejected leftover lumber to make shelves above the desk. Shelves will match really well, but (in my case) won’t have the grain character of the table. This is ok for a shelf.
I guess do something useful now that you have a desk?

I designed this thing, dealt with the base finish, and had a much better woodworker than me sand/finish the top (Woodcrafters of Rockville). It sits two comfortably side-by-side, and the depth is right for giving the feel of unbounded workspace: you can’t reach its edges from a seated position.

Naturally, mount your monitors on the wall using a counterweighted arm. This frees up even more space under and around the monitor.

The wood darkens over time. These pictures are from initial production and fitment in the room. Nowadays, it’s quite a bit darker, which makes the luminous characteristics of the Sapele more pronounced.