Recycling pallets into something else useful is nothing new, but this desk, inspired by bowling lanes and butcher blocks, is, well, inspired. The top is made entirely out of recycled pallets found around a college campus. As this desk is for college, the creator estimates he will move “23 more times before I’m done,” so the legs were bought from IKEA in order to be “easy and non-destructive.” Like many projects here, this desk is a testament to the cool things that can be done with the proper woodworking knowledge and equipment.
The boards were first separated from the pallet by cutting pieces between the support members. This was easier than prying out all of the nails, and helped keep the wood intact. This wood was then planed down to roughly 3/4 of an inch, and after a few more steps to keep everything uniform, the boards were clamped and glued together. Even after all of the preliminary work, it was tough to keep the table completely flat, so more work with a sander, hand plane, and even a rasp was done to get the wood to conform.
In the end, after two coats of satin polyurethane and a pre-stain conditioner, the desk looks really beautiful. Hopefully it will continue to look great after 4, 5, or even 6 years of college!
[via Imgur]
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