[mura_gadi (Steve)]

Hello,

I recently scored a three draw bedside pine unit I am converting to use as a barrel to grind on. What sort of surface coating should I use on the top to help avoid trapping grits. I was thinking of using a clear drying PVA glue and piling it on fairly thick - Top, sides and the cleat holes possible the underside too if my 1ltr of PVA will go the distance.

So far I have ripped the top off the unit and I'm making a removable 50cmx25mm plywood disc to sit on top - I want to be able to hose the top down between grits. I have screwed the draw units into the frame to add rigidity into the unit. The bottom draw I have cut the back out of to place sand bags and gym dead weights into for extra weight as well as add a thick piece of plywood to take all the extra weight.

I was going to use dowel on my cleats to hold the mirror and use a separate set for each grit. The holes for the dowel would also be lined with PVA glue as a seal to stop the plywood layers trapping grits. Would I be better off just nailing the cleats in and filling in and recoating the smaller nail holes between grits, rather than the reusable holes for the dowel option? The top has be planned to be able to be fixed and removed from the unit without breaking the top surface of the plywood disc with screws/nuts/nails/holes etc.

Is this a good approach, is there a better option, are there better sealers to use, without busting my meager funds. The PVA is water resistant only and I have no idea how damp my under lying cloth will get tbh. I plan on 1-2 hour grinding session with the top be allowed to dry between uses.


Thanks
Steve
Ps. The pine unit was a road side pickup, the disc I have measured and planned but not executed yet so, I haven't fully committed to the top yet.

Pps. I want to be able to make anything from 8" to 16" mirrors on the grinder table over its life time. The reason I baulked at the dowel, was I may have some slurry/grits leak into the top draw, which may present problems for contamination between grits. However the draw should be sealed against drafts etc when the top is in place.