The Fletcher Capstan Table

After digging into my notes of cool things to look at again and share, I found this amazing piece of furniture handmade and assembled by David Fletcher.

The original idea for this table goes back to the nineteenth century by a man named Robert Jupe, who patented his design in 1835. Jupe’s table was initially round, and had an ingenious geometry and a similarly ingenious method of making it expand radially, changing it from a small size to a table of larger diameter. However, these tables could not store their own expansion leaves, were not truly round in every stage, and they were slow and laborious to operate. The idea was wonderful though, and was a source of inspiration and re-invention.

David Fletcher has been designing and manufacturing furniture for over thirty years. He started life in the antique business, dealing in English and continental furniture of the 17th and 18th centuries, and this gave him a strong understanding of form and proportion, taught him construction, and a knowledge and love of wood.

David has been working on his Capstan Table project since 1997. He has constantly improved the design to today's sophisticated, standardized version. During this process he has developed his skills as a mechanical engineer and has committed every single one of the 5,000 odd separate components to 3D computer drawings. Whilst the company draws upon skilled craftsmen and high tech procedures in the manufacturing process, David is still very closely involved in every aspect of the construction and assembly of a table, and in fact normally performs on-site installations himself.

Check this out...

And more videos in this link http://fletchertables.com/videos/

Cheers - Gaston