Folding Breakfast Tray

Folding Breakfast Tray
An elegant way to enjoy breakfast in bed or dinner by the

TV, featuring a clever wooden spring for locking the legs.
Woodcademy Plans- Folding Breakfast Tray Copyright 2017: Bagnall LLC Page 1
My wife and I enjoyed watching the PBS series “Downton Abbey” together, but were
attracted to different aspects of the show. I was hooked within the first 10 minutes
when Lady Grantham's maid brought her breakfast in bed on a lovely tray with some
sort of mechanism underneath.
A bit of online research showed that these trays were known as “Hospital” or “Invalid”
trays and were quite common at the time. The mechanism I spotted underneath turned
out to be a wooden spring used to lock the legs during use. We call these breakfast
trays, but this one is not limited to use just on Mother’s Day. It is excellent for enjoying
meals and snacks in any room.
And best of all, this tray is easy to build, consisting of just four simple sub-assemblies:
the top, or tray, rails that wrap around three sides to keep the tray contents in place,
the folding legs, and the spring locking mechanism.
Stock Prep
I used 5/4 rough stock for this project, since it comes thick enough (around 1-1/4
inches) to easily re-saw into two pieces at least 1/2 inch thick that can then be jointed
and planed to 3/8 inch thick. Buying the stock in 5/4 also means that you will have the
thickness needed for making the legs.
Before building begins, let's

discuss how much stock you
need, and how to figure out board
footage. One of these trays can
be built from a single 5/4 by 6 inch
by 8 foot board. (See the stock
layout). I like to draw out the parts
to determine the stock needs. The
basic size is 22 inches or less, so
I drew out three 24 inch sections.
Each of these will be re-sawn into
two 5/8” thick pieces. Additionally,
I added a 12 inch section for the
legs. They only need to be 8-1/2
inches long, but a 12 inch piece
insures that the stock will run
safely through your machines.
Taken together, this requires a 7 foot long board, but that is NOT 7 board feet. A board
foot is a 12 inch long by 12 inch wide by 1 inch thick piece equaling 144 cubic inches.
Our board is 1-1/4 inches thick, so we need to multiply the length by 1.25 to get 8-3/4.
Our board is also 6 inches wide, not 12, so we actually need 4-3/8 board feet. A typical
board will be 8 feet long so you will be buying about 5 board feet of whatever lumber
you choose to use.
Walnut is the proper species to use for an authentic look. I made one in Cherry too, it
came out fine and eventually will darken nicely, but for now it looks a bit too new.
With any project, stock prep is key, but this tray is made up largely of 3/8 inch thick
material with very little structure to keep it from warping after assembly. My secret to
preventing unexpected wood movement is to prep the wood twice.
Starting with rough lumber, I face joint and plane it, then edge joint and rip to width, but
I leave it slightly oversized in all dimensions. Wood, even when properly dried, often
has natural stresses within. Removing significant material, and especially re-sawing,
can unbalance these stresses causing movement. After prepping the stock oversized, I
then sticker and stack the pieces and give them a couple days to ‘relax’ and re-balance
the internal forces. Once they have settled, I have room to rework the stock, starting
again as if the stock were rough. I work through the process, bringing the stock to final
size. Using this two step process, I have never had issues with unexpected wood
movement.
Begin by cross cutting the board into three 24 inch sections and one 12 inch section.
Having the 8 foot board gives you some room for cutting around defects.
The three 24 inch sections get re-sawn into two halves, face jointed and planed,
leaving them a bit thicker than the final 3/8 inch needed. Choose the three sections
that are most closely matched to become the tray.
The other parts are laid out

on the remaining three
halves. These parts will all
eventually be ripped to 2
inches wide, giving you
room to choose the best
material. The spring and
rear rail will end up at 22
inches long, so they will
need to be cut from clear
sections. The side rails are
only 14 inches long and the
leg stretchers are only 11-
1/2, so these can be laid
out around any blemishes
there may be in the stock.
The Top
If you are working with the stock listed

above, the tray body will be glued up of three
sections, each about 5 inches wide and 24
inches long, providing a blank slightly larger
than needed. Lay the three out together and
take a few minutes to orient them for the
best grain and color match. This will be the
area people see most, so you want it to look
attractive.
Simple edge joints will be plenty strong, but with thin stock I prefer to use a “V” edge
banding bit set to create the glue joints. While this does add glue surface, I mostly do it
to keep the pieces aligned as they are clamped. If the joints are milled correctly, they
cannot slip during clamping and there will be much less sanding needed to smooth the
surface.
Turning the Legs

Note: These trays look wonderful with delicately turned legs, but if you do not have the
tools to turn them, they can certainly be made as square tapered legs, and a spade-
foot tapered leg design would look very nice indeed. Both alternate designs can be
seen in the measured drawings at the end of the plans, but these plans are meant to
be a direct reproduction so I do not cover the making of that style leg.
The tops of the legs remain square, so it is important to joint and plane them
accurately to 1-1/8 inches square. They will end up at 8-1/2 inches long, but leaving
them a bit long simplifies the turning.
If you try to turn only part of the

blank round, the corners of the
square section break at the peak. To
prevent this and provide a clean
transition, a hand saw is used to cut
all four corners at the transition point.
Not too deep, maybe 1/4 to 3/8 inch
at the peak. The rest of the leg can
now be turned, be careful not to hit
the square shoulders as you work.
Having turned several of these legs, I found it easiest to first turn the leg to three
diameters; 1, 13/16 and 5/8 inches, using the story stick template to locate the
shoulders. The transition points can be marked onto these three cylinders, and the
details formed as shown in the measured drawings. Work carefully, and remember that
it is much more important that all four are the same than it is that they exactly match
the diagrams.
Shaping the Tray

The next step is to cut the tray to shape, rounding the corners and cutting a notch in
the front. But the glued up blank should be sanded flat and smooth prior to shaping.
There is a tendency for sanders to round over the edges of panels, so sanding first
means that any distortion of the edges will be removed.
Joint one long edge and rip the tray blank to 14 inches wide. Be sure to set the cut to
remove any blemishes along the edge and/or to center the joints. If you used narrower
stock for the glue up, you do not want to have one very narrow piece at the edge.
As wide as this, trimming the

ends on the table saw may be
difficult. Use a straight edge to
trim one end with a circular
saw. Be sure this cut is square
to the long edges. Then the
other end can be cut to 22
inches using the rip fence on
the table saw.
The tray is now ready to mark and cut to shape. The four corners get rounded with a
1/2 inch radius, and a notch is cut into the front edge. Mark a line along the front edge,
1 inch in.
Next mark points along

this line at 3 and 5
inches in from each
edge. (See Tray
Layout Diagram)
A compass is used at
these pivot points to
scribe 1 inch radius
arcs, and connected
with a line 2 inches in
from the edge. Cut the
corners and notch
using a band saw or jig
saw, then sand to the
lines.
Making the Rail Joints

The tray has a rail along three sides. The rear rail is straight, but the side rails are
formed to become the carry handles. These three parts are finger jointed together at
the corners. This is much easier to do before shaping the sides.
The rails are mounted at an angle

as well. Rip the three blanks to 2-
1/2 inches wide. The ends of the
rear rail are cross cut at a 15
degree angle so that the overall
length from point to point is 22
inches. The two side blanks get
only one end cross cut to 15
degrees and should finish at 14-
1/2 inches at the longest point.
These will get flush trimmed later
to final shape and size.
Set up a standard box joint jig to cut 1/4 inch fingers. Use the cut offs from the sides as
test parts to check your set up. The angled parts are still notched with the dado set
vertical, and will fit together at the angle.
Notch the two ends of the rear rail first, referencing from the long points. This is
important to get the proper fit. The angled ends of the sides are notched to match the
rear rail the same as any box joint, using the rear rails to index the first notch.
Assemble the rails without glue to check the fit.
Shaping the Sides and Stretchers
The rail sides need to be shaped using templates which can now be made. The
stretchers also get flush trimmed to a template, so we will make both templates and
shape all the parts at the same time to save on set up.
Print out the templates

from the measured
drawings or the CAD
drawings provided. I
have included a ruler so
you can insure that the
print is to scale. Paste
these to a scrap of 1/2
inch plywood and cut
them out. Rough cut the
templates and sand
them to the lines. Drill
out most of the waste in
the hand holes for the
side template and use a
sanding drum to finish
them.
Take the time to make

the templates
accurately. Any flaw in
the templates will be
transferred to the parts
you make from them.
With the templates

complete, the side and
stretcher blanks are
mounted. The bottom
and angled ends of the
side template should
be aligned with the
template edges.
Rough cut the
blanks on the band
saw. Cut as close to
the template as
possible.
Only the hole and
the top edge are
flush trimmed. The
waste inside the hole
needs to be drilled
out before flush
trimming. Do this
with a 3/4 or 7/8 inch
forstner bit to
remove as much
waste as you can.
With your flush trim bit set up to ride the template, set the part with the bit inside the
hand hole opening making sure it is not touching the part before starting the router and
trimming the hand hole.
A bit of care needs to be taken in flush trimming the curved sections of the sides and
stretchers. As the bit cuts upward toward the top of a curve, there is a chance for tear
out near the top of the arc.
Rough cutting the blank very close to the

template is one solution. Trimming from
the top of the arc downward before
cutting up the other side is another. For
the very best results, you can use a dual
bearing bit, or one bit with a top bearing
and one with a bottom bearing. With the
template and bearing on top, cut half of
the profile avoiding those sections where
the grain is running against the bit. Then
flip the part and template over, swap to a
bottom bearing, and trim the rest. This
virtually guarantees no tearout.
The stretchers get trimmed in the same manner, and again take care trimming the
arcs. The stretcher blanks need to be aligned with the straight edge of the template
and both sides get flush trimmed as well so the blank ends up at 11-1/2 inches long.
The bottom edges
of all three rail
parts need to be
beveled to 15
degrees so they
will sit flat on the
tray. This is best
done on the jointer
with the fence set
to 15 degrees.
Take a series of
light passes until
the bevel is cut
across the
thickness of each
part.
If you do not have a jointer, a hand plane can be used or the edges can be beveled at
the router table using a 14 degree dovetail bit. It will be close enough.
The rear rain now

needs to be fitted with
the ends of the sides.
Use the end of one
side to set the fence
and rip the rear rail
with the bevel against
the fence.
The back is ripped to
this width.
Dry fitting the three rail

parts should now
create a level
transition around the
corner joints.
The top edges of all three
rail parts and the hand
holes get rounded over
using a 1/8" radius bit.
While the router table is
set up, you can round
over the tray body and
the stretchers as well.
The tray top gets rounded
over all the way around,
but the stretchers only get
the curved lower sections
rounded. The ends, notch
and straight upper edges
remain square.
Glue and clamp the three rail sections together insuring that the corners remain
square. The joints will need to be sanded and cleaned up, smoothing the finger joints
and rounding over the tops of the corners to create a smooth transition.
Assembling the Legs
With the rails done, the two

leg sub-assemblies can be
completed and assembled.
Mortises need to be cut into

the legs, and matching
tenons formed on the
stretchers. Examine the
legs, and stack them
together so that the best
sides will be facing outward.
Then mark them on top from
front legs to back. This will
show which faces get
mortised.
The mortises are cut at the
router table. In order to best
support the legs as they are
cut, I built a simple sled.
The sled braces the narrow
bottom of the leg keeping
the square top flat to the
table and fence during
cutting. (see Mortise Sled
drawing)
Two scraps of 1/2" plywood

are joined at right angles,
and blocking is glued to the
base and back to fill the gap
between the lower leg and
the sled.
A 1/4" straight bit is set up in the router table and the fence is set to cut in the center of
the leg. Set the bit height to take a light cut into the leg, and mill all four legs. Raise the
bit and cut all four again. Repeat the process until all four mortises are 1/2" deep. The
1/4" bit will tend to flex if you cut too aggressively, making the mortises sloppy, so take
shallow cuts and allow the bit to do the work.
The corners of the center locking notch of the stretchers need to be squared up since
they were left round by the flush trim bit. Use a hand saw to make the cross grain
shoulder cut and clean up the bottom with a chisel.
The tenons on the stretchers

can now be cut to fit the
mortises. Set up a stacked
dado set in your table saw
(or a flat bottom bit in the
router table) to make a 1/2
inch wide cut. You only need
to remove about 1/16 inch
from each tenon side, so set
the cut very shallow and
shave both shoulders until
the tenon fits the way you
want it to.
The tenons also need to
be notched at the bottom
to fit the mortise and hide
the rounded end. I find
this sort of work easiest
to do with a hand saw
and chisel. Mark the
tenon just before the
round end of the mortise,
and notch it to the mark.
The legs are now ready
for assembly.
The legs are simply glued and clamped onto the stretchers. Be careful to keep them
oriented the same way you stacked and marked them earlier. If you chose two to be
the front legs, you want to be sure not to attach them both to one stretcher.
Apply glue sparingly to the mortises and clamp everything together. Take the time to
insure that the legs are parallel to each other and then set them aside to dry.
Assembling the Tray
The rails are screwed to the tray body from the underside. This is complicated by the
thin rails and the 15 degree angle. Following the right steps can insure the results you
want.
Clamp the rails in place on

the tray. The outer edges
should be about 5/16” in
from all edges as shown in
the drawing, but keeping
them even is more
important than the actual
measurement.
Use a pencil to mark the

location of the rails inside
and out, and remove the
rails. Cut a 15 degree
angle in a scrap block, and
scribe a line down the
center of the angled face.
This is your guide block for
drilling.
Now, 1/8” pilot

holes are drilled
from the top of the
tray using the
angled block. From
the top, the holes
need to angle to the
INSIDE of the tray
as shown. The
holes are centered
between the rails
outline and located
as shown on the
screw pattern
diagram.
The tray is flipped over, and the block is used to countersink the holes at the angle, but
this time, the angle is toward the outside.
The rails are clamped

back to the tray inside
the marks made
earlier.
1/8” pilot holes are

drilled into the rail
edges through the
tray. Careful use of the
guide block will help
the bit stay within the
rails as you drill. #6 by
1” screws are used, so
the 1/8” bit is the right
size.
The screws are an inch long, so the pilot holes only need to be drilled 5/8" into the rails
or a bit less. The deeper you drill, the greater the risk of drilling out through the rail
edge, so only drill as deep as needed. But using this guide block method, I have made
multiple trays without and issues.
If you are using brass

plated steel screws,
no problem, but if you
choose solid brass
screws, I highly
recommend driving a
matching steel screw
into each hole prior to
driving the brass
screw. This will “pre-
tap” the hole and
greatly reduce the
chance of breaking a
screw off inside your
parts.
You can also use a tiny bit of wax on the brass screws to drive them more easily. You
WILL need to disassemble the tray for finishing, so breaking a screw is a problem you
want to avoid.
The only hardware needed in this entire project is a set of four 1 inch brass hinges.
Inexpensive plated brass hinges can be found in any hardware store. Solid brass
hinges will cost more, but with only four, the expense is not great.
Attach a hinge centered

to the top of each leg.
Position the hinge so
that the barrel is flush
with the top of the leg.
You want the tray to be
sitting on the leg when
opened. Drill pilot holes
as needed, and screw
the hinges in place.
These hinges just

surface mount, no
mortising is needed on
the legs or tray.
The two leg sub-

assemblies are
mounted to the tray
bottom 1/2 inch in from
the side and centered
front to back with the
hinge leaves on the
inside. Lightly clamp
them in place, drill pilot
holes for the screws
and attach the hinges.
Be very careful here: The tray bottom is only 3/8 inch thick so you need to insure that
you do not drill through the tray, and that your screws will not show through the
surface. You may need to purchase #4 x 3/8” brass screws if the ones that come with
the hinge are too long.
Building the Spring Lock
Now that the legs are in place, the spring locking mechanism can be built and located.
The spring stock is planed to 1/4 inch thick, edge jointed and ripped to 2 inches wide.
Your spring should still be around 24 inches long. The drawing shows that the spring
shoulders should be 19-1/2 inches apart, but it is far better to cut them to fit the actual
structure you have built. Lots of little variations may have happened during the build,
so this method will insure the proper fit.
Start by attaching one of

the templates to one end
of the spring stock and cut
it out using a band saw or
coping saw. Start by
cutting the two shoulders,
then cut the arch from the
end. File and sand to the
lines and test fit to the
notch in the stretcher. The
arch should fit inside the
notch with the shoulders
against the inside of the
stretcher.
The spring mounting block

can now be located
properly. With the tray
upside down on the bench,
set the shaped end of the
spring into one of the legs
with the other end resting
on the opposite leg set.
The block is now centered
between the legs and
under the spring.
Glue the block to the tray bottom, but do NOT glue the spring. Add a clamp or weight
to the top of the spring to hold the block in place as it dries.
While the spring and block
are held in place, the final
length can be marked out.
Insure that both leg sets
are open all the way and
mark the uncut end of the
spring where the
shoulders will meet the
inside of the stretcher.
After the spring block has
dried this is where the
second template is applied
matching the shoulder
lines on the template to
the marks just made on
the spring.
Cut and shape this end of

the spring the same way
as the first end. The final
bit of assembly is to attach
the spring to the block.
With the legs open, set the
spring into the notches of
each leg. Mark the center
line of the spring then drill
and counter sink two holes
through the spring into the
block for the same #6 by
3/4 inch screws used to
attach the rails.
Again, if you are using actual brass screws, driving a #6 by 3/4 inch steel screw in
each hole will help keep the brass screws from breaking.
The tray is now fully assembled and the spring mechanism can be tested. Lift the
rounded ends of the spring to unlock the legs and fold them down. With the legs folded
closed, the spring should rest on top of the stretchers, holding the legs in the folded
position even when the tray is right side up.
Finishing the Tray
You may have noticed that these sub-assemblies (other than the spring block glued to
the tray bottom) are not glued to one another but fastened with screws. This will make
the finishing much easier, since everything can be disassembled and finished
individually.
Do this now. Remove the spring, then the legs from the tray and the hinges from the
legs. Finally, remove the rails from the tray. The four sub-assemblies are now ready for
sanding and finishing.
I use water based
finishes almost
exclusively in my shop.
They are much easier
and safer to use, clean
up with water not
solvents, and the
modern formulations
are very durable. The
drawback to water
based finishes is that
they dramatically raise
the grain of the bare
wood.
This can be sanded off after the first coat of finish, but I prefer to “pre-raise” the grain
using water. Simply “paint” the parts with water, wetting all the surfaces but NOT
soaking them. Wipe off any excess as you wet the parts. Also be sure to wet all the
surfaces front and back to prevent warping. Set all the parts aside to dry completely.
Now the finish sanding

can begin with120 grit.
Sand all the parts and
apply the first coat of
finish. Sand this coat after
it dries with 220, then
apply the next coat, sand
with 320 and finally
another coat sanding with
400 grit. The final top
coat does not get sanded,
but can be lightly buffed
with a piece of brown
paper. (trust me, this
works!)
Final Assembly
Once all the parts are finished, the tray can be assembled for the final time. Set the
rails on the bench upside down and set the tray bottom on to them. Hand-fit the screws
through the tray starting with the front ends of the side rails since they are the most
easily moved, then working to the back rail. I highly recommend using a screw driver to
avoid stripping the holes or breaking the screws.
The hinges are attached back to the legs and the legs back onto the tray bottom.
Finally the spring can be replaced. Test the spring locking mechanism again to insure
everything is properly aligned.
Your Folding Breakfast Tray is now ready for serving loved ones on special occasions,
enjoying snacks in front of the TV or for gifting at weddings or house warmings.
If you have not already done so, check out my website at www.woodcademy.com
There are two episodes of WoodcademyTV walking you through the entire build and
providing tips and tricks along the way.
Some Notes on Design
Although the design of the tray is not mine, all the fine details are. I had no antique
example to take measurements from, so many items were made up by me based on
what I have found to be typical. This sometimes leads to mistakes that only show up
when the first unit is made. I thought you might be interested see what issues I had
and how I solved them.
First, when attaching the rails to the tray, I located the pilot holes by eye. This looked
great until I set the legs in place and realized that the rails screws were in the way of
the hinge screws. So for the plan, I marked out the rail screws inside the legs.
Second, the spring on the prototype was set1 inch below the tray. The spring locked
the legs open, but when folded the spring was well above the stretchers so the legs
drooped rather than being held tight to the bottom of the tray.
When folded, the side of the stretcher is about 3/4 inch off the tray, so I reduced the
block to 3/4 inch thick and adjusted the stretcher profile so that the notch was 3/4 inch
tall as well. With these changes, the spring now holds the legs tight to the bottom of
the tray when folded.
Cut List
Tray Top (one)- Glue up approximately 24 x 15 x 3/8 inches. Final size, 22 x 14 x 3/8
inches
Rear Rail (one)- 22 x 2-1/2 x 3/8 inches
Side Rails (two)- 14-1/2 x 2-1/2 x 3/8 inches
Leg Stretchers (two)- 11-1/2 x 2 x 3/8 inches
Spring (one)- 22 x 2 x 1/4 inches
Spring Block (one)- 2 x 2 x 3/4 inches
Legs (four)- 1-1/8 square x 8-1/2 inches
Front View
Side View
Bottom View
Stock Layout
Leg Layout
Leg Story Stick
Permission for printing is granted by the author for private use only
Tray Shape Layout
Rail and Stretcher Templates
Rail Screw Pattern
Spring Layout
Spring End Templates
Many antique examples of this type tray have square rather than turned legs.
If you do not have a lathe to make the turned legs, you can easily substitute simple
square tapered legs or “spade foot” tapered legs as shown above.

Folding Breakfast Tray

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Folding Breakfast Tray

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Folding Breakfast Tray

An elegant way to enjoy breakfast in bed or dinner by the

Before building begins, let's

The other parts are laid out

If you are working with the stock listed

Turning the Legs

If you try to turn only part of the

Shaping the Tray

As wide as this, trimming the

Next mark points along

Making the Rail Joints

The rails are mounted at an angle

Print out the templates

Take the time to make

With the templates

Rough cutting the blank very close to the

The rear rain now

Dry fitting the three rail

Assembling the Legs

With the rails done, the two

Mortises need to be cut into

Two scraps of 1/2" plywood

The tenons on the stretchers

Clamp the rails in place on

Use a pencil to mark the

Now, 1/8” pilot

The rails are clamped

1/8” pilot holes are

If you are using brass

Attach a hinge centered

These hinges just

The two leg sub-

Start by attaching one of

The spring mounting block

Cut and shape this end of

Finishing the Tray

Now the finish sanding

Rear Rail (one)- 22 x 2-1/2 x 3/8 inches

Side Rails (two)- 14-1/2 x 2-1/2 x 3/8 inches

Leg Stretchers (two)- 11-1/2 x 2 x 3/8 inches

Spring (one)- 22 x 2 x 1/4 inches

Spring Block (one)- 2 x 2 x 3/4 inches

Legs (four)- 1-1/8 square x 8-1/2 inches

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