Hello,

First question since joining this forum and feel free to move this post to a more suitable category.

I am building a gaming table that is about 76 inches long and 48 inches wide. The top perimeter is framed with what I call arm rests (6 inches wide, 3/4 inches thick Iroko, surfaced on four sides), to hold anything that will fit including playing cards. The inside space in between the arm rests (the vault) is recessed below the arm rests and where games are played. Removable leaves can be placed on top to serve as a dining table.

I need to create 6 pockets into these arm rests that ideally look the same. The long sides hold two pockets each, the short sides just one. As per the attached, each pocket is 7 inches long, 3 inches wide and about 5/8″ deep. One side of the pocket is angled or sloped inward towards the center of the table and the bottom of the pocket. The other sides are at 90 degrees.

The angled slope is to more easily retrieve cards from the pocket towards you. I would have preferred a slope between 30-35 degrees but could only find a 45 degree carbide bit (from Lee Valley). If I had to choose, I would be tempted to settle on any angle in between 30 and 45 that results in well made pockets.

I am wondering which tool I could or should use, and have access to bench chisels, routers and a drill press. I do not yet have a router plane and unable to imagine how it could help in this situation. Or any other tool for that matter. I also don’t have much wood left to spare, certainly not in the sizes required to build new arm rests.

I created a router template jig to contain a router bit and would switch between a 45 or straight plunge bit as needed. Or I could remove most of the inside waste from the flat portion with a forstner bit and use the router only to clean up the sides and possibly the bottom.

So I am okay with either approach for the flat portions but hesitating on the slanted or sloped portion. The PMV-11 chisels cut nicely and can see using them with some kind of guide or rest so I stay on the chosen angle. Careful work should also result in a crisp transition at the bottom of the pocket where the slope meets the flat portion (tested on scrap pieces until the approach is perfected), so perhaps it’s really a matter of confidence and careful execution.

Thanks for your suggestions.

Marco