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Shop Project #08 Desk & Charging Machine: CNC Router Intermediate — Two-Sided Indexed CNC Router Setup

Charging Valet — Woodworking Plan & Build Guide

Phone, watch, earbuds and a catch-all in one block, with a wireless charger hidden under the phone. Download the printable PDF plan, vector SVG, layered CAD/CAM DXF, and 3D carving files below—complete with step-by-step build instructions and our 100% plant-and-wax finishing protocol.

Finished Spec Phone, watch, earbuds and a catch-all in one block, with a wireless charger hidden under the phone.
Recommended Stock 6/4 hardwood planed to 1-1/4", 12-1/2" x 7-1/2"
Est. Build Time 1.5 to 2 Hours (plus 15-min finish buff)
Recommended DuraGrain Finish DuraGrain Hardwax Oil (12 fl oz — 0.0 g/L VOC Tung, Walnut & T1 Carnauba)
Charging Valet Completed Build Finished with DuraGrain
Completed Shop Build • Finished with DuraGrain Hardwax Oil (12 fl oz — 0.0 g/L VOC Tung, Walnut & T1 Carnauba)

Plan & CAD Downloads

Production-ready CAD vectors nested in inches with layer names encoding operation type and exact cut depth.

⇩ Download Standalone Printable Plan PDF
⇩ Primary Cut DXF Layered CAD/CAM vectors ⇩ Blueprint SVG Dimensioned part layout ⇩ Complete Charging Valet Project Archive (.ZIP) Includes Plan PDF + All Multi-Sheet / Underside DXF & SVG Cut Files
Individual Sheet / Underside DXFs: charging-valet.dxf • charging-valet-valet-block-underside.dxf
Free to download, print, build (including items you sell), and share—just please do not edit or modify the files and redistribute them.
Section 01 • Cut List, Stock Selection & Tooling

Bill of Materials, Hardwood Species & Shop Tooling for Charging Valet

Accurate stock preparation is half the battle when building the Charging Valet. Verify your blank dimensions and thickness before adhering the template or zeroing your CNC/laser axis:

Part Name Qty Stock Thickness Part Bounding Box (W × H)
Valet block11-1/4"12-1/2" × 7-1/2"

Recommended Hardwood & Sheet Stock Selection

For laser-cut finger-joint boxes and desk organizers, use void-free Baltic Birch plywood (B/BB grade) or hardwood-core veneered MDF/plywood, and always measure actual sheet thickness with digital calipers before cutting. For CNC-routed keepsake boxes, valets, trivets, and wall racks, select kiln-dried American Black Walnut, Hard Maple, Cherry, or White Ash planed dead-flat so pocket depths and through-tenon shoulders register with sub-thousandth accuracy.

Required Shop Tools, Blades & Bits

  • CNC router, two setups. 1/4" end mill for the big pockets and profile; 1/8" end mill for the watch cable channel.
  • Top pockets: phone bed 1/4", watch charger and its cable channel 5/16", earbuds 5/8", catch-all 5/8".
  • Underside: 3.6" round pocket 7/8" deep for a Qi charging pad, leaving 1/8" of wood under the phone, plus a 1/2" cable channel out the back.
  • Hold-down clamps, double-sided CNC tape, or brad nails on a leveled spoilboard
  • Flush-trim chisel or oscillating tab cutter + 120, 180, and 220-grit sandpaper
  • Hardware: A round Qi charging pad up to 3-1/2" across and no more than 3/4" thick, with a thin foam spacer to press it against the wood.
  • Hardware: A watch charging puck. Measure yours: the pocket is 1.10" across and 5/16" deep, with a 0.18"-wide channel for its cable.
  • Hardware: Cork sheet for the bottom.
Section 02 • Step-by-Step Shop Workflow

How to Cut, Carve & Assemble the Charging Valet

Follow this numbered shop sequence to take your Charging Valet from rough lumber to a crisp, heirloom-grade piece ready for finishing:

Step 01

Measure Actual Stock Thickness & Verify Machine Setup

Before running your machine, measure your actual stock thickness with digital calipers (nominal stock: 6/4 hardwood planed to 1-1/4", 12-1/2" x 7-1/2"). Import the production DXF into VCarve or Fusion 360 in inches with Z-zero set to the material surface, select all vectors, and run Fit Curves to Vectors (0.002″ tolerance) for silky G-code.

Step 02

Underside first while the blank is flat

Underside first while the blank is flat: run the underside file (it is mirrored, as seen from below), with the outline as a registration reference.

Step 03

Machining & assembly stage 2

Flip the block, register on the same corner, and cut the top pockets, then the profile with tabs.

Step 04

Before finishing, test the charger

Before finishing, test the charger: put the pad in its pocket with the phone in the bed. If it won't charge, deepen the underside pocket so the skin is 3/32".

Step 05

Machining & assembly stage 4

Ease the edges and finish with DuraGrain Hardwax Oil (0.0 g/L VOC Tung, Walnut & T1 Carnauba finish). Seat the pad with foam behind it and cover the underside with cork.

Step 06

Recommended VCarve / CAM Toolpath Sequence

Execute your CNC toolpaths in this exact order to maintain vacuum/tab hold-down rigidity until the final perimeter cut:

  • Underside first: in VCarve Pro use a double-sided job and import the -underside file onto the bottom side; otherwise run it as its own job, aligned on REFERENCE_OUTLINE.
  • Pocket, layer POCKET_0.250: cut depth 0.250", 1/4" end mill. Select every vector on the layer together so islands are left standing.
  • Pocket, layer POCKET_0.312: cut depth 0.312", 1/8" end mill. Select every vector on the layer together so islands are left standing.
  • Pocket, layer POCKET_0.625: cut depth 0.625", 1/4" end mill. Select every vector on the layer together so islands are left standing.
  • Profile, Outside, layer PROFILE_OUTSIDE_1.250: cut depth 1.250" (through), 1/4" end mill, with tabs.

Section 03 • Master Woodworker Notes

Pro Shop Tips & Common Mistakes to Avoid

1. Grain Orientation & Short-Grain Strength

Always orient the long grain of your board strictly parallel to the X-axis (left-to-right on the template). Diagonal grain runout across a narrow utensil neck, hook tenon, or featherboard finger creates short grain that can snap under everyday load.

2. Progressive Sanding (120 → 180 → 220 Grit)

Never skip grits or sand raw hardwood above 220 grit before applying natural polymerizing oils. Over-polishing raw wood to 400+ grit burnishes the wood cells shut and prevents DuraGrain Walnut Oil or Hardwax Oil from anchoring deep inside the fibers.

3. Water-Popping & Wiping Excess Oil Dry

For kitchen utensils and trivets, misting with warm water before your final 220-grit pass eliminates raised-grain fuzz permanently. When applying DuraGrain finishes, always wipe the surface 100% bone-dry after 15–20 minutes so the oil cures inside the wood rather than turns tacky on top.

0.0 g/L VOC Architectural Finish • Includes #0000 Pad & Microfiber Cloth

The DuraGrain Single-Coat Architectural Cure Protocol for Charging Valet

Whether you cut the Charging Valet on a CNC router or a CO2/diode laser, spray lacquer and wipe-on polyurethane pool inside finger joints, gum up kerf-cut living hinges, and leave a plastic film that peels or clouds over time. DuraGrain Hardwax Oil bonds molecularly inside the wood grain in a single wipe-on, buff-off application—with 0.0 g/L VOCs and zero toxic fumes in your shop:

Step 01 • Scrub In with #0000 White Pad

Apply Thinly with the Included 3"×4.5" #0000 Non-Abrasive Pad

Sand all surfaces to 180–220 grit (cleaning any laser char from finger tabs if applicable) and vacuum away dust. Pour a small ribbon of DuraGrain Hardwax Oil (12 fl oz) and work it evenly into the wood using the included 3"×4.5" #0000 white non-abrasive palm pad. The pad shears the Pure Chinawood Tung Oil, Refined Walnut Oil, and T1 Carnauba Wax deep into end-grain pockets, dados, and miters without runs or sags.

Step 02 • 15-Minute Buff-Off

Buff Bone-Dry with the Included Dark Charcoal Microfiber Cloth

Allow the oil-wax blend to penetrate for 15 minutes, then buff the entire piece completely dry using the included 12"×12" 300 GSM edgeless dark charcoal microfiber buffing cloth. Because our formula cures by oxidative cross-linking rather than solvent evaporation, it leaves a dead-flat, velvet-matte tactile finish that highlights natural walnut, maple, cherry, or Baltic birch figure and spot-repairs effortlessly.

DuraGrain Hardwax Oil 12 fl oz Kit with Pad and Microfiber Cloth
Complete Kit • Includes #0000 White Pad + Charcoal Microfiber Cloth

DuraGrain Hardwax Oil (12 fl oz)

0.0 g/L VOC Pure Tung Oil, Alkali-Refined Walnut Oil, T1 Brazilian Carnauba & USA Beeswax architectural finish. Formulated & poured in Pittsburgh, PA.

$34.99 Shop Hardwax Oil Kit →
DuraGrain 10-Pack #0000 Non-Abrasive White Applicator Pads
Shop Refill • 3"×4.5" Non-Woven Applicator Pads

10-Pack #0000 White Applicator Pads

Keep extra shop-grade #0000 non-abrasive white pads on your bench for CNC pockets, boxes, and furniture builds—zero steel-wool rust specks.

$9.99 Shop 10-Pack Pads →
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