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now im not a born builder my woodwork skills are best not spoken about.

but just wondering to build myself a portble cabret table from a music stands legs with a wood or plastic top screwed onto it, would this seem fit to hold a little weight and would this work?

if not any ideas for cheap very portble tables

thanks

If the table is to be covered with a cloth of some kind then check out the folding camping tables offered by Camping and Leisure suppliers. Lightweight, dirt cheap and usually very solid.

Yes, I built a folding table for cabaret out of a music stand and a rectangle of MDF.

However don't use the thin music stands made out of wire as I don't think this will be strong enough to hold it securely. Use the heavy duty music stands made out of metal poles (I bought one on ebay for approximately £20 or maybe less). Remove the socket that holds the shaft from the flimsy sheet of metal as this sheet of metal is usually too flimsy to form a table top. Instead bolt the socket onto a rectangle of MDF. So the leg will now slide onto the socket on the MDF. Quite a simple job. Some velvet fabric as a tablecloth will hide the joins.

Mandrake wrote:If the table is to be covered with a cloth of some kind then check out the folding camping tables offered by Camping and Leisure suppliers. Lightweight, dirt cheap and usually very solid.

I got one from argos 30 pound and it's lasted over two years performing on the street (although now it's broken)

However if you want to make your own, Marc Wilsons complete course in magic has instructions on building a folding table in the "Make at home magic' category.

Before you decide to go ahead and build a table, have a look at http://www.thewoodwizard.co.uk/

You might find it works out cheaper and end up with a quality table. I highly recommend thewoodwizard

Nice site - and I like his logo as well!

sammy_789 wrote:now im not a born builder my woodwork skills are best not spoken about.

but just wondering to build myself a portble cabret table from a music stands legs with a wood or plastic top screwed onto it, would this seem fit to hold a little weight and would this work?

if not any ideas for cheap very portble tables

thanks

Music stand legs are a little flimsy. If you want to spend just a little extra, go out and get a drummers stand. Kind of like a music stand but much more sturdy. You can probably find a used one somewhere. Then go to your local Do It Yourself place Hit the electrical section and get a flange. It comes in two parts. One is almost like a little pipe that is threaded on one end
Make sure you get one that is a little larger then the circumference of the top of your drummers stand. With the flange make sure you get a base, not sure if the flange will come with one or not. Basically the base threads on to the flange.

Afix the flange to the top of the drummers stand. The non threaded part usually has a hex screw in it to afix it to conduit. Just afix it onto your stand. Now screw the base onto the bottom of a brief case, or a piece of plywood, whatever you want. you can get multiple bases and afix them to different table tops to meet your needs and change them around. In anycase now you have your base and a top. Folds flat, easy to transport, just open up the drummers stand and screw your top onto the top with just a twirl of the wrist. Instant portable table.

I have limited space aboard my air ship when traveling to performances so found that a folding card table performs the task wonderously. Having covered it with red velvet and some brass studs, it really now looks the part. A brief browse of ebay and one will discover that these can be obtained at very low cost.

Dr Percival RP Pound wrote:
I have limited space aboard my air ship when traveling

Are you sure about this? My own airship, which I use for short journeys to the post office and helping out old folk on shopping trips, has approximately 875,000 cubic feet of space that can be used for storage in the envelope above the ceiling, although I hear that the larger German models such as the Hindenburg have an envelope capacity of over 7,000,000 cubic feet which can be utilised for storage.

You can go for standard busking set up. A keyboard stand (my preference) or a restaurant's tray stand with a table top. I made one by cutting a piece of half in plywood and fabric tacking and stapling a towel then faux leather on it. You can also just buy a pre made table top:

http://miraclemagiccompany.com/pages/Ta ... ables.html
http://www.theambitiouscard.com/aitem.cfm?itemid=12

V.E. Day wrote:

Dr Percival RP Pound wrote:
I have limited space aboard my air ship when traveling

Are you sure about this? My own airship, which I use for short journeys to the post office and helping out old folk on shopping trips, has approximately 875,000 cubic feet of space that can be used for storage in the envelope above the ceiling, although I hear that the larger German models such as the Hindenburg have an envelope capacity of over 7,000,000 cubic feet which can be utilised for storage.

From that comment my dear, I can only deduce that you have not yet had the pleasure of traveling aboard one of Professor Volks Wagonski's Brilliant Flying Beetle machines. Cargo space on such a vessel comes at a premium.

The best buy I have made is my Roll on Table made by Made to Measure, the effects I use in my shows have changed over the years but the table remains a constant companion. Having a professional appearance is very important as a working pro as decisions can be made to book you without the client really seeing what you do. An example is a parent arriving at the end of your show to collect their child from a party or dropping off a child and leaving before you start, all they get to see is how your setup looks and this can be a make or break for future bookings. If you have a tatty bashed and chipped table or worse still operate from a scrappy suitcase you are unlikely to get repeat bookings even if your act is strong.
What I look for in a magicians table
I do around 400 gigs per year so I need a stable table that will take the bumps and bashes and still look good. I need a solid working area that will take my props, easy access to a pack away section and a shelf for all the bits I don’t want on display. I need good castors that will last and a sturdy handle that will carry the weight of my props and I don’t want the box to be too heavy as I have to lug it around. I need a table that is large enough to carry all my props yet small enough to fit into my boot and a table that sets up quickly as time is money. That’s a tall order but an order that the Meade to Measure range of tables delivers in spades.
I have had a few suit tables over the years and the made to measure table is amongst the best I have worked with. I have just updated a table that I have used for close on 4 years, that’s a staggering 1600 gigs and the table still looks good. If I break down the cost of the table divided by the amount of gigs I have used it for it works out to around .15p per performance, now that’s a good investment.
The multi layers of paint ensure that bashes just appear as dents without any peeling paint. I have used the optional cover for my table and I recommend paying the little extra for this as it protects from scratches and scrapes.
I highly recommend the work of made to measure and fin the table range they offer gives value, quality and flexibility. Now that’s what I’m looking for in a magic dealer.

Sammy: So much will DEPEND on which effects you are going to use.
Do you need a large table surface?
How will you get the table on and off the cabaret floor--and without dropping the props all over the floor.
An ordinary music stand, depending on your venues, can look a bit cheap & will it hold fairly heavy props?

For Cabaret I always used a Box Table. Thus was a 12 inch square box, the lid 'half' opened and rested on part of the box making a small but sturdy working surface on which to place props.
Once you fastened the lid with a clasp, the Box had a leather flat handle and you just picked it up,& the table stand, with one hand, and walked off safely.

In the old days--here we go again!- my Standard Act consisted of, Round The Bend (a Chinese Compass/come Road Sign), Chinese Sticks, 3 to 1 Ropes, Confabulation OR The Floating Ball, Yacht Race ( a banner trick), Invisible Ribbons & The Stamp Album. Across 2 side of the Box I put wide (6 inches) black elastic and these held the Album & Round The Bend.

The Box Table also held the first of 8 Mr. Tippi Childrens' Acts. The other 6--I had the props in a very large bag with an empty one for discards and that table was a bit like Mr. Punch's playboard but longer and a bit wider. It was 24 inches long and just 7 inches wide--with a 7 inch square of wood nailed on one end for better balance of certain props. It had a long striped tablecloth hanging down with a 12 inch Funny Rabbit heavy silk over this. Basically this form of table was for my main Puppet routine and to hold The Haunted Castle when we journeyed to rescue the Puppet from the evil Scarecrow.
I amazed my self by making this one!

For Kid's work I have also used one of the folding Laundry Stands(Argos) again with a bright front cover and a lift up table top which packed inside at the end.

For Hiram J Peabody's 4 Acts I had a simple bag with 2 rods where the handles should be. Heavy card inside to keep it open safely.
Also for other Acts I used a knitting frame. This like the laundry frame just folded up at the end.
And there have been at least 10 other tables over the years.

So, Sammy,You will find that you will have to acquire several tables or containers to fit individual Acts.

Allen Tipton

Very many thanks to Magic4children for his kind comments about my tables.

Just for the record, I have only met magic4children a couple of times at conventions. In fact I had to google his user name to find his website and then I recognised him. I only mention because I am alway suspicious when someone comes out of the blue and recommends something.

If anyone does want anymore info about any of my tables please get in touch.

Dave.

http://www.madetomeasuremagic.co.uk" target="_blank" target="_blank

And Sammy--I forgot. Matthew Johnson--born in Sheffield--citizen for years in Canada has an aluminium case which fixes onto a table stand. He also uses 'banners' as ''Kid's Magic' (not this cannot remember all of them--that fix on the front. Stuff is inside..Lid acts as table top.
I do have photos

Allen Tipton