By Beverly Dunne

It sounds like the set up to a "light bulb" joke. You know, "How many teamsters does it take to screw in a light bulb? 14. Got a problem with that?" But the number of craftsmen involved in creating a globe table for the the lobby of the Regal Alaskan Hotel in Anchorage is no exaggeration. It took seven trades: woodworker, woodcarver, metal worker, machinist, plexiglass fabricator, painters and art broker, to complete the unique globe table that won the Design Portfolio Award for specialty products.

CF Cabinetry of Denver, CO, provided the woodwork for the globe. Shop owner Carl Felder also engineered the project and designed shop drawings for every trade. Felder said it took four weeks of collaboration with Leon Loughridge, "the idea man," before the design was approved. It was Loughridge who was initially contacted by art broker Parker Blake Inc. of Castle Rock, CO, to come up with a special piece for the lobby.

The unique characteristic of this piece was the massive size, Felder said. The globe's diameter is four feet with the outside of the tabletop at six feet. The table base measures 6-feet in diameter. The poplar legs were turned by a neighboring woodworker, Matthew Ketchum, who handles CF's lathe work, Felder said. Poplar was also used on the tops and stretchers on the table. All woodwork was finished with paint and lacquer.

The aprons are made of bending ply and feature hand painting and relief carving by Loughridge's company, Dry Creek Gold Leaf Inc. of Littleton, CO.

The globe itself was fabricated by Plasticrafts of Denver. Because of the scale of the globe, it took the company several tries before achieving a perfect sphere, Felder said. The globe art was hand painted by Paul Bishop of Colorado Springs, CO.

Custom-made brass hoops and pivot points accommodate the size of the project. Longero Metals Inc. of Denver bent the brass hoop and machining of the pivot was done by T and H Machining & Mfg. Inc., also of Denver. And because of its size, the globe knocks down into eight pieces for easy shipping, Felder added.

Per the hotel's specifications, the globe was completed in two months. The finished project totalled $15,000, with woodworking accounting for 40 percent.

Most of the machining was done on an SCMI sliding table saw and SCMI shaper, Felder said. Other equipment in the 6,000-square-foot shop includes basic joiners, shapers and saws, he added. CF Cabinetry is set up in shop space that Felder shares with A Woodworking Wizard Inc., a furniture restoration firm that often does the finishing on his projects, Felder said. CF Cabinetry specializes in one-of-a-kind fine furniture and cabinetry but will handle "any unusual piece," he added.